I headed off the nice straight and fast US-101 and onto CA-1 at Leggett. And the road was a fairly twisty affair as it went up and down, lots of switchbacks- took a bit of concentration driving - it also made me miss my normal…Read More

I headed off the nice straight and fast US-101 and onto CA-1 at Leggett. And the road was a fairly twisty affair as it went up and down, lots of switchbacks- took a bit of concentration driving - it also made me miss my normal manual gearbox from my car at home, as the automatic in my little rental car just didn't quite cut it, it made it but not smoothly. It was a nice drive through trees but then you could see the sea. And it was a glorious view. Stunning blue sea always makes a good back drop.

I stopped and unloaded some of my picnic stuff and enjoyed the sunshine and the view! But I made the stupid mistake of then heading onto Fort Bragg, as just a few miles down the road I headed in to fog. Should have spent more time enjoying the sunshine and views! I could see enough as it was more misty than fog, but it did detract from the scenery.

I arrived in Fort Bragg, checked into my motel, and headed out for some dinner. The fog rolled in, and I decided to skip trying to watch the town's firework display which was scheduled for that evening. I decided an early night was more in order - good decision too as I awoke early with the room shaking due to a earthquake, and never really settled after that. So I packed up and checked out before reception was open. I knew there was a Starbucks down in the parking lot of the local supermarket, and decided I wanted to use their WIFI. So sat and drank coffee and sent some emails and checked out a few things. It was still foggy - and I decided that I would go and find the Glass Beach - but didn't think a lot of it. So I went to find somewhere that I could get some coffee and something to eat - Headlands Coffee - got some great coffee and some muffin thing - it was a relaxed and chilled place to sit and write in my journal and read.

I had thought about going to the botanical gardens but it was cold with the fog, so I decided to head off down the road. Again the fog meant most of the views were obscured. I stopped at Mendocino - and it was a real tourist sort of town, well an upmarket tourist place. I potted around the shops for a bit and got more coffee and some nice bits and pieces for a picnic later on. There was a nice bookshop that if I had room in my bag I would have liked to have bought a few books. Then there were lots of gift shops - and I did manage to get one or two small and quirky gifts to take home.

I continued driving - I did think that I might stop somewhere and enjoy the beach. The mist did lift near Gualala but being a Sunday post 4th of July everywhere was busy...and at some of the state parks I really didn't want to pay the full day rate. So I did find a nice spot to stop and eat a picnic. But as I continued, the fog worsened. I stopped at Bodega and got a takeaway cup of tea from a small coffee shop. There was more traffic and the fog meant that there really wasn't any great reason to continue on CA-1 and so headed over to US-101 to make better time.

I drove into San Francisco over the stunning engineering of the Golden Gate Bridge.

It may have been the weekend of the 4th of July, but the northern end with Fort Bragg and Mendocino were not too hectic busy but the areas closer to San Francisco definitely were.

It is a drive that in places takes some concentration namely coming down to the coast from Leggett, but I would do it again, and take more time over it and explore more fully, and hope for some less fog!Close

Last weekend we drove to San Diego, California to attend the annual December Nights celebration at Balboa Park. We do not go out in the evening very often so this was a big thing for us. We had attended this event several years ago…Read More

Last weekend we drove to San Diego, California to attend the annual December Nights celebration at Balboa Park. We do not go out in the evening very often so this was a big thing for us. We had attended this event several years ago and had fond memories so wanted to go back. We were not disappointed.

San Diego has the best weather of any city in the USA. Many people wonder how we can feel like it is the holidays when we do not have snow. Ask those people on the other side of the equator. Also see how we enjoyed the spirit of the holiday season with thousands of other people in San Diego.

All 17 of the museums at Balboa Park are open these two evenings for free. We managed to go into only one. There were too many things to distract us. There were musicians playing all over, carolers singing here and there. Food vendors tempted our palettes at every turn.

Of course the decorations and the lights made it all magical. It was a wonderful evening. The rest of the weekend was lovely as well.

Just when we started to forget the holidays, something like this tree would be there to remind us.

Or these wreaths.

These were at Old Town State Historic Park, one of our favorite places. Then there was the tree in our hotel lobby.

I was really getting into the spirit by this time. Then we took a ride up to Point Loma and Cabrillo National Monument. From there we could overlook the sea meeting the city. The Pacific was dotted with sailboats on this fine December day.



As we entered the restaurant where we had dinner, we were treated to a show by the original Silverman of San Diego.

He moved so well that of course he got a tip.

Here's a nighttime view of downtown. And another

These are taken with my digital camera. I am unfamiliar with taking photos at night, so bear with me.

So that was our sojourn to San Diego. I hope you can visit there some day, if you haven't already. It is a wonderful city that we have loved for many years.

Happy Travels and Happy Holidays!



