What a fun and cool festival to attend! The Scandinavia Festival is at CLU. They have a large array…read moreof booths for activities and food. There is a large variety of information booths on the various Scandinavian countries. I went last year but it was more special for me this year as I recently spent 5 months studying abroad in Copenhagen, Denmark. They did a great job with putting the festival together. They had great works of art for purchase and delicious foods of each country. My personal favorite was the æbleskiver with jam - it made me feel as though I was back in Denmark! Will I come back here? Absolutely, I can't wait for next year!

My mom knew the organizers of this event, and I knew the organizers' son because we went to the…read moresame school. Unfortunately, it turned out that they, and a few of the event goers themselves, were racist. I'm part scandinavian, and I love that side among all the other sides of me due to being heavily mixed race. However, due to the color of my skin, I was given odd looks and felt very uncomfortable when I was there. I felt unwelcome and like I had done something wrong. It's not a great place in that regard, but I enjoyed the vendors I saw regardless.

The wife and I had an awesome time. We went there to see one of our friends bands perform The fair…read morewas great as they had a great mix of food, rides and entertainment that keep you occupied for the entire day. The drink choices that they had were refreshing as they had a booth that provided fresh lemonade, watermelon, as well as mango juices. The food was filling with a range of choices that have you looking to try everything that was available to try. Each booth had a great staff that was took care of each of those customers with a smile and friendliness. Parking is one of the adjacent streets not far from the fair.

Pretty well run and organized event. The band's were very good. Food and other vendors were…read moreplentiful. I was very impressed with the shuttle service. We only waited 10 minutes going and there was no wait coming back on Saturday. Overall, I thought this was one of the better run events I've attended anywhere. Police & security made there presence felt but not in an intruding way. The only things I probably wouldn't recommend are: $1 night for the carnival rides on Thursday. The price may be right but the lines are longer than at Universal Studios. We will not partake again in that activity. Port O Potties: As far as the bathroom facilities, it seemed the water for hand washing and paper ran out very early in the evening on Saturday. Guys are good to go for the most part but not so much for the ladies as my daughter & wife can attest to. There were enough potties with short waits, they just were not well stocked or kept up. This event obviously helped local small businesses which all seemed busy if they were open. That was great to see.

AN ABSOLUTELY MUST DO! FREE ADMISSION, FREE ENTERTAINMENT & FREE PARKING on the residential side…read morestreets! Steam Railfest is a small once a year festival in April that takes place in Fillmore. You know what they say Good Things Come In Small Packages. They have Food Trucks & Food Booths that are very reasonably priced. They have Free live entertainment with a Bluegrass Band & Dr. Solar's Medicine Show. They also have Merchandise Booths, a Carousel Ride you can purchase tickets for, & an Array of Antique Cars to look at for Free as well. There is also a Museum & other points of interest right next door to The Train Station too. They had 3 Train Rides Going On @ once. The Baldwin 1913 Steam Locomotive was completely Sold Out Saturday with a 2 city block line to get on the classic Train.They had train rides @ 10,12 & 2. The Steam Train was $26 & was over an hour long ride. The Baldwin is FANTASTIC & takes you back to another time. It has been meticulously restored to its glorious heyday. You can choose to ride in an outdoor car or in an enclosed car. You get to pass by all the Orange, Lemon & Avocado Groves & some beautiful scenery too. They also had The 1935 Buckeye Steam Train Ride - a short little Steam Ride Train for $5. There was also also The Caboose Train Ride with The Citrus Packing Tour included for $10. The Caboose Ride is the Famous Atchison Topeka & The Santa Fe. The ATSF was made famous in a song by Judy Garland. It's a good idea to listen to the song, see the video or rent the Movie The Harvey Girls also staring Angela Lansbury about The ATSF. Then you'll totally get it. The Caboose Ride is less than 10 minutes & arrives @ The Citrus Packing House which is only open to the public once a year. They do filming & restorations for Movie & TV here. You'll see signs & memorabilia from Back in the Day. They have a 1957 Apartment with a pink kitchen, Floyd's Barber Shop & a 1950s Diner. Two of the most famous signs are The Brown Derby Hat from the legendary Hollywood restaurant & The Bleecker Bob's Neon Record Store from New York. They even have a working workshop here for all the restorations. A whole day of Fun & Adventure. If you missed this, mark it on your calendar for next year. It used to be, you had to have mega bucks & be really rich to have the Good Life, not anymore. The Game has changed. You've been Upgraded. Now You Can Live Like a King on a Limited Budget!

