Highland Park! Where We Gather This Weekend !

 

 

This weekend I'll be spending time in Highland Park.

Starting Friday, I'll be heading to the Pacific Opera Project on Avenue 57, which sits in one of Los Angeles' oldest corridors of movement. Long before there were streets or neighborhoods, this was part of Tovaangar, the homeland of the Tongva (Kizh) people. The nearby Arroyo Seco shaped life here for thousands of years, with trails connecting villages, the Los Angeles River, the San Gabriel Valley, and the mountains. During the Spanish and Mexican eras, this area became part of Rancho San Rafael, remaining largely open ranchland before the subdivision boom transformed Highland Park into one of Los Angeles' earliest streetcar suburbs.

Highland Park has always attracted people interested in culture, ideas, and place. Charles Lummis established nearby El Alisal and later helped found the Southwest Museum. The neighborhood became a home for artists, preservationists, and storytellers, and later an important center for Chicano art and community activism. The Pacific Opera Project itself occupies part of the historic Highland Park Ebell complex, founded in 1907 as a gathering place for music, lectures, education, and civic life. It feels like the perfect setting for what comes next.

Why am I going?

The second annual LA Astro Festival will be held at the Pacific Opera Project. I'll be taking the Metro from my neighborhood, thanks to the new extension and in about the same spirit as Angelenos did a century ago, I'll step off near Avenue 57 and walk the final block through one of the city's great historic neighborhoods.

Throughout the weekend, astrologers from all over will gather in one room. Every hour a different speaker takes the stage. There are no breakout sessions—we all listen, learn, and experience it together. I attended last year and was genuinely blown away. The speakers brought fresh perspectives to a discipline that has been evolving for thousands of years.

Whether you're completely new to astrology, simply astrology-curious, or you've been studying it for years, there's something here for you.

If cost is a concern, let me know. I'll happily connect you with Vivi, the festival's producer. She's been working to make sure the event remains accessible.

Come spend a day in one of Los Angeles' most beautiful historic neighborhoods. Gather where people have been gathering for generations, along the path of the Arroyo Seco, beneath mature trees and among Craftsman homes that continue to nurture artists, musicians, and curious minds.

Get your Tix here.