Arts & Culture

Todd Guild California State Parks The best investment we make every year is our annual Golden Poppy pass, which allows entry to more than 100 of California’s state parks. With numerous parks within a short drive in Santa Cruz County – featuring mountains, deserts and beaches, to...

APTOS—The Aptos High School and Aptos Junior High School choir departments have been hard at work for the past few months, preparing for their upcoming “Sounds of the Season” holiday concert. Along the way, they dealt with some bumps in the road—most notably the power...

Have a recent photo you’d like to share? Send it to us for consideration by emailing it to [email protected] or mailing it to 21 Brennan St., Suite 14, Watsonville, CA 95076. Please include a brief description of the photo as well as the name of...

Johanna Miller Food: Savory crepes from Mr. Z’s Mr. Z’s Crepes and Teas is one of a handful of businesses to recently arrive at The Hanger, a new complex near Watsonville Airport. I’ve already been out to grab one of their tasty bubble teas. This week...

WATSONVILLE—During a recent cleaning of her house, Aromas author and artist Joyce Oroz discovered a set of acrylic paintings tucked away in a corner of her attic.  She had painted the pieces about 20 years prior and almost forgotten about them.  “I knew I couldn’t just...

WATSONVILLE—Wherever he is touring in the world, Santana lead singer Andy Vargas makes sure to let everyone know about his hometown of Watsonville. “I’ve always been proud to be from Watsonville,” Vargas said.  “I tell people that they’ve probably ate our berries or drank our...

Todd Guild Freedom Meat Lockers One of my favorite things to do for lunch in Watsonville is head over to Freedom Meat Lockers, which in addition to its high-quality selection of carnivores’ delights, also offers a deli counter. Normally when I hear the word ‘deli’ I cringe,...

Do you have a recent photo you’d like to share? Send it to us for consideration by emailing it to [email protected] or mailing it to 21 Brennan St., Suite 14, Watsonville, CA 95076. Please include a brief description of the photo as well as the...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Nature Center will soon be getting a new neighbor, in the form of a 14-foot tall white egret. “Great White Egret” was designed and created by artist John Cerney of Salinas, who is known for constructing giant mural cutouts and placing them along...

Try this is a weekly column that celebrates local businesses — especially eateries, watering holes, coffee shops and the like. Tarmo Hannula Food Blaze Pizza I had a late lunch recently at a new (for me) pizza spot on the West Side of Santa Cruz—Blaze Pizza, 1901 Mission...