Can you see the superfluity of nuns in white approaching the Fair? Also note the F430 Ferrari supercar (sans license plates), one of many exoticars that made the journey to the Upper Haight today. Also note the sign: “No Open Containers of Alcohol.” Too bad.
Of course, all you need to get around the alcohol ban is a gallon jug of overproofed white rum and a giveaway “water” bottle. As seen on Ashbury.
Former District Five Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi on the scene
Poorbot looking for handouts:
“SHOW US YOUR BOOBS… please.” “FABULOUS PRIZES.” “DON’T WORRY (WE’RE GAY)” These inebriates residing above the Ben & Jerry’s at the corner of Ashbury were true to their word, tossing down trinkets to all flashers male and female.
You kmow why this San Francisco Native baby is better than you? Cause he had the foresight to be born in San Francisco, that’s why. He won the lottery/ when he was born.
2. Can you stand crowds of overgrown sorority girls and fraternity boys?
3. Can you stand crowded beer gardens filled with the aforementioned?
If you answered yes to the above, proceed to the Union Street Festival. “
Dude, harsh!
But here’s the retort, from a party-lover, here’s the other side of this perfect dramaturgical dyad:
“SORRY FOR:
(1) PARTYING AND HAVING FUN AT A FESTIVAL
(2) NOT BEING A GRANDMA, and
(3) LIVING LIFE A LITTLE.”
So there you go.
The alcohol drinking used to be totally wide open, and then things got toned down a bit, and now I think even the walled-off beer “gardens” are gone. But you can always join one of the annual beer-fueled house parties, why not?
All right, let’s travel back to years past – here are some shots from yesteryear:
“Now here’s what’s funny when the so-called neighbors who own houses near traditional San Francisco street parties, like the Bay to Breakers Fun Run and the Union Street Festival. Inevitably, some of the actual neighbors, the people what live on the street itself, throw open their doors for anything-goes, beer-fueled house parties.
“Yeah because rock and fucking roll brings the “wilder element.” Yeah I bet it must be nuts when your heehaw ass festival gets raided by tall-can wielding dave matthews fans. Ain’t no dancing in this town bitches! We want to sell shitty ass freeway artwork and braclets made out of old rocks and trash to senior citizens and sweater knots. Fucking dumb asses chewing on shitty grilled meat on a stick can’t hang out in beer gardens or do whatever dumb fucking bullshit it is that they do on their lame ass stoops on Union st. Union street can suck my balls, that shit has been herbfest from the gate, amatuer hour trainwreck can stay gone.”
O.K. then.
All right, get your house partay tickets or invites now. (It’ll be a piece of cake if you are popular/cute enough.)
The perils of post-adolescent Union Street Fest shotgunning. The front of this house faces Union:
That entire residence was filled to the brim with partiers in 2008. Ah, memories.
All right, see you there, or not.
Now enjoy a trip down Union Street Festival Memory Lane:
This thing is biiiig – it will take you a long time to wander about Union:
You know who proved popular was Tom Rigney, “electric violinist, Cajun fiddler, composer, graphic artist, and leader of the American roots music band, Tom Rigney and Flambeau.”
Micro cupcakes continue their dominance over the cuisine of the late aughts
Your streetfest four basic food groups are poultry (including turkey legs, they’re not just for renaissance festivals anymore), corn on the cob, couscous (not pictured) and garlic fries (not pictured).
Now they’re renting out A2B electric scooters to tourists. Do people really ride these things on the Golden Gate Bridge sidewalks at 20 per back and forth to Sausalito? People do. Anyway, Blazing Saddles bike rentals was offering test drives.
Suds on the Roof, but much less than in years past. I think a man partying outdoors feels more like a man if he can have a red cup of suds.
“Eco-Urban” Union Street featured a hell of a lot of gas powered Honda generators, but this year, not so much. Originally, I thought this distribution amplifier was a box full of car batteries, but now I’m at a loss at figuring out how this band got its power. If they had a generator, they hid it well.
What’s this?
It’s an overhead extention cord leading from a Union Street business to one of the food vendors in the middle of the street. Is that an extension cord being used as internal wiring? Cough electrical code cough.
Oh, there it is! One of at least two Hondas in operation today.
But at least all the amplified music won’t disturb this slumbering. ear-protected pooch.
It’s big, in’nt?
