Black Meetings and Tourism

Black Meetings & Tourism February/March 2009: www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 70 OAKLAND Groups planning a fall gathering in Oakland may want to arrive in time to see the annual Black Cowboys Parade and Festival in October. Several other local Black cultural and historical attractions can be experi- enced year-round, including the African American Museum and Library, the Museum of African American Technology Science Village, the Ebony Museum of Art and the African-American art collection at the Oakland Museum of California. For an "only in Oakland" experi- ence, hop aboard the Black Panther Legacy Tour conduct- Cool restaurants, great hotels, attractions, entertainment and 3 major league sports teams. oaklandcvb.com 463 Eleventh Street Oakland, Ca. 94607 (510) 839-9000 O Where your reunion is the center of everything. Downtown Oakland with building overlooking Lake Merritt Photo Credit: Oakland CVB Museum. There's also Central Avenue, known as the Black "Main Street" of Los Angeles from the 1920s through the 1950s and now home to Eso Won Bookstore, one of the largest collections of African-American books in the nation. Downtown's Biddy Mason Park is a memorial to a former slave who helped found the city's First A.M.E. Church. In its heyday, the historic Dunbar Hotel welcomed guests like Langston Hughes, W.E.B. Du Bois and a host of African-American musicians. The Ray Charles Memorial Library is located at the site of the music legend's former downtown studios. The newest homage to Los Angeles' prominent role in the music industry is the $30 million Grammy Museum, which opened in December 2008 in the L.A. LIVE Sports and Entertainment District downtown. Highlights at the museum include a tunnel filled with life-size figures of Grammy-winning artists and an 18-ft. table where visitors can listen to 130 kinds of music. L.A. LIVE also is home to a variety of restau- rants and clubs, the NOKIA Theatre Los Angeles (home to the Emmy Awards), the Staples Center (where the Lakers play ball) and the Los Angeles Convention Center. The convention center contains a 347,000-sq. ft. South Exhibition Hall, a 210,000 sq. ft.-West Exhibition Hall, 147,000 sq. ft. of meeting space in 64 rooms, and a full- service business center. There are over 92,000 area hotel rooms, including more than 6,500 rooms downtown. Another 1,200 rooms are set to open over the next three years. Entrance to Los Angeles Airport Photo Credit: LACVB

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