Looking for something different to do on Labor Day weekend? My suggestion, take the short two hour drive to Sacramento for their annual Rainbow Festival. This was the first time of going to this festival which I have been seeing advertisements for years. Meredith Tanzer, Phillip Brown and I left Reno in an impromptu manner Saturday evening, booking a last minute hotel room, and hauling ass down the freeway.
Arriving in Sac just after 8pm, we had a few cocktails in our hotel room while getting ready to hit the bars and clubs. I had not been to Sac in over 5 years, the last time I was here I remembered that The Depot had just finished a remodel, and Faces still only had two dance floors. I was not prepared for what I was about to see. The Depot had joined forces with Badlands, Sac’s newest club. I was so taken with Badlands that I didn’t once step foot in The Depot. With high ceilings, a second balcony style floor which you could sip on your delicious cocktail made by delicious bartenders and watch the packed dance floor below you made Badlands a definite place to spend some quality time before heading over to Faces for some serious dancing! While at Badlands we stepped out for a smoke on the garden patio, where some guy wanted to buy my jeans! Finally a man being honest as to why he wanted to get in my pants! After finishing up our vodka tonics we headed over to Faces to get our swerve on! From the outside Faces was exactly as I remembered it being, it was like greeting an old friend, comforting. The first of the two bars at Faces hadn’t changed at all, and as we walked toward the back dance floor I was surprised to see that the Club had expanded and added another dance floor, go-go boys who were actually the kind you see in pictures in an Out magazine article were getting down on platforms all around, a second story lounge with two bars, a back patio complete with tiki-style bar and get this, a SWIMMING POOL! Fabulous. We had one main goal that night, to make out. Well, Phillip and I weren’t as popular as Meredith. Our “Goal” had turned to friendly competition as Meredith continued to text me every time she made out with a different butchie, “I win”, “I win, times two”, “I win, times three”. Even Phillip made out with one of the bartenders at Faces. Oh well, guess you can’t win them all. So I opted to satisfy the “fat kid” inside of me and headed across K Street to Hot Rod’s for the biggest, greasiest, most fatty burger and fries I could buy, qued a cab, and headed back to our hotel.
The next morning we had every intention of hitting the Rainbow Festival Street Fair, but our hangovers had other plans for us. Phillip and I woke before Meredith, and had a quick breakfast before ultimately baking away our hangovers by the pool. We lounged around sipping Bloody Mary’s and Screwdrivers recounting the events of our night. After having crawled out from under our hangovers, and napped, we headed back to that fabulous intersection of K and 20th. Taking a little detour by the Convention Center in downtown Sacramento, we had a small private guided tour of the sculpture garden by Meredith always a wealth of knowledge when it comes to art. The best were these massive deconstructed Roman inspired sculpture fountains directly in front of the Convention Center. Next was finding a place for dinner. We came across this fantastic little boutique Mexican restaurant and tequila bar, Azul…..something, I can’t remember the name, it was incredible, with its minimalist design and intriguing local artwork, and the most beautiful blue walls, I was expecting our dinner to be quite expensive and was surprised to find that the menu was cheaper than eating at some of the Mexican back in Reno. We ordered a round of Mojitos, I ordered chicken nachos, Phillip had steak fajitas, and Meredith a taco salad. The food and libations were exceptional! If you ever want some good Mexican food look for this restaurant located next to another lush new bar call Lounge on 20. Unfortunately I never made it to Lounge on 20, but there is always another time to go to Sacramento. So now back to Faces, I was told that Sunday night, would be dead and no one would be out, wrong! Once again Faces, Badlands, and The Depot where as busy as the night before. None of us made out that night.
With our lives back home in Reno whispering in our ears, we headed back to our hotel for a few hours of shut-eye. On the way home we all basked in the after-glow of a fabulous weekend away at the intersection of K and 20th or as I like to call it K and Heaven.
