Posts from — February 2009

Looking for something to do with your children? This weekend is jam-packed with kid-focused events. (Don’t worry, there’s a couple in here for the grown-ups, too!)

Friday
Learn the secrets of that most delectable of desserts, truffles, from Scott Lund of Lula’s Chocolates at the Scheid Vineyards Tasting Room on Cannery Row from 6:30 to 8:30pm. Make truffles while you taste wines. $45; call 831-455-9990 to reserve.

Why is the sky blue? You may not be able to give your children a solid scientific answer to this, but astronomer Dr. Bruce Weaver can. He’s giving a class tonight at Garland Ranch Regional Park Museum that teaches children about the wonders of astronomy. The class is $10 and runs from 5:30 to 7:30pm. Register online through the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District website.

The live theatrical show Disney’s Aladdin, Jr. plays at 7:30pm at the Golden Bough Theatre.

Waiting for Lefty, a play about surviving the Great Depression, enters its final two weeks at the Indoor Forest Theater. 8pm, $15 for students and military, $10 for children and $20 for the rest of us.

Saturday
Enjoy the spring wildflowers and learn all about nature with a docent-led 3.5 mile hike at Garland Ranch Regional Park. The free hike starts at 10am. Register online through the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District website.

Happy birthday, John Steinbeck! In honor of Steinbeck’s birthday, the The National Steinbeck Center is holding a kid-focused community free day with music and dance, arts and crafts activities, a reading circle and a puppet show. Starts at 10am.

Take the family on a horseback ride through the Del Monte Forest at 2pm with the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center. They’ll set you up with the saddle, the helmet and the horse. $50 each; register online through the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District website.

If your kids prefer song, dance and flying carpets to horses, the live theatrical show Disney’s Aladdin, Jr. plays at 2pm and 7:30pm at the Golden Bough Theatre.

The Monterey Museum of Art Pacific Street has another fascinating and free lecture, all about the information we can glean from paintings, with “If Paintings Could Talk.”

They’re not just docents; they’re also writers. Volunteeers at Tor House present the poetry of Robinson Jeffers and some of their own work at An Evening with Tor House Writers. The reception begins at 6:30pm; the readings start at 7pm. Free.

Tango First Century at the Sunset Center celebrates the sexiest dance (no, not Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” number). The performance starts at 8pm, but if you arrive at 7 you can attend a pre-show talk about the tango. Tickets are $35 and $45.

Waiting for Lefty plays at the Indoor Forest Theatre at 8pm. $15 for students and military, $10 for children and $20 for the rest of us.

Sunday
Mystified by where to hike on the Fort Ord Public lands? Meet up with the Sierra Club for a 9 mile hike. Participants will meet at the Thrift Shop on Lightfighter Road at 9am. Wear sturdy shoes, and bring a lunch and plenty of water.

The live theatrical show Disney’s Aladdin, Jr. plays at 2pm at the Golden Bough Theatre.

Catch a matinee of Waiting for Lefty at the Indoor Forest Theatre at 2:30pm. $15 for students and military, $10 for children and $20 for the rest of us.

Wave Street Studios has Eliyahu & The Qadim Ensemble, a fascinating group of Middle Eastern musicians playing music with roots all over the region. The show starts at 8pm. Tickets are $15.

As always, there’s way more going on this weekend than we can list here. Check out the Monterey County Weekly’s Calendar section for more ideas on how to spend your weekend.

As you may have heard (from us or from the Los Angeles Times), we’ve got some spectacular travel deals for visitors to Monterey County with our Smile Recovery Packages. You said you were a local? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered with special “Big Smiles, No Miles” deals for area residents!

The Martha Stewart Show featured the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch this week – and you can watch the whole episode online!

Learn what sauces go best with artichokes and what a sanddab is in our newest video!

Subscribe to all of our videos on our YouTube channel!

The Monterey Plaza is the only hotel in the city of Monterey to wear one particular badge of honor, the coveted Mobil Four-Star Award. Only 29 hotels in the entire state are Mobil Four-Star hotels. Congratulations to the Monterey Plaza!

