California Current Events
Happy New Year! Here’s a sampling of what’s happening in the Golden State during the first few months of 2008:
North Coast Current Events
For three weeks, 1/21 through 2/13/08, the Taste Mendocino celebration will honor the county's culinary and enological bounty. The event kicks off with a week devoted to fresh shellfish, continues with a celebration of locally foraged mushrooms and ends with the third annual International Alsace Varietals Festival in Boonville. Over 60 supporting events include seminars, demonstrations, dinners and expeditions – something for everyone! (gomendo.com)
The city of Mendocino will host its 26th annual Whale Festival on 3/1 & 2/08. Along with whale watching (visible from the headlands or you can take a charter boat trip to see them up close), there will be games for kids, informative presentations, wine tastings (Saturday only) and more. A free trolley offers rides to participating merchants and nearby events. (MendoWhale.com)
Fort Bragg gets into the game on 3/15 & 16/08, where beer and clam chowder will share the bill with the ocean’s awesome creatures. Along with dozens of microbrews provided by the Fort Bragg Rotary Club, the area’s top chefs will produce their favorite chowders. A marine mammal art exhibit and crafts fair are also part of the two-day festival. (MendoWhale.com)
Shasta & Cascades Current Events
Drakesbad, a secluded getaway offering rustic and quaint accommodations to Lassen Volcanic National Park visitors, will begin accepting reservations for its 2008 season on 2/15/08. The ranch, affiliated with the California Parks Company, will open for the season on 6/5/08, weather permitting. (drakesbad.com)
Wine Country Current Events
One of our favorite California current events, the 7th annual Sonoma Valley Olive Festival runs through 2/28/08 and features more than 30 olive-related activities – cooking demonstrations, Martini Madness, live comedy shows and more. (olivefestival.com)
Meanwhile, mustard season – a beautiful time of the year when wild mustard blooms and carpets area vineyards with brilliant hues of green and gold – will be celebrated in Napa Valley 2/2/08 through 3/29/08. This 15th annual “season of sensational events” showcases food, wine and art, and it celebrates the valley’s rich agricultural and cultural bounty. (mustardfestival.org)
San Francisco Bay Area Current Events
Muir Woods marks 100 years as a National Monument on 1/9/08, and the parking lot will be turned into an outdoor amphitheater for a commemorative ceremony and a historic reunion of conservationists, rangers and scientists. Any day is a great day to visit Muir Woods, but on this special day you can participate in ranger-led hikes and enjoy birthday cake too! Additional centennial events continue throughout the year. (parksconservancy.org/visit/park.asp?park=64)
Dine About Town is back on 1/15-31/08, when dozens of San Francisco's most popular restaurants will offer creative-yet-affordable, three-course, prix fixe lunches and dinners at the reduced rates of $21.95 and $31.95, respectively, exclusive of tax and gratuity. The savings are impressive, and the meals and restaurants are even more so. For a complete list of all the participating restaurants from A16 to Zingari visit the website. (onlyinsanfrancisco.com/dineabouttown)
Named one of the top ten parades in the world by the IFEA (International Festivals and Events Association), the Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco is one of the few remaining night-illuminated parades in the country and one of the many California current events worth making a special trip to see. The largest celebration of its kind outside Asia, 2008’s festivities will usher in the Year of the Rat, Lunar Year 4706, culminating with a spectacular parade of elaborately decorated floats, school marching bands, martial arts groups, stilt walkers, lion dancers, Chinese acrobatics, the newly-crowned Miss Chinatown USA and the grand finale, 200-foot long Golden Dragon (Gum Lung). The fun begins with the Chinese New Year Flower Fair on the weekend three weeks prior to the parade, 2/2 & 3/08 (so that families can stock their homes with the requisite traditional fruits and flowers), and the parade begins on Saturday, 2/23/08, at 5:30pm, rain or shine. The parade is preceded by a Community Street Fair, which continues on Sunday, 2/24/08. Gung Hay Fat Choy! (chineseparade.com)
Central Coast Current Events
Although the event itself isn’t until May (5/17 & 18/08), tickets go on sale 1/7/08 for Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Cooking for Solutions gala fundraiser. The event will honor several celebrity chefs for their leadership in promoting cuisine that protects the land and sea and will offer participants cooking demonstrations and various food and wine adventures.