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We decided that we would hike down from Glacier Point down the Panorama trail. We planned an early start and drove up the winding road to Glacier Point. That trip up made me feel quite travel sick but it remained just feeling queasy. We arrived…Read More

We decided that we would hike down from Glacier Point down the Panorama trail. We planned an early start and drove up the winding road to Glacier Point. That trip up made me feel quite travel sick but it remained just feeling queasy. We arrived up, and made use of the restrooms, enjoyed the views from the top, topped up our water bottles and I ate some crackers to settle my stomach.

The trail down is 8.5 miles and falls 3200ft to the valley floor. There is a good reason that it is called the Panorama Trail the views were incredible on the first section was we made our way down to Illilouette Falls which is after 2 miles. This section we didn't see another soul on the path which was lovely - but any sense of remoteness was spoilt on reaching Illilouette river were we had a water break enjoy the running water for a while, but we discovered rubbish here - we each took some to carry out so that others would not have to endure such a lovely place with wrappers and empty bottles.

Having dropped into a river valley we had to climb up again. One place there was a fair amount of loose gravel that needed a little bit of a scramble and was out in the sun, and the heat of the day was starting to rise. I was glad to get into the forest for a little out of the sun. Then we were dropping down again - the forest was pleasant, lots of little streams - we only saw a handful of people until we reached Nevada Falls.

As we got near the falls the trail get very wet and muddy, and then out of the forest you come out on bare rock. You could hear the falls long before we saw them. Here you are right at the top - the view was stunning. But despite warning signs and guard rails the numbers who risked going near the water at the top of the falls was shocking. The falls were stunning but the water level was low for this time of year as there was a smaller snow fall over the winter than normal, meaning less snowmelt waters.

I found a nice shady spot under a tree and ate my lunch. There are composting toilets up here above the falls if needed. What a stunning place to have a picnic.

My plan with my ankle not being quite 100% after an earlier sprain, was that I wanted to carry on down the John Muir Trail rather than the Mist Trail which is steeper and rough rock steps down. But all the others opted for the Mist, and I didn't really want to go off on my own, so I decided to chance it. It wasn't too bad, but I needed to go slow and got left behind from my group. There were some nice views of Nevada Falls though. But the trail was quite busy and it was a constant fight to get down with so many climbing up ( and many not well prepared with little water and more footwear). The crowds increased by the time I got to Vernal Falls - and here the crowds on the trail actually made it quite dangerous. I also saw one woman take a bad tumble, thankfully someone rang and the rangers were on their way up to get her down. There are some fairly steep drops at the side of the path as well. I had to take a long break at this point, my ankle was getting really sore - but I found a perch where I could see the Falls and feel the spray.

At this point it seemed like pushing your way to get down there were so many people on this steep and narrow trail. Many ill prepared for walking on such a rough path - taking their chance to see the waterfall. I made it down to the bridge, and there is water available here, so I was glad to get a cold drink here.

While at some earlier stage parts higher up on the Panorama Trail had been tarred they were being returned to natural worn paths. But at this lower level the trail was tarmac and undulated a bit as it dropped down to the valley floor. I got down to Happy Isles, and decided my ankle was at its limit so caught the shuttle to Curry VIllage and had an ice cream.

The upper part of the hike was fabulous with stunning views and only a handful of people. But once we dropped past Nevada Falls the trail got busier and by Vernal Falls it was crazy. I'd do the trail again but not in the peak season, so as to actually enjoy the lower section of the trail rather than feel I was fighting my way, and to enjoy the beauty of Vernal Falls. It was a good hike, stretching but not too strenuous but need to make sure to carry plenty of water. Panorama is the right name - from views over the valley to the falls is was stunning.Close

Whilst planning our Californian Road trip I wanted to visit more than just the big cities so I tried to hunt around for other places that might be of interest to us.On our trip from Twenty-nine palms to San Diego we were taking Route 62…Read More

Whilst planning our Californian Road trip I wanted to visit more than just the big cities so I tried to hunt around for other places that might be of interest to us.

On our trip from Twenty-nine palms to San Diego we were taking Route 62 and we noticed a place called Pioneertown on the map which I was sure I had read about as an unusual place to visit so we made a bit of a detour.

Travelling West along highway 62 you take a right turn in Yucca Valley on to the aptly named Pioneertown Road and follow this road up a rather steep climb until you reach the town itself which I think was about 5 miles from Yucca.

Pioneertown was built in the mid-1940s as a film backdrop for the Westerns that were so popular at the time. The idea was that the actors such as Roy Rogers would live there and spend their lives living amongst the actual film sets to enable them to really live the life of the Westerns that they were starring in. This all sounded quite interesting so we were looking forward to seeing something that would be reminiscent of the Wild West movie sets that we had seen at Universal Studios only more "real". Filming of such classics as Gunfight at the OK Corral took place here.

