Shrimp Festival

This weekend marks the 46th annual Isles of Eight Flags Shrimp Festival in Fernandina Beach. "The Isle of Eight Flags Shrimp Festival will celebrate our 46th Annual festival on May 1, 2 & 3, 2008 and the Pirate Parade will be held on Thursday, April 30th at 6: 00 p.m.. Held in the heart of historic downtown Fernandina Beach on beautiful Amelia Island since 1964, the free admission Shrimp Festival is a fully juried arts and crafts show (300+ booths) recognized by Sunshine Artist Magazine as one of the top 200 outdoor festivals in the United States. The festival also features Antiques (100+ booths), the Southwest Airlines Kids Korner (25+ booths), live entertainment on the Riverfront Stage, 6th Street Stage and in the Southwest Airlines Kids Korner, plus shrimp prepared every way imaginable by 28 food booths all staffed and run exclusively by Nassau County non-profit groups as fund-raisers. The Shrimp Festival encompasses the 8-block length of Centre Street down to the intra-coastal waterway and one block on both side and hosts over 130,000 visitors annually. The downtown merchants hold a sidewalk sale during the business day on Friday prior to the Festival, which starts at 5:00 pm (Riverfront and Fun Zone only on Friday evening). Pirates entertain the crowd during two “invasions”, one Friday night followed by fireworks and one on Saturday afternoon. Several contests are held, including the Miss Shrimp Festival Scholarship Pageant, Little Pirate and Big Pirate Contests, and Beard Contest. Sunday features the Blessing of the Fleet and the Best Decorated Boats Contest, including the traditional Best Decorated Shrimp Boat. Public and private school artwork from all schools in Nassau County have a special display area and also compete for prize money. Free shuttle bus transportation to off-site parking benefiting non-profit organizations. Further information can be found on the website www.shrimpfestival.com." This was taken from Jacksonville.com.