Photo by GarySe7en via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr PARTY WITH THE DINOSAURS Day two of the Tarfest takes place at the La Brea Tar Pits and the Miracle Mile. Today is the film and music festival portion of this artsy affair. Music videos and short films will be shown at the Korean Cultural Center for free at 1 p.m., while you can listen to some great bands, including a DJ set......

It's a weekend packed with festivals and sporting events that are sure to take a toll on traffic. The LA Times reminds us that things could get pretty snarled up on the roads around town: "USC plays Oregon at the Coliseum at 5 p.m.; the Cubs are at the Dodgers at 7 p.m.; Washington State plays UCLA at the Rose Bowl at 7:15 p.m.; and singer Neil Diamond performs at Staples Center at 8 p.m."......

Sunday brings the 2nd annual TasteTV Luxury Chocolate Salon to Los Angeles, and chocoholics and the sweet-toothed can score discounted advanced tickets until 6 p.m. today online to the indulgent event. From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday at the Pasadena Center dozens of local confectioners and chocolatiers will be on hand to sample and talk about their tasty treats, along with the chance to see demonstrations and taste wines. Last year's event was a......

Today's annual Lobster Festival in Redondo Beach looks to be a big draw, what with our gorgeous weather and the delicious appeal of the much-loved crustacean. If you're headed down that way you can eliminate the parking woes by taking advantage of the free shuttle that runs to Seaside Lagoon from the Redondo Union High School parking lot (between Garnsey and Del Amo streets) anytime during the festival, which runs noon to 11 tonight and......

Photo by GarySe7en via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr. CULTURE EXPLOSION Cultures collide tonight at the Hollywood Bowl. KCRW presents it's World Festival. The L.A. Phil helps celebrate Hispanic heritage by backing up some multi-cultural bands including Ozomatli, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Lila Downs, Nortec Collective presents Bostich + Fussible. JOIN THE FAMILY The Arclight screens the inarguable classics, The Godfather and The Godfather Part II in its Cinerama Dome. The screenings......

Photo by GarySe7en via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr. TAKE A RIDE C.I.C.L.E., a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the benefits of riding a bicycle, is taking their Urban Expeditions program to the theater district. Meet at 1 p.m. in front of Union Station and get ready to ride through L.A. history. You'll hear fascinating stories from the past, as well as see famous landmarks from these stories and beyond. SHOWOFF YOUR......

Photo by karthikkito via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr. TAKE A TRIP EAST Theaters, churches, and temples across L.A. will house the World Festival of Sacred Music starting today and ending on the 28th. There will be over 1000 artists performing music from India, Persia, Tuva, and more. This is a great opportunity to see what other countries across the world have to offer. Britney Spears won't be appearing, sorry to disappoint.......

Photo by kimbrough-photo via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr. INDULGE IN LOBSTER SEASON The Original Long Beach Lobster Festival closes up today. Every day of the festival, fresh lobster is flown in straight from Maine to feed the hungry masses. Enjoy live music, tons of vendors, and if lobster isn't enough for you, there will be plenty of food stalls to satisfy your massive hunger. Plus watch all the lobster be cooked......

Photo by Melle Music via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr GO ON A HUNT The F Yeah Fest is hosting an adult-friendly L.A. Scavenger Hunt today. Meet at Echo Park Lake at 2 p.m. in teams of 2-5 people for an outrageous adventure through Los Angeles. Organizers suggest coming prepared with face paint and matching team uniforms. As for the items on the list, a few from last year's hunt include every......

It's a busy long weekend, Los Angeles. You've got a ton of great Festivals to choose from, and there's also the Fuck Yeah Fest to check out (more on that soon!). And then there's even more... Photo by S.C. Asher via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr HAVE A CLOSE ENCOUNTER Grab a blanket and head back to the cemetery to see Cinespia's screening of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, projected on Rudolph......

Photo by Camera Obscurist via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr SEE THE B-BOYS BREAK IT DOWN It's day 2 of Freestyle Session 11, the world's largest b-boy break dancing battle at Circus Hollywood, starting up again today at 12 Noon. This year's competition marks the 11th anniversary of what has now become an annual assembly for hip-hop communities worldwide. Over 100 crews from the U.S. , Japan , Korea , Europe and other......

