Things to Do in Baldwin Park
Recommended Things to Do by Groupon Customers
The 16th century comes booming back to life during The Original Renaissance Pleasure Faire, which has re-created the culture, cuisine, and history of the Elizabethan era for more than five million attendees since its inauguration in 1963. Atop 13 stages sprinkled across 20 acres of festival grounds, live performers don traditional garb to demonstrate Renaissance music, dancing, battle customs, and blogging techniques. The talented actors stay in character throughout the bash, mingling with the crowds to perform alongside artisans purveying leatherware, clothing, and perfumes.
Workshops instruct visitors on how to make period crafts, after which guests can refuel with samplings of traditional Renaissance cuisine, such as hefty turkey legs and shepherd's pies, or more modern fare such as strombolis, coffee, and sweet confections. Rides and games challenge kids to toss javelins, race turtles, and recite Shakespeare's complete works on giant swings, and interactive RenQuest exhibitions hone little ones' sword-fighting skills and trivia knowledge.
For Urban Outdoor Skills staff Pascal Baudar and Mia Wasilevich, living sustainably is more than just talk. Baudar has been sourcing his own food since his childhood in Belgium, and Wasilevich—a self-taught chef—lives off her own urban garden. Together they run Urban Outdoor Skills, teaching their students self-reliance through classes where they pickle and can their own foods or make organic soaps from wild aromatic plants. Underlying every session is a bounty of expertise in foraging from the surrounding mountain wilderness: nettles and yucca become piquant sauces, seeds become breads and crackers, and flowers become wood-sprite birthday cakes.
The GRAMMY Museum aims to immerse guests in a historic and melodic experience with four floors devoted to American music. The 30,000-square-foot museum celebrates the American musical tradition with concerts, lectures, and exhibits on genres ranging from classical and jazz to rock and hip-hop. The Clive Davis Theater sits at the center of the museum, ready and waiting for the gold-plated performances of tiny GRAMMY trophy orchestras. A rooftop terrace hides atop the building for special programs and private events. In the interactive exhibit space, visitors can peer into musical time capsules with stage outfits that once belonged to Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, and Stevie Ray Vaughan.
Reflecting their zeal and do-it-yourself confidence, the LA. Derby Dolls zip around a 100’x60’ banked oval track that they built themselves with the help of friends and family members. The track’s customized slope and elevation enables them to hit breakneck paces normally reserved for cheetahs that can afford their own cleats. Bout attendees can wander over to the factory’s Vendor Village for apparel and jewelry, food from the likes of Garage Pizza and Hot Dog on a Stick, and brews from PBR and Schiltz. Alex’s Bar also serves Jack Daniel’s ready-to-drink bottles.
Although fans keep the air moving, the Doll Factory doesn’t have air conditioning or heating, so audience members should dress according to the season. Bout attendees can park their cars for $10 at Silver Lake Medical Center or their motorcycles and scooters for $5 at the Westlake entrance.
Recognizing the opportunities that having such a large track gives them, the Derby Dolls have expanded their community involvement by offering the venue for events such as the TwentyWonder fundraiser for the Down Syndrome Association of Los Angeles.
On 12 sunny courts at Arcadia Tennis Center, certified instructors help students learn the fundamentals of tennis and hone their playing skills. Under new management as of June 2012, the staff is dedicated to new beginnings, organizing group lessons for both juniors and adults, each with a low student-to-teacher ratio to ensure individual improvement. In addition to the beginners' lessons, Arcadia Tennis Center hosts youth summer camps and regular leagues, which merge healthy competition with the sport's social aspects, much like a football game's halftime debutante ball.
