Halloween may be on Saturday, but that won’t stop the Gaslamp Quarter from “dressing up” in period costume the next day, Sunday, November 1, during the 9th annual Fall Back Festival.

The street fair includes “wild west” entertainment such as staged shootouts and rope tricks as three stages showing folk dancing, live bluegrass music and more.  Kids can participate in crafts and contests, pan for real gold, and learn about Caliornia history through puppet shows and live demonstrations of lost skills.

And, of course, there will be all the fun stuff you’d expect to find at any good street fair – food, face painting, caricature art, inflatable jumps and carnival games.

Fall Back Festival takes place on Island Avenue — between 4th and 5th Avenues — Sunday, November 1, from 11:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.  (Remember, our clocks fall back one hour that day, too.)  Admission is $5 for ages 3 and older.  For more information, visit www.gaslampquarter.org or call (619) 233-4692.

Tags: downtown, fair, family, festival, Gaslamp Quarter, history, kids

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One of my favorite things about San Diego is all the diverse neighborhoods located within the county.  All in all, there are more than 100 neighborhoods and one each offers its own unique experience, personality and charm.  While I could go on and on about each, my hands-down favorite is Ocean Beach…well “OB” as us locals like to call it.

With each visit, this town’s laid-back, hippie beach vibe is contagious.  I find myself truly relaxed as I sip mimosas in the sun, in awe with my latest fashion finds and entertained by the diversity of people and personalities that flock to this area. 

To sum it all up, here are my OB highlights, hot spots and favs:

Food

• Whenever friends or family come to visit, I make sure to take them to Tower Two Café.  While the food is just average, it’s the casual beach setting that draws me here…. Ok, and the mimosa beach buckets. (True story: the bottle of champagne comes in a colorful beach pale filled with ice, and it even has a cute little shovel attached!) Here, you can sit in the sun on the outdoor deck and look out into the ocean.  It’s dog- friendly too, so your pup can enjoy the sun, socializing and table scraps.

 

Runner ups:

• Hodad’s has been around for over 40 years and serves some of the best burgers in San Diego, even CNN thinks so.  The catch, it’s so popular that there is almost always a line out the door but the burgers are definitely worth the wait. 
• If you like fish tacos you must go to South Beach Bar & Grill.  This little beach bar has won numerous awards and recognition and in my opinion, serves the best fish tacos I’ve ever tasted…try the Mahi taco, you won’t be disappointed, I promise!!

Shopping

• My go-to for cute shoes or accessories is Lola Luna on OB’s main drag, Newport Avenue.  They always have the best shoes that you don’t see in department stores, which means most people won’t have them.  Also, they always have a sale table outside with $10 shoes… what could be better than that??

Runner ups:

• Dream Girls is one of my newer discoveries and also one of the more expensive places in OB.  It’s located on Newport Ave and they have an amazing selection of
  

  heaven on earth

  good-quality clothes, shoes and accessories so you defiantly get what you pay for.  So far, it’s proven impossible for me to leave this place empty handed.

• Also on Newport Ave. is the Closet.  I like this place for cheap clothes and shoes for nights out or special events.  Since the clothes are always changing to keep up with the latest trends I find that most visits here are either hit or miss.

Activities

• Of course a visit to OB would not be complete without stopping at the beach.  True beach lovers can surf, swim and tan, while those who just  want to take in the view can perch themselves on the boardwalk or walk across the OB Pier for amazing ocean views.  There’s also Dog Beach, a leash free beach area where dogs and their owners can splash through the waves and play fetch on the beach.

Runner ups:

• Every Wednesday from 4-8 pm, (and 4-7pm in winter) OB hosts a fantastic farmer’s market along Newport Ave. Here you can find fresh, locally grown produce and flowers, but there are also delicious food stands with all types of ethnic cuisine (mmm…sambusa) and live music, handmade jewelry and, drum roll please…… llama rides!
• Antiquing… not really my thing but if I was going to take up the hobby, I’d definitely shop in OB where they have the largest concentration of antiques and collectable in all of San Diego. In OB’s Antique District, on Newport Ave. you will find an eclectic array of one-of-a-kind antiques, mid-century modern furniture, fine estate sale items, vintage jewelry and so much more.

Tags: antique, beach, dining, dog, food, ocean beach, Shopping

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Remember when Peter Brady made two dates for the school dance with two different girls and tried to keep them both without either one finding out?  His solution was simple: find a kid at school who looks identical to him for some reason and set him up with one of the unwitting young ladies.