The Morro Bay Winter Bird Festival will be held on 1/18-21/08 and will include land, ocean and bay field trips in addition to workshops, presentations, displays and vendor booths. (morrobaybirdfestival.org)
Cambria Art & Wine Festival offers three days of shopping, wine tasting, food pairing and local artists demonstrating their work. This year’s festival takes place noon-6pm, 1/25-27/08, in downtown Cambria. (seecambria.com/artwine)
The 23rd Santa Barbara International Film Festival will take place 1/24 through 2/3/08 and will feature celebrity guests, tributes, panels, awards, screenings and more. (sbfilmfestival.org)
Carmel’s Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and Poppy Hills golf courses host the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am championship competition on 2/4-10/08. Celebrities expected to join this year’s professional golfers include Kevin Costner, Carson Daly, Chris O’Donnell, Huey Lewis, Craig T. Nelson, Clay Walker, Kelly Slater, Glenn Frey and Chris Berman. (attpbgolf.com)
Central Valley Current Events
In Marysville on 3/8 & 9/08, the 128th Bok Kai Festival will honor the Chinese God of Water, Bok Eye. The event, a tribute to the many Chinese emigrants who worked the area’s gold mines in the 1800s, includes a small town parade, pancake breakfast, 5k run/walk and a vast range of multi-cultural entertainment. (bokkaifestival.com)
Sacramento’s Mather Airport will host the California Capital Airshow on 3/15 & 16/08, featuring the U.S. Navy's Blue Angels. (californiacapitalairshow.com)
Sierras & Gold Country Current Events
Markleeville’s Hope Valley Outdoors offers adventurers a treat with its Full Moon Tours on 1/19 & 20, 2/17 & 18 and 3/19/08. Join them for an enchanting evening of skiing or snowshoeing in the light of the full moon! (hopevalleyoutdoors.com)
Yosemite Heritage Holidays, a three-day celebration of the glamour, style and culture of the 1920s-40s, takes place on 3/2-4/08 (Sunday through Tuesday). Activities range from speakeasy entertainment and fashion shows to historic hotel tours and a Grand Ball, complete with 12-piece Royal Society Jazz Orchestra, dancing and performances by the Deco Belles professional dance troupe. (yosemitepark.com/heritage)
Orange County Current Events
For two weekends in March – 3/1 & 2 and 3/8 & 9/08 – Dana Point will celebrate the return of the California Grey Whales off its coast by hosting the 37th annual Festival of the Whales. This eco-friendly event offers a parade, contests, vendor booths, entertainment and lots of fun things to do for the whole family. Additionally, area boat charters – including Captain Dave’s Dolphin Safari and Dana Wharf Sportfishing – offer excursions to facilitate viewing the whales. (festivalofwhales.com)
Los Angeles Current Events
The 65th Annual Golden Globe Awards will be held in Beverly Hills on 1/13/08 (goldenglobes.org), and the 80th Annual Academy Awards will be hosted by Jon Stewart at the Kodak Theatre on 2/24/08 (oscars.org). Given the current writer’s strike, these events may be largely scaled back or cancelled.
This online Performances Magazine is a great place to find what opera, theater, dance and/or classical music performances are being offered at LA’s myriad cultural venues. There's truly something for everyone in Los Angeles!
Aquarium of the Pacific has lots of fun events on tap: the 5th annual Festival of Human Abilities on 1/26 & 27/08 (highlighting the creative talents and abilities of people with disabilities); the 6th annual African Heritage Festival on 2/23 & 24/08 (celebrating the richness and diversity of African and African-American cultures); Sustainable Seafood Day on 3/1/08 (teaching all about cooking environmentally friendly seafood dishes and how your seafood consumption choices can help save our seas); the 5th annual Ocean Tech Day on 3/8/08 (featuring the tools that have enhanced our understanding of and relationship to the ocean); and the 7th annual Diver’s Day on 3/30/08 (showcasing all about the history and recent advancements in diving).
