Bay Area Active & Social - 20s, 30s & 40s

Festival Volunteering Social -- Carnival Parade & Festival, SF

Sat, May 23 · 10:00 AM PDT

19th St, San Francisco, Ca, US

WhatsApp:
https://chat.whatsapp.com/JPFzio2O8fPIuNsb5hkV87

Volunteer check in: 19th Street & Treat Ave., SF

Update:
We got contact from the Carnaval festival organizer that they are still recruiting volunteers, in passive mode though. So the way to do that now is to find a shift and register at the volunteer link, then press the "Contact Organizer" button, that will send an email to the organizer so they can come to approve your application.
The positions they are actively looking for are: Block Captains(4) and Entrance Greeters(5). Deadline is this weekend, so not to miss the online orientation next Tue..

Social Schedule:

• End of Shift group coffee on May 23rd (Sat.) 7pm
• Parade day social party on May 24th, check out its schedule at the Discover SF
• https://www.meetup.com/social-volunteering-crew-community-events/events/313061014

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Have you tried the famous festival volunteering?

It you are new in town, or if you are local yet wishing some more social connections, festival volunteering is a way to get you there fast. You may interact with hundreds of people, and will see several times of that festival goers. All kinds of people, all walks of society.

Traditionally festival volunteering has a limit that the social is mostly limited to your shift. Once that finished, you would be let go. Now comes us, TownFlame, organizing volunteering socials. We would open a real time volunteer social channel, so volunteers can have a group coffee / meal after shifts. What is more, we also organize festival social in format of our DiscoverSF and Destination local series, to support volunteers having group social in the exact event people serve.

https://carnavalsanfrancisco.org/
Here comes the Carnival Parade & Festival in SF, on May 23-24th. It is one of the three largest Festival & Parade in SF, besides Chinese New Year & Pride. The festival will happen in mission district, famous for hispanic cultures. It is recruiting volunteers now, both for the 2 days festival and the Sunday parade, deadline is May 8. Here is the registration link:
https://carnavalsanfrancisco.org/volunteer/

Benefits of the volunteering include lunch, T-shirt and festival insider experience, with said half a million attending this huge community event. We would organize the Discover series on the parade day. Welcome to join us with your volunteer T-shirts. We can also visit you on the shift along the parade route.

Registration link:
https://carnavalsanfrancisco.org/volunteer/

May 8 is the deadline to register for volunteering, we will adjust the date afterwards.

Join TownFlame Volunteering, make life happen.

Liability Waiver: Participation in TownFlame events is voluntary and involves social interaction in public spaces. Activities are designed to be inclusive and respectful. Participants assume all risks and release TownFlame, its organizers, volunteers, and affiliates from liability for injury, illness, or damages, except in cases of gross negligence or intentional misconduct.

By attending, participants acknowledge that photographs, audio, and video recordings may be taken during events, and grant TownFlame the right to use such media for promotional and marketing purposes, in any format or platform, without further consent or compensation.

Board Games at Blossom Hill Crafts

Sat, May 23 · 5:00 PM PDT

Blossom Hill Crafts Store, 354 East Campbell ave, Campbell, CA, US

Blossom Hill Crafts in Campbell is hosting a board game bootcamp! The store manager, Blake Propach, will be teaching the board game Furnace and running game sessions for folk to practice playing it. All levels of board game experience are welcome to join!

Event Details

-The event is free.
-Downtown Campbell has tons of free nearby parking (details below).
-Attendees are welcome to bring outside food and drink to the event.
-The venue is a five-minute walk to VTA Light Rail station (details below).
-Blossom Hill Crafts will have copies of Furnace and a vast array of other board games for guests to browse.

The Board Game

In the game “Furnace”, players take on the roles of 19th-century capitalists building their industrial corporations and aspiring to make as much money as they can by purchasing companies, extracting resources, and processing them in the best combinations possible.

