Last Sunday I ventured out to Golden Gate Park for the afternoon. I can’t even remember the last time I was there – maybe for the Outside Lands Festival in 2008. The occasion for this visit was the Second Annual Aloha Poly Festival being held in the Hall of Flowers. Beings it was only the second year and there didn’t seem to have been much in the way of marketing, it was a small affair with the usual types of vendors selling Hawaiian-inspired products. The space was small, though, so everyone was kind of crammed in there and it was difficult to peruse things without blocking the aisles. I watched a good Tahitian dance troupe and, as at all Poly events, the crowd/spectators are always respectful and careful not to obstruct anyone’s view. The disappointing part was that there only seemed to be two food vendors – one selling shave ice and one selling plate lunches – with long lines for both. Anyway, I just wanted to lend my support since I truly miss the San Francisco Aloha Festival which relocated to San Mateo a few years ago. Hopefully, this Aloha Poly Festival will grow in the future and replace the other Aloha Festival.
While in the park, I wandered over to Stow Lake, to the Japanese Tea Gardens (BTW, when did they start charging for the Japanese Tea Gardens?!) and to the area where the Aquarium is. I took a fair amount of pictures along the way of birds, trees, foliage, the lake, etc., etc., and so on. As usual, here’s a little glimpse.