Photo by woolloomooloo via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr SOAK UP THE CULTURES OF AFRICA The Annual African Marketplace and Cultural Faire continues this weekend in full force. Get to the Rancho Cienega Park between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. today and tomorrow to see the sights and sounds of African culture from many nations through music, dance, art, food, and craft. There's a lot to check out, so you might want to......

YOU CAN SUSTAIN Sustainable L.A. is a day-long event about urban environmentalism, where Grand Ave in Downtown will be filled with 50-60 booths of farmers, food, green businesses and community non-profits represented. The event is free-to-the-public and includes a farmer's market featuring local organic produce, food, local beer and organic wine garden, free screenings of environmental documentary films at the MOCA, live entertainment and family-friendly activities, and four separate panel discussions in the outdoor amphitheater.......

Photo of the Venice Art Wall (last summer) by Sundogg via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr GO OLD SCHOOL PORNO STYLE The New Beverly Cinema is doing at Special Midnight 1970s Adult Cinema Show with an 11:59 p.m. showtime tonight and a $7 price tag. Not entirely sure what's on the agenda, but, as it's been suggested, it promises to be a night of classic "bow-chicka-wangh-wangh." GO GO GALLERY OPENING #1 BOXeight Studios......

"There is really loud work near my house at 7 a.m. every day over the weekend. When are the quiet hours over?" Dear Reader, according to the city's municipal code 41.40, "construction in residential areas is limited to the hours of 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., during the week, and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays. It is banned on Sundays." In community meetings with police, officers have stated that someone on a construction......

Photo by staceyviera via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr BRIDGES, VIEWS, ART Tonight marks the opening artist's reception for "Endangered Bridges Over the L.A. River" at Bergamot Station, a show that features the work of David Eddington, and is a co-production of The LA Conservancy and Frank Pictures Gallery. See Eddington's take on the historic bridges spanning the Los Angeles River. Meet the artist, see the art, and mingle. SHE'S FUNNY AND SHE......

Photo by ccharmon via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr GO TRIBAL It's the first ever Tribal Marketplace today from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. downtown at the Tribal Cafe. The free event is a gathering of artist, artisans, collectors and performers of all kinds aimed at bringing the community spirit of old world marketplaces and local bazaars. There you'll find a variety of arts, crafts, apparel and handmade goods from some of the......

Photo by longhorndave via Flickr EAT & DRINK A whole bunch of SoCal eateries (i.e. Spago, Hitching Post, Mozza, Campanile, Lucques/AOC, and more) are getting together with a whole bunch of Central Coast Wineries (i.e. Sea Smoke, Linne Calodo, Ojai Vineyard, Melville, Hitching Post, Tantara, and a ton more) for Wally's 5th Annual Central Coast Wine & Food Celebration. The event runs Noon to 4 today at Wally's Wine and is a benefit for......

All photos by Carrie Meathrell & Kevin Weis/LAist Though it may not have the scenic majesty of Morro Bay or the woodsy seclusion of Big Sur, San Simeon State Park is one of the quiet wonders of the California seaside. Located just a few miles south of fabled Hearst Castle, San Simeon offers two campground sites (San Simeon or Washburn) where you can set up home base for a long weekend. It's a short walk......

CHOMP ON SOME CRAWFISH Head down to the Rainbow Lagoon for Long Beach's 15th Annual Crawfish Festival. From Noon til midnight tonight (and Noon til 11 p.m. tomorrow, too) you can rock out to Cajun, Zydeco, and New Orleans music and chow down on some authentic Louisiana-style crawfish. TIME TO TIKI Check out the Tonga Hut Art Show, featuring the work of Tom Thordarson, Micko, Tiki Tony, Ocea Otica, Jeremy Melton, and Skinny Dog Designs......

Photo by neonspecs via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr POW WOW--WOW!!! It's the last day of the Southern California Indian Center’s (SCIC) Annual Pow Wow at the Autry National Center, which will give visitors the chance to celebrate the country’s diverse American Indian cultures through drumming, songs, and dance. The festivities last until 6 tonight. GET YOUR OBON ON Another big cultural fest wraps up today--it's the West LA Buddhist Temple's Obon Festival......

