Fall Lifestyle Preview 2015
By Lindsay Weinberg
Oct. 8, 2015 12:34 a.m.
Autumn is often spent carving pumpkins, binging on candy corn and basking in falling leaves, but it may be difficult to embrace the autumn spirit on campus away from home. Daily Bruin A&E suggests how students can partake in fall quarter festivities around Los Angeles.
Shawn’s Pumpkin Patch
2320 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, CA
FREE
If students want to pick out a plump pumpkin or warty gourd, Shawn’s Pumpkin Patch offers hay bales, a petting zoo and cornstalks to try to replicate an authentic farm experience. While a trip to the pumpkin patch may seem juvenile, it’s a nostalgic way to relive childhood memories for students who are miles from home.
“The Sword of Summer” by Rick Riordan
Disney Hyperion Books
Oct. 6
The first installment of Rick Riordan’s “Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard” series was released earlier this week. From the author who brought students “Percy Jackson” in their middle school days, “The Sword of Summer” offers up a similar plot line of mythology invading the real world. Bostonian Magnus Chase discovers he is the son of a Norse god, as Viking mythology comes alive in this series of young adult novels. For those that love a simple adventure story or a throwback to old tastes, the first book is now available.
Fifth Annual Taste of Mexico Food Festival 2015
501 North Main St., Los Angeles, CA
Oct. 17, 7:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.
$65
The Taste of Mexico Association will host an all-you-can-eat-and-drink event with gourmet dishes from chefs and food trucks for guests 21 years old and over. The organization was created to network with Mexican restaurateurs and now proclaims its festival and daylong market, located at La Plaza de Cultura y Artes, sells out every year. Savor the rich flavors of Mexican cuisine while swaying to the beats of mariachi and jarocho performances.
Hammer Bash
Hammer Museum
Oct. 24, 8 p.m. – 10 p.m.
FREE
DJs GODDOLLARS & Paradise will ring in the Hammer Museum’s fall exhibitions with food and drinks after hours. The event celebrates the local museum’s two newest exhibits – “UH-OH: Frances Stark 1991-2015″ evaluates the artist and writer with 125 collages, paintings and videos, while “The Idea of North: The Paintings of Lawren Harris” delves into the works of the Canadian artist and his romanticized landscapes of the 1920s. The museum’s late hours offer a convenient opportunity to see these historic paintings.
West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval
Santa Monica Boulevard
Oct. 31, 6 p.m. – 11 p.m.
FREE
Students wanting to celebrate Halloween without trick-or-treating can join in on the world’s largest Halloween street party, similar to Times Square’s New Year’s Eve party. The moonlight will rain down on witches and ghosts on Santa Monica Boulevard as about 500,000 people flood the streets to enjoy live music, food vendors and over-the-top costumes. This street festival peaks by crowning a Carnaval Queen – past years’ have included Rihanna and Queen Latifah.
“Avenue of Mysteries” by John Irving
Simon & Schuster
Nov. 3
Academy Award-winning screenwriter John Irving has brought to life stories such as “The Cider House Rules,” as well as his upcoming novel about 14-year-old Mexican boy Juan Diego. His sister, Lupe, possesses the talent of reading minds, allowing her to know many aspects of the past. The novel explores themes of living in the present, past and future, as an older Juan Diego visits the Philippines and reflects on his childhood memories from Mexico.
