Beaches

ROn Tuesday we drove up the Pacific Coastline Highway. For the most part it was a lot of towns and residential streets with glimpses of the ocean. We went to an old Navy base on top of a hill. It had a good view of the Port of Long Beach. Although it was once a big Navy port it is now a container port.

It is also the site of the Korean Bell. The pagoda and huge bell were given to the US after the end of the Korean War as a symbol of better relations. Doesn't appear that worked too well.
However, the pagoda, landscaping, and view are beautiful.

We headed on up to coastline to Redondo Beach. This is a view of the Redondo Beach pier

The pier is lined with places to eat and small shops.

There were also lots of fishermen and birds. When asked if they were catching anything they said "Nothing." When asked what they usually caught they said "Nothing." Then they said "Ask what we occasionally catch." So we did and found that the fishing was sparse and most of what they catch we catch more of and larger except they said they occasionally catch a halibut.

We took a down day on Wednesday. On Thursday we drove down the coastline of Seal Beach. We found the old part of town where all the small eateries and shops are. We resisted both.

There is also a pier at Seal Beach that we walked out on.

This is the view looking North towards Long Beach.

And this is the view looking South.

As with most piers there were a bunch of surfers trying to catch a wave. You can also see the container ships lined up waiting to get into port.

One fellow finally caught a pretty good wave.

Today, Friday, was laundry day and start packing day. We will leave in the morning to head up to redwood country in northern CA. It will be a two day trip so don't expect to hear much from me.

San Diego to Hollywood

Saturday was our last day in San Diego and we made the most of it. We drove up the coast line to Imperial Beach.

They had a nice pier for fishing and lots of white sand.

Then we drove up to Point Loma. Here we saw the Cabrillo monument. Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was the first European to set foot on the west coast of what is now the United States.

It is also the location of the Old Point Loma Lighthouse that was in operation from 1855 to 1891.

At the bottom of the cliff where the lighthouse and monument are there are tidal pools for exploring.

Since we still had plenty of daylight ahead of us we drove north to Carlsbad, CA. You may have heard of the Flower Fields that are located here. One of the better known things is the American flag made out of flowers. We were getting towards the end of the blooming season but everything was still beautiful.

The flower fields are only open from March 1-May 30 every year. The fields have been in operation since the 1950's but were not marketed as a tourist attraction until 1993.

When you enter the grounds there are rows of ranunculus as far as the eye can see.

In addition to the flower fields, there is a prize rose garden.

Here is a bed of ranunculus showing the different colors that have been perfected here.

To the north of the Flower Fields, there are strawberry fields and there was a booth selling the best strawberry shortcake we have ever eaten. They were so big that I didn't think we would get through them but we did.

Sunday was a travel day and we moved to Seal Beach, CA which is right to the south of Long Beach. The Seabreeze RV Park is located on the Navel Weapons Station which is adjacent to a wildlife sanctuary. So far all we have seen are rabbits. I have to get a camera permit if I want to take pictures on base.

On Monday we drove into Long Beach and drove over to the Queen Mary. They have made her into a hotel. I hope the made the staterooms larger than the ones we have been in before.'

From there we drove into Los Angeles and to Hollywood. We never found Rodeo Drive but we did find Sunset Blvd and Hollywood Blvd. Hollywood Blvd is where all the stars have their stars in the sidewalk. You can see them for blocks. Here is a classic, Greta Garbo.

Here is Grauman's Chinese Theatre.

Marilyn and Elvis are discussing something important out in front of Grauman's. There were lots of characters that you could have your picture taken with.

Marynelle liked this character best. Note the elaborate doors in the background.

The walkway up to the theatre is covered with blocks with signatures, hand and foot prints, and occasionally something else. We took this picture of John Wayne's hand, foot, and fist print and signature just for Bob, a friend of ours.

We left LA before the traffic got too bad. Wayne made himself a margarita just as soon as he got back. I don't think I will be able to get him back in the LA area again. Catch you again soon.

I forgot to tell everyone that Wayne says he is back to normal. After walking all over the zoo yesterday he still felt fine. If you want to see more zoo pictures you can go to: http://picasaweb.google.com/marynelle/SanDiegoZoo?feat=directlink

Today we did the Old Town Trolley Tour. We loaded the trolley at the Old Town San Diego State Historical Park. First stop was San Diego Harbor where the Maritime Museum has a collection of old ships. Here is Wayne taking a picture of the Star of India which is the oldest working ship on the West Coast.

Here he is in front of another old tall sail ship.

For more pictures of the ships and submarines visit our on line album.

Second stop was Seaport Village. Wayne took this picture of Marynelle in front of one of the many flower gardens.

We ate outdoors on the water.

The next three stops were downtown. Here is a really pretty fountain. It was the first fountain in America to use water and electricity.

This is the Gaslamp Quarter.

This is the convention center.

Next it was over the bridge to Coronado.

The main attraction here is the Hotel Del Coronado where several films were made and where the Duke and Duchess of Windsor met.

Balboa Park was the next stop. This is what I took a picture of yesterday from the skytram that I thought was a church. It's not, it is a museum and bell tower.

These buildings started out in the early 1900's as only facades for a movie set. They proved to be so popular and so they were built with more substantial material. This is not the Museum of Art.

This is looking down towards the organ concert stage. Unfortunately they had the doors closed so we couldn't see the pipes.

Looking down toward this building we say three men standing out in front.

They turned out to be street entertainers who sang as if they were robots.

Back at Old Town we went looking for a place to have a margarita. We were directed to the Cafe Coyote.

The whole area was getting ready for a big Cinco de Mayo celebration starting tonight. We had a great margarita and a free quesadilla.

This house was across the street. It is the Whaley house and it is supposed to be haunted.

This is a beautiful new church across from the State Park.

We went into the State Park to see where San Diego began.

This is the Robinson-Rose building where the visitor's center is.

This is Wayne in front of La Casa de Estudillo which is now a museum.

They even had a dentist/doctor in town.

This is the Colorado House that now houses the Wells Fargo Museum.

And here is Marynelle in front of an old Wells Fargo stage.

To see more pictures you can go to out on line album at: http://picasaweb.google.com/marynelle/OldTownTrolleyTour?feat=directlink

So much for today. It was a full day so we headed back to the motorhome. We'll see what tomorrow brings.