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San
Francisco Events:
San Francisco
Events Calendar
There’s
always something to do in New York. Below is a list of the best events in New
York.
Be sure to call ahead to confirm dates, times and other important information. January
2004 Berlin and Beyond
Film Festival. Castro Theater hosts a German language film fest providing
highlights of recent European cinema. Call (415) 263-8760 for more information.
Independent Film Festival. Bay area directors are showcased at
this annual two-week festival, beginning the last day of January, at the Roxie
Cinema and Castro Theatre. Call (415) 227-2603 for more information.
Chinese
New Year. Extended Chinese New Year Festivities include a parade, Chinese
New Year Flower Fair and a Community Street Fair. Call (415) 982-3000 for more
information.
February
2004 Annual Bon Appetit
Wine & Spirits Focus. Crab fare from San Francisco’s top restaurants
pair with leading regional wines at this annual gala at Fort Mason’s Festival
Pavilion. Call (888) 343-6287 for more information.
Victorian Valentines.
On Valentine’s Day at 11 AM, you can ride the Roaring Camp Railroads,
Santa Cruz Big Trees Railroad in Felton, and your valentine can ride for free!
Just buy one steam train ticket, and present the love letter you wrote to your
valentine. Call (831) 335-4484 for more information.
March
2004 San Francisco International
Asia American Film Festival. Attend the largest exhibition of Asian and Asian-American
films in North America. Entries include works from India, Asia and North America,
and will be shown in mid-March at the AMC Kabuki 8 Theatres. Call (415) 255-4299
for more information.
SF Jazz Spring Season. Concerts at various
venues from March through June include family matinee performances. Call (415)
398-5655 for more information.
St. Patrick’s Day Parade. One
of the longest-running parades in the U.S. is celebrated with live music, dance,
beverages and traditional Irish cuisine. Call (415) 675-9885 for more information.
San Francisco Flower & Garden Show. Among the nation’s
largest spring shows, the Cow Palace event displays gardens, spring plantings,
accessories, decorations and more. Call (415) 675-9885 for more information.
Street
Performer’s Festival. Jugglers, unicyclists, slack rope walkers and other
artistes comprise the famous Bay Area street performers. See this unique show
on the last weekend in March, from noon to 5 PM, at the entrance plaza to Pier
39. Call (415) 705-5500 for more information. April
2004 Cherry Blossom
Festival
Japantown turns the streets into a walking mall and street fair
with vendor booths and parades, for this annual event. Spend a weekend enjoying
Japanese food, origami and culture, in an annual celebration of the cherry blossom,
mid-April. Call (415) 563-2313 for more information.
Bustamante Antiques
Show and Sale
More than 140 prestigious dealers showcase a variety of
fine art, furniture, jewelry, vintage timepieces and more at Fort Mason’s
Festival Pavilion. Call (209) 358-3134 for more information.
Cherry Blossom
Festival. A parade, performances, crafts, food, martial arts, and exhibits are
part of the celebration. Call (415) 563-2313 for more information.
Opening
Day on the Bay. San Francisco Bay kicks off each sailing season with a festive
boat parade and blessing of the fleet, sponsored by Boat U.S. and nearly 100 northern
California yacht clubs. Call (415) 823-6633 for more information.
San
Francisco International Film Festival. See over 200 hundred films and videos
from more than 50 countries in this oldest annual American film festival, beginning
mid-April. Films will be screened at the AMC Kabuki 8 Cinemas, near the corner
of Fillmore and Post. Call (415) 931-FILM for more information.
May
2004 Sea Music Festival
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park at Hyde Street Pier presents
local artists and performers from across the U.S to bring seafaring heritage alive
on assorted stages. Call (415) 561-7000 for more information.
Mural
Awareness Month Festival
Celebrating muralism, muralists and Bay area
community art, this annual festival at Precita Park includes live bands, children’s
art activities and booths exhibiting art and merchandise. Free admission. Call
(415) 285-2287 for more information.
June
2004 The Great San Francisco
Crystal Fair. Come to the Fort Mason Center, Marina Blvd. and Buchanan St.,
for the annual exposition of crystals, gems, and people who know the healing and
other properties of these stones, in early June. Call (415) 441-3400 for more
information.
Assorted Film Festivals. At the largest, oldest event
of its kind in the world, the San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film
Festival has more than 250 films. Call (415) 703-8650 for more information. The
San Francisco Black Film Festival showcases a diverse collection from emerging
and established filmmakers about African and African-American experiences. Call
(415) 771-9271 for more information.
Fiesta Filipina. The biggest
Filipino Festival in America celebrates independence with Filipino food, traditional
dance and music with entertainment for all. Call (650) 871-6647 for more information.
Haight Street Fair. On the 2nd Sunday of every June, the Summer
of Love is recreated in the Haight-Ashbury area, as thousands of people fill the
streets. Call (415) 661-8025 for more information.
Ethnic Dance Festival.
Various ethnic dance associations, from the Chinese Hui Tama Nui to the Samba
de Coracao, showcase the city’s cultural diversity at the Palace of Fine
Arts, 3301 Lyon St., starting the 2nd Saturday of every June. Call (415) 563-6504
for more information.
July
2004 Red Bull Streets
of San Francisco. Watch street luge champions compete for the title of Red
Bull and a $10,000. prize as they plunge down the steepest and fastest streets
of San Francisco, at Deharo Street, between Southern Heights and Mariposa, the
last week of July. Call (310) 393-4647 for more information.
Fourth
of July Celebrations. You will want to leave your car and take public transportation
to these events along the Bay, which begin with a music festival at 2 PM, and
end with fireworks beginning at 9:30 PM. The main event is sponsored by the San
Francisco Chronicle. Call (415) 227-2603 for more information.
Fourth of July
at the Cannery, on Leavenworth Street at the foot of Columbus Street, has music
all day leading up to fireworks. Call (415) 771-3112 for more information.
Fourth
of July at Ghirardelli Square features live music and free children’s festivities.
Call ( 415) 775-5500 for more information
Fillmore Street Jazz Festival.
Between Jackson and Eddy streets, three stages have continuous jazz performances,
along with more than 300 artist booths and international food courts. Call (510)
232-5030 for more information.
San Francisco Jewish Film Festival.
Castro Theater and other venues within the Bay area showcase diversity and
vitality of the Jewish Culture with works from American and international filmmakers.
Call (415) 621-0556 for more information.
Mime Troupe in the Park.
Every weekend, especially in mid-July, Washington Square Park at Columbus
and Union Sts. hosts various members of the San Francisco Mime Troupe in satirical
political sketches. This is a San Francisco tradition that should not be missed.
Call (415) 227-2603 for more information.
August
2004 AfroSolo Arts Festival.
Bay Area artists of dance, theater, music, the spoken word and the visual
arts are showcased throughout August at the San Francisco Convention and Visitors
Bureau, 201 3rd St. Call (415) 227-2603 for more information.
San Francisco
Aloha Festival. This arts event celebrates Pacific Isle culture, Polynesian
dance, island food, music, ethnic arts and crafts. Call (415) 281-0221 for more
information.
Golden Gateway to Gems. Sponsored for a half century
by the San Francisco Gem and Mineral Society, this annual show and sale in Golden
Gate Park sparkles with minerals, crystals and jewelry. Call (415) 564-4230 for
more information.
Nihonmachi Street Fair. Lion dancers, taiko drummers,
arts and crafts, musical entertainment, food and children’s events are part
of this Japanese festival. Call (415) 771-9861 for more information.
ACC
Craft Show. Arts and crafts of all kinds are displayed in the largest fair
of its kind on the West Coast, at the Fort Mason Center, early to mid-August.
Call (415) 896-5060 for more information.
Comedy
Celebration Day. The city’s comic talent comes to Golden Gate Park on
the 3rd Sunday in August to celebrate their art. Free food, and sometimes Margueritas,
are supplied. Call (415) 386-5035 for more information.
September
2004 Chocolate Festival.
Celebrate chocolate in all its forms at Ghirardelli Square, 900 North Point
St., around the second week in September. Compete in the sundae-eating contest
and win your weight in chocolate. Call (415) 775-5500 for more information.
San
Francisco Shakespeare Festival. Shakespearean classics unfold throughout the
month on weekend afternoons in a tranquil environment near Golden Gate Park’s
Conservatory of Flowers. Call (415) 865-4434 for more information.
Absolut
a la Carte, a la Park. Over Labor Day weekend, come to Golden Gate Park and
sample many of the city’s best restaurants at this outdoor festival of food,
wine and beer. Call (510) 762-2277 for more information.
Fringe Festival.
Theater companies from all over the world perform their favorite but lesser
known works at the Exit Theatre, 156 Eddy St., in mid-September. Call (415) 931-1094
for more information. October
2004 Octoberfest
By The Bay. San Francisco’s annual event at the Fort Mason Center’s
Festival Pavilion features German music, dancing, culinary delights, beer, wine,
and more. Call (888) 746-7522 for more information. November
2004 Tree Lighting
Ceremony at Ghirardelli Square. Caroling performances and a visit from Santa
and Mrs. Claus precede the annual ceremonial lighting of the 50-foot holiday tree
trimmed with ribbons, ornaments and oversized Ghirardelli chocolate bars. Call
(415) 775-5500 for more information.
Jazz Festival. The best, and
some of the newest, jazz musicians in the world are playing in the city’s
restaurants and cafes through the first week in November. Call (800) 850-7353
for more information.
December
2004
Great Dickens
Christmas Fair. The Great Dickens event at the Cow Palace revives traditions
of an old English Victorian Christmas with theaters, a music hall, dance parties,
taverns, shops, stalls, food, street vendor and period costumes. Call (415) 897-4555
for more information.
San Francisco Ballet Nutcracker. Experience
Tchaikovsky’s traditional holiday ballet performed by the oldest and arguably
one of the best ballet companies in the country, beginning mid-December, at the
War Memorial Opera House, 301 Van Ness Ave. Call (415) 865-2000 for more information.
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