Last weekend, Virginia Beach launched 2012’s series of summer events with the Patriotic Festival — a three-day celebration of our nation’s military featuring concerts on the beach, vendors along the boardwalk, and air shows over the Atlantic Ocean.

Last weekend was nothing short of amazing. I’ve seen air shows before, but never two days in a row over the ocean. =) On Saturday, I managed to finagle an invite from Heather to Sky Bar, which had to have been one of the best vantage points for snapping photos of the Blue Angels as they soared south past the Hilton towards the demonstration area over and over during their performance. Saturday night, J and I leisurely walked up and down the boardwalk, dodging the occasional rain drop and listening to the sounds of Steel Pulse coming from the stage on the sand at 5th Street. Sunday was another perfect beach day, and we biked to the Oceanfront to watch the Blue Angels again — this time at the water’s edge.

This year’s Patriotic Festival also kicked off 12 days of OpSail 2012 Virginia, which coincides this weekend with Norfolk’s annual Harborfest and the bicentennial of the War of 1812. I told you it was going to be a busy summer. =)