Inland Empire & Deserts Current Events
The Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, part of the PGA Tour's early season West Coast Swing, will take place 1/14-20/08 at Coachella Valley’s SilverRock Resort, the first time this fabulous new venue has hosted the event. Celebrities scheduled to join the pros are a diverse group of actors and musicians ranging from Alice Cooper to Samuel L. Jackson. (bhcc.com)
Palm Springs Modernism Week (and a half) runs 2/14-24/08 and will offer shows, lectures, tours, film screenings and parties to celebrate the area’s distinctive “Desert Modern” architectural heritage. (modernismweek.com)
Mark your calendar to check the Maturango Museum website on 2/1/08, when they hope to post the dates the U.S. Navy will allow them to conduct Coso petroglyphs tours this year. Full details are available at the website, but please note that these tours are only open to U.S. citizens at this time and that reservations must be made well in advance, as the Navy requires the museum to submit all paperwork at least 10 days before a trip.
It's too early to predict, but heavy fall and winter rains have some desert flower fans speculating about the possibility of a dazzling spring bloom. Death Valley is home to more than 1,000 wildflower species, and 2008’s Technicolor fields could blossom anytime during late February or March. If your schedule is flexible, you can keep up to date on the blossoms and visit during their very peak. (desertusa.com)
San Diego Current Events
The west coast’s largest Mardi Gras party takes place on Fat Tuesday (2/5/08) from 5pm-1am in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. This is a ticketed event for people aged 21 and older, and it will include a parade and an outdoor block party with live music. (gaslamp.org)
In March, Legoland California will uncover a forgotten city, Land of Adventure, the theme park’s eighth area of attractions. Then, in July, Sea Life Legoland California Resort will open. This two-story aquarium will feature play zones, quiz trails and marine exhibits to educate children about life under the sea. Although adjacent to Legoland California, it will require a separate park admission.
St. Patrick’s Day (3/17/08) finds us back in the Gaslamp Quarter to rock out at ShamROCK, when the streets are transformed into “party central” with 40,000 square feet of green Astroturf. The event, beginning at 2pm and lasting until midnight, will offer live music (including the best Irish rock), special nightclub entrance passes and lots of green beer! (gaslamp.org)
You may want to send an email to the visitor’s bureau where you plan to spend your California vacation, holiday or weekend getaway. Follow the link below to a list of the convention and visitor’s bureaus for some of the state’s major tourist destinations. This is a great way to learn what California current events might be occurring during your visit.
North Coast Current Events
For three weeks, 1/21 through 2/13/08, the Taste Mendocino celebration will honor the county's culinary and enological bounty. The event kicks off with a week devoted to fresh shellfish, continues with a celebration of locally foraged mushrooms and ends with the third annual International Alsace Varietals Festival in Boonville. Over 60 supporting events include seminars, demonstrations, dinners and expeditions – something for everyone! (gomendo.com)
The city of Mendocino will host its 26th annual Whale Festival on 3/1 & 2/08. Along with whale watching (visible from the headlands or you can take a charter boat trip to see them up close), there will be games for kids, informative presentations, wine tastings (Saturday only) and more. A free trolley offers rides to participating merchants and nearby events. (MendoWhale.com)
Fort Bragg gets into the game on 3/15 & 16/08, where beer and clam chowder will share the bill with the ocean’s awesome creatures. Along with dozens of microbrews provided by the Fort Bragg Rotary Club, the area’s top chefs will produce their favorite chowders. A marine mammal art exhibit and crafts fair are also part of the two-day festival. (MendoWhale.com)
Shasta & Cascades Current Events
Drakesbad, a secluded getaway offering rustic and quaint accommodations to Lassen Volcanic National Park visitors, will begin accepting reservations for its 2008 season on 2/15/08. The ranch, affiliated with the California Parks Company, will open for the season on 6/5/08, weather permitting. (drakesbad.com)
Wine Country Current Events
One of our favorite California current events, the 7th annual Sonoma Valley Olive Festival runs through 2/28/08 and features more than 30 olive-related activities – cooking demonstrations, Martini Madness, live comedy shows and more. (olivefestival.com)
Meanwhile, mustard season – a beautiful time of the year when wild mustard blooms and carpets area vineyards with brilliant hues of green and gold – will be celebrated in Napa Valley 2/2/08 through 3/29/08. This 15th annual “season of sensational events” showcases food, wine and art, and it celebrates the valley’s rich agricultural and cultural bounty. (mustardfestival.org)
San Francisco Bay Area Current Events
