Local Festivals - A Weekend Getaway

"The First time that you escape from home or the small town that you live in - there's a reason a small town is called a small town: It's because not many people want to live there."
Billie Jo Armstrong

 

White Salmon, Washington,
The town I grew up in

I grew up in a very small town in Washington state.  It was a nice place to grow up, it was on the Columbia River and in a very pretty area.  Every summer we had the Huckeleberry Festival.  Now I have to say, that as a child I thought this festival was great fun.  We had a parade through town, and anyone could join in.  My older sister usually rode her horse in the parade.  One year my little sister and I put funny costumes on and rode our bikes.  It was definitly a small town type of affair.  There were some booths, a Huckleberry Queen, and there were food items made with huckelberries.*  Floats for the parade were flat bed trucks.  They even put on a small rodeo during that time, and my older sister usually competed in that.

There are lots of these kinds of festivals all over the country, all year long.  Most of them are a lot better then the little festival we had in my home town.  Some are quite elaborate, with lots of booths, food to sample, rides and entertainment.  These are fun festivals that you can visit on your weekends, to try new things and visit new areas. Or you can plan your vacation around visiting an event. I know that there are quite a few festivals here in California, and they can be a new type of destination for you.

Here are a few here in California that you might enjoy:

Apple Days Festival - Julian

Julian Apple Days Festival

Julian is a small town east of San Diego.  It is in the hills, and actually gets snow in the winter-time, something San Diego never sees.  People from the San Diego area drive to Julian in the winter in order to play in the snow.  But autumn is always the most popular time to visit Julian, because of Apple Days and their famous apple pie.  You travel into Julian through a patchwork quilt of fall colors, it is a beautiful drive.  The historic town was once a 1900's mining town and today it looks much as it did then.

Apple Pies
Ready to eat in Julian

This festival has been around since 1909.  It takes place from mid-September to mid-November.  Most festivals don't last 2 months, but this one does.  There are more activities on the weekends, and more crowds.  The town's altitude makes it one of California's best apple-growing areas.  During the harvesting period the entire community becomes a celebration.  Residents and visitors combine to present fine arts shows, musical entertainment, staged cowboy gun fights, arts and crafts, and apple-oriented seasonal activities.

There are plenty of fruit stands and pick-'em-yourself ranches, where you can fill up your car with apples, apple cider, apple butter, and other winter vegetables.  There are plenty of cute little shops, and some fun restaurants.  Very popular with the locals and visitors is the buffalo burgers with, of course, apple pie for dessert.  For more information -  www.julianappledays.com


Lemon Festival - Chula Vista

Chula Vista Lemon Festival

Since I live in Chula Vista I have to mention our local festival.  At one time Chula Vista was nothing but lemon trees.  The city has taken over the lemon orchards, they are no longer here, although many people do have lemon trees in their yards.  But every August the city puts on the Lemon Festival.  The street of Third Avenue in downtown Chula Vista is blocked off and vendors put up booths.  There are crafts, and local businesses with information about what they can provide.  Local politicians are usually around with their booths, or just shaking hands.  There are antique cars on display, musical entertainment, and local kids music and dance groups provide entertainment.  There is a beer garden and a kids fun zone.  It is a one day event that the locals look forward to each year.  For more information - www.thirdavenuevillage.com/events/lemon-festival

Balloon & Wine Festival - Temecula

Balloons Taking Off at the Festival

A tradition since 1983, this year the event is celebrating its 30th year and will be held May 31st, June 1st and 2nd.  It begins on Friday evening with the spectacle known as Balloon Glow, where tethered balloons remain grounded while the pilots simultaneously ignite their burners, forming an illumination of brilliant colors.  The Balloon Glow is synchronized to music.  It is repeated again on Saturday evening.

