Tuesday, June 25 2013
California Dreamin'
All the leaves are brown and the sky is grayI've been for a walk on a winter's day
I'd be safe and warm if I was in L.A.
California dreamin' on such a winter's day
I've done a wee bit of travelling in the last couple of months, as is my usual practice--criss-crossing the continent like some high flying . . . high-flyer, I guess. Ohio in April, Monterey in May with a bit of R&R after, and from there directly to Toronto, back to Ohio and almost immediately back to Toronto again! It's almost like I can't make up my mind, but that gives me too much credit for having a mind to make up.
I have some great pictures from the LD Carlson retailer conference back in May, but I'll need to sort out some of those shots with legal . . . there was an enormous amount of fun had! You can see some of my pictures from that in my Facebook IOS photos (are you my friend on Facebook yet? Why not?). While I get around to putting together more, I thought I'd share some of my pictures of my road trip after the Winemaker Magazine conference. Several years ago after the Santa Barbara conference I rented a car with the intent of driving up the Pacific Coast Highway to San Francisco. The Coastal Highway is so heart-stoppingly beautiful that you think you'll get tired of it after a while, or become numb to its ever-unfolding charms.
But you don't. It just keeps getting better, and better.
Unfortunately, that trip was cut short by a landslide that wiped out a big chunk of the highway south of Monterey. I had to backtrack and go around the slide, missing some of the most beautiful and rugged landscape. This time, I took no chances, grabbed another car and drove south from San Francisco down to San Diego to see the sights. It was an awesome trip, one that I'll treasure for a very long time.
Such a lovely setting, in such a lovely city
First, though, San Francisco. I love this town to pieces. Once I discovered that there was life away from Fisherman's Wharf, the whole place came alive for me: Top of the Mark, The Tonga Room, Buena Vista Park, The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, The Presidio National Park . . . the list goes on forever, and I haven't even touched on my ten or fifteen favourite bars (I'm looking at you, Vesuvio). But one place I've read about and thought was worth a visit was the Palace of Fine Arts.
Yeah, they shooed me away from there when they realised I was neither fine nor artistic
Originally built for an exposition in 1915 and slated to be torn down afterwards, it was so popular that they preserved it, renovated it and eventually retrofitted it. When I was there they were laser-scanning the whole place so it could be 3D mapped for a virtual fly-through. It was really a lovely place to hang out on a very hot California day.
That's a strong profile
There are many lovely architectural details, and despite the place actually being as authentic as Disneyland, it really does charm you, with soaring spaces and some imposing sculpture.
I really don't trust angels, and this one looks like he has a lot on his mind . . .
The grounds are lovely as well:
Swanning along
I'm afraid it's turtles all the way down . . .
I managed to see a lot of other stuff while we were there too: hit a few of my favorite bars, do a lot of walking and generally tourist it up. This time I hit some of the less famous neighbourhoods for a walking tour, and was rewarded by a zesty if slightly raffish set of sights.
Fabulous artwork--this was really the only family-friendly shot, though.
From SF it was time to loiter down the coast and take in the sights from the Highway.
I must state categorically that this is only an average vista: everything is at least this beautiful
That's not snow: note the gulls . . .
Not a single cloud the whole trip.
From San Francisco we moved down to another of my favorite spots in California: Carmel By the Sea. The first picture at the top of this entry is the beach right in front of Carmel, and the whole place is genteel, lovely and refined, with beautiful vistas and some stunning gardens--vegetation we Canadians rarely get to see.
It's like an artichoke had a baby with a cabbage while they were both high on hallucinogens
May flowers
That gorgeous chap in the middle is agave--whence comes Tequila!
Eventually we moved further down the coast, soaking up wonderful sights. Imagine living in the house on the right of this picture:
There's actually a pull-out so you can stop and take a picture right here
I'm not sure I'd ever use my pool with rubberneckers taking snapshots of me all day.
Apparently bacon comes out of his ear. Wes Hagen and his fur-pony. Photo nicked from Wes' twitter feed
I stayed the night in Lompoc with my friend Wes Hagen, at Clos Pepe. Wes is a brilliant winemaker with a fine, restless mind and a wide-range of interests and an eclectic education. He also knows how to enjoy himself in a style to which I am delighted to share. Thanks for the wonderful night, and excellent hospitality--especially that amazing alarm clock! You guys are gems.
As the highway wandered ever-further down the coast, I came to a magical place of wonder, delight and hamburgers: Nepenthe.
Yes, all that and food and drink too
There's no wide-angle lens wide enough to encompass the spectacular vista. A place with a view this good could get by having mediocre food, but they don't: the ambrosia burger is a thing of beauty, the service is prompt and accurate (very rare in California, although everyone is friendly enough) and the whole experience is magically good. One thing to watch out for is sneak-thieves:
Ooo, you wascally waptor!
I watched this Machiavellian maestro steal a dozen French fries, two hamburgers and a side of coleslaw in less than an hour. His standard technique was to hop right onto the counter in front of a guest, wait for their startled delight, and as they reached for their cameras, abscond with their lunch. The staff warned everyone at least three times when they sat, when the ordered and when they were served, but some folks didn't pay attention. I did and really enjoyed other people's consternation.
Finally, it was time to hit the City of Angels, Rodeo Drive and Hollywoodland.
You'd be amazed how bloody hard it is to get anywhere near that sign to take a picture
LA was a gas from beginning to end. I haven't spent any time there since I was a child, except to pass through, and this time I wallowed in a bit of fun.
Yes, we're related. You can tell by our extremely similar back-hair
The Walk of fame called
Nerd Alert! Set phasers on 'Geek'!
And TCL Chinese Theatre (formerly Grauman's Chinese Theatre)
What? People dress in Muppet costumes all the time!
And of course, no trip to LA would be complete without a pilgrimage to Jim Morrison's pants
Fortunately, well-sealed behind glass
And associated LA weirdness
I assumed she was selling Tang
For me though, there was one place I really wanted to visit, ever since I was a little boy: the Griffith Park Observatory.
People of Earth, We Greet You!
Built on three thousand acres of land overlooking the LA basin, donated by a man named Griffith Griffiths (saved on learning to spell two names, I suppose) it was built as a WPA venture in the 1930's, with the idea that astronomy should be accessible to the common man.
And there are few men more common than me
There were more adventures, particularly those involving five-hour traffic jams (LA might be heaven, but it's not perfect) and an evening spent in the Gas Lamp district in San Diego (makes Sodom and Gomorrah look like Disneyland) but at the end of the day it was a wonderful trip to a magical place--and I can't wait to get back there again.
Dig those crazy cabbages
| Posted by Photographin' Tim AT 12:11AM | 0 Comments |  |
Post A Comment |  |
 |