The Monterey Bay Aquarium has once again made a big splash with wildlife headlines. Researchers from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) have discovered interesting information about the barreleye fish, which has a transparent head. Check out this video:

Meanwhile, a sanderling and a willet at the Aquarium are the Methuselahs of their species. Both have lived at least four times longer than they would have in the wild, and are the longest-lived birds of their species at any zoo or aquarium. The jury’s still out on the correlation between human longevity and time spent at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

As if Lover’s Point in Pacific Grove wasn’t already enough of a fun place to hang out, the historic Old Bath House is about to get two new residents: Passionfish and Adventures By the Sea. Don’t worry, Passionfish fans, the original restaurant isn’t going anywhere!

North Salinas High alumni cleaned up at the Academy Awards Sunday night.

Photographer Deborah Jane Seltzer has a fun write-up on hitting the beaches of Carmel with her four dogs.

Eat out and help MY Museum! The Monterey County Youth Museum is holding a fundraiser with California Pizza Kitchen at the Del Monte Center today and tomorrow. Print this flyer and bring it with you to CPK on Monday or Tuesday, and 20% of the total cost of your meal will go to fund MY Museum.

The Los Angeles Times recommends that Angelenos book flights on Allegiant to Monterey right now.

Our camera-toting sea otter has made quite the splash in the blogosphere, where some have noted the incident’s similarity to a South Park episode.

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to stay at a Big Sur monastery, this post will give you some photo-illustrated insight.

Heading outside to take some wildlife photos? You may find yourself on the other end of the lens. An otter was recently spotted at Elkhorn Slough aiming a video camera at humans. No, we’re not kidding. There’s a close-up here.

If you’re otter-camera-shy, there’s plenty of other events this weekend.

Friday
An exhibit opening…at the airport? It’s true! And there’s no Homeland Security pat-down or eating of airline food required. Check out historic artifacts found in buildings throughout Monterey, images and memorabilia of the pioneer women who settled the area, and drawings of the Old West at the Monterey Peninsula Airport. Free, 5-7pm.

Pacific Grove’s Wine, Art & Music Walk takes place tonight. Venues on Lighthouse, Forest and Grand will be open from 6-9pm, serving up (as you may have guessed from the name) wine, art and music. It’s all free! Pick up a map of participating establishments at the Pacific Grove Chamber of Commerce.

Check out the anti-Jonas Brothers, tween rockers August Sky, at Wave Street Studios at 7pm. $5.

Where do forlorn leftover cookies go after the Chocolate Cookie Baking Contest? They go to the Monterey Public Library, to be devoured as part of a benefit fundraiser. Eat chocolate and drink wine for a good cause at the Monterey Public Library. For $30 at the door, taste your fill of wine from local vineyards and the best chocolate-themed desserts from throughout the local area, as well as the aforementioned cookies.

Down in Big Sur, Fernwood Resort hosts Portland-area post-rock instrumentalists Grails tonight. Twelve-string guitarist James Blackshaw and Grails guitarist Zak Riles open. 9pm, $15.

Saturday

Strap on your hiking boots and head over to the Garland Visitor Center for a five-hour, nearly 8 mile hike up to the Mesa and back. With an 880 foot elevation gain, you’re guaranteed some good views. The hike is free, but let them know you’re coming; preregister here under “Free Guided Hikes.”

Help out Mother Nature by pulling weeds at the Eolian Dunes Preserve in Sand City from 9:30am to noon. Meet at the parking lot by Borders; preregister here.

From 10am-1pm, restore habitat in a section of the Fort Ord Dunes previously only seen by heavily armed men in military fatigues. Return of the Natives and REI are sponsoring the Fort Ord Dunes Restoration Project. Dress for heavy gardening, and wear work gloves; they’ll supply the equipment.

It’s Shark Days over at the Monterey Bay Aquarium! Need we say more?

Fernwood Resort continues their musical weekend in Big Sur with reggae/blues outfit Freesound, playing from 2-6pm. No cover.