I’m facing a similar double-booking problem this weekend — two huge, 2-day events that I look forward to each year: Adams Avenue Street Fair and the Pacific Islander Festival – both taking place September 26 and 27.  Unfortunately, without the wits and resources of a Brady, there’s no way for me to enjoy both days of programming.  Yes, these are my troubles.

Adams Avenue Street Fair

 

Adams Avenue Street Fair is the outdoor event I most look forward to every year.  With six musical stages, carnival rides, and a food and arts & crafts bazaar, it’s San Diego’s most happening block party as well as Southern California’s largest free music festival.  I never miss it, and every year I come away with some great, new local discoveries, as well as chili-lime kettle corn breath.

It’s hard enough choosing which stage to go to at any particular time during Adams Avenue Street Fair, let alone deciding which day to cut entirely.  This year, the music I’m most looking forward to, or curious about, will come from Red Pony Clock, Akayaa & Bolga Zohdoomah, and Jack “Mr. Bongo” Costanzo & his Latin Orchestra.  And I can personally vouch for The Styletones and Gregory Page.

Find a complete schedule of performers and their websites here.

Adams Avenue Street Fair runs from 10:00 A.M. to 9 P.M. on Saturday, and from 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M.

Street Fair Report 9/28/09: One thing this year’s Adams Avenue Street Fair had in common with those from most previous years is that it was the best one yet.  I became so swept up in the music on Saturday that I found myself returning for more on Sunday and, in the end, I stood up the Pacific Islander Festival (and my pulled pork and mac salad).  So much for multitasking.  Peter Brady — 1, me — 0.  But boy, did I dance this weekend!

Charlie Konopka busks some San Diego blues on Adams Ave.

Yes, even the buskers brought the goods this year.  It reminded me of an embryonic South by Southwest.  If next year’s Street Fair is to top this year’s, I think these three acts will have to put something together.

 

Pacific Islander Festival

The other event I look forward to every year is the Pacific Islander Festival, also going on September 26 and 27.  This one takes place at Ski Beach on Mission Bay, and it celebrates the rich folkways of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia with ethnic food, arts & crafts, cultural exhibits, and a stage with a steady schedule of musical and cultural performances.  It’s the place to go to sit on the grass with your plate lunch and shave ice and take in some ukulele combos and a poi ball dance performance.  That’s my kind of dinner theater.

 

The Pacific Islander Festival opens on Saturday at 9:00 A.M. and is pau at 4:00 P.M.  On Sunday, it’ s 8:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.

Limited parking is available for $10 in the lot on the west side of Ski Beach, but you should get there early to catch that worm.  A good alternative would be to park at one of the three remote parking lots and catch a free shuttle into the festival.  And wear sunscreen, bruddah!

Tags: festival, food, free, live music, outdoors, things to do, what to do

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Of Stephenie’s 5 to Try This Weekend, here’s the one I tried — #1.

When you consider all the public art along downtown San Diego’s waterfront — from the temporary and seasonal to the permanent collections — it’s clear the Port Authority of San Diego is committed to art as a way to keep the waterfront dynamic and its visitors stimulated.

Each year, ArtWalk on the Bay celebrates that spirit by packing as many artists and art pieces into Embarcadero Marina Park North (right where Seaport Village is) as possible, along with art teachers, musicians (on two stages), and even demonstrations from culinary artists.

Here are some scenes from my art walk today — day one of ArtWalk on the Bay 2009.

This was just a small taste of day one of ArtWalk on the Bay.  The art festival stretches all along the Embarcadero North, and there’s still one more day to go.  The festival starts again Sunday at 10:00 A.M.

A tip for those of you not taking advantage of our great public transportation system to get to ArtWalk: Seaport Village offers the closest parking but it’s best to get there before noon for a good shot at that parking lot.  Otherwise, since there is no parking enforcement on Sunday, grab any of the metered parking spots along Harbor Drive and save your change.

Tags: art, downtown, festival, outdoors, public art, seaport village, things to do, what to do

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Art museums in Balboa Park display great works by artists and masters, both living and not-so-living.  But art — even great art – is an ongoing thing.  It’s happening now and it will continue to happen into the future.  That’s why Balboa Park provides local artists of the living variety with a venue to create and display their creative offspring.

