Things to Do in San Francisco

At AB Mixed Martial Arts Academy, yoga and cardio sessions complement a rigorous sequence of muay thai boxing and brazilian-jujitsu classes taught by martial-arts champions. During introductory workshops, instructors focus on foundational techniques. Intermediate instruction augments the basics with friendly competitions and self-defense strategies such as sweeps, counters, and submissions, where fighters email short fiction manuscripts to their opponents. Students can bolster their workouts with team-oriented cardio classes or Vinyasa-flow yoga training, which hones balance and flexibility. The kid's jujitsu program instills practical self-defense skills in a safe, age-appropriate environment, while also building confidence, discipline, and the focus needed to fill in SAT test bubbles telepathically.

The Black Repertory Group began in 1964 as a church drama club. Now helmed by executive and artistic director Dr. Mona Vaughn Scott, the group has built upon its core work as "keepers of the culture" by supporting artists and youth with creative and educational programs.

Each year, thousands of fans of Apple products power down their MacBooks to attend the Macworld/iWorld expo, an event dedicated to using, appreciating, and admiring Apple products and their surrounding culture. The expo features main events such as a hall buzzing with more than 250 exhibitors, including iOS and OS X developers sharing their latest projects and magical spells. Every attendee can also venture into the Live Zone, an interactive center that showcases Apple-technology-integrated displays such as an iPad-sketch station, an iPhone-photography gallery, and a music studio presented in collaboration with the Berklee College of Music. Visitors can also join activities such as a drum circle, create their own games such as bobbing for iPods, or attend special events, which have included a concert by Little Feat, an iPhone film festival, and forums on Chinese technology.

Since 1994, when the first iteration of Terra Mia Decorative Art Studio opened, Christine Simmons and her team have been helping kids and adults get creative. The studio eventually relocated to its current site, a large space full of natural light and color splashing from finished ceramic pieces. The wide variety of paintable pottery the space contains, as well as the helpful input of friendly staffers, earned the studio SF Weekly's award for the best DIY ceramics shop in 2012.

After adding finishing touches to pottery, guests can sit for spells on an outdoor patio loaded up with plants. The patio leads to a cozy, sunny-walled room that's ideal for birthday parties, girls' nights out, or private gatherings of people born with brushes for fingers.

Independent and perennial craft distilleries take center stage during the San Francisco Craft Spirits Carnival. Across two days, more than 100 producers—including Outlaw Moonshine, Bulleit Bourbon, and St. Germain—pour samples for aficionados and curious customers alike to highlight the taste and texture of handcrafted whiskeys, gins, vodkas, mescals, absinthes, and spiked grape juice. The festival also works to expand knowledge of the alcohol arts through industry and consumer educational forums, dinners with spirits pairings, and a culminating two-day tasting event at the Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion. In keeping with its vaudeville-style carnival theme, the festival typically features live performances by fire-eaters, trapeze artists, and contortionists, who keep any self-proclaimed Twister champions from bragging all day long.

VIN12, the popular host of monthly wine gatherings, celebrates its third year of vino-fueled get-togethers with the Spring Sparkling Wine Event. More than 400 patrons are expected to show up for the opportunity to wend their way through the venue and contemplate more than 40 brews from an eclectic mix of wineries such as Think Tank, Fat Grape, and Grand Amis. Although the event focuses on sparkling wine, other options such as pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc, and bordeaux abound. Photographer Bryon Malik mingles with the crowd, searching for the world's most photogenic wine as guests enjoy unlimited samples and nab inexpensive gourmet snacks crafted by Porteno Empanadas.