Summer has swung into full effect. While the Texas heat may take some adjustment, at least we’ve got the longest days of the year to enjoy summer activities.
Meanwhile, residents of the Southern Hemisphere are experiencing shorter days and longer nights. Known as the summer solstice, this phenomenon occurs when the North Pole tilts towards the sun and the South Pole faces away, causing the sun to travel through space on its longest path away from Earth. The summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere occurs this Monday, June 20, which is also the first day of summer.
With the milestone comes a day with 17 glorious hours of sunlight. Towns and cities throughout Texas will be taking advantage of the long day with an array of events for fun in the sun:
About 30 minutes west of Fort Worth, Clark Gardens Botanical Park in Weatherford is throwing a Summer Solstice Party on Monday, June 20, from 5 p.. to 11 p.m. Ticket To Ride, a Beatles Tribute Band, will perform live music throughout the evening. The new family-friendly event will also have a Central Market food truck and children’s activities, including games and crafts such as tie-dying t-shirts, making sugar scrubs, hula hooping, and balloon toss competitions.
At 2 p.m. Monday, June 20, in San Antonio, dancer Catherine Cisneros performs her annual solo performance celebrating the summer solstice. Incorporating her dance with “Passing Light,” a solar light installation by sculptor Christopher Janney, the dance depicts the earth traveling in a “celestial clock. At 2 p.m., solar light will illuminate painted grids on the floor of the dance location, which is the San Antonio International Airport’s Long-term Parking Garage.
In celebrating of the solstice, music will take over Pan Am Park and 10 other Austin venues, including the Empire Control Room and The Sahara Lounge, for the third annual Solstice Festival. The main festival will be on Saturday, June 18, featuring two stages for live music, food and drink vendors, and art installations. Parties around the city will be held on Friday, June 17. More than 50 artists and bands are participating.
Habitable Spaces is both a farm and artist residency, located roughly 45 minutes of San Antonio in Kingsbury. Saturday, June 18, the artists of Habitable Spaces are hosting the second annual Summer Film Festival. Filmmakers will be displaying their short films throughout the farm and forest. vVisitors are welcomed to bring a tent or hammock and camp out. Food and drink vendors will be available, along with opportunities to assists artists and create your own art
If you know of any events to celebrate the 2016 summer solstice this weekend, please share it with in a comment below!