The Spanish Village Art Center is home to 37 working artist studios that are open to the public every day.  Here, you can wander through and watch as art is created — clay thrown, glass blown, and tapestries sewn (among other art forms that don’t necessarily rhyme).  You can check out the local art all around and even support the artists by picking up a fresh piece for yourself.

One of my regular stops in the Village is Lucy Wang’s studio where she can always be seen creating one of her beautiful Japanese watercolor pieces or a rich 3-D painting that must be seen to be believed.  You heard me.  3-D.  I know there’s a better name for her deep, layered paintings, but 3-D really paints a picture, no?

There are also hot glass blowers like Jake Burksmith who put on quite a show when they do their thing.  Hot glass is a dynamic medium that’s fascinating to watch in action.  ATTENTION PARENTS: Even if you’re just across the lawn at the Natural History Museum, take a minute to stop by Studio 18 in the Spanish Village and see if any of the hot glass artists are creating.  Your kids want to see this!

The Spanish Village Art Center offers art classes for all ages almost every day.  I was just looking into pottery classes for the fam.  Children’s pottery classes are given every Saturday, rain (ha ha) or shine, and adults can take the class Tuesdays and/or Thursdays.  Check out the website for the full class schedule.

And Speaking of Pottery . . .

By the by, if you like pottery and ceramics but don’t feel up to the hassle of actually creating it, walk a few steps over to the Casa del Prado this Saturday, August 29, where Clay Artists of San Diego will hold their first annual Ceramics Show and Sale.

The show will feature unique and original pieces, both sculptural and functional, by 26 local clay artists.  If the word “ceramics” doesn’t exactly make your imagination dance, remember what I said about the glass artists and try to think outside the pot.  One thing artists are good at is making the ordinary extraordinary.

The Ceramics Show and Sale will take place in the Casa del Prado’s largest room — the Majorca Room (room 101) — on Saturday from 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.

Tags: art, balboa park, kids, things to do, what to do

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Question of the day, what does wiener dog racing have to do with college football? Find out this Saturday at the 13th annual Wienerschnitzel Wiener Nationals at Qualcomm Stadium. The competition is actually a fund-raiser and awareness-building event for the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl & the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl games played in San Diego every December.

Early this morning fifteen hopeful wiener dogs and their owners held exhibition heats for the local Fox morning show. Many of the dogs looked better than they actually ran, all suited up with capes and even racing goggles.

The real action starts at 8:00am Saturday at Qualcomm Stadium. The 16 fastest dogs advance to the semi-finals which will be held during a Padres game at PETCO Park on September 1st.

If you think your dachshund has the goods, visit the Bowl Games Association website for entry details and register online.

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Summer nights in San Diego are meant to be enjoyed outdoors. Last week we joined a couple of other families, bundled up our kids and took in a Free Movie in the Park at Viejas Casino & Outlet Center in Alpine, about 35 miles east of downtown right off Interstate 8.

The beautiful Viejas Outlet Center has a big park right in the center of all the shops where they show great family movies on Tuesdays in the summer. Tuesday August 18th is the final installment of the series, with August Rush as the feature at 8pm.

Here’s what you need to know.

• Price: Free
• Shoppers - Arrive early to enjoy the farmers market and great outlet center savings
• Food – We bought dinner from the food court, which has plenty of options
• For the lawn – Bring some blankets and low-sitting lawn chairs (so as not to obstruct the views of those behind you)
• Snacks – We brought some sweets, you can bring in whatever you like except for alcohol
• Weather – It’s San Diego! It will get down to about 65, so a light jacket will be plenty

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On August 15 and 16, the National Park Service, in an effort to get across to us that our national parks are awesome, offered free admission into more than 100 national parks across the nation, and it just so happens that we have one right here in San Diego.

Cabrillo National Monument sits above the Point Loma shore where it is generally agreed Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, leading the first European expedition to explore what is now the west coast of the United States, landed his flagship the San Salvador in 1542.  (Cabrillo must have known he was in the right place when he climbed to the top to find this statue.)

It was his expedition that produced the first written description of the west coast of North America.  It would be another sixty years before anybody else would pay any attention to the region and, in 1913, President Woodrow Wilson would commemorate Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo with the national monument we all know and love today.

From this elevated spot in Point Loma, you can see San Diego — all of San Diego — on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other.  And what’s that landmass just to the south?  Why it’s Tijuana, Mexico!  How many national parks can show you a bay, an ocean, and a foreign country?  Take that, Yellowstone!

