By East Cooper CARTA Riders- www.eastccrider.com
Image, Right, CARTA #401 East Cooper Connector at Sweetgrass Pavillion, Mount Pleasant Waterfront Memorial Park
Mount Pleasant, SC- Two CARTA Bus Routes give both visitors and locals a better way to visit this year’s Sweetgrass Festival at Waterfront Memorial Park in Mount Pleasant, SC on Friday, June 3rd. and Saturday, June 4th. The new CARTA 401 East Cooper Connector brings riders from around Mount Pleasant through the communities where the baskets are made to the annual celebration. An improved CARTA 40 Route gives visitors from both downtown Charleston and the Highway 17 corridor in Mount Pleasant access to the festival.
Those arriving at the festival on the #401 East Cooper Connector from around Mount Pleasant will be dropped off at the Sweetgrass Pavilion in Waterfront Memorial Park at the Festival.
The East Cooper Connector will bring visitors from Coleman Blvd., East Cooper Hospital, Belle Hall, Snowden, Six Mile (where many of the people who make the baskets live), Town Centre, Central Mount Pleasant, Watermark, Bowman Road, Sea Island Shopping Center and other locations along the route. Full route information can be found on http://busec.org/... online.
Those coming from Downtown Charleston can board the CARTA #40 at the Mary Street Transit Center, a block north of the Visitors Center, between King and Meeting Streets, from which it begins its run at 38 minutes after the hour. They’ll get off the bus near the intersection of Patriot’s Point Blvd. and Coleman Blvd, for a short walk down to the park. Full #40 Route information can be found at http://busec.org/... online.
The festival is described as, “a visual feast that will capture the spirit and sounds of the Gullah Geechee people's history and culture, through their gospel songs, storytelling, artists, crafters, quilters, basket making demonstrations and the largest showcase of sweetgrass baskets in the Low country. Loads of family fun and game activities for children to enjoy, and delicious Gullah Cuisine provided by Low country restaurants and food vendors. Company I-54th Massachusetts Reenactment Regiment will reflect on the African American's experience and contributions to the Civil War.”
The Sweetgrass Festival is part of the larger celebration of all forms of art that are the Spoleto and Piccolo Spoleto arts festivals in Charleston, SC and the surrounding communities. Sweet grass baskets are a local craft linked to hundreds of years of African American cultural tradition in the area.
The 2011 Sweetgrass Cultural Arts Festival has been designated: One of the “Top 20 Events” in South Carolina for 2011 by The Southeastern Tourism Society.
Information on the festival can be obtained by calling (843) 856-9732, or by visiting www.sweetgrassfestival.org. Admission is free.