Street Fair This Saturday!

By Angela Pang

Fair Agenda

Irving St. will be abundant with excitement and entertainment for all ages on Saturday, May 20, as arts and crafts, food, anime, entertainment and more fill 20th to 25th Avenues, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Before the celebration begins, a youth rally and awards ceremony for students from the San Francisco Unified School District will take place at the main stage on Irving St. and 25th Ave. at 10:15 a.m.

For aspiring singers, they now have the chance to show off their vocals and compete in a karaoke contest! There will be an Open Mic from 11:00 am ­ 1:15pm on the second stage at 22nd Ave. The Karaoke Contest will take place at 1:30 p.m. ­ 3:15 p.m. First-place winner will receive a pair of round-trip airline tickets anywhere in the U.S. with Southwest Airlines, plus dinner for two at the Silver Cloud Restaurant. Other top finishers will receive cash prizes and/or a dinner for two at Silver Cloud Restaurant.

Throughout the day, live musical acts from various musical genres will take the stage. Fans of American Idol are in for a treat, as featured guest Jasmine Trias will perform, as well as Sway (Jose Penala). This will be the first local appearance for San Mateo County homeboy Sway since he appeared on American Idol this season!

There will definitely be something for everyone to enjoy. For Hawaiian music, check out the Mango Kingz; Kero One for hip-hop beats, and the quartet Legaci for R&B and soul. For alternative folk rock music, listen to San Francisco-based artist Julia Lau. Also performing at the celebration will be the award-winning reggae band Native Elements, who are returning for a second year. DJ Mike Nice and DJ ToneDef will be spinning tunes to tie it all together. Cherng Loong will perform a lion dance and the Khemarin Dance Group will perform a Cambodian dance. Another dance group present will be DowneFX, the only urban dance company promoting empowerment, creativity, and social awareness for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people of color. San Francisco Conjurors “Stage Magician of the Year ” Chin Chin will also be taking the stage. Local radio stations 106 KMEL, Wild 94.9, Star 101.4, KISS 98.1, KKSF 103.7, 960 AM The Quake, 910 AM KNEW will also be present.

For those interested in sampling Asian cuisine, Mai Thai will have pad thai, chicken satay and egg rolls for sale, Hawaii BBQ will be selling Hawaiian food and Chabba Thai is offering curry dishes, and Thai beverages. For those thirsty, visit Tapioca Express’ booth for flavored tapioca drinks, sip on lemonade from Lem N. Man, or get soda from Pepsi Cola. Other food vendors include Ha’s Restaurant, Dulcinea Farms, Juicy Lucy’s, the Korean American Association of San Francisco and Sun Rise Deli, who will be selling falafels, shwarma, and baklava.

Japanese-animation fans will have a chance to dress up as their favorite anime characters and compete in the Celebration’s first ever Anime Costume Contest. The contest will take place from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the 22nd Ave. stage. Contestants will be judged on how creative and accurate their costumes are. Prizes include a pair of round-trip airline tickets and anime prizes.

Fairgoers are encouraged to walk, bicycle or take public transportation to the 2nd Annual Asian Heritage Street Celebration. Valet bike parking will be provided by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition at 20th and Irving Street.

Please be advised MUNI will reroute the 71 Noriega line from 22nd and 23rd Avenues to 25th Avenue between Lincoln and Noriega streets on May 20th. For more AHSC or transportation information, visit www.AsianFairSF.com.

In the Community

By Iain MacDonald

California Dragon Boat Association

Voted last year's best booth, the California Dragon Boat Association (CDBA) will again offer mini lessons on a simulated dragon boat at this year's Asian Heritage Street Celebration. By utilizing an “erg,” a device used to train rowers, the adventurous can climb aboard and discover what it is like to be a paddler on a dragon boat.

