Out and About: Land Park/Grid
By Jessica Laskey
May 2019
ON THE WATERFRONT
Old Sacramento promises new season of fun and games
Spring marks the Old Sacramento Waterfront’s newest season of games, tours and train rides.
Catch gold fever in the Sacramento History Museum’s Gold Fever! games. Participants take on characters from the Gold Rush and embark on a lively tour through the historic district. Games are appropriate for all ages and last approximately one hour. Tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for youth ages 6–17. Children 5 and younger are free.
Old Sacramento Underground Tours—now in its 10th season—gives guests the unique opportunity to explore parts of the city that have been hidden underground for 150 years. Explore excavated foundations, enclosed pathways and archaeology exhibits accompanied by the sounds of 1860s street life. Tours last approximately one hour, and cost $18 for adults and $12 for youth ages 6–17. Children 5 and younger are free.
All tour tickets include complimentary admission to the Sacramento History Museum at 101 I Street. For more information, visit sachistorymuseum.org.
For locomotive lovers, California State Parks and the California State Railroad Museum and Foundation offer excursion train rides on the Sacramento Southern Railroad each weekend through September. Guests can enjoy a memorable 6-mile, 45-minute train ride along the Sacramento River pulled by a vintage steam or diesel locomotive.
Book tickets online at californiarailroad.museum or purchase at 125 I Street. Regular tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for youth ages 6–17. First-class tickets are $24 for adults and $16 for youth. Children 5 and younger ride free.
BIKE ROUTE SACRAMENTO
Merge your love of bikes and the River City with Bike Route Sacramento, a new board game by South Land Park resident Peter Hansell, which is raising money on Kickstarter this month to celebrate Bike Month.
“Bike Route is for people who love bikes, love games and love Sacramento,” says Hansell, who’s been working on a prototype for two years and road-testing it with family, friends and community members. “I realized that the game could also bring back that great sense of place that’s getting lost. Google guides us from place to place without any context or sense of relationship. Yes, you can turn left and turn right, but where are you?”
In the game, players build bike routes around the city to win community rewards. The first player to get seven points wins. The game board includes exquisite paintings by Hansell—also an accomplished artist—of local landmarks past, present and future.
After the Kickstarter campaign, Hansell hopes to get the game manufactured in time for Christmas or early 2020. To contribute, visit kickstarter.com and search “Bike Route Sacramento.”
EAST LAWN PRESENTATIONS
We all need to leave behind more than just memories—we need to leave behind detailed plans. To help in that effort, East Lawn is offering three complimentary informational presentations this month.
The 25-minute sessions will be held Thursday, May 9, at 11:30 a.m. at East Lawn Memorial Park & East Sacramento Mortuary, 4300 Folsom Blvd.; Wednesday, May 15, at 11:30 a.m. at East Lawn Elk Grove Memorial Park, 9189 East Stockton Blvd.; and Wednesday, May 15, at 11:30 a.m. at Sierra Hills Memorial Park & East Lawn Mortuary, 5757 Greenback Lane.
Reservations are required and seating is limited. To RSVP for May 9, call (916) 269-9290; for May 15, call (916) 269-9291. A complimentary meal will be served. For more information, visit eastlawn.com.
DESIGN WEEK SACRAMENTO
Join local designers, artists, photographers, writers and creative businessowners May 11–17 to explore the intersection of design and the unique aspects of our region.
This weeklong series of workshops, lectures, design tours and networking events—run entirely by volunteers—will bring together Sacramento’s legions of creative types to discuss, teach, learn and mentor.
Visit designweeksac.com for a calendar of events and more information.
WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT GRANT
The nonprofit organization Women’s Empowerment has received a grant of $14,700 from Sierra Health Foundation to support REstart, a paid property management training program for homeless women offered in partnership with the Institute of Real Estate Management Sacramento.
The grant will support seven weeks of training with IREM with professional curriculum, weekly stipends, transportation assistance, job shadowing and a certificate in property management.
To date, Women’s Empowerment, located along North A Street, has graduated 1,554 homeless women—80 percent of whom are survivors of domestic violence—and their 3,738 children. To make a donation, visit womens-empowerment.org.
