{"id":516758,"date":"2026-11-03T04:30:17","date_gmt":"2026-11-03T04:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/516758\/"},"modified":"2026-11-03T04:30:17","modified_gmt":"2026-11-03T04:30:17","slug":"puedo-ser-tu-novio-sunset-proposal-in-waterfront-berkeley-park-draws-curious-onlookers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/516758\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00bfPuedo ser tu novio? Sunset proposal in waterfront Berkeley park draws curious onlookers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\/An elaborately styled picnic spread with an important question at Berkeleyside\u2019s waterfront park on Thursday, Oct. 29. Credit: Tracey Taylor\/Berkeleyside<\/p>\n

A UC Berkeley architecture student got the answer he was looking for last week, but not before creating intrigue on the Berkeley waterfront.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Late Thursday afternoon, several strollers and dog walkers on the western perimeter of the area that may, or may not, soon be called S\u00ed Se Puede Park<\/a>, were surprised to chance upon an elaborately styled picnic spread.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A wreath and a basket overflowing with treats, some edible, had been artfully arranged on a red-and-white checkered tablecloth, along with a sign that read \u201cErik \u2665\ufe0fKassandra? 10-29-26,\u201d and candles that spelled out the words Puedo Ser Tu Novio (Can I be your boyfriend?). The finishing touches: a scattering of rose petals and seven red balloons.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But the lead players destined for this romantic stage-set were nowhere to be seen. As the balloons swayed gently in the breeze, people paused to snap photos and ask others if they knew what was going on.<\/p>\n

Then a young couple came around a turn in the path and made a beeline for the picnic blanket. She let out an exclamation of surprise, and the two embraced with a big hug. She\u2019d said yes!\u00a0<\/p>\n

It turned out getting Kassandra Alvarado, a business major at Cal, to the park had taken longer than Erik Bonilla had anticipated.<\/p>\n

\"\"\/Kassandra Alvarado (left) said she and Erik Bonilla have known each other for some time, but the picnic made it official. \u201cWe met through a few mutual friends and it truly was love at first sight,\u201d she said. Credit: Tracey Taylor\/Berkeleyside<\/p>\n

\u201cI just got out of class and then we were going to go get food,\u201d Alvarado told Berkeleyside, still beaming and a little dazed from the surprise move orchestrated on her behalf. \u201cAnd then we came over, but I was taking my sweet time, and he was like, \u2018Oh, we actually have to go now.\u2019 And I was like, \u2018The park isn\u2019t going anywhere!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Erik Bonilla said he wanted the proposal to go steady, often a significant milestone in Mexican dating culture, to happen at the park because the couple had been there on one of their earliest dates \u2014 although his original plan was to set something up in the trunk of his car. A friend helped him to put everything together, and stuck around, hidden in a grove of trees, to ensure the picnic set-up remained intact.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Alvarado said the two have known each other \u201cfor quite some time,\u201d but the picnic made it official. \u201cWe met through a few mutual friends and it truly was love at first sight,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce we met we just never stopped seeing each other and we\u2019ve been together ever since.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bonilla noted that he likes making up baskets. \u201cI\u2019ve done one for her before, for her birthday,\u201d he said. Photos of the two students together were strung around the basket and also attached to the balloon strings \u2014 an idea Bonilla borrowed from Alvarado who\u2019d done something similar for his birthday.<\/p>\n

At this point, Berkeleyside\u2019s reporter felt she had gatecrashed the party long enough, so she agreed to take some photographs of the couple on Alvarado\u2019s camera, then retreated to let them enjoy their special moment, just as the sun began to set over the bay.<\/p>\n

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