Today's dragon boat races are derived from annual commemorations of that event and continue to mix culture with athletic competition. Before the festival, Daoist monks bless boats and then in what is known as the “awakening of the dragon ceremony,” the eyes of the dragons at the head of the boats are dotted by community leaders. With blessings offered, the races begin manned by teams of all creeds and ages.

“What is unique,” says Linda Cheu, CDBA President, “is that it is part cultural, part social, and increasingly becoming a highly competitive athletic sport.” Nevertheless, she is quick to point out that it is “very accessible to all people, being the ultimate team sport.” The largest competitive dragon boat festival in the United States, the Kaiser Permanente International Dragon Boat Festival, is set to begin, September 23 through to the 24 and will be held on Treasure Island with 100 teams competing in what promises to be a day of spirit and muscle, festivity and excitement. For more information about CDBA visit www.cdba.org.

Congratulations to the CALIFORNIA DRAGON BOAT ASSOCIATION for winning last year!

Community Booth Contest

By Christine Padilla

~ AHSC COMMUNITY BOOTH CONTEST ~

WIN $600 + a Free Dinner for Your AHSC Crew!

Community Booth participants will automatically be entered into the Asian Heritage Street Celebration Community Booth Contest!

Fair goers will vote for their favorite booths.

Every community booth will get voting forms and a ballot box to collect and store them. A Street Celebration volunteer will come to pick up your box, or AT THE END OF THE DAY BRING YOUR BALLOT BOX AND COMPLETED VOTING FORMS TO THE CELEBRATION HEADQUARTERS BOOTH.

There are also six questions. They are optional and all answers are anonymous. The questions are to help us know the community we are serving.

The Community Booth winner will be selected by number of votes and evaluation of the Street Celebration. The winner will be announced by June 30, 2006. Your organization will be highlighted as the AHSC 2006 Community Booth Winner and will be featured in AsianWeek Newspaper.

If you have any questions please contact Christine Padilla at cvpadilla@gmail.com.

Thank you for your support! We look forward to seeing you at the AHSC this SATURDAY!

By Angela Pang

Pepsi Cola Pepsi Cola will be giving away free samples of Pepsi products at their booth. They will also be a fun interactive booth game where festival attendees can come by and try their luck and pitching skills.Read More

Lennar Lennar's involvement in the conversion and reuse of closed military bases is a large part of the company's history and growth on the West Coast. Lennar's first military base conversion project began in 1997, when the company was selected by the City of Vallejo as its Master Developer for the former Mare Island Naval Shipyard. In the San Francisco Bay Area, Lennar is responsible for the redevelopment of three former military bases: Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, Treasure Island Naval Station and Mare Island Naval Shipyard. In the case of the Hunters Point Shipyard Redevelopment project, Lennar has created the Community Benefits Programs, a suite of 11 programs to foster social and economic viability in the Bayview-Hunters Point community. From homebuyers assistance for prospective homeowners to the financial assistance program for local small businesses, the Community Benefits Programs are Lennar's way to help make communities better places. As Lennar looks to the future, the company foresees an expanding presence in the region. With a bottom-up management approach and the management and staff of many of its acquired companies in place, Lennar has built a foundation for success in the West.
Pacific Fusion TV Pacific Fusion TV is an innovative and dynamic half-hour English language news and entertainment television magazine. It is created for everyone interested in Asian Pacific stories such as entertainment, cuisine, fashion, celebrities, sports, business and culture. Pacific Fusion airs on KRON 4 in San Francisco, KONG 6 in Seattle and KHON 2 in Honolulu. Pacific Fusion also shows on the Dish Network, ImaginAsianTV, America One Network, the Urban America TV Network as well as internationally -- reaching a total of 67 million households. Pacific Fusion is currently in its second season of broadcasting. For the Asian Heritage Street Fair, Pacific Fusion TV will conduct “15 Seconds of Fame”, video-taping for future on-air promotional spots. “15 Seconds” is a combination of “man on the street” interviews, trivia questions and stand-up promo announcements where volunteers will be taped for future possible airing on Pacific Fusion TV.