The Monterey County Vintners and Growers Association pulls out all the stops for the Monterey Wine Auction and Gala down at the Jackson Family Winery in Soledad. Try 30 different wines, spectacular food from local chefs, and listen to the sweet music of Grammy winner Louie Ortega. The money from your $185 ticket benefits local charities. 6:30—11pm.

If you like your music really retro, see Voices of London at the Sunset Center in Carmel. They’ll be singing the hottest hits of the 13th through 16th centuries. The interview starts at 7; the music starts at 8. $32 for adults, $20 for students, free for K-12 students accompanied by an adult.

Lewis Black plays the Golden State Theatre with loud and ranty comedy at 8pm.

Sunday

If you’re lucky, you’ll glimpse a golden eagle during the Toro Park hike held by the Sierra Club on Sunday. Meet at Home Depot in Marina at 8:45am, and wear your good boots – the hike is 8-9 miles long, with a 1000 foot elevation gain.

For an easier amble with more birds, head to the Sierra Club’s Salinas River hike at 9am. It’s 8 miles, but it’s a flat 8 miles.

Kayak through Elkhorn Slough with the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District’s “Sleuthing the Slough by Kayak” event starting at 9:30am. Register here under “Family Discoveries.”

Get another bite of Shark Days over at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Watch the Oscars in the company of many well-dressed people while enjoying great food and wine and benefiting a good cause. The red carpet rolls out at 4:30pm at the Inn at Spanish Bay for the Big Night Oscar Gala hosted by the Monterey County Film Commission. Actress Carol Lawrence and magician Rich Ferguson will make special appearances.

Contemporary jazz act the Matt Otto Quartet featuring Storm Nilson plays Wave Street Studios at 8pm. Tickets are $10 for students, and $15 for the rest of us.

If you’re seeking something more to do this weekend, check out the Monterey County Weekly’s calendar of events.

That rumor we heard last week is right; Allegiant Air is adding service between Monterey and LAX beginning May 3! Flights start just in time for Angelenos to beat the heat by coming to our fair region. That’s not the only new destination from Monterey, however; they’ll also be flying non-stop to San Diego/

The conclusion of the AT&T has brought many fascinating assessments of the event. The DestinLog considers the pressure placed on celebrities at the event. A student at the Stevenson School has an interesting perspective on the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

The AT&T isn’t the last big event at Pebble; this weekend, the Monterey County Film Commission hosts its big Academy Awards fundraising party, the Big Night Gala, at the Inn at Spanish Bay.

Dustin Johnson won the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. As you may have heard, intense rain storms washed out the final round of play. The sun’s due to come back midweek, however, and the rain has turned the foliage such a bright green that it looks battery-powered.

Lee Foster has a sneak peek at the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s upcoming Seahorses exhibit, as well as a great overview of the other exhibits.

The Washington Post gushes over Wild Things in the Salinas Valley. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to eat breakfast with an elephant with allergy problems or listen to lions roar as you go to sleep, Andrea Sachs’ article gives a good (and enthusiastic) picture of the experience.

The Examiner raves about Anton & Michel’s.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium celebrates Shark Days on February 21 and 22 with a weekend chock-full of shark-tastic events.

Much like that guy in the leather biker jacket down the street, sharks aren’t bad; they’re just misunderstood (and, again like the guy in the leather jacket, they’re also very cool). Learn more about their lives and the ways in which they’re threatened with presentations and videos such as “Sharks I Have Known,” “Working With White Sharks” and “Tagging of Pacific Predators” in the main auditorium. Pack the kids off to the Discovery Labs from noon to 4pm, where they can create shark crafts.

All Shark Days special events are included with the price of admission to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Buy tickets online and avoid long lines at the door!

Shark Days features a special appearance by Sherman’s Lagoon creator Jim Toomey, who will sign books and give a special demonstration. This comic strip celebrity has even drawn a special iron-on T-shirt design for the event. Wear a T-shirt with the Shark Days design, and you could win a prize!