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Borderfest is in a great area by the waterfront and a short walk from downtown restaurants."
the harbour. Now she’s co-convenor of volunteers for the event and is thrilled to recruit friends and family as volunteers to share the exciting experience. “It’s probably the chance of a lifetime,” she explains, “because it’s fine to see it (the Bluenose) on the dime but it’s unbelievable up close.” Holland is also pleased that she’ll be able to share this historical experience with some of her 17 grandchildren. She points out that the Nao Santa Maria is sailing from Spain to take part in the TALL SHIPS Challenge. General admission to the festival area is $10 per person. Admission plus boat touring is $15 for boarding passes. Only 5,000 of the latter will be sold each day as that is the expected capacity of the boats. In addition to being able to board ships while in port, tickets for sailing on the Empire Sandy are available. Five sailings are available: twice daily on Saturday and Sunday, in addition to Friday evening's Parade of Sail. Ticketing information can be found at www.ticketscene.ca. Be prepared for pirates in the festival area. Captain Fishbone and the Crew of the Forgiven will be visiting from Michigan and setting up pirate camp. So bring your camera and be prepared to protect your treasure. Sponsors for the event are Carpenters’ Local 1256 and Imperial Oil. The latter will bring its Mobil Performance Zone with an iRacing simulator and tire change competition. In addition, food vendors, a beer tent, memorabilia and souvenir stands and face painting will be available in the festival area. Expecting crowds in excess of 35,000 people from both sides of the border the tall ships festival is joined by two other events: Bluewater Borderfest Music Festival 24 Lifestyle July/August 2019
MARK MCNAIR
Get your ticket to hop aboard the Empire Sandy all weekend long, starting Friday night and twice Saturday and Sunday, to sail around Lake Huron.
and ARTZcape by the Bay. For the seventh year, over 100 artists from all over Ontario have been invited to show and sell art at this cultural extravaganza. All types of visual art are included so there’s something for every taste, from traditional paintings to jewellery, sculpture, metal art work and high-end home décor. Shelley Ambroise has attended the event several times and says she always goes home with finds. “I can’t resist the jewellery.” She first started attending because her cousin is one of the featured artists but last year she was there as part of her job as special projects coordinator with Tourism Sarnia Lambton. Her duties included surveying attendees on how far they’d driven to be at the event. “The answers were surprising,” she says. “There were people from Michigan, Hamilton, Toronto, Kitchener-Waterloo and London.”
This year she’s coordinating bus tours attending the three simultaneous events and is expecting crowds from all across Ontario, including Peterborough, Hamilton, Kitchener and Bowmansville. ARTZcape is popular with adults but kids aren’t left out, with a kidzone featuring pirates that will be doing crafts and painting with the little ones. Stop by to take on the captain in a sword fight. Professional chalk artists will be creating art on the spot all weekend and these will be auctioned off at the end of the event. This is a fundraiser for Pathways Health Centre for Children. In the licensed tent area, bands, food trucks and a cash bar will be available for enjoyment. According to organizer Sandi Grimshaw, a check area will be provided for those who purchase works of art but don’t want to carry them around all day. “We’ll take care of that for them,” she says. An interactive indigenous fair will see a crafts table, dancing and storytelling areas. ARTZcape kicks off on Thursday night with a ticketed, pirate-themed event at Sarnia Yacht Club. Grimshaw explains that there will be special snacks, an auction of selected art work, pirate-friendly rum drinks and entertainment. Tickets are $50 per person and can be purchased by emailing artzscapeinfo@gmail.com or by calling 519-339-9735. Celebrating its third year of offering top musical acts to festival goers, Borderfest will feature music on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings. More than 7,500 people attended last year and more are expected this year to see entertainers like Lou Gramm of Foreigner, John Payne of Asia, and Kelly Keagy of Night Ranger. Mark McNair has attended