Photo by Adamina via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr DO A TOLKIEN TRILOGY ALL-NIGHTER From 8:30 p.m. until dawn (seriously) in the One Colorado Courtyard in Old Town Pasadena the Old Pasadena Film Festival will be blowing things out Middle Earth-style with back to back to back screenings of the whole Rings trilogy, followed by a sunrise Hobbit Breakfast. "BEE" OUTDOORS FOR A MOVIE IN MALIBU Enjoy a screening of Bee Movie outdoors......

Photo by ~db~ via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr CELEBRATE THE CULTURES OF SOUTH AMERICA: Check out the free South America Expo Fiesta in Downtown this afternoon, where all the countries of the continent will be represented. Eat, mingle, learn, and take in the entertainment. Like any good street fair there will be rides (and health screenings!). SEE THEE SOME SHAKESPEARE: Barnsdall Park is once again serving as a theatre space this summer......

Photo by sonoazure via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr DO A DOUBLE FEATURE: See two great films and get a whole lot of looks at some John Lautner architecture without even realizing you're being schooled. First up at 7 it's Less Than Zero, the ultimate LA-overindulgent teen tale of the 80s, then at 9 it's The Big Lebowski. The screenings are part of the Hammer Museum's ongoing Lautner focus, which looks at the......

Photo by Lord Jim via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr SAY HELLO TO DEATH: Or at least the Museum of Death, in their new location. Fans of the macabre will delight in checking out one of this town's strangest tributes in museum form. Go if you dare! CELEBRATE COMME LES FRANCAIS: Celebrate the 7th annual official Bastille Day LA Festival in WeHo, with "French gastronomic delicacies and spectacular live entertainment." You may see......

Photo of Echo Park Lake by susan catherine via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr DRINK BEER, SEE ART: The opening of the Vice Photo Show (featuring Rennie Ellis, Nippon Eye, and a special section curated by Tim Barber) promises beer and photos in affable combination in Culver City (eflyer). Give them an RSVP here. CELEBRATE THE LOTUS (WITHOUT ACTUAL LOTUS FLOWERS): It's the 36th annual Lotus Festival in Echo Park, although this year......

Photo by Puck90 via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr DO BRUNCH, AMERICANA STYLE: And no, we don't mean that Vegas-in-Glendale shopping monstrosity! But if there's not enough rock-n-roll in your weekend you can fix that fast (and feed your face) at Safari Sam's Brunch Americana (Noon-4) which is a no-cover brunch with live performances. For your listening pleasure, Brunch Americana features bands who play Rockabilly, Country, Roots, Western Swing, Hillbilly,Bluegrass & Folk.......

Photo by James Herman via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr HELP SEND A GIRL TO ROLLER DERBY CAMP: Check out the LA Derby Dolls fundraiser yard sale in Venice (but hurry, it's on from 9a-Noon!) and help give some cash to the cause. What little girl shouldn't learn how to be a roller derby queen? WATCH SEXY BRAZILIAN DANCING: The heat and passion of Brazil take the stage at the Ford, as......

Photo by Phil Romans via Flickr EXPERIENCE WATER MEETS DANCE MEETS CHINATOWN...THE MOVIE: Stephan Koplowitz's Liquid Landscapes begins tonight via Grand Performances with the showing of original dance film inspired by locations from Roman Polanski’s Chinatown, followed by a screening of Chinatown itself. It's the start of a one-week dance tour of LA inspired by water and sites that have to do with water. SEE A FILM: It's the last day of the Greek......

Photo by the_mule via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr CELEBRATE CHINATOWN'S 70th: Head down to Chinatown's Central Plaza tonight to celebrate this incarnation of the area's 70th Anniversary (and learn what other Chinatowns came before!). They're having 40s-style Big Band music and dancing, cocktails from the era, costume contests, and lots of historic photos and info and a bunch of entertainment. The event is free, and so is the dancing. SHOP AND......