Balloon Glow

Early on Saturday and Sunday, more than 50 rainbow-colored balloons are launched from the festival grounds.  They return in the evening.  The festival offers beer and wine tasting (after all - you are in the wine country), and cheese tasting.  It also has top headline entertainment and a variety of family entertainment.  Kids Faire is a fun separate area devoted to kids 14 and under which generally includes rides, inflatables, a rock climbing wall, a petting zoo, face painting and other youth-oriented activities. 

Temecula is just north of San Diego and south of Riverside.  It has an old town area that has quite a few nice antique shops.  It is also an area known for its wineries.  You can visit the wineries and do some wine tasting while you are in the area. For more information on the balloon and wine festival, visit their web sight: http://www.tvbwf.com/

Renaissance Pleasure Faire - Irwindale, California
Renaissance - to be “reborn”, a time when individuals celebrated the awakening of a new idea, when light was let into darkness. The Renaissance Pleasure Faire celebrates the “spirit” of this period of history ~ where people have the willingness to try anything and everything.

This fair began in 1963 to create a "living history" for school children and families.  When we lived in Oxnard in the 70's we used to drive down to this fair, it has since moved to its current location in Irwindale.  The fair takes place in April and May each year.



Renaissance Players in Costume

There are plenty of people in Renaissance-style costumes throughout the fair.  There is a queen and you can have tea with her.  There is plenty of entertainment, all in keeping with that time period of history, magic shows, musical performances, mimes, puppets, horse shows and last year they had a performance by the Reduced Shakespeake Company (one of our favorite acts).  There are artisans booths, and booths for guests to learn to make items themselves.  And there will be plenty of food booths, to try all sorts of Renaissance foods - usually foods are eaten by hand, including large turkey legs, corn-on-the-cob, and all sorts of sandwiches and desserts.

There are Renaissance Faires all over the country, they are always popular, this is just one such fair of many.  For information on this faire - ttp://www.renfair.com/socal/tickets/index.asp

Garlic Festival - Gilroy

Gilroy Garlic

The Gilroy Garlic Festival celebrates everything garlic.  It is one of the largest festivals in the United States and usually takes place the last full weekend in July.  It has been going on since 1979 and draws huge crowds from all over the world. 

There are plenty of booths, and entertainment, and a children's area with arts and crafts and interactive displays.  There is a Miss Gilroy Garlic Festival Queen and her court. There are 3 stages for enterntainment as well as strolling musicians.  You are never far away from the great sounds of jazz, rock 'n' roll, country, blues, reggae, swing and much more.

A Taste Treat at the Festival

You can sample such diverse creations as garlic flavored ice cream and garlic french fries.  There is a Garlic Cook-off and celebrity cooking demonstrations, and a garlic braiding workshop.  And plenty of oppurtuinites to purchase anything garlic.  If you love garlic, as I do, then it is a fun place to celebrate everything garlic.  For more information - http://gilroygarlicfestival.com/

Dickens Festival - Riverside

Dickens Festival, Riverside

The Dickens Festival is one that my husband and I have attended for several years.  It always takes place in early February to coincide with Charles Dickens birthday.  It is a weekend event, and an event where not only the people at the festival, but also many guests, come dressed in the period.  An actor is always there as Charles Dickens and he gives several presentations during the day.  They also have other actor/authors from that time period, such as Mark Twain, Edgar Allan Poe and H.G. Wells, who also do presentations of their work.



Entrance to the Mission Inn
Riverside

There is a stage with musical entertainment.  I loved some of the sea shanties that are performed.  There are market vendors with items you can purchase that relate to that time period, strolling musicians and a couple of men on the old fashion bicycles.  And of course food vendors. 

The festival takes place near the Mission Inn, which is a landmark in Riverside, and is a wonderful old hotel.  If you go to the festival and have never seen the Mission Inn, you should take a little time and go in and look around.  You can even take a guided tour of the inn.  There are also a few nice antique stores in that same block.   For more information on the festival, go to: http://www.dickensfest.com/


French Festival - Santa Barbara

The Santa Barbara French Festival has been around for 24 years.  It is held annually on the weekend nearest Bastille Day (mid-July) and it celebrates everything French.  It has great food, wine, mimosas, crepes, sinfully good croissants and other pastries.  There is music and dance and over 30 different acts on three stages. They have the Can Can and other dances, and you can even take some dance lessons.   And they are famous for their Poodle Parade.  It is a two day event, and admission is free.

