Despite the number of times I have been to Old Town Seal Beach, this marked my first time geocaching there. I guess it’s because all the previous times I visited this lovely place, I spent my time either browsing around the shops and getting to know what’s around. After learning a bit of history on this place to write my “Back to the Past” articles, I made use of that knowledge by showing my friend Kambria around Old Town while geocaching earlier this week on Monday morning.
Our adventure started at …

The Japan Green Honor Band returns again this year to be performing in the Rose Parade as well as to host a benefit concert in conjunction with the John F. Kennedy High School Jazz Band.
This year’s Green Band is composed of students from Tachibana High School in Kyoto, and the benefit concert will be raising funds for the Green Band students whose homes and families have been affected by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The concert will be held at the AUHSD Performing Art Center at Kennedy High on …

Christmas lights glowing at night are always beautiful to look at, but when an entire neighborhood is lit up, it is a spectacular sight. Now a good number of houses with lights up in a neighborhood is pretty common, but an entire neighborhood lit up is pretty rare. If you are close to La Palma though, there is a neighborhood you must visit. Every year, the houses on Dallas Drive (off Huston Avenue) are all decked out with lights and decorations for the holidays.
The neighborhood is known for their  lights …

Celebrate La Palma’s diverse heritage with the annual La Palma Days, this Saturday, November 12. Celebrated for over 27 years now and known as the “Official Veteran’s Day Parade of Orange County” by the Orange County Board of Supervisors, this year’s theme is “We Salute You!”
The celebrations began with the La Palma Pageant on Sunday, November 6. The next part is this Saturday with the parade and festival. As with any event of this type, expect to be in for a full day of fun. Come out for the parade …

“Visitor Night at the UCI Observatory” is coming up this Saturday, November 5. The telescopes at the UCI Observatory will be available for general public use to explore crates on the Moon and see Jupiter, the globular cluster M15 and other star clusters.
Take a look at the flyer below for more information:

This event is great for all ages, and best of all, it is free with a voluntary donation of $5 suggested per family.
For more information, visit www.physics.uci.edu/~observat/#visnite.
If you cannot make it to this upcoming Visitor Night but would like …

Come out and experience 75 years of an Anaheim tradition with  the annual Anaheim Spooktacular Halloween Parade and Fall Festival this Saturday, October 29 at Center Street Promenade in Downtown Anaheim. Starting from 11 A.M. and running until 9 P.M., enjoy a full day of Halloween fun with a costume contest, trick-or-treating, pumpkins, food, and the traditional Anaheim Halloween Spooktacular Parade. There’s trick-or-treating as well so expect candy!
One of the best thing about this event, besides all the fun, is that this event is free and suitable for all ages!
Take …

Come out for a full day of fun at the 47th Annual Heritage Festival and Parade in Placentia this Saturday, October 15.
If you want to start bright and early, from 6:30 to 10 A.M. is the Chamber of Commerce Pancake Breakfast at Tri-City Park.
The parade starts at 9:30 A.M. and travels from Morse Ave. north on Kraemer to Tri-City Park. There will be over 100 entries—from VIPs, non-profit organizations, clowns, to my favorite, the marching bands.
Following the parade, from 10 A.M. to 6 P.M. is the Heritage Festival held at …

Now that summer has been over, thoughts of the beach are also long gone. However, come out to Seal Beach, just north of the pier, on Saturday, October 9 for the Japan America Kite Festival!
Hosted by the Japan America Society of Southern California and Up Up & Away Kite Club, this festival is now in its 15th year, drawing over 10,000 people and being the largest kite festival in Southern California. Admission is free and the opening ceremony starts at 10 A.M.
Of course, you can expect a day of kite …

Can you really see Jupiter from Seal Beach Pier? Yes, with a telescope you can! Join volunteer astronomers at Bogart’s Coffee House’s “Astronomy Night Star Party at the Pier” on Saturday, October 1 between 8 to 10 P.M. Take advantage of the opportunity to see a beautiful crescent moon as well as Jupiter and its “Galilean” moons. And don’t worry, you don’t need to have a telescope or be an astronomy expert. Just come ready to learn or to share what you know.
Bogart’s Coffee House hosts events regularly so if …

Do you expect to find food in a furniture store? Well, asides from their furniture business, IKEA also has a restaurant. However, do not be daunted by the IKEA Restaurant. For a restaurant, the prices are ridiculous, and I mean ridiculous in a good way.
Depending on how much you eat, expect to spend around $10 for average portions of food. Where else can you get half a rack of baby back ribs with fries and cornbread for only $6.99? Unfortunately, that deal is only available on Wednesdays. However, you can …