Muir Woods marks 100 years as a National Monument on 1/9/08, and the parking lot will be turned into an outdoor amphitheater for a commemorative ceremony and a historic reunion of conservationists, rangers and scientists. Any day is a great day to visit Muir Woods, but on this special day you can participate in ranger-led hikes and enjoy birthday cake too! Additional centennial events continue throughout the year. (parksconservancy.org/visit/park.asp?park=64)
Dine About Town is back on 1/15-31/08, when dozens of San Francisco's most popular restaurants will offer creative-yet-affordable, three-course, prix fixe lunches and dinners at the reduced rates of $21.95 and $31.95, respectively, exclusive of tax and gratuity. The savings are impressive, and the meals and restaurants are even more so. For a complete list of all the participating restaurants from A16 to Zingari visit the website. (onlyinsanfrancisco.com/dineabouttown)
Named one of the top ten parades in the world by the IFEA (International Festivals and Events Association), the Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco is one of the few remaining night-illuminated parades in the country and one of the many California current events worth making a special trip to see. The largest celebration of its kind outside Asia, 2008’s festivities will usher in the Year of the Rat, Lunar Year 4706, culminating with a spectacular parade of elaborately decorated floats, school marching bands, martial arts groups, stilt walkers, lion dancers, Chinese acrobatics, the newly-crowned Miss Chinatown USA and the grand finale, 200-foot long Golden Dragon (Gum Lung). The fun begins with the Chinese New Year Flower Fair on the weekend three weeks prior to the parade, 2/2 & 3/08 (so that families can stock their homes with the requisite traditional fruits and flowers), and the parade begins on Saturday, 2/23/08, at 5:30pm, rain or shine. The parade is preceded by a Community Street Fair, which continues on Sunday, 2/24/08. Gung Hay Fat Choy! (chineseparade.com)
Central Coast Current Events
Although the event itself isn’t until May (5/17 & 18/08), tickets go on sale 1/7/08 for Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Cooking for Solutions gala fundraiser. The event will honor several celebrity chefs for their leadership in promoting cuisine that protects the land and sea and will offer participants cooking demonstrations and various food and wine adventures.
The Morro Bay Winter Bird Festival will be held on 1/18-21/08 and will include land, ocean and bay field trips in addition to workshops, presentations, displays and vendor booths. (morrobaybirdfestival.org)
Cambria Art & Wine Festival offers three days of shopping, wine tasting, food pairing and local artists demonstrating their work. This year’s festival takes place noon-6pm, 1/25-27/08, in downtown Cambria. (seecambria.com/artwine)
The 23rd Santa Barbara International Film Festival will take place 1/24 through 2/3/08 and will feature celebrity guests, tributes, panels, awards, screenings and more. (sbfilmfestival.org)
Carmel’s Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and Poppy Hills golf courses host the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am championship competition on 2/4-10/08. Celebrities expected to join this year’s professional golfers include Kevin Costner, Carson Daly, Chris O’Donnell, Huey Lewis, Craig T. Nelson, Clay Walker, Kelly Slater, Glenn Frey and Chris Berman. (attpbgolf.com)
Central Valley Current Events
In Marysville on 3/8 & 9/08, the 128th Bok Kai Festival will honor the Chinese God of Water, Bok Eye. The event, a tribute to the many Chinese emigrants who worked the area’s gold mines in the 1800s, includes a small town parade, pancake breakfast, 5k run/walk and a vast range of multi-cultural entertainment. (bokkaifestival.com)
Sacramento’s Mather Airport will host the California Capital Airshow on 3/15 & 16/08, featuring the U.S. Navy's Blue Angels. (californiacapitalairshow.com)
Sierras & Gold Country Current Events
Markleeville’s Hope Valley Outdoors offers adventurers a treat with its Full Moon Tours on 1/19 & 20, 2/17 & 18 and 3/19/08. Join them for an enchanting evening of skiing or snowshoeing in the light of the full moon! (hopevalleyoutdoors.com)
Yosemite Heritage Holidays, a three-day celebration of the glamour, style and culture of the 1920s-40s, takes place on 3/2-4/08 (Sunday through Tuesday). Activities range from speakeasy entertainment and fashion shows to historic hotel tours and a Grand Ball, complete with 12-piece Royal Society Jazz Orchestra, dancing and performances by the Deco Belles professional dance troupe. (yosemitepark.com/heritage)
Orange County Current Events
For two weekends in March – 3/1 & 2 and 3/8 & 9/08 – Dana Point will celebrate the return of the California Grey Whales off its coast by hosting the 37th annual Festival of the Whales. This eco-friendly event offers a parade, contests, vendor booths, entertainment and lots of fun things to do for the whole family. Additionally, area boat charters – including Captain Dave’s Dolphin Safari and Dana Wharf Sportfishing – offer excursions to facilitate viewing the whales. (festivalofwhales.com)
Los Angeles Current Events
The 65th Annual Golden Globe Awards will be held in Beverly Hills on 1/13/08 (goldenglobes.org), and the 80th Annual Academy Awards will be hosted by Jon Stewart at the Kodak Theatre on 2/24/08 (oscars.org). Given the current writer’s strike, these events may be largely scaled back or cancelled.