As we drove in to the town there were a couple of ranches, one of which obviously took in guests. We then drove along a road where on the right we could see some buildings facing onto a dirt track but it was not at all clear whether this other road was private property or whether it was acceptable to walk around. There was no-one around at all except for a car that followed us which was obviously even more disappointed than us which did an immediate U-turn and left. My husband presumed we hadn’t reached "it" yet and kept driving but then we realised we were on barren road so had to turn back.

We saw a saloon type place which I now know was probably Pappy and Harriet’s Pioneertown palace but we couldn’t be sure it was open and it didn’t look terribly inviting for a family. I think it does have quite restricted opening hours so was probably shut when we were there but is supposed to be quite a place for a good western night out but I can’t vouch for that.

On Saturdays in the main season there are western style gun-fights in the street and the Pioneerbowl bowling alley which was built by Roy Rogers is also open on a Saturday.

After about two minutes we hopped back in our car and left, highly disappointed by what we saw. There did look like there were a few buildings which could have been fun to look at and photograph but we felt like we were intruding even though we didn’t see a single person. In fact being there was a bit creepy.

I would have to say that if you are driving along the Highway 62 mid-week then don’t bother taking the 10 mile detour to take in Pioneertown, it really isn’t worth the trouble. However if you are heading around there on a Saturday then I think it might be worth the trouble of dropping by and if we are ever that way again at a weekend then we may swing by to see if there is any more "life".

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Dunsmuir is a relative small city that whisks you back in time with faded, old murals and company names on the side of buildings. Front porches with swinging chairs were the norm for neighborhoods and shops lined the main street of the town.…Read More

Dunsmuir is a relative small city that whisks you back in time with faded, old murals and company names on the side of buildings. Front porches with swinging chairs were the norm for neighborhoods and shops lined the main street of the town. Soda fountain-style restaurants beckon for your business. The air was clear and the temperature slightly crisp. This was perfect for the little hikes we were shown by a delightful lady in the visitor's center.

With a population of less than 2000, how might a person wind up in Dunsmuir? It is located off Highway 5, south of Mount Shasta and north of Shasta Lake, two very popular tourist destinations. not to mention being on the Pacific Ring of Fire. Why might a person spend a night in Dunsmuir? Read on.

Castle Lake, near Dunsmuir, is a glacial lake formed from the snow melt from the Mount Shasta area and eventually completes the beginnings of the Sacramento River. An expansive of green grass with picnic tables and beach area make for a peaceful encounter. A series of floating docks encircles an area perfect for floating or swimming if you brave the temperature. Otherwise, the challenge of walking on the less than steady docks takes offers a more panoramic view of the mountains.

Hedge Creek Falls maintained by Dunsmuir Garden Club is next to Castle Rock Springswater Company, the ones responsible for the idea behind Mossbrae Falls which was created from an overage of water. A short, wide, earthen trail leads down to falls. You can walk behind the falls and look out to the pines where invertible you can glimpse a rainbow. The falls are in the corner of the trail so that when you look out from behind the falls it appears you are peaking out from a deep canyon. The walls behind are lightly moist and plays host to patches of moss and lichen. The trails continues beyond the falls for a short distance just to explore the foliage.

Mossbrae Falls on the other hand doesn't appear to be such a well-marked easy path. While at first glace parking near the railroad tracks and walking a mile along the tracks seems straight forward, it isn't. Steep basalt columns rise up from one side of the tracks and a gravel slope descends from other side. This makes the idea of walking directly on the tracks a no-brainer. However, the train does come by and more than once per day. The rumbling of the ground and the angle of the gravel made me stop dead in my tracks, pardon the pun, to wait for it to go by. I was convinced if I didn't keep my hands close to my body they would have been rip off. As the train went by, I realized the width of the cars is considerably wider than the tracks. That being said if trains were able to carry a "wide load" like semi trucks, things might have been different.

You know you have gone to far when you cross the trestle with the year 1901 inscribed on it. On the other hand, if you are trying to figure out where the falls are look where the tall trees are follow them down to a somewhat sandy beach. Two dirt paths very near to each other descend to the beach across the river from Mossbrae Falls. The falls are magnificent in the summer when the moss is bright green and the water creates a path around the patches.

Now to go back to a blast from the past diner. Maybe one just off the river.
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So often we focus on land and seascapes or particular flora or fauna. Case in point, do you not turn your head toward the direction of sound? Do you not look at tree from where an acorn has dropped or bird has chirpped?…Read More

So often we focus on land and seascapes or particular flora or fauna. Case in point, do you not turn your head toward the direction of sound? Do you not look at tree from where an acorn has dropped or bird has chirpped? Of course, the waves breaking along the beach and the crest of a mountain can't be ignored either.

Traveling along the Ring of Fire was no exception. However, we began noticing the creations of nature as art. Photos zoomed in on a areas of nature itself with no distractions, nothing to stand out and draw your attention to a mere fragment of the picture. A lake