{"id":16390,"date":"2014-02-23T06:37:36","date_gmt":"2014-02-23T14:37:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/?p=16390"},"modified":"2014-02-23T06:37:36","modified_gmt":"2014-02-23T14:37:36","slug":"annual-wistaria-festival-set-for-march-16th-shuttle-tickets-now-on-sale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/?p=16390","title":{"rendered":"Annual Wistaria Festival Set For March 16th, Shuttle Tickets Now On Sale"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Press Release posted 2\/23\/14 –<\/em> The Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual Wistaria Festival on Sunday, March 16, 2014. The festival first began in the early 20th century, drawing as many as 100,000 people over an extended period of time. Now the vine, which is on private property, is available to the public for viewing only one day a year, this year on the 16th. Crowds in excess of 10,000 people are expected.<\/p>\n

The Guinness Book of World Records has certified the vine as the world\u2019s largest blossoming plant, and\u00a0estimates that at its peak, the vine had as many as 1.5 million blooms, weighed 250 tons, and covered\u00a0more than an acre of ground. The vine is so large that it encompasses the better part of two properties. \u00a0At one point the vine, which was originally planted in 1894, actually destroyed a structure on one of the\u00a0properties, which crumbled under its weight.<\/p>\n

In addition to the vine viewing, downtown Sierra Madre is transformed into an arts and craft fair for the\u00a0day, with more than 100 artisans and crafters displaying their work at booths on the town\u2019s two main\u00a0streets. \u00a0Local shops and restaurants will be serving the delightful cuisine Sierra Madre has become known for. \u00a0Since the surge in popularity of outdoor dining in the 1990s, Sierra Madre has had a reputation throughout the Los\u00a0Angeles area as a great place to dine al fresco with a spectacular view of the San Gabriel mountains just\u00a0to the north. There\u2019s something for every taste, with a variety of international flavors at the local eateries,\u00a0Mexican, Italian, Thai, and California Continental cuisines.<\/p>\n

A dozen musical acts will be performing at five outdoor venues that ranges from solo acoustic guitar and\u00a0vocals, to blues rock, country rock and more. \u00a0The downtown festival is free to all who attend. Viewing of the vine is also free of charge, but due to the\u00a0steep uphill climb to the private properties and limited parking in the vicinity of the vine, it is recommended\u00a0that visitors enjoy a ride in the shuttle buses provided for their comfort. Tickets for the shuttle are $15\u00a0round-trip when purchased in advance. Seniors over 65 and children 6- 12 are $7.<\/p>\n

Because the vine is on private property, it is not ADA compliant. Due to the hilly terrain, the site will not\u00a0accommodate wheelchairs, strollers or people with limited mobility.
\nShuttle tickets can be purchased online and printed on your home computer up to and including the day of\u00a0the event. Visit www.2014wistariafestival.eventbrite.com<\/a><\/strong> to purchase your tickets.<\/p>\n

The Wistaria Festival is sponsored by the Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce, with assistance from\u00a0Chamber Sponsors Athens Services, Southern California Edison, The Kensington Group and The\u00a0Mountain Views News.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Press Release posted 2\/23\/14 – The Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual Wistaria Festival on Sunday, March 16, 2014. The festival first began in the early 20th century, drawing as many as…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4,7],"tags":[8,36,179],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16390"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16390"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16390\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16390"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16390"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sierramadrenews.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16390"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}