Located in the center of Memorial Park the Veteran's Memorial Bldg has been host…read moreto many events we've attended---Albany's Green Festival, The Albany High Madrigal Dinner and Concert and other programs. We recently attended our neighbor's Quiceñera. This was their youngest daughter's celebration of her 15th birthday. This is the 3rd Quinceñera they've celebrated over the years. The Memorial Bldg was transformed into a gala party atmosphere. All of the guests were seated at several round tables. There was a large floor area in the middle for the ceremony and dancing. The chairs were draped in this satiny silver material. It looked so fancy but klutzy me kept sliding on it. The festivities started with a buffet spread of salad, chicken stew, beef with veggies, two kinds of rice and fresh corn tortillas. There were several types of non-alchy drinks. After dinner there was a candy shrine with gummy worms, caramel popcorn, lots of sticky candy and lots of stuff that looked too sweet. All of it was very colorful. There was a table with fruit salad. The ceremony followed with our neighbor, "D", dressed in a beautiful bright pink gown which looked like magical. Her attendants wore orange poofy dresses that were so cute. The guys in the ceremony looked so handsome in their suits. The dancing came next--live DJ and loud and very spirited Cumbia and Salsa music. At least half of the party goers got up to dance. Shy and klutzy Ms Rinky and her esposo watched. Although we didn't stay for the cake I did take a picture of it. Nothing fancy about this place but more than perfect for a Quinceñera or other large party.

I wandered in to check out this venue while enjoying the adjacent park and can definitely see…read morecoming back if I host a large event. The exterior is attractive, with an expansive yard out front and a nice stone courtyard. Inside is a fairly simple layout with numerous historical displays related to veterans' affairs, Albany veteran's themselves, and the Boy Scout troop sponsored here. The main hall is sizable (see picture) and has an attached full kitchen, appropriate for catering. When I visited, they were setting up for a quincenera, and I could see this building being a nice choice for a wedding or other large party.

Event Space: No matter how inviting the space look BEWARE of renting it for your child event. How I…read morewish that there was a review available before I decided to take this space. THINGS TO CONSIDER: You wont be able to use the Computer room or Game room because kids busy playing at the park or playing the party games you have. Besides they dont have it on and there are no help around to instruct you or the kids KEEP IN MIND YOU BREAK YOU PAY You cant swivel the TV!! Who will see your event video on that small room side?!! You will take your event garbage with you, home! NOT leave on their premises so might as well rent a garbage truck when its cleanup time You will have to set up the table and chairs even after emailing them a month that you will need these things to be up before arriving You will leave this space much cleaner than when you arrived. 2 rooms (main and meeting room) NOT enough for 70 people. Their website will tell you Main cap: 80 meet room cap: 40 1.star is for getting my deposit back in a timely manner

this was a great place to have our party we loved it and the coordinator Ally is so wonderful she…read morehelped us and answered any questions that we had. I give it both thumbs up.

003/2026/Jan Passing…read morethrough this Old Navy shipyard which has a brewery , a bay trail, historical bldgs and public art attractions for tourist ! Wish could stay a little longer for a tour! For sure next visit will make time!!

Mare Island has regular scheduled tours which we missed so we decided to do a self guided tour…read more There are only a few buildings you can still go in but still great to walk around. The cementary and museum are closed, the church and admiral home are open with specific times. There are a lot of history on the island!

Beautiful downtown by a beach. Must visit. All the way to here to get the olive oil. It had…read morebeautiful decor during Christmas time

Downtown Benecia is a family friendly spot, with great restaurants and local businesses. There are…read morelots of fun events and a terrific Thursday night Farmer's Market. Benecia is a gem!

This little gift shop / visitors center at the end of First Street has been a mainstay for at least…read more15 years. It's a one-stop shop for all things visitor related from locally focused tchotchkes, Benicia specific Merch, local maps, community events... and See's Candy!!! The employees are always super knowledgeable, patient and helpful. Would definitely recommend visiting whether you are in town for a quick visit, or you're a local that needs to procure the perfect box of See's Candy as a gift.

MAIN STREET ON FIRST STREET…read more Benicia Main Street is located at the end First Street near the water. The building stands independently and has the happenings of Benicia inside. They sell Benicia-related trinkets for a small fee, local wine, beautiful local art and photography, and even See's chocolate. Most significantly, they organize events like the Benicia Ghost Walk, and promote activities like the Benicia Artists Open Studios. They have maps and a knowledgable person working that will answer questions you have. After asking more about the Ghost Walk, we learned that it was a one-time event that drew so much attention they changed to make it reoccuring. We're told it's very popular and not just focused on ghost-hunting, but that it tells a lot of history as well. Sounds awesome! The small room here is worth stopping in if you've walked all the way down to the water. The building is cute too!