Parking

-Check out downtown Campbell’s parking map here.
-Tons of free no-time-limit parking in the First Street Parking Garage and Second Street Garage.
-Free 2-hour parking in the lots by Hyde Park, Khartoum, and (if you're lucky) Water Tower Kitchen (becomes no-time-limit parking at 6pm).
-Free 2-hour street parking spots are usually available along Orchard City Dr, Civic Center Dr, and E Campbell Ave though you might have to circle a bit (becomes no-time-limit parking at 6pm).
-More free no-time-limit street parking in the residential neighborhoods along North 3rd St, N 2nd St and N 1st St.

VTA Light Rail & Caltrains

-There's a Light Rail station a five minute walk from the store, in case you've got a Light Rail station near your home or workplace.
-If you're near a Caltrains station, you can take it to downtown Mountain View and walk across the platforms to catch a Light Rail to Downtown Campbell.
-Alternatively you can take Caltrains to Diridon station in San Jose, walk a few blocks to the Light Rail "San Fernando" station in San Jose and ride that to Downtown Campbell. We

Seratonin Sunday: A Whale-y Good Boat Ride (ORCAS!!!!) 🐳🐋🐬🍣

Sun, May 24 · 9:00 AM PDT

Chris' Fishing and Whale Watching, 48 Fishermans Wharf, Monterey, CA, US

THE ORCAS ARE OUT CATCHING PREY (grey whales or something) FOR THE REST OF THIS MONTH!!! Let's go watch!

I found the BEST price for whale watching too--about $42-$46 per person depending on the bundle you buy. Here's how to get it:

1. Call Chris' Whale Watching at: (831) 375-5951
2. Ask him for availability for the morning of Sunday, May 24th @ 10 AM
3. Ask if you can book and pay directly through him and if he will honor the Groupon price ($85 for 2 people or $166 for 4--you can also get 1 person for $49)

• ONLY BOOK IN GROUPS OF 1-4 PEOPLE. THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE YOU WILL BE SPLITTING TICKET PRICES WITH. THIS IS NOT A PRIVATE CHARTER. If I hear that Chris gets another call about 20-30 people coming, I will cancel this event. If you want to pay for all of us to have a private charter because you got $$ like that, please DM me.
  4. Confirm and show up at the dock by 9 AM in Monterey on Sunday, May 24th

Do this ASAP to ensure you get a spot! We are going in the morning because this is the best time to see orcas, and the season ends in May. The waters are also the calmest in the morning, which is great for anyone who gets a little seasick! I would still recommend some Dramamine and maybe order a pair of those car sickness goggles!

Discover SF -- Carnaval @ Mission

Sun, May 24 · 9:45 AM PDT

Stable Cafe, 2128 Folsom St, San Francisco, CA, US

A feast of colors, a sea of joy --

Carnaval.

One of the top 3 SF festivals, 500k people, 17 blocks, 5 stages, 50 food stalls, 400+ vendors. Grand parade on Sun., from 10 am - 2pm, a 60–contingent lineup, over 5,500 artists from Brazil, Mexico, Panama, Bolivia, Cuba, Peru, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Colombia, Trinidad & Tobago, Guatemala, El Salvador, and more , televised by CBS. The Grand Parade covers 20 blocks in San Francisco’s historic Latino Cultural District in the Mission.
https://carnavalsanfrancisco.org/

Have you made up your Memorial day long weekend plan yet? If not, welcome to join TownFlame's another Discover SF series -- Carnaval @ Mission district, come to see the massive festive crowd, and enjoy a full day event on Memorial Day weekend, optional afternoon detour to the SF landmark -- Dolores Park in Mission.

WhatsApp:
https://chat.whatsapp.com/JPFzio2O8fPIuNsb5hkV87
The parade is long, the festival would be crowded, we use whatsapp for in-event communication, so we don't lose each other.