Spectacular! Small enough to be WELL WORTH IT, and large enough to make it worthwhile. I never…read morewould have known about it, had it not been for Living Social. I had a free weekend, I drove up, stayed near Camarillo Outlets, then drove into Ventura for the balloon festival. There's only need to attend ONE day of the three. It's a GREAT hometown festival, whose main attraction are the balloons. Parking is good, wish I had time for the town tour, arrived early to take in the fest, and stayed late to experience all the balloons. I had the opportunity to watch them roll out the balloon, line up the strings, participate in the group effort to stand 'er up while the balloonist blew hot air within. The lighting of the balloons at night is spectacular, but probably would have been even more so if every balloon was alit during the fest. See pics.

Buying tickets online was easier this year because you could print out your entrance ticket…read moreimmediately. They also had streamlined the entrance process at the gate. Only bummer - they had the same bad t-shirt art again this year. How about taking a lesson from the Avocado Festival and having local artists compete for the t-shirt art and then maybe people would buy them? We started at the Wine Tasting Pavilion. 5 wineries this year. $2 per taste. I liked 75% of the wines this year. And towards the end of tasting time, the pours definitely were more generous. Although I did think it strange that a summer event would have all red wines, except for one white - a Chenin Blanc that was delicious. The boys headed for the beer tasting pavilion but ended up just buying full glasses of beer. I did try a Summer Shandy beer that was excellent. Dinner was from the Spencer MacKenzie fish truck again this year. I tried a less flammable sauce this year and enjoyed my fish taco more. I also enjoyed an order of their seasoned fries - thin, not overly greasy and lightly sprinkled with seasoning. The vendors were varied for craft items. I didn't purchase any impulse items, but the girl with us did purchase a few candles. The band for Friday evening played mellow County music and it fit with the casual evening. (I heard there was an unbefitting Rock band on Saturday.) The balloons are always center stage here and we weren't disappointed this year. They started inflating them just before sunset. They had more present than the previous year we had attended. We loved the alien-looking balloon called Outlander. And the Humpty Dumpty balloon was a hit. The Limoneira lemon-shaped balloon was fantastic. There were many with colorful patterns. Another evening of awe, wine, good food and friendship! I hope we can attend again next year

Four stars for our visit to Bennett's Honey Farm as part of the Honey Festival. However, only two…read morestars for the part over at Central Park in Fillmore It's like trying to learn a new board game; the rules don't make sense of you haven't played before. We went to Bennett's first, then back to Fillmore, arriving just past 3:00. The festival was supposed to last until 5:00. We were hungry and looking forward to trying some BBQ. Not to be. There were a plethora of trailers with barbeque teams from Bakersfield and other far-flung places, but no one seemed to be cooking anything. Okay. We walked around the area with various booths and didn't see many food options. There weren't any signs about how it worked, and no one to readily ask, either. Dear Hubby was getting annoyed, because it was confusing, plus he was ready to eat. We finally found an unmarked booth where we were able to get info. Apparently, all the grill masters came in for a BBQ competition, but only 3 were offering food for sale. Huh?! You had to buy tokens for $2 a piece, which got you a small taste of some of the meats, like pulled pork or chicken. One of the 3 booths had already sold out, so it was down to 2. There weren't other complimentary options like roasted corn, or other usual festival food. So odd! Overall, it was disappointing. Maybe the organizers shouldn't bill it as lasting from 9 to 5, when there's not much available by 3 p.m. There was free parking, and a DJ playing music in front of City Hall, but the energy level was pretty low key.

