Here are some pictures from the trip.
In Southern California, even the views off of hotel parking garages can inspire! This is in Pasadena.
Trips to Southern California, at least in my book, absolutely must be accompanied with a subsequent trip to the Alien Fresh Jerky store in Baker. This is of course nearly in the middle of a desert and that desert is pretty well in the middle of nowhere. It is the greatest stop!
Some of the resident aliens sit on the building to supervise abductions and testing of store patrons.
The latest in alien news is posted on the front of the store.
The truth is out there!!
Back to the "real" Southern California.
The heart of SoCal is really right there at Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Corona Del Mar and Irvine. The water, the boats, the palm trees, the cool breeze off the water, the sea air smell and the outrageously priced/valued homes overlooking the ocean complete the SoCal package.
There are some great places to eat! The Crab Cooker on the Balboa Peninsula is a fun, popular, throwback sort of place. Seems to attract a lot of locals and I know the place would be full to overflowing during the summer with the influx of tourists.
The Balboa Peninsula and Balboa Island are bright spots in the sizzling glare of the area. The Balboa pavilion is an attractive piece of history.
More boats and water with more of what makes the area unique.
Being from the midwest, it is difficult to understand what these things are that grow so nicely right outside the local Chick-Fil-A. Where I'm from, the most scenic thing close to a Chick-Fil-A is a black top parking lot.
They look like birds and I was in paradise - so maybe there is a connection. (Sorry)
I've never seen a high school that is so clean and white - well, except in the winter when one is covered in snow.
There is always the need to visit the ocean whenever possible. At Newport, the water is always(?) blue, the sun is always(?) shining and the breeze is always(?) cool off the water. It really is a stunning vista. I suppose the people that live there don't really enjoy the panoramic spectacle to the same degree as us interlopers.
But really, who can argue against this being one of the more beautiful places?
The ocean is fun up close and personal as well. There are a few creatures captured in the photo and temporarily in the tide pool.
I hope I don't get in trouble by the city of Newport Beach for the photograph!!!
The banana trees are plentiful, beautiful and compellingly unique. I wish I had one in my yard and I wish it grew bananas!
The palm trees are plentiful and beautiful.
A not so random group of people posing in front of a not so random building. College kids do the darndest things in California.
These guys were waiting for me in Chicago.
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