So back to Memorial Weekend....
On the Saturday afternoon, Aaron and I ventured over to Treasure Island to check out a new flea market that has started taking place over there. I had never been to Treasure Island before, so it was fun to explore somewhere new. Ok, so it was less magical than the name would have you believe, and there was not a pirate in sight, but it has great views of the city, and frankly, who wouldn't want to say that they had been somewhere named 'Treasure Island'?
The flea market itself was pretty crappy, but maybe that's because I am used to going to the one in Alameda, which is much bigger and features more vintage finds, rather than a lot of weird, new age hippy-style clothes, jewellery and artwork. There were, however, a couple of stalls that provided some interesting browsing, including a gourmet popcorn company that make interesting flavours, such as seaweed covered, chocolate covered and bacon fat popcorn.
There was a breathtaking piece of artwork right by the flea market too. A huge amazonian woman sculpted out of metal-mesh, which I imagine must have been made by the same artist who created a very similar piece displayed in Hayes Valley.
On Saturday night we went to The Knockout to see Omar Romero. The band didn't take to the stage until nearly midnight and when they finally did start playing, their music was good, but I felt like the atmosphere in the room was kind of flat. Even my fiancé, who normally has ants in his pants, was not inspired to dance. I would like to see them again, but next time with a little more oomph in the place.
The sun came out on Sunday, just in time for the annual luau at Forbidden Island. This year was a very different vibe to last year's event. It was packed solid, and I loved spending the day with friends, but unfortunately, for me, it was a little too busy, and I didn't enjoy having to wait for nearly an hour every time we ordered drinks (and to then be overcharged and have to go through the palaver of leaning over the crowd at the bar to try and sort it out). I suppose this is just one of those things that you have to accept though, when the drinks are fancy and everyone wants to wrap their lips around one of those delicious concoctions....
The food was disappointing, and I felt that charging $10 for a plate featuring a few chunks of roast pork, yams, and salad was excessive. It also ran out really quickly, and due to being so busy they were not serving bar food. I really missed getting my coconut prawn and spicy chicken-bite fix! That said, it's all about the company you keep, and our group did have fun chatting amongst ourselves for a good few hours before we headed to a nearby housewarming party where a kickass bbq was in full effect!
On Monday we headed to the annual Shit Kickin' Memorial Day BBQ at El Rio. I had so much fun at last year's event, that I definitely wanted to go back this year!
Unfortunately by the time we got there the only thing left at the bbq was a few pieces of chicken, but this was ok, as it gave me an excuse to go and get a burrito afterwards....
I'll cut to the chase - the best part of the event for me was Red Meat's performance. It was worth going just to see them, and I had so much fun dancing to nearly all of their songs. They were on top form, played all the tunes I love to hear, and are definitely one of my favourite Bay Area bands!
I found out about this band for the first time when I saw them at the Memorial Day event exactly a year ago, and having seen them a couple of times since then (the last time I saw them was in May at the Wanda Jackson show) it was cool hear them play again at this intimate venue with such a fun, party atmosphere.
Super super fun times, tinged with a bittersweetness, as I knew it was the last time I would be out dancing and having fun with my sweetheart and my Bay Area friends for a while....
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