People People People

Our visit here in Los Angeles is so different from the comparative social isolation we've been living in for the last six months. Not only are we surrounded by people in this urban and suburban environment, but we are also having company or visiting friends almost every day. We are staying at Eastshore RV Park, part of the county park system, right next to Frank Bonelli Park, overlooking Puddingstone Reservoir and the San Gabriel Mountains (which have been snow covered for the past few days). It's a quiet natural oasis in the urban sprawl of LA.  We've seen many hawks, bald eagles, humming birds, hundreds of bunnies at night and even a road runner.

My son Mark is here with us for the holidays. It's so wonderful to spend time with him. We're managing just fine with three people in the RV. Here's a picture of Mark in the gardens of the Getty Museum in LA.

I took hundreds of photos at the Getty - it's a photographer's dream. Here's a selection of my favorites:

(Mr. & Mrs. Cactus visit the Getty)

The gardens around the Getty are hummingbird heaven.

Guess who?

Our very first night here we went to a contra dance in Santa Monica (see page link at the right for an explanation of contra dancing). Our first since we started our adventure six months ago! We hoped to be doing much more dancing, but this is the first we have found that is in the same place we are at the same time. Rick and I danced together a lot, and felt right at home.

I also had a great visit with Hal, a friend of mine from about 30 years ago. (Really hard to believe it was that long ago.) When I taught at a private school in Florida he was a student there. Now he's in LA working in the film industry. 

On Sunday we took a Melting Pot Tasting Tour of Old Pasadena, led by our friend Kendall Davis. What a wonderful way to learn about a city! We walked around for about 3.5 hours, stopping in at various restaurants, a soap shop, a tea shop, a chocolatier and an olive oil store, all the while getting historical and local interest information from our guide. The food was varied and delicious, and the frequent stops made the time fly by. It's something I'd recommend to everyone.

Last night we had dinner with old friends of Rick's from camp Elektor. The whole Davis family gathered for an delightful, aromatic and rich Moroccan meal prepared by Summer and her husband Youssef. We felt very privileged to be part of their close, loving community for an evening. 

Today Mark is going back to the Davis's to do a little computer work, and I'm driving to Malibu for lunch with my old friend Wendy, from Keene, NH, during my Antioch years.  It'll be my first time in Malibu. Mark's childhood friend, Lars, who also lives in LA, will be driving him back here and we'll have our second visit with Lars. 

Los Angeles has just been a whirlwind of visiting and driving, driving, driving, and I'm ready for a little down time. Tomorrow Ms. Subaru gets her windshield replaced and we prepare to travel again.  We'll be moving south to a park east of San Diego, called Santee Lakes, another county park. I hope the pace will be a little slower there.