And here’s the lateral view from our most-polarizing street fest yesterday, the day with “fewer hooligans” drinking beer according to at least one Sunday attendee:
Lots of swag from our corporate overlords at this street faire:
All right, here are a few of the Repubs. Yes on B and Fix MUNI Now were a few of their issues:
And here are some more. These people were promoting Dana Walsh (no, not the character on 24 and not this cutie, oh no – the Republican Dana Walsh).
As usual, the West End was strictly for kids:
And dogs, of course:
Fandango let people take two free spins on their unfairly-weighted (akaloaded, gaffed, cogged, weighted, crooked, or gag) swag roulette wheel – that was a mistake. Scored a bumper sticker the first try and then a precious $50 credit code the second. Bonus.
And of course, another Mini MUNI Meltdown, right on sked:
[UPDATE: And here's a late entry, from Bluoz: Upper Haight is for Lovers:
Click to expand]
Things really didn’t get hopping until the fog went away in the afternoon, but the 2011 Haight Ashbury Street Fair went off without a hitch, with nary a peep from the notorious NIMBYs of the Western Addition.
(And oh, honorable mention goes to photographers Bob Horowitz (nice) and Dropatan (also nice).)
Let your freak flag fly, baby. From the Eastern Stage:
Sunday, June 12, 2011, from 11am to 5:30pm. Come one, come all! Once a year, on the second Sunday in June, the Haight-Ashbury community hosts a special celebration and everyone in the World is invited. Music is in the air; people dance in the streets; a festive atmosphere springs up; and Haight Street, once again, becomes the center of Peace, Love and Happiness. This annual event is the Haight-Ashbury Street Fair, one of the most highly anticipated public events in San Francisco.
The 34th Annual Haight-Ashbury Street Fair will be taking place on Sunday, June 12, 2011, from 11 am until 5:30 pm. A variety of activities will be taking place including three stages offering live entertainment; a six-block Vending Area featuring arts & crafts, food and other merchandise; an area dedicated to the entertainment of families with children; and an opportunity to celebrate with many other like-minded people.Directions and Access to the Haight Ashbury Street Fair
Above all things, we highly recommend that you and your friends take the public transportation systems to get to the Street Fair. Parking spaces are very limited and, besides, why spend your time roaming around in your car while you could be enjoying the Street Fair first hand. Here are some leads on how you can make your way to the Haight-Ashbury Street Fair.
MUNI: The Haight-Ashbury is served by six routes that directly serve this neighborhood. They are #6 – Parnassus, #7 – Haight, #33 – Ashbury, #37 – Corbet, #43 – Masonic and #71 – Noriega. Each of these lines travel directly to the Haight-Ashbury District. Other lines that serve the neighborhood indirectly are the N-Judah streetcar, #21 Hayes and the #5 Fulton. Connecting lines vary so please call MUNI (673-MUNI) for information on the best lines to use.BART
For East Bay travelers, your best bet to the Street Fair is to disembark at any S.F BART station on Market Street and catch the #5, #6, #7 or #71. You can also catch the N-Judah streetcar in any Metro Station.If your are coming from Daly City or beyond on BART, catch the #43 at the Balboa Station to the Street Fair. For more information, please call (510) 839-2220 or (650) 992-2278.AC TRANSIT
Coming from the East Bay, you can catch the #6 Parnassus or the #21 Hayes at the TransBay Terminal. For more information, please call (415) 817-1717.GOLDEN GATE TRANSIT
If you are traveling from Marin County, you can take any bus headed to San Francisco and get off at the TransBay Terminal. There you can take the #6 Parnassus or #21 Hayes. For more information, call (415) 455-2000 or (415) 257-4554.SanTrams
Traveling along the Peninsula, you can jump into a bus heading to San Francisco and get off at the TransBay Terminal. There you can catch the #6 Parnassus or the #21 Hayes. For more information, call (800) 660-4287 or (650) 508 6448.Any way you choose to get to the Haight-Ashbury Street Fair, we encourage you to take public transit.
Click here to get an idea on what to expect on Union Street in the Cow Hollow / Marina this weekend, June 4-5, 2011.
But keep in mind that you will be venturing onto the northern slopes of NIMBY Mountain, the Fortress of Reaction, you’ll be dealing with the Specific Whites of Pacific Heights Adjacent, so forget about walking around with an open container all obvious the way you can at other City-sanctioned bacchanalia.
You gotta be sly fox, like this gal. The SFPD is totally cool with this:
Click to expand
Great. Now you’re all set to party with the attractive denizens of the Marina, where even the fat slobs are appealing in a Jack Black / Judd Apatow kind of way.