Staging Location: Stable Cafe,
2128 Folsom Street, at 17th, Mission, SF
Schedule:
9:45 – 10:15 AM Meet
10:15 AM | Walk to the parade viewing area
10:25 -- 1PM Watch the parade
1:30 PM | Lunch regroup at Southern Pacific Brewing 620 Treat Avenue, at 19th
Afternoon (optional) the famous Dolores Park or Festival
Evening (very optional) regroup, group coffee / crappy festival meals

We have festival volunteer team joining us, as in:
https://www.meetup.com/social-volunteering-crew-community-events/events/314210119

TL;DR ----------
🎪 What's at Carnaval
The festival runs along Harrison Street between 16th and 24th — 17 blocks, 5 main stages, 4 DJ block parties, 400 vendors, 50 food stalls, designated beer/wine gardens, a Soccer Arena activation at 20th & Harrison (this year's theme), Kids Zone, and the Mission Health & Wellness Pavilion.
The 2026 headliner is Su Majestad Mi Banda El Mexicano de Casimiro, performing at 5 PM on the main stage.
***

🌳 About Mission Dolores Park
If you're visiting San Francisco, Dolores Park is one of the city's iconic anchors — the social heart of the Mission, with sweeping views of downtown framed through palm trees. On Memorial Day weekend Sunday afternoon, expect peak SF energy: families on blankets, dogs running, music from every direction, the legendary Bi-Rite Creamery line two blocks away. It's a different vibe from the festival — outdoor party that happens to be on grass.
The Dolores spoke is especially recommended for first-time visitors to SF. Pair it with burritos from Mission Street's taquería row (La Taqueria, El Farolito, or Pancho Villa) for the canonical SF Sunday combo.
***

🚇 Getting There
BART (best option for SF and East Bay): Get off at 16th St Mission or 24th St Mission. Both are a 5–10 minute walk to our meeting spot at Stable Cafe.
Caltrain (from South Bay): Take the Caltrain
Train 605, weekend service). Arrives at 4th & King station at 9:15 AM. From there, take Muni 22 Fillmore bus east to 16th & Folsom (about 20 min total) or walk through SoMa (about 30 min). Stable Cafe is one block north of the bus stop.

Driving: Strongly discouraged. The festival corridor and parade route are closed to vehicles all weekend, and Mission District parking on Carnaval Sunday is essentially impossible.

Out-of-town visitors: If you're staying anywhere downtown, in SoMa, or in the central neighborhoods, BART or Muni will get you to the Mission in 15–20 minutes. Rideshare into the Mission on Carnaval Sunday is slow — public transit is faster.
***

👟 What to Bring

• Comfortable shoes — you'll be standing 2+ hours before our lunch sit-down
• Water and sun protection — the parade route gets hot, and Dolores has no shade
• Small foldable stool or sit-pad if you have one — the curb and the park grass are both your friend
• Cash for festival food vendors (cards work most places but cash is faster)
• A small blanket if you're doing the Dolores spoke
• A friend who'd enjoy the day

🤝 The Vibe
This is a long flexible day, not a rigid tour. Our only structured time is the morning hosting train game during the parade. After that, you're with new friends choosing your own adventure.
You can show up late, leave early, find us again at lunch, or do the whole arc through dinner. The goal is connection, not coverage. If you came at 11:30 and only stayed for the parade tail, that's a good day. If you stayed until the 5 PM headliner and then dinner on Valencia, that's also a good day.

For visitors to SF: this day is designed to give you both the headline cultural celebration and the iconic Mission Sunday experience in a single arc. Come open, leave with a few new friends.
Bring openness. Bring curiosity. Leave the agenda at home.

Join TownFlame: Make Things Happen

Liability Waiver: Participation in TownFlame events is voluntary and involves social interaction in public spaces. Activities are designed to be inclusive and respectful. Participants assume all risks and release TownFlame, its organizers, volunteers, and affiliates from liability for injury, illness, or damages, except in cases of gross negligence or intentional misconduct.
By attending, participants acknowledge that photographs, audio, and video recordings may be taken during events, and grant TownFlame the right to use such media for promotional and marketing purposes, in any format or platform, without further consent or compensation.