They did it again. Another fabulous annual event at the amazing festival of lights. This is our 3rd…read moreyear in a row and we always have a blast. We always stop to shop from various artists and pick up a thing or two. We love watching all the light installations and enjoy grabbing a bite to eat. Can't wait for next year

Way better than I expected! Loved checking out the colorfully illuminated art displays this past…read moreSaturday, and endless pathways weaving through the beautiful gardens filled with gorgeous flowers and greenery, along with ponds, small waterfalls, adorable bridges, and even bee hotels (or airbeeNbees). My favorite features include the neon bonsai exhibit (which even had koi fish made out of lights), the luminescent grand piano with ambient melodies entertaining visitors, and the trail of quirky and assorted gourds (especially the bunny themed!). Great for couples, but also family-friendly, with several kids' activities on site. A food court included about 6-8 food trucks and a small seating area (we enjoyed some yummy empanadas from Javi's Cooking). The decor for the event was not cheap-looking, and the setup was unique and charming, with various art forms uniquely demonstrated. It was definitely great value for a pleasant evening in an enchanting atmosphere. Yes there was a long line for entry, but it was totally worth it, and I recommend dedicating at least one and a half hours to get the most out of your experience.

My 7-year old LOVED this place, so that alone makes it 5 stars. For me personally, I'd say 3…read morestars, when factoring in its easy location and not having to wait in lines. So let's preface this with, my daughter corresponds with her "very own fairy" (aka. me--a very involved parent who also celebrates her half birthday, commits to elaborate elf on the shelf surprises for a prolonged period each year, is her Girl Scouts troop leader, etc.). She's been asking her fairy to take her to Neverland. The fairy responded "not yet", and instead supplied what my daughter referred to as "free" tickets" (online $20/pp, or $139/annual which includes an adult and 3 kids) to Fairyland the next day. We took the Bart to 19th St Oakland from San Francisco, which was SUPER convenient (daughter loves the train, and I hate driving in traffic), thought a bit of a walk in the Oakland heat/humidity. Also the lake that it's located on, absolutely reeks of sewage--I don't understand how people purposely walk/jog along the edges; but at least you can't really smell it from Fairyland. Just walk on the upper sidewalk or across the street if you share in my disgust. You'll get plenty of cute photos. The few rides they have (4 rides total) are very cute, had no lines on a summer weekday, and only accommodate heights between 36"-54" (except for the Jolly Trolley train which is all heights though adults need to watch their heads when squeezing in and out). The height restriction is very important to know before you go, to ensure your kid isn't disappointed. Wear sunscreen. No mosquitoes, which I was concerned about given the standing lake water and humidity. There are outdoor sinks with soap and antibacterial to wash your hands periodically, which I appreciated. As expected, a high priced gift shop, though it's stocked primarily with smaller toys, so if you're roped into purchasing something it won't break the bank. The single restaurant counter is actually quite perfect! Imaginibbles serves super cute, kid friendly healthy food that is reasonably priced at ~$7/entree. Smaller portions, but in my opinion, perfect for a theme park. The reusable cup ($8, includes one refill) is color changing when cold, very sturdy for a plastic cup, and you can fill with strawberry, white peach or watermelon lemonade that isn't overly sweet. You are also allowed to bring your own food, and there were plenty of folks picnicking on the large grassy area. Attractions are definitely old (paint missing throughout), and not cleaned well. Spiderwebs galore, particularly in areas that are meant to only be looked at, such as the Alice statue that you can see through a window in the Alice in Wonderland tunnel. A quick broom sweep would do wonders! There are a number of cute smaller animals, like chickens, a bearded dragon, 2 donkeys, and a land tortoise. These areas conversely appear relatively well maintained, which is fantastic for both the animals and to keep smells minimal. There is also a pressed wood town area with a slide where the kids can run around and climb into the different buildings, which seemed to be a favorite of many kids. There is a long ~30min puppet show (daily ~11am, 2pm) that changes seasonally, and somehow manages to keep most kids' attention. Magic key ($3) is an easy souvenir (colors change each day, so theoretically you can collect them), and used to hear music/stories through various boxes around the park. Though boxes are staticky (older), and some have bolts sticking out that prevent your key from being turned and thus the stories/music to play. My daughter quickly tired of them anyway, but she loves treasures like the "magic" key, so it was money well spent. There is also a hand-crank penny presser (51 cents) in the gift shop, so bring some change. One disappointment of Fairyland, is that there are literally no "fairies" anywhere to be found. You'd think they might have a few tiny fairy houses situated out of reach, or even fairy lights in trees to simulate fairies. Overall, fun filled and worth the ticket price. Just be sure your kid is in the height range for rides!

This place is strategically built so that there's shade everywhere on those hot summer days. Even…read morethe slides have covers over them so that the metal doesn't get too hot. It's this attention to detail that sets it apart from other amusement parks. And the food. Let's talk about the food. This is not your overpriced, cheap-quality, greasy carnival junk. It's actually healthy fruits and veggies with milk or other house-made stuff. Fun shapes, like a rocket quesadilla. Even my fussy eater wants to eat here. Do we need to talk about the rides or value? The kids come here all day and never want to leave!

Just finished up working at Oaktown 5K Half Marathon 2019. I was one of the people helping out…read morecheering the runners on, and guiding cars to detour. After the first half, helped out at the volunteer check-in booth. I always enjoy working marathon events, because it brings me joy that these runners are working so hard in the marathons. They truly do a good job. I especially liked this marathon, because it is more organized than others that I work at. Lots of booths for the runners to enjoy after their marathon is over. Lots of freebies, and they receive their metals at one of the booths. One of the booths, was actually giving out free beer w/ a mason jar that had "Oaktown 5K Marathon" logo on it. Pretty cool! Oakland A's, Tough Mudder, and Oaktown 5K Marathon all had their own photo booth backgrounds. Always fun to take photos at! I only had a chance to take a few at Tough Mudder. There was also a band playing great music. I would definitely work for this marathon again in the future.