(Oh, and by the way Union Street Festival, you might be Urban, but you’re not Eco, not in the least, especially because everything’s Eco in 2011. Just so you know.)
And oh kids, stay out of the West End of Union, as that’s reserved for the little ones. Party People should stay on the other side of Fillmore.
Now here’s what’s funny when the so-called neighbors who own houses near traditional San Francisco street parties, like the Bay to Breakers Fun Run and the Union Street Festival, complain about traditional San Francisco street parties like the Bay to Breakers Fun Run and the Union Street Festival. Inevitably, some of the actual neighbors, the people what live on the street itself, throw open their doors for anything-goes, beer-fueled house parties.
“Yeah because rock and fucking roll brings the “wilder element.” Yeah I bet it must be nuts when your heehaw ass festival gets raided by tall can weilding dave matthews fans. Ain’t know dancing in this town bitches! We want to sell shitty ass freeway artwork and braclets made out of old rocks and trash to senior citizens and sweater knots. Fucking dumb asses chewing on shitty grilled meat on a stick can’t hang out in beer gardens or do whatever dumb fucking bullshit it is that they do on their lame ass stoops on Union st. Union street can suck my balls, that shit has been herbfest from the gate, amatuer hour trainwreck can stay gone.”
O.K. then.
All right, get your house partay tickets or invites now. (It’ll be a piece of cake if you are popular/cute enough.)
The perils of post-adolescent Union Street Fest shotgunning. The front of this house faces Union:
That entire residence was filled to the brim with partiers in 2008. Ah, memories.
All right, see you there, or not.
Now enjoy a trip down Union Street Festival Memory Lane:
This thing is biiiig – it will take you a long time to wander about Union:
You know who proved popular was Tom Rigney, “electric violinist, Cajun fiddler, composer, graphic artist, and leader of the American roots music band, Tom Rigney and Flambeau.”
Micro cupcakes continue their dominance over the cuisine of the late aughts
Your streetfest four basic food groups are poultry (including turkey legs, they’re not just for renaissance festivals anymore), corn on the cob, couscous (not pictured) and garlic fries (not pictured).
Now they’re renting out A2B electric scooters to tourists. Do people really ride these things on the Golden Gate Bridge sidewalks at 20 per back and forth to Sausalito? People do. Anyway, Blazing Saddles bike rentals was offering test drives.
Suds on the Roof, but much less than in years past. I think a man partying outdoors feels more like a man if he can have a red cup of suds.
“Eco-Urban” Union Street featured a hell of a lot of gas powered Honda generators, but this year, not so much. Originally, I thought this distribution amplifier was a box full of car batteries, but now I’m at a loss at figuring out how this band got its power. If they had a generator, they hid it well.
What’s this?
It’s an overhead extention cord leading from a Union Street business to one of the food vendors in the middle of the street. Is that an extension cord being used as internal wiring? Cough electrical code cough.
Oh, there it is! One of at least two Hondas in operation today.
But at least all the amplified music won’t disturb this slumbering. ear-protected pooch.
It’s big, in’nt?
And here’s the lateral view from our most-polarizing street fest yesterday, the day with “fewer hooligans” drinking beer according to at least one Sunday attendee:
Lots of swag from our corporate overlords at this street faire:
All right, here are a few of the Repubs. Yes on B and Fix MUNI Now were a few of their issues:
And here are some more. These people were promoting Dana Walsh (no, not the character on 24 and not this cutie, oh no – the Republican Dana Walsh).
As usual, the West End was strictly for kids:
And dogs, of course:
Fandango let people take two free spins on their unfairly-weighted (akaloaded, gaffed, cogged, weighted, crooked, or gag) swag roulette wheel – that was a mistake. Scored a bumper sticker the first try and then a precious $50 credit code the second. Bonus.
And of course, another Mini MUNI Meltdown, right on sked:
The 12th Annual How Weird Street Faire is coming to SoMA at noon, May 1st, 2011. So dust off your cowboy hat and go, why not?
This could be you come May Day 2011:
(In Soviet Russia, we had to make big travel to get to Burning Man, but in San Francisco, Burning Man travels to you. What a country!)
MYTHICAL REALMS The 12th annual How Weird Street Faire Sunday May 1, 2011 Noon to 8pm Howard and 2nd Streets, San Francisco, Earth http://www.HowWeird.org
“The Haight-Ashbury Street Fair is held on the second Sunday of June each year, during which Haight Street is closed down between Stanyan and Masonic, with one sound stage at each end. This is a rather crowded event due to heavy tourism.”
