SATURDAY, JULY 30, 2011 >>>

1. Real-deal bike racing is pretty exciting all by itself. Bike racing at night, with a beer garden for spectators, in downtown Tacoma, is just plain crazy awesome. Saturday, Tacoma's second annual Twilight Criterium will offer all of the above, plus an art bike parade (weird bikes, fuzzy bikes, cool bikes, strange bikes, two-person bikes, colorful bikes, sparkly bikes, bikes with balloons, bags, and streamers), live music, a kids race and ... and did we mention the beer garden? Expect lots of spandex (for aerodynamics), and lots of good times from 3-10 p.m.

2. Rule number one about yard sales: If you want the good stuff, you've got to show up early. Pierce County Parks and Recreation's annual community yard sale - Junk In Your Trunk Sale - runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Sprinker Recreation Center Parking Lot. If you don't get there early, all that will remain will be an endless stream of spice racks, Buddha statues, TV trays and Pogo Balls.

3. You don't need to attend the annual Ethnic Fest to see Tacoma is a melting pot, but it certainly doesn't hurt to help you appreciate it. That's the power of more than 15 food booths representing a multitude of delicious tastes from cultures around the world, not to mention more arts, crafts and music than you can shake a culturally diverse stick at. In its 25th year, Tacoma's Ethnic Fest is easily one of the shining moments of each summer for this city. See why from noon to 7 p.m. in Wright Park.

4. We thought artists just lie around the pool sipping lemonade all summer long. We were wrong. Today from 5-7:30 p.m. 13 www.gallerythree.org/" target="_blank">Gallery Three artists will wash off the suntan lotion and demonstrate their art outside on the plaza at 333 S. Meridian in Puyallup. Besides the art, expect music, wine and chocolates, cookies and something called "paint and win."

5. If you like your dance with a trace of the exotic, head for the Tacoma Buddhist Temple, where traditional Bon Odori dancing and taiko drum performances take over Fawcett Street as part of the Bon Odori Japanese Folk Dance Festival from 5-9 p.m. The highlight is always when paper lanterns are strung across Fawcett for the bon odori, a traditional summer street dance honoring the dead. Hundreds are expected to attend, decked out in elaborate kimonos and hapi coats to dance to traditional Japanese folk songs. Think Japanese line dancing where the older people teach the younger generation the moves. Bonus: There's now a sake garden! (screaming really loud).

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Wine tastings!