It is easy to stand on this spot and imagine yourself in Cabrillo’s shoes –- the ocean at your back, looking over that big bay to the land beyond, rich with mountains, coastal plains and promise.  Now imagine you’re wearing thigh-high boots and poofy shorts.  That’s what it is to be an explorer, near as I can figure.

Much more than a monument, here you can:

• EXPLORE the tidepools and their unique ecosystem.
• HIKE the two-mile Bayside Trail.
• VISIT the historic Old Point Loma Lighthouse.
• CHECK OUT the bookstore.
• SEE the “Age of Exploration” exhibit in the visitor center.
• LISTEN to Park Ranger talks on Point Loma’s military history.

ATTENTION, KIDS! You can earn your Junior Ranger badge from Cabrillo National Monument.  Just ask for a Junior Ranger activity at the visitor center.  After you have completed the program in the park, you will receive the Park Ranger badge and oath from an actual Park Ranger or volunteer.  If that’s not cool, I don’t wanna know what cool is!

Cabrillo National Monument is open every day of the year, from 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.  Regular entrance fees are $5 per vehicle, and $3 per pedestrian, bicyclist or motorcyclist.

Tags: cabrillo national monument, kids, national park, outdoors, things to do, what to do

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“The Sky Tonight”

We all know about one star that everybody comes to San Diego to enjoy (the sun, folks) but what about the billions of other stars that get virtually no play here in the city where there are too many lights at night to allow us access to the heavens?  (I know it’s a burning question.)  For me, summer does not officially begin until I can get a good look at that Summer Triangle so, being a resident, I don’t think twice about making the half-hour drive east on Highway 8 — at least as far as Descanso, just east of Viejas Casino — for a proper night sky.  But once a month, a clear night sky is within anyone’s view right in the heart of the city.

On the first Wednesday of every month, Balboa Park’s Reuben H. Fleet Science Center presents “The Sky Tonight,” a 60-minute planetarium show in the newly updated IMAX theater.  There, you can sit back in comfort and see a truly unobstructed view of our cosmic neighborhood as one local astronomer or another leads you on a tour of the sky that night — presenting the season’s constellations as well as any number of fascinating astronomical topics.  (On Wednesday, September 2, get to know the fall constellations.)

And there is something here for everyone, including the astronomically illiterate (and I mean that affectionately).  Of course no one is astronomically illiterate after the show.  “The Sky Tonight” is generally recommended for ages 5 and up because of the material and the darkness required for a planetarium show, but you know your little stargazer better than anyone.  (My son was 2½ when he attended for the first time.  I was prepared to leave if things got out of hand, but it worked out all right.  Just use your best judgment, moms and dads.)

There are two shows on planetarium nights – one at 7:00 P.M. and one at 8:00 P.M. — and they do tend to fill up.  If I were you, I would arrive 30 minutes prior to showtime to buy tickets, or buy them online.  If you do happen to miss out on tickets, don’t worry — the San Diego Astronomy Association sets up a telescope outside on the Prado for free public viewing on planetarium show nights, weather permitting.

Want to spend more than a measly 60 minutes exploring the heavens?  How about three nights?

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: astronomy, balboa park, camping, Julian, outdoors, starfest, stargazing, things to do, what to do

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The luau was completely sold-out, and for good reason. The setting was directly on the beach in Shelter Island, and the weather was gorgeous. My husband and I were greeted with leis and escorted to our tables, where we had a direct view of the water, the stage, and were in close proximity to the buffet table. After grabbing some Mai Tai’s, we were set. I was happy to have left my grass skirt at home, as I would have been the only one besides the dancers wearing one.

The sunset over the water was gorgeous, and truly added to the tropical atmosphere. The Hawaiian band was the perfect touch to the evening, and we were able to enjoy a dinner show of music and Polynesian dances while chowing down on our food. No one made me eat the luau pig or judged my plate of delicious salad, sticky rice, Hawaiian rolls, coconut creme brulee, and additional macadamia nut cookies. Hey, I was there to tell you about my experience, and I needed to experience two desserts.

The Kona Kai summer luaus will continue on Friday evenings on July 17, 24, 31, and August 14. It’s a great idea for a date or a night out with friends and family, and if you’re there for a special occasion they announce it on stage. So if you’re looking to score points with your in-laws in town celebrating their anniversary, I’d suggest you make reservations for the next luau ASAP.

Tags: beach, hotels, kona kai, luau, shelter island

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