Great experience decorating at this venue space. The staff was professional, cordial, and easy to…read morework with throughout the entire process. My team and I had the pleasure of creating a beautiful custom backdrop for our client's special celebration, and the venue provided a wonderful setting to bring the design to life. To see more of our work and this event, visit www.fourfortyfourevents.com. -- Four Forty Four Events

I'm not going to name the teachers, but the last two classes I took here, I ended up just dropping…read moreout. The teachers did not have the background for the subject, or they only had experience teaching kids. VERY IMPORTANTLY, their website is very adamant that you will not be able to get a refund on a class after 14 days BEFORE the class starts. When you click on a button searching for REFUNDS, that is the message that you get. And most people would give up reading right there. With the most recent class I took, half way through, I couldn't take it anymore, and I called the office asking for a refund anyway. I told him that I knew from the first class that this was not going to work. He said "Oh I wish you'd have told us. We have a quality assurance policy that if after the first class you are unsatisfied, we will try to make it better." Ok, "make it better" does not say "refund". I told him to show me where this "quality assurance" clause was. When I finally found it, I could see that few reasonable people would have found it. It was a paragraph or two below "NO REFUNDS AFTER 14 DAYS BEFORE CLASS STARTS". Before that I was willing to take only half refund. When I say how ludicrous the website and policy was, I demanded a full refund. He refused. I then went through my credit card company and got a full refund. Another student in the class had the same response to the teacher and wanted to transfer to another class, and the administration would not let her. There is something wrong with the administration of this place. I assume it is primarily a profit center, and they cut costs by hiring inexperienced teachers, and play games with the website wording to dissuade you from asking for a refund.

General Vallejo's House is located in Sonoma, CA, in the Sonoma State Historic Park…read more The grounds (including trails) and visitor center was free to walk about. Parking was free as well, they had a nice size parking lot. To view the inside of the house, it's $3. The visitor center was the carriage house nicknamed the Swiss Chalet. It was built in 1852. The timber came from Europe. It's now the museum with history information boards about the General Vallejo and his family. So you may ask, who is General Vallejo? What's the hubbub? Mariano Guadalupe Vallejwas born in Monterey, California, in 1807 as a subject of Spain. He served in the California military which was under Spain. He served as commander of various presidios and establishing them and the controversial workforce. His last command was the Sonoma presidio. The house is furnished and staged as it was in the mid to late 1800s. It was built in 1852, Vallejo lived there until his passing in 1890. The architecture is Victorian Carpenter Gothic. It was prefabricated back East and shipped around Cape Horn (pre railroad). The rooms are viewable through the barred doors. The fireplaces are made of imported marble. The kitchen was another building behind the house. The family cook lived onsite in a room adjoining the kitchen. Behind the kitchen is a body of water, a water reservoir. Back in the day, it was a natural spring. The General sold water to the town and folks by transporting the water in redwood pipes. It proved a steady income. He even tried his hand at winemaking. But suffered severe losses in the 1870s blight and didn't get his winemaking business off the ground. He never fully recovered to his previous economic heyday, living out the rest of his years modestly than before.

Great introduction by the park ranger! Enjoyed how they sell plant bulbs and fruit from the…read moregrounds ! I bought a delicious grapefruit! Plenty of signage regarding rattlesnakes.

We recently attended a Quinceañera here. Bright and large…read morecommunity room with lots of supporting rooms. held about 150 - love location in the woods. if you are think about hosting an event, this is a winner

Community centers remind me of the elderly, let's be real here, it's not always the sexiest place…read moreto throw a party. But, when done right, it's not a bad place to celebrate an occasion. I came here for my friend's baby's first birthday. In Korean culture, a baby's 1-year-old birthday is a HUUUUUGE deal. It's called a Doljanchi or a "DOL"--where the baby wears a hanbok (traditional dress) and there's a ritual (sort of a fortune telling) where a bunch of innocuous objects are placed in front of the baby, ex. a string, a gavel, a coin, a brush, etc. And when the baby picks up the object, say a gavel, then s/he will become a judge...something like that. It's all in good fun. Ironically, the baby did in fact pick up the gavel, which is rare, usually babies pick up the coin or a string since it's lighter and easier to grab. I've seen pictures of my DOL and it's off the hook. There is a bunch of food, especially Korean duk and tons of fruit-- to represent prosperity and long-life. My grandparents (on my dad's side) were so proud to hold me in the photo-- I looked kinda miserable. In fact, I looked like a boy. The reason why DOLs are such a big deal is because traditionally in Korea, most babies didn't survive past their first year of life. Apparently, my mom told me that when I was 3 months old, I got really really sick, and was sick for another 3 months afterward and she was afraid that I wouldn't make it. Dramatic, right? So, when I turned one, she threw a huge party-- "a thankful relief," she said. That's why when I get sick as an adult, I get really sick because my immune system is basically shot. And it's really cute, even today, my mom freaks out when I get sick, because she remembers back to when I was a baby. And always gives me the motherly speech about sleeping more and drinking fluids..and it's one of the rare times I actually allow her to "take care of me." Heck, I think it's the only time I let anyone take care of me. Either way, the celebration was beautiful. So proud of my friend for being such an amazing mother/woman-- and she's really blessed to have such a beautiful child, who will forever love and adore her. Babies are the best, they need you like no other, and I absolutely love taking care of them.