From friendly greeters to crafty artisans and everything in between, the Historic Old Sacramento Foundation is now accepting applications for more than 200 volunteer positions during Gold Rush Days 2011.  Widely known as Old Sacramento’s annual heritage celebration, Gold Rush Days volunteers are needed over Labor Day weekend (September 3-5) and for a preview “education day” on Friday, September 2, that is set-up primarily for area school children. Gold Rush Days 2011 is free to the public and produced by the Historic Old Sacramento Foundation, the Sacramento Convention and Visitors Bureau, the City of Sacramento and California State Parks. Given the sheer magnitude of the large-scale comm

 Whimsical ceramic characters that wink as you walk by, domestic and exotic animals who allow you to pet them, a fairy who paints a glittering swan on your face, and musicians whose songs are brand new each time they perform. These are only some of the imaginative artists and activities that await kids and adults at the 4th Annual CurtisFest on Saturday, September 11th. Presented by the Sierra Curtis Neighborhood Association (SCNA), Curtis Fest will be held from 10am until 4pm in Curtis Park, an eighteen-acre parcel of ground surrounded by quaint bungalows and shaded by heritage trees. CurtisFest was established in 2007 to give local artists a venue at which to exhibit and sell their work

A marketplace of colorful stalls will take over one of Sacramento's busiest corners Saturday. Like an oasis in a concrete desert, a new public market called the Midtown Bazaar will spring up on a parking lot at 16th and J streets — across from the Memorial Auditorium and P.F. Chang's China Bistro — and flow through an alley into a cavernous old building for a few hours each week. At least 75 local vendors offering art and other goods have already signed up for the grand opening, to be held from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. With an indoor location measuring 25,600 feet, the market will be held year-round. The old garage at 1630 I St. sports old timber trusses, a mezzanine and roll-up doors in back th