This online Performances Magazine is a great place to find what opera, theater, dance and/or classical music performances are being offered at LA’s myriad cultural venues. There's truly something for everyone in Los Angeles!
Aquarium of the Pacific has lots of fun events on tap: the 5th annual Festival of Human Abilities on 1/26 & 27/08 (highlighting the creative talents and abilities of people with disabilities); the 6th annual African Heritage Festival on 2/23 & 24/08 (celebrating the richness and diversity of African and African-American cultures); Sustainable Seafood Day on 3/1/08 (teaching all about cooking environmentally friendly seafood dishes and how your seafood consumption choices can help save our seas); the 5th annual Ocean Tech Day on 3/8/08 (featuring the tools that have enhanced our understanding of and relationship to the ocean); and the 7th annual Diver’s Day on 3/30/08 (showcasing all about the history and recent advancements in diving).
Inland Empire & Deserts Current Events
The Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, part of the PGA Tour's early season West Coast Swing, will take place 1/14-20/08 at Coachella Valley’s SilverRock Resort, the first time this fabulous new venue has hosted the event. Celebrities scheduled to join the pros are a diverse group of actors and musicians ranging from Alice Cooper to Samuel L. Jackson. (bhcc.com)
Palm Springs Modernism Week (and a half) runs 2/14-24/08 and will offer shows, lectures, tours, film screenings and parties to celebrate the area’s distinctive “Desert Modern” architectural heritage. (modernismweek.com)
Mark your calendar to check the Maturango Museum website on 2/1/08, when they hope to post the dates the U.S. Navy will allow them to conduct Coso petroglyphs tours this year. Full details are available at the website, but please note that these tours are only open to U.S. citizens at this time and that reservations must be made well in advance, as the Navy requires the museum to submit all paperwork at least 10 days before a trip.
It's too early to predict, but heavy fall and winter rains have some desert flower fans speculating about the possibility of a dazzling spring bloom. Death Valley is home to more than 1,000 wildflower species, and 2008’s Technicolor fields could blossom anytime during late February or March. If your schedule is flexible, you can keep up to date on the blossoms and visit during their very peak. (desertusa.com)
San Diego Current Events
The west coast’s largest Mardi Gras party takes place on Fat Tuesday (2/5/08) from 5pm-1am in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. This is a ticketed event for people aged 21 and older, and it will include a parade and an outdoor block party with live music. (gaslamp.org)
In March, Legoland California will uncover a forgotten city, Land of Adventure, the theme park’s eighth area of attractions. Then, in July, Sea Life Legoland California Resort will open. This two-story aquarium will feature play zones, quiz trails and marine exhibits to educate children about life under the sea. Although adjacent to Legoland California, it will require a separate park admission.
St. Patrick’s Day (3/17/08) finds us back in the Gaslamp Quarter to rock out at ShamROCK, when the streets are transformed into “party central” with 40,000 square feet of green Astroturf. The event, beginning at 2pm and lasting until midnight, will offer live music (including the best Irish rock), special nightclub entrance passes and lots of green beer! (gaslamp.org)
You may want to send an email to the visitor’s bureau where you plan to spend your California vacation, holiday or weekend getaway. Follow the link below to a list of the convention and visitor’s bureaus for some of the state’s major tourist destinations. This is a great way to learn what California current events might be occurring during your visit.
