If you’re looking for a wild adventure in California, Safari West can’t be beat. There’s a special Father’s Day brunch that includes a safari ride, and there are several tour packages such as Brews and Buffaloes featuring Sonoma County microbrews. Not any Port in the Storm pairs Sonoma Portworks port with chocolate and a classic safari tour for $80 per person (safariwest.com).

Safari West is the closest thing to Africa you’ll find in the U.S. Created by a couple who sought to provide shelter for endangered and unwanted animals, they transformed their property north of San Francisco into a safari experience to help defray costs of feeding and caring for the rare  animals that the public naturally wanted to see. You can camp in African style tent/cabins with personal decks, wooden flooring and the call of the wild ringing through the night. It’s an A+ experience–one of the most unusual we’ve tried throughout travels in California.

If you’re in the Eureka area this weekend, don’t forget to support their great Sequoia Park Zoo by attending Brew at the Zoo. California’s zoos strive to make healthy, happy lives for wild and exotic animals, often endangered. While zoos offer  enjoyable opportunities to travel the globe in a safe environment close to home, they rely on admission fees, donations and fundraisers to keep them going so you can go see them. California is lucky to have many world class zoos!

From the alphabet of cities & town in California–A to Z– you’ll usually find a “Main Street”.  Main Street is thought of as the equivalent of mom’s apple pie, the hometown parade, tree-lined streets and quaint shops that take you back to another place in time. Some cities formed an organization devoted to California’s Main streets and they actually strived to create that old-fashioned appeal through preservation of historic buildings. Called Certified California Main Street Communities, here’s the list from a year or two ago of cities that belonged.

For travelers looking to get a sense of where a town’s heart lies, you can stop and ask someone where the main street is and although there may be some confusion, just tell them you want to go downtown to the shopping and restaurants.  Once you find it, park your car if you can and walk around.

MAIN STREETS TO SEE (Only a few of too many to mention. If you have one, send it to us to promote.)

Lively:

• Anaheim – Disneyland Main Street USA was artificially created but is the most visited Main Street in California. It is the only Main Street that charges admission. (disneyland.com)
• Belmont Shore – 2nd Street. Busy thoroughfare filled with over a mile of shopping and dining, 2nd Street sizzles. (belmontshore.org)
• Huntington Beach – Main Street. Bikinis, surfboards and eateries line Main Street near the Huntington Beach Pier. Tuesday nights Main Street closes for a huge street event called Surf City Nights. (huntingtonbeachmainstreet.com)
• San Luis Obispo – Thursday Night street closure for Farmers Market and entertainment. San Luis Obispo was awarded The Great American Main Street Award by the National Trust For Historic Preservation based on its successful preservation and downtown revival.  (downtownslo.com)
• Santa Barbara – State Street. Shopping, dining, street entertainment, art and even a red tile walking tour. You see it all on this walkable street in a college town with a beach.
• Santa Monica – 3rd Street. With several main streets, the most popular of them is 3rd Street Promenade. Closed to traffic, it hosts entertainment, and includes shops and indoor/outdoor dining. Not a bad place to celebrity hunt. (downtownsm.com)

Historic:

• Ferndale -  mostly on Main Street in the  Victorian Village (victorianferndale.com)
• Folsom – mostly on Sutter Street  (historicfolsom.org)
• Sonora – on Highway 49, Washington Street. This  Gold Rush town is the best preserved 1849 gold rush era town  with Columbia State Historic Park. (sonoraca.com)

Character:

• Seal Beach – Main Street. It’s so old-fashioned that they fought against Starbucks, so you won’t find it here. Free parking, too!  Shops are eclectic, beach-themed and there’s an adorable Britta’s Garden Shop and old-fashioned hardware store.
• San Clemente – El Camino Real. Along the historic “Kings Highway” the downtown features many shops you won’t find at shopping malls. First Sunday Village Arts Fair is held here. (villagesanclemente.org)

If San Diego’s Sicilian Festival and eating Italian pasta isn’t your preference this weekend, and if you don’t want to Go Greek at the Orange County Greek Festival in Anaheim, would you consider visiting the city that has a teapot water tower and Swedish Festival to beat all? You’ll be dancing the Maypole and eating Pea Soup & Pancakes at Kingsburg Swedish Festival which takes place this weekend. It includes a great parade, food, and entertainment. Located in California’s Central Valley, just look up in the sky for the water tower that has an ornate teapot painted on it. Then get ready to dance–and eat!

The historic Gold Rush town of Angels Camp swells to the brim this weekend when Calavares County Jumping Frog Jubilee and County Fair comes to town May 17 – 20, 2012. Celebrating Mark Twain and his story of the jumping frog, the event hosts Mark Twain look-alikes and the recitation of his hilarious story about a couple guys and their tendencies to brag. Kids are invited to dress up like their favorite characters from Tom Sawyer novels and enter contests to win prizes for their costumes. The big Jumping Frog Contest invites the public to sign up to enter their best jumping frogs for  awards & honors–the world jumping frog record is 21′ 5 3/4″.  Each year’s top winner receives a bronzed plaque on the Frog Hop of Fame that lines the sidewalks of Angels Camp’s main street.  Single day admission to festival and fair is $7, frogtown.org

The recently opened Shore Hotel (shorehotel.com) in Santa Monica offers visitors spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean from many of its rooms, while still providing access to the best of downtown shopping and dining, including Third Street Promenade. The 164-room hotel has open-air appeal that reflects Santa Monica’s love of the great outdoors, beaches, pier and mountains. An outdoor patio and pool, two dining locations, a fitness center and a four-story underground parking lot showcase the great design of the U-shaped hotel that touts eco-friendly construction and “green” practices & operations. Free Wi-fi is included with your stay!  Since the hotel opened in late 2011, it’s a great time to book a room as it’s still new. It smells clean and fresh. Our hotel booking service has some discounted rooms  at  Shore Hotel in Santa Monica.