Doing the Can Can at the French Festival

 

There are over 50 booths, with henna tattos, face painting, beautiful paintings and photography and boutiques to buy your French Festival t-shirt or beret.

On Sunday afternoon Santa Barbara's four-legged friends take center stage with the infamous Poodle Parade! Poodles large, small and Wanna-Be will display their style and panache in one of the Festival's favorite events. All licensed poodles (even those who just aspire to be a poodle) are welcome to participate.  For more information - http://www.frenchfestival.com/

Huck Finn Jubilee - Victorville/Ontario

Poster of the Festival for This Year

This event has taken place every fathers day weekend (June) for the past 36 years.  In the past it has always been in Victorville, but this year for the first time, it will be held in Ontario, whichi is still close to its original town.

It is a turn-of-the-century river festival and comes complete with catfishing, raft building, handmade crafts and barbecues.  The festival honors Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer.  They have plenty of country music (and have had some big names in the business play in the past) and bluegrass music.  There are hayrides, egg tossing contests, and lots of events for the kids and adults to enjoy.  There are craft and food booths.  For more information - http://www.huckfinn.com/

Date Festival - Indio/Riverside area

Ostrich Races

The date festival celebrated its 67th anniversary this year.  It is held every year in February and celebrates the date.  It is at the Riverside Fair Grounds, which is not far from Indio.    It is an event that lasts 10 days, with things going on mid-week as well as the weekend.  There are rides, lots of entertainment including some big name stars.  There is a queen and her court.  And of course, there is events built around the date, such as special foods, and cooking contests.

The fun thing about the date festival is the ostrich and camel races that take place daily.  The ostrich races in particular can be quite wild and unpredicatable.  Ostriches can actually run up to 40 miles per hour.  They also have pig races and bull riding.  There are lots of displays and booths.  And a battle of the bands.  For more information, go to: http://www.datefest.org/Home/tabid/36/Default.aspx

Oktoberfests

Performers at the Oktoberfest
in La Mesa, near San Diego

I am giving this festival a general heading, because almost every city seems to now hold an Oktoberfest.  We have 2 here in the San Diego area every year.  Both Bonita and La Mesa have Oktoberfests.  They are of course held in October (or sometimes late September), and are German themed.  They have music and dance with people usually dressed in German costumes.  There are beer gardens, bratwurst and other German foods.  You will find lots of local merchants and arts and crafts people with booths.  And quite often local political booths, and other organizations who want to give out their infromation.  Of course, there are really big festivals all over Germany at this time of year also.  Munich probably has the largest of these festivals.

These are just a few of the festivals in California each year.  Of course there are also state fairs, and county fairs, all over the country.  Those are also fun to go to.  Usually they have lots of entertainment, animals, rides, booths, displays and food booths (not always healthy food, but certainly good tasting).  We have the Del Mar County Fair here every summer, and it is always fun to go to. 

So, if you are looking for something fun to do for just a day, or for a weekend trip, look and see if there are any festivals around that interest you, and consider adding that to your "things to do" list.  And if you are on vacation and see where there is a local festival going on, go join in.  You will learn a little bit more about that community.

*For those who do not know, huckleberries are similiar to blueberries, only they are wild berries and therefore, more flavorful. They grow wild in the mountains near our town, and every year we would go up into the mountains and pick the huckleberries. Mom would then freeze them in small cartons and we would have them throughout the year. They were good on ice cream, but my favorite was when mom would melt some butter and add the huckleberries and some sugar, and cook them down. Then we would pour that over our waffles in the morning.