1 pm: Family

Living history characters, old-time music and dance transport families back to the state’s rancho days at the Homestead Museum’s “Oh, California!” Children can also make adobe bricks, design pin~atas, milk cows and more.

* “Oh, California!” 1-5 p.m. Homestead Museum, 15415 E. Don Julian Road, Industry. $2; seniors and students, $1; children under 12, free. (626) 968-8492.

10:30 am: Art/Festival

Opening this weekend at the Huntington, “Margaret Mee: Return to the Amazon” includes paintings, diaries and field sketches by the botanical artist and explorer who braved the arduous Amazon terrain in pursuit of rare flowers. To commemorate the Mee exhibition, the Huntington will present a two-day orchid festival with workshops, educational displays, video presentations, lectures and hundreds of orchids.

* “Margaret Mee: Return to the Amazon,” Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens, 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino. Saturday through Aug. 22. Museum hours: Tuesday-Friday, noon-4:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. “Orchid Festival,” Saturday and Sunday. Admission: Adults, $8.50; seniors, $7; students, $5; children under 12, free. (626) 405-2141.

7 pm: Dance

The locally based Avaz International Dance Theatre’s spring performance explores “Dance and Music of the Iranian World,” ranging from modern urban folk traditions to repertory of the 16th century royal Safavid court. Besides material from within the borders of contemporary Iran, the 14-part program includes cultural fallout from areas of Pakistan, Armenia, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. Six premieres are included--all choreographed by founding artistic director Anthony Shay, co-artistic director Jamal or both. This event was originally scheduled for Saturday at Cal State L.A.

* Avaz International Dance Theatre, Wilshire Ebell Theatre, 4401 W. 8th St., Los Angeles. $20. (213) 939-1128.

10 am: Museums

Kids will squirm with delight when microbe mania invades the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County this weekend. Interactive computer animation and 3-D holography explore the “icky” world of bacteria, viruses, fungi and germs in the museum’s new exhibition: “Microbes: Invisible Invaders . . . Amazing Allies.”

* “Microbes: Invisible Invaders . . . Amazing Allies” at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Saturday-Sept. 7. 900 Exposition Blvd., Exposition Park. Adults, $8; students, seniors, $5:50; children 5-12, $2; museum members, free. Museum hours: 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. daily. (213) 763-DINO.

6:30 pm: Concert

The Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles presents “In Remembrance,” a one-hour memorial concert for the gay community featuring songs, readings and special tributes to loved ones. Participants are encouraged to bring photographs or other mementos to be incorporated into the program.

* “In Remembrance,” West Hollywood Park Auditorium, 647 N. San Vicente Blvd. Free. (213) 650-0756.

9 am: Astronomy

Spy on El Nin~o, stroll through Mars Yard (a replica of the red planet’s landscape), see full-scale models of Mars rover Sojourner and more at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Open House all weekend. This free event presents exhibitions and demonstrations about the laboratory’s ongoing research and space exploration missions. Resident scientists and engineers will be on hand to answer questions and demonstrate space robotics, spacecraft communications and planetary tracking.

* Jet Propulsion Laboratory Open House, Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena. Free. (818) 354-0112.

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Freebie: Selections from jazz suite “West Coasting,” Caltech’s Dabney Lounge, Pasadena, 3:30 p.m. (626) 395-4652.