+ Easy packet pick up. + Part of the Golden State Series…read morewhere if you Run all 3 Half Marathon's you get an extra medal. + Medals heavy duty and pretty sweet tbh + Post run refreshments from Whole Foods and Muscle Milk (Almond Butter Sandwiches!! Didn't like that they added Blueberries too though.. that was weird). + Teach T-Shirt and cool medal.. + 5k option available - Distances for both 5k and Half Marathon were off. They were 0.3 - 0.4mi longer than they should have been. - No official results at the finish line Personal: After having been part of the pacing team for the San Francisco Half and running Livermore Half the day before Modesto Half there was no way I was going to miss this one and not get the extra medal. As I'm trying to take it easy with a still slightly less than stellar Knee I was aiming for a finish time of 2hrs. Actually? 1:42 including the additional distance, it started pretty well but seems my comfortable running pace is between 7min and 8 min mile regardless of the terrain and I did notice that at the 3.5mi mark I was actually averaging a 6:03 min mile and had to slow myself. The course was ok, by no means exciting but well... it's Oakland. (Ha!) I did take in a lot of what was around me though and spotted many restaurants I had in my Yelp bookmarks, never a Yelp ''off'' switch. I'm trying to cut back the Running but I may still do this race again next year.

Im happy to say I didn't have to miss out on all my fav festivals in the year. Eat Real food…read morefestival held at Oakland's Jack london Square was unfortunately cancelled this year as so many other festivals due to Covid-19. This is one of the few fest I volunteer for every year and have so many amazing experiences. I got an email last week notifying me that I could still support in a big way for Eat Real to continue...voila...the take home fest box. What a sweet idea to get all the food you still love and give to the community at the same time. Here is what my box included: Chicharon Fried Pork Rinds with Chili Lime Salt from Jeepney Guy Japanese Fried Chicken from Aburaya Take & Bake Chicken and Shrimp Paella from Gerard's Paella Oxtail Taco Kit from alaMar Take & Bake (Frozen) Gumbo Pot Pie from Samara's Southern Creations Set of 3 Macarons from Shades of Sugar Bakeshop: Mint Watermelon: spearmint, watermelon ganache and sloe gin Peach Melba: vanilla, peach ganache, raspberry and bourbon Banana Foster: cinnamon, banana ganache, caramel and rum Hopefully we'll be thru this pandemic soon so we can go back to having a little more fun again...till then.... Keep supporting local bay area business!!!

Overdue review! This…read moreyear was my first time attending the Eat Real Festival. For those who have never been or heard of Eat Real, it is a free event that is a combo of a state fair, food festival, and block party to celebrate good eats, along with bringing awareness to where our food comes from, who grows it, how it is grown, and how to cook it. There were over 50 vendors, and 30 craft beers, wines, cocktails, and nonalcoholic beverages to try! There was also live music and cooking demons, family-friendly activities, and other ticketed culinary experiences. The fiancé and I were able to find street parking nearby, but parking in general around this area is fairly difficult. There were also a lot of people at the event, so unfortunately trying to find a place to sit and eat was challenging. Additionally, lines for some of the food trucks were extremely long. This limited the foods we wanted to try out. Despite all that, the fiancé and I enjoyed the festival as first timers. It was a nice to check out the different vendors and learn about their mission. However, I would take a pass next year.

Friday Nights at OMCA has become a lot smaller from what it used to be before the pandemic, but…read moremore people are now stopping by and there is a good variety of food trucks as well. Be prepared for long lines depending on the food trucks - one pro tip if you're in a group is to have each person wait in different lines to order and share family-style. It's lively with music, kids playing in the garden, and people dancing at the entrance. You can also catch the sunset from here which is a beautiful sight. As it's no longer crowded compared to pre-pandemic, you can easily walk around and enjoy the outside space while eating delicious food. I hope more people visit Friday Nights so that they can continue to bring in more food trucks and expand the event.

I've been here and I have to say that I am comparing this to pre-COVID times when this was a date…read morenight and date spot for my husband and I. But now, it's a lame version of its former self. I haven't found the right mix of food for me. And what I eat is a bit underwhelming. Now, my husband wants to go and it's "safeish" because people aren't crowded together like we used to be, there are no live bands, no dancing, and they have many fewer trucks. My first time here after they started having this again, they only had 3-4 trucks. They also have the same trucks week after week. Some of my favorites aren't available and the ones that show up haven't always been ones I'd choose to go to. But it's ok. So they've gone from a five-star breath of fresh air each Friday, to a three-star, take it or leave it. I'm hoping that they are able to revamp things and earn those two stars back!

I came by here for something, totally forgot the reason and saw what I thought was a farmer's…read moremarket. But it wasn't. This was a cool show and we saw the end of it. But it was fun looking at all of the people selling their wares. I'm glad that we went. While not a destination, if I were in the area, I would come by.

Patchwork Show has had many showings, will have many more. this one was at Jack London Square,…read more11/3. named Modern Makers Festival. offerings: clothing, art, gardening items, handbags, accessories, ceramics, jewelry, knits, etc. also gourmet foods, live entertainment. notes: -interesting vendors, none seen previously at JLS obviously all are participates of Patchwork Show -no gourmet foods seen, just churros, taco trucks, falafel, caramel apples, fried fish/okra. -no entertainment seen, only live dogs. 3.5 stars