I am a big fan of the Historic Lewes Farmers Market and this year’s season is about to open. To celebrate, we bought tickets to last evening’s festivities. It all began with cocktails at the Lewes Historical Society complex. It was a beautiful evening as you can see and we mingled with old and new friends. Each of us received a card with our Hosts’ name, address and directions. At homes all over town, groups of 10 – 12 each enjoyed a wonderful meal, prepared by some of Lewes’s best chefs – all donated by the Hosts. All of the money raised selling tickets will provide support to the volunteers that make this one of the best Farmers Markets around.

HISTORIC LEWES FARMERS MARKET has expanded the season for 2009. The new dates are May 30 through October 10. I’m already dreaming of heirloom tomatoes and sweet corn, fresh picked peaches and mushrooms. Our RE/MAX office is just down the street from the market every Saturday during the season and it’s my first stop of the day!

SUPPORT THE MARKET – The good folk at Fish On Restaurant in the Villages of Five Points in Lewes are putting together a special “Farm to Table” dinner on Friday, March 13, from 5pm to 9pm.  There will be the regular menu plus a very special menu featuring local ingredients.

No reservations are needed, and part of the proceeds will benefit the Historic Lewes Farmers Market.  So join all of your farmer’s market friends for dinner.  If you’re new in town or just visiting for the weekend, there’s no better way to get acquainted with Lewes and the friendly people that live here year round. Should be a heck of a lot of fun, and we will definitely wander from table to table to visit.

When Carlos Beneto Grau took the microphone last night, he opened by telling the crowd –

We are beginning our US tour tonight by playing our first concert

in the first town in the first state!

Even though the weather had turned cold during the afternoon and rain and sleet was in the forecast – very unusual for Lewes – the hall filled up quickly before the music began. The Spanish Brass concert was the 4^th in the 2009/09 series of Coastal Concerts in this 10^th Anniversary season. The program went from J.S. Bach to Duke Ellington with a little Antonio Carlos Jobim and Fat Waller in between. The Quintet has been together for many years, performed all over the world and won many International competitions.

Here they were in Lewes, Delaware, and the audience loved them. Residents and visitors alike have discovered Coastal Concerts and other cultural events during the “off season”. This was the first time Bill and I were able to make it and we are looking forward to the next and final concert presents the AVIV String Quarter from Israel playing Haydn, Shastakovich and Schubert on Saturday, March 28^th. For more information, please visit Coastal Concerts.

For those of you who only come to “the beach” in the summer, you’re missing out on a host of culture that kicks in after Labor Day and continues through the winter.

It’s time for the Teller Wines 6th Annual Wine Expo & Benefit. This year’s Expo will benefit the Historic Lewes Farmers Market and the Delaware Hospice. Where else can you taste 100 wines and support such worthy local organizations?

In addition to the wine and the comraderie, there will also be delicious culinary treats by:

• The Buttery
• Bethany Blues
• Cafe Azafran
• Fisher Bay Gourmet
• Kogler’s Old World Breads
• Lewes Yacht Club
• Nage
• Sweet Disposition

With live music by Jeff Irwin & Robert Thomas, the Lewes Yacht Club is the place to be on

• Saturday, March 28th
• 1 pm – 4pm
• Cost – $60 per person
• Tickets are limited!
• Call Teller Wines at 302-644-2566 and tell them Kathy and Bill sent you!
• Visit Teller Wines

What a weekend coming up. President’s Day Weekend is earlier than normal and includes Friday the 13th, Valentine’s Day and the President’s Day holiday. We are hoping for good weather so everyone can enjoy all of the planned events.

• On Friday the 13th, you can attend the Sixth Annual Fine Art Show & Sale  preview reception sponsored by the Lewes Historical Society. This event takes place at the Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal on Cape Henlopen Drive in Lewes from 5:30 to 8:30 Friday evening. Advance tickets are $25 and only $30 at the door. If you cannot make the preview, the Art Show continues 10 a.m. Saturday the 14th and Sunday the 15th.
• Looking for something different for Valentine’s Day? The Delaware Comedy Theatre presents “Unlucky in Love” at 7 p.m., Friday the 13th, at Fish On Restuarant in the Villages of Five Points. The cost is only $10 per person at the door. Food, which is fabulous, and drink is available for purchase. If you go, please ask for Fred, the Manager, and tell him Kathy and Bill said HI!
• On Saturday the 14th of February, make plans to enjoy the Third annual Lewes Winter Fest Block Party. This event is sponored by the Lewes Chamber of Commerce and takes place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the historic district surrounding Second Street in downtown Lewes. Participting merchants and restaurants will offer Valentine’s Day specials.
• On Sunday the 15th of February, Clear Space Productions will present its 10th anniversary concert titled “An American Songbook” at 3 p.m. in the Little Theatre at Cape Henlopen High School, Kings Hwy., Lewes.  For details and tickets, visit Clear Space Productions or call 302-644-3810.

The third annual Sea Glass Festival will take place on October 11th and 12th of 2008 at the University of Delaware, College of Marine Studies Campus, also known as The Virden Center, in Lewes, Delaware. This will be the first time the Festival has taken place on the East Coast; the first two took place in Santa Cruz, California. With a wonderful weather forecast for the weekend, we are expecting a crowd. The event will feature nationally known artisans and collectors of this increasingly popular coastal collectible.

In addition to lectures and seminars the international “Shard of the Year” contest will be held awarding a $1,000 cash prize to the collector with the most rare and desirable piece of sea glass.  The contest which attracted over 900 entries in ‘07, will be judged by board members of the North American Sea Glass Association who are hosting the two-day event.

A growing crowd of sea glass collectors from across the U.S. attended the last two events and several international collectors will visit this year.  Exhibitors include jewelry and craft artists, photographers and authors that have been featured in the national media.

The public is welcomed for an admission charge of $5.00 for the entire weekend.  Children 12 and under are admitted free of charge.  Festival hours are from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.  For more information visit the Sea Glass Festival page.

Lewes is the town in Delaware where many travelers catch the Ferry heading home to New York, New Jersey or other points north. For those of us that live in either Lewes, Delaware, or Cape May, New Jersey, we leave the car at home and take our bikes to spend the day and enjoy a great cruise across the bay. On your next trip, take a detour and spend some time in the town of Lewes. There you will find wonderful shops, great restaurants and beautiful historic homes in town and along the coast or canal.