August 2-4: Goonies screening | Franklin Institute Mess Fest | African Festival | 2nd Street Festival | Mural, market, garden tour | Preservation Alliance walking tours

August is here, and it’s already loaded with things to do. Here’s what’s happening this weekend:

WATCH: Goonies Outdoor Film Screening @ The Oval

Friday, August 2, 7pm – 11pm, Eakins Oval, 2601 Benjamin Franklin Parkway. In yet another alfresco film screening this summer, Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and the Fairmount Park Conservancy team up to show the ’80s cult classic Goonies on the big outdoor screen. Movies begin around sunset, generally around 8:30 p.m. PlanPhilly recommends beach blankets and/or beach chairs! Free

EXPERIMENT: Mess Fest at The Franklin Institute

Saturday – Sunday, August 3-4, Noon – 4pm, The Franklin Institute, 222 N. 20th Street. Science is messy, and this weekend The Franklin Institute will embrace that mess in all its glory. Don your most mess-proof outfit for Mess Fest, two days of not-so-tidy fun on the Franklin Institute’s front steps and atrium. Mess Fest features large-scale science experiments and even a few contained explosions. Included in admission.

CELEBRATE: African Festival @ Penn’s Landing

Saturday, August 3rd, 2pm – 8pm, Great Plaza at Penn’s Landing. The African Cultural Alliance of North America Inc. is proud to host the 6th annual African Festival at Penn’s Landing this Saturday. The festival includes an outdoor concert featuring a variety of African music ranging from modern Afropop to Reggae. The festival has something for everyone in the family with dance troupe performances, African food vendors, arts and crafts vendors and more. Free

STROLL: 2nd St Fest

Sunday, August 4, Noon – 10pm, North 2nd Street between Germantown Avenue and Spring Garden. Celebrate in the streets of Northern Liberties during the fourth annual 2nd Street Festival. Every August, thousands pack a seven-block stretch of North 2nd Street between Germantown Avenue and Spring Garden for a day of music, food, beer gardens, art, workshops and vendors of all kinds. The massive block party features four stages of live music hand-selected by the Philadelphia Folksong Society. Free

TOUR: Mural, Market, Garden Tour: Southeast Philly

Sunday, August 4th, 9:30am – 4pm, Departing from Headhouse Square Farmers’ Market, 2nd and Lombard streets. Join Mural Arts, the Food Trust and Adam Forbes of Growing Home Gardens on a tour of Southeast Philly’s neighborhood murals, its gardens and the farmers’ market at Headhouse Square on South Street. Tour-goers will meet at The Food Trust’s Headhouse Market on Sunday morning, and some walking is required. Cost: $30

TOUR: The Preservation Alliance Walking Tours

Saturday, August 3 and Sunday, August 4. Cost: Adults $10, Students $8, Children 10 and under free. 

Victorian Philadelphia West of Broad: Saturday, August 3, 10am, Meet at steps of the Bellevue, 200 S. Broad St. Tour the magnificence of Philadelphia’s Gilded Age. The tour starts at The Bellevue, Philadelphia’s premier 1910 hotel and tour-goers will learn about the cultural, financial, commercial and civic institutions and private clubs of these opulent times. 

Rittenhouse Square East: Saturday, August 3, 2pm, Meet at pool, center of Rittenhouse Square. This tour explores the fashionable neighborhood developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Preservation Alliance will guide attendees past grand homes designed for robber barons as well as the understated, elegant homes on Delancey Street. 

Bella Vista: Sunday, August 4, 2pm, Meet SE corner of 10th & South Sts. Bella Vista, meaning beautiful view, lives up to its name. Walk through the famous Italian Market – one of the nation’s oldest, continuous operating open-air markets – and take in the lively architecture and vibrant neighborhood character. 

Enjoy!