Not even the threat of rain could muffle the excitement of some early attendees of the 36th annual Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts.

The festival had already begun to show sparks of life as travelers and locals started to file into downtown State College yesterday.

Ten-year-old Mel Meder and her best friend Grace Byrne, 11, were getting an early start on the festival.

Meder held a makeshift brown paper bag sign above her head on Allen Street yesterday. The sign advertised the free face paintings she plans on giving this week.

"I'm already excited for Arts Fest," she said. "We just painted a butterfly on a little girl's face. I think she really liked it."

"We did this last year, too, and it was lots of fun," Byrne said. "We do it for free but sometimes people give us tips."

An enormous water booth attracted the attention of about seven children. Parents who hoped to stay dry watched from a distance.

"This is just great," said Beth Bartlett of Old Town, Maine. "This is our first time at the Arts Fest."

Bartlett stood watching her two sons run through a stand that randomly dumped buckets of bright blue water on them.

Five-year-old Jake Bartlett stopped long enough to wipe the water from his eyes and tell his mother how much fun he was having.

"We were going to leave town tonight but I think we might have to stay for a day," Bartlett said while watching her two sons laugh and play.

Rita Megill, of Beaver County, stopped on Allen Street and took in the scenery.

"I love this town," Megill said. "I have great memories of Arts Fest."

Megill's son is a Penn State alumnus and she is in town to prepare for her son's upcoming wedding.

"This is just an added bonus," Megill said.

The festival gives the town a sense of a celebration, Megill said.

"Just to see this place decorated like it is," Megill trailed off as she chuckled at the children playing on the closed street.

Some people, however, are hesitant about the return of Arts Fest.

"I heard that everything is overpriced," said Alexia Block (freshman-psychology). "I don't like to look at art that I won't be able to buy."

But Block said she plans on attending the Arts Fest anyway because there is "nothing else to do."

"It would be cool if they got some more stuff to do after dark," Block said.

More than 100,000 people are expected to attend the festival.