NEW AT THE ZOO
Mo and Forest, the Sacramento Zoo’s two new okapi denizens, are making themselves at home in their brand-new exhibit that opened to the public earlier this year, making the zoo the only facility in Northern California to house these cool-looking creatures.
The okapi, also known as the “forest giraffe,” looks like a cross between a zebra and a deer. Found in the dense rainforests of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the endangered okapi is the only living relative of the giraffe.
For more information, visit saczoo.org. The Sacramento Zoo is located at 3930 W. Land Park Drive.
CROCKER VILLAGE’S NEW SAFEWAY
As you revel in the new Safeway at Crocker Village, developer Paul Petrovich offers several points of interest about the 55,000-square-foot store.
The store has hired about 100 employees and features a pharmacy and a Starbucks.
Produce variety is a top priority, so you can get your fill of exotic items like dragon fruit and plantains. In the deli, check out mouthwatering morsels like cauliflower ceviche, chicken pot pies and steamed pork buns.
Aisles are named after local streets—such as Crocker Drive and Sutterville Road—which Petrovich says will make it easier to find what you’re looking for.
Architectural features include warehouse-style lighting, as well as several skylights and plenty of front windows to let the light in.
When you’re done grocery shopping, check out other retailers in the center like Panda Express, Pet Supplies Plus, City Sports Club, Peet’s Coffee, Banfield Pet Hospital and The Joint.
BRONZE AGE
Take a stroll down Capitol Mall between now and November and you’ll be treated to nine beautiful bronze sculptures by renowned Mexican artist Jorge Marín as part of a temporary art installation from Mexico City called “Wings of the City.”
The sculptures, standing as high as 11 feet, symbolize cultural exchange and have been designed to evoke thoughts related to the spiritual virtues of humankind.
“These bronzes allow Capitol Mall visitors to interact with art, take selfies and learn more about one of Mexico’s best-known contemporary figurative artists,” Councilmember Steve Hansen says. “We are proud to host this beautiful art with the Mexican Consulate and thank them for their help making this project take flight.”
The nine bronze sculptures—which have been on display across the globe since 2013—incorporate Baroque and Renaissance elements with a modern twist. They can be seen along Capitol Mall between 8th and 9th streets and on 11th Street between J and L streets.
STOP, LISTEN, LOOK
Spring has sprung and no one’s happier than the birds and the bees. But do you know what to do if you find injured wildlife? The Wildlife Care Association has a few key pointers.
Stop! If you see an animal with blood or an obvious injury, or if it’s not moving, it likely needs help.
Listen! Is the animal calling, crying or making noise? If it’s noisy, running away or trying to hide, it may not need rescue. Some birds naturally fall from nests uninjured. Many bird species continue to care for and protect their young, even on the ground.
Look! Take up to two hours to evaluate the wildlife before taking any action. In most cases, a grounded bird without obvious injury will find its own way. If it’s possible to return a fledgling to the nest, do so—the mantra that you can’t touch baby birds is a myth!
Questions? Call the Wildlife Care Association at (916) 965-WILD (9453). For more information, visit wildlifecareassociation.com.
FROM BAGEL TO BAO
Cookbook author and Sacramento Bee food writer Elaine Corn will present “From Bagel to Bao” at the Confucius Institute’s new lecture series Saturday, May 4, from 2–3 p.m. at the International Center in Davis.
Corn will present her observations of Chinese cuisine from the viewpoint of a Jewish food editor who married a Cantonese chef.
“It’s about my life in Chinese food,” Corn says, beginning with her father in Kunming, China, during World War II and ending with marrying “a Chinese chef who revealed the techniques, secrets and spiritual compass of the cuisine.” Corn will discuss the Jewish-Chinese food connection, including family outings in New York with her kosher grandmother.
“As to the contentious topic of chop suey, get ready for a firm opinion about its origin,” Corn says.
For more information, visit confucius.ucdavis.edu/events/bageltobao.
Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Submissions are due six weeks prior to the publication month.
