Street Festivals

One of the great things about our new neighborhood has been the wonderful street festivals.  In September we went to the Solano Stroll, a massive affair in which the whole of Solano street was closed to traffic and it seemed every politician, civic organization, sports team, art class, musical group, theatre and local retailer was represented.  People come out in droves to listen to music, wait in long lines for yummy food, and be a part of the general celebratory chaos.  Eliza was mesmerized by the Morris Dancers which we ended up watching for what seemed like hours.  Hazel's favorite was the "fighter fighters" (aka fire fighters), which has become the thing she wants to be when she grows up (along with Barack Obama and "a person"). 

A few weeks later, our immediate neighborhood hosted the "Spice of Life" festival.  Less crowded and boasting both wine tasting and kiddie rides, I think this was the favorite festival all around.  It also had incredible food and cooking demonstrations, a petting zoo and pony ride and we ended up bumping into all sorts of people we knew, which made us feel like we were finding a home here in Berkeley. On the downside, our little Hazelnut forgot to put her knickers on and was wearing a dress--an oversight I managed to miss until she started lifting up her dress in the petting zoo.  But, luckily, we were close enough to home to make a quick stop before returning to the festival.