The Jellies Experience at Monterey Bay Aquarium (montereybayaquarium.org) is beautiful to see as long as you stay on the other side of the glass. With no heads, no hearts, no brains, bones or true eyes, jellies have miraculously survived for hundreds of millions of years –and they have acquired great skills ranking among the ocean’s major predators! Look out.

The Jellies Experience focuses on 16 species of jellyfish from around the world, some large and some small. Located  in six exhibit galleries that include a living jelly swarm and an exhibit of fluorescent jellies & Day-Glo corals, this is one of the most popular aquarium exhibits to hit the California shores.  Taking its very own lead from the MBA’s 1992 “Planet of the Jellies,”  a special exhibition that remains one of the most popular in aquarium history, the new exhibit’s topic matter assures popularity and success.

THE JELLIES EXPERIENCE:

• Open through September 2014
• 7,000 square feet of exhibition space
• Live displays with immersive experiences and hands-on activities
• $32.95, kids $19.95 admission
• Open daily except December 25
• montereybayaquarium.org

ABOUT JELLIES – FUN FACTS:

• Jellies have been on Earth for over 650 million years long before sharks and even dinosaurs.
• A jelly can grow or shrink according to the available food supply. If the cupboard is bare, jellies can  de-grow, shrinking in size so they need less food. They can re-grow again when food is more plentiful.
• Jellies are a main food source for sea turtles and ocean sunfish, and they’re also eaten by sea birds and many other fishes.

Photos left to right: Santa Cruz roller coaster, Santa Cruz sky chair, Belmont Park San Diego rides, Santa Monica Pier sign, Santa Monica Ferris Wheel.

It’s primal, it’s colorful and you can touch the sky. Spend a sunny, summer day in California at the beach on a pleasure ride. In Santa Cruz you can arrive by beach train that travels from the Redwood forest to the sea and enjoy an historic Boardwalk over 100 years old (beachboardwalk.com)!   At Belmont Park (belmontpark.com)  in San Diego the fun includes an historic Plunge pool.  In Santa Monica on the World Famous Pier (santamonicapier.org), there’s an old-fahioned Ferris wheel with a twist–solar powered operations.

Fun zones with beaches, boardwalks and piers are nearly a thing of the past.  So grab the brass ring while you can and enjoy the timeless experience of old-fashioned beach amusements.

In addition to Queen Latifah taking center stage at the Pride Festival this weekend in Long Beach, over 30,000 people are expected to line Ocean Blvd. Sunday morning to see the annual Long Beach Pride Festival Parade. The Festival charges a fee for admission $20, while the parade is free to see. Long Beach Lesbian and Gay Pride Parade takes place on Ocean Boulevard from Redondo to Alamitos Avenue at  10:30 a.m. Sunday, May 20, 2012. See: longbeachpride.com

Five grand marshals for this year’s parade were announced:

• Josh Flagg & Colton Thorn, grand marshals. They appear on the Bravo show “Million Dollar Listing.”
• Laura Farinella, community grand marshal. In September, the Long Beach Police Department reached a milestone in its 103-year history promoting its  first female and gay or lesbian officer to the rank of deputy chief of police.
• Michael Gin, Morris Kight political grand marshal. Gin is Mayor of Redondo Beach and works as a senior staff analyst for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services.
• Ron Sylvester, community grand marshal. President and chairman of The Long Beach Gay and Lesbian Center
• Rene Castro, Whitey Littlefield Community Bridge Builder parade marshal. Castro is vice president of programs at the California Conference for Equality and Justice.

Rods & Rails/Potato Festival Extravaganza June 9, 2012 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. at the Orange Empire Railway Museum, 2201 South “A” Street, Perris, CA. Free admission and parking. To enter vehicle in show go to  cityofperris.org sign or call: (951) 943-6603 Maria.

Perris, once known for its potatoes, pays homage to the Perris potato farmers at  Perris Potato Festival:

• Sponsored by Perris Valley Historical & Museum Association at Orange Empire Railway Museum
• 79 acre Museum park filled with antique train, trolley and cable cars
• Old Town Temecula Gunfighters
• Creedence Revisited Concert, 2 Christian Bands, a country western entertainer
• Vendor shopping and festival foods
• Lamb Chop for kids
• Free pony rides
• Make potato dolls
• Pan for gold

The weekend is made for fun and it’s only four days till it begins. Yes, we start celebrating on Friday. Some of California’s most beloved annual events are happening this week, including Duckathon duke race off the Huntington Beach Pier, Castroville Artichoke Festival where Marilyn Monroe got her start, and Oxnard Strawberry Festival served with pie in your face should you choose.

There are more great events coming to a California city near you. Get ready to quack and  jump (Calaveras Jumping Frog Jubilee), but don’t choke–on your artichoke!