What a great little annual carnival held at St. Rose of Lima's Catholic church. Lot's of goodies…read morepacked in right on the parish grounds and all going to benefit the church. This did not have a grungy carny feel to it, on the contrary, it was super clean, very well organized with a great family atmosphere with something for everyone. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/cB-SyThZXgioKIB84tgcXw?select=-shD5B9xuDVbPu8clC-XDw#_wydk3y9o1OzE9q1Gtzd8Q The parking was ample and free in the church's lot and nearby street parking. It was FREE to attend and it was only $20 bucks if you paid in advance( $25 at the door) for unlimited rides for the little ones and or rides suited more for tweens, teens and young adults. Some of the rides http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/cB-SyThZXgioKIB84tgcXw?select=-shD5B9xuDVbPu8clC-XDw#oGq5mSzarahDSYj3I2AehQ http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/cB-SyThZXgioKIB84tgcXw?select=-shD5B9xuDVbPu8clC-XDw#-shD5B9xuDVbPu8clC-XDw http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/cB-SyThZXgioKIB84tgcXw?select=-shD5B9xuDVbPu8clC-XDw#NO0Gcw0Qs-6KHupDH29ImQ Some of the gaming choices... all guaranteeing a prize. Nice! http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/cB-SyThZXgioKIB84tgcXw?select=-shD5B9xuDVbPu8clC-XDw#u7kuihc3WTxrN6KOiPG3TA The food choices were plentiful and lincluded funnel cakes, hamburgers, hot dogs, carinitas tacos( these were awesome, sorry no picture), cotton candy, pizza and all of the traditional favorites you would typically find at a county fair. In fact the whole event had a very festive feel. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/cB-SyThZXgioKIB84tgcXw?select=-shD5B9xuDVbPu8clC-XDw#toYW-QR-ZRsU1UrK_SR4QA The main stage offered free entertainment and a Polynesian dance troop gave a great performance late in the afternoon on Sunday. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/cB-SyThZXgioKIB84tgcXw?select=-shD5B9xuDVbPu8clC-XDw#FkKfxU0J29q_QCnkiSU9LQ Not sure how you could spend a better Sunday afternoon, did I mention the weather was perfect too :) Sunday Funday to be sure and worth bookmarking for 2013.

Kudos to independent businesses that embrace the energy, passion, and dedication to create events…read morefor many to enjoy. Frühlingsfest is a Spring festival in Germany, I just learned. Energren Brewing Company in The Alley in Moorpark created their own version. It was our first time attending, so I don't know if this has been an annual event for a while, or the first time. Judging by the number of participants joining the fun, it would seem like a winner to carry on. In 2023, it's being held the weekend of April 22nd and 23rd. Dear Hubby and I arrived just before 7 p.m. A crafts fair was just wrapping up on Zachary Street in front of The Alley. One of the food trucks was about to close up shop, too. Meanwhile, in The Alley itself, the picnic tables had been arranged in long rows, beer hall style. The better to see and hear the lederhosen-clad band members on stage at the east end. DH purchased a beer token, good for a mug of Energren's German-style suds. I stopped in at California Coffee Republic for an iced tea and a cookie. We sat to enjoy the music and the people watching. A number of men were sporting leather shorts (lederhosen), with a style trend I hadn't seen before - Loferl. Those are two-part socks popular in Bavaria. For the uninitiated, like us, the main feature is that they have calf warmer cuffs separate from short socks in the shoes. Learn something new everyday, if you stay alert! Some of the women were wearing dirdl dresses or skirts, also in Bavarian style. Most of the music performed was American rock, heavy on the bass, but as we were leaving, Nena's "99 Lufballons" was bringing some German back into the event. Lots of boisterous toasting was happening, and Spring cheer was in the warm air. Prost!

Wonderful I love going to pick strawberries and the workers a wonderful, went in a school trip and…read morehad to go with family again, the lemonade are good I love it

Back to Underwood Family Farms again for Strawberry picking! I do not know what it is, but these…read morestrawberries are some of the best I've had. Do they taste better because I picked them myself? I don't know! Yes? Regardless, they are delicious. The staff here is always so friendly and they are so welcoming to large groups. This is a great place to run the kids around and there are plenty of activities you can do for free or a small cost, like animal feeding, rides etc. My son loves all the playgrounds! Definitely recommend Underwood if you are looking for a party venue! The kids love it and it's a beautiful space!