SFist is so happy to be living in the Bay Area, where celebrations of the Rosh Hashanah holiday are as diverse as the populace itself.
"What's Rosh Hashanah?" you might be wondering. (You've probably heard it referred to as "Jewish New Year" which isn't too far from the truth.) Well, for a complete explanation you can look here, but the short answer is that
Rosh Hashanah is a two-day-long holiday that marks the beginning of the Yamim Noraim (the ten days of atonement).
So, on Rosh Hashanah, all mankind is judged. HaShem (God) writes the judgment for each of us in the Book of Life. This judgment is based on our lives of the year before, and is the decision of what will happen to us in the coming year. The days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur (this year, on Sept 23) give us a time to change this judgment for good, and we're given the chance to improve our coming year through Teshuvah (asking forgiveness), Tefillah (prayer), and Tzedakah (charity). Then on Yom Kippur the Book of Life is closed until the following year.
So, how to ring in the Jewish year 5765 in the Bay Area?