San Diego's Little Italy neighborhood has become one of the city's most vibrant communities, and with its roots in Italian Sicilian immigrants, when events are held, they are especially festive. The annual Sicilian Festival is a perfect example of cultural celebration as the music, dance, culture and cuisine of Sicily come to the streets of San Diego's Little Italy on Sunday, May 20, 2012, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission to the Sicilian Festival is free.
The family event features authentic Sicilian food and entertainment, amid the ambiance of San Diego's Little Italy neighborhood centering on India Street, located within walking distance of San Diego's vibrant downtown district and the waterfront.
It wouldn't be a Sicilian festival without Italian food and booths will line the streets with vendors serving up authentic Sicilian cuisine. Tarantino's Sausages, the Festival's presenting sponsor, will be on hand to offer their renowned gourmet sausage sandwiches. Two Peroni wine and beer gardens and the many booths and shops offering Italian-themed artifacts and services are among the other popular diversions.
Four stages will feature non-stop Italian and Sicilian entertainment. Direct from New York City, soprano Cristina Fontanelli returns to San Diego by popular demand with her operatic and Broadway repertoire. The festival will also feature the nationally acclaimed Roman Holiday Ensemble which will be on hand with their costumed musicians and dancers to provide a lively show of Sicilian and Italian music. The Screamin' Primas will get the crowds moving with their lively salute to Sicilian-American trumpeter and bandleader Louis Prima.
The Grape Street stage will feature culinary demonstrations from San Diego's leading chefs, highlighted by a pasta-eating contest. New this year will be a stage located at Date and India Streets, featuring local opera singers with a repertoire of Italian opera and classic Neapolitan selections.
Visit the Little Italy Sicilian Festival website for more details, including parking info.
Read my article about the Little Italy neighborhood right here.
The San Diego Chargers will host a Celebration of Life in honor of Chargers linebacker and San Diego community icon Junior Seau on Friday, May 11 at 6:30 pm at Qualcomm Stadium. The ceremony is open to the public and parking and admission are free. The Celebration of Life will allow San Diegans to join in a community-wide tribute to their native son who passed away on Wednesday, May 2. Special guest speakers will share stories and memories of the positive impact Seau made on them and countless others.
The parking lot at Qualcomm Stadium will open at 2 pm and the stadium gates will open at 4:30 pm. There is no reserve seating and a large crowd is expected, so fans are urged to arrive early and carpool or take the Trolley.
Details:
- When: 6:30 p.m. Friday, Qualcomm Stadium
- Gates open: 4:30
- Parking lot opens: 2 p.m.
- Food: Gourmet food trucks on plaza level
- Seating and parking: first-come, first-serve
- Drink: Water and soft drinks at concession stands, no alcohol
- Speakers: Former Chargers Dan Fouts, Rodney Harrison, LaDainian Tomlinson and coach Bobby Ross. Former Torrey Pines High and Denver Broncos safety John Lynch. Mayor Jerry Sanders. Pastors Miles McPherson and Shawn Mitchell.
- Duration: Event could last until around 8 p.m.
- Cameras: allowed for personal use.
- Trains: Extra train service will be available for riders. The Coaster will be available to transport fans from Oceanside and North County for $12 round-trip, including the cost of taking the trolley to the stadium.
A spring evening is a perfect time to have a SoCal experience. If there is anything that is uniquely Southern Californian, then this phenomenon just might personify it. Picture yourself on one of San Diego's beaches - at night - with a few dozen other people. The tide is high and the waves are rolling pretty far up the sand line. Suddenly, as a wave recedes, you spot hundreds of silvery things, wiggling on the sand. Then, just as quickly, the next wave rolls in, then out, and with it the silvery spectres. Yep, you are witnessing a famous California grunion run.
Grunion? you say? What are grunions? Well, California grunion (Leuresthes tenuis) are small silvery fish about 5 to 6 inches long found only along the coast of southern California and northern Baja California. Most of us would be unaware of their existence were it not for the unique spawning behavior of these fish. Unlike other fish, grunion come out of the water completely to lay their eggs in the wet sand of the beach. And that, my friends, makes us privy to the California grunion run, or more specifically, the grunion's sex life.
Along San Diego's sandy beaches, from March through September, one of the most remarkable life cycles in the sea is completed when the California grunion comes ashore to spawn.
Note: The next grunion run is predicted to occur between May 20-23.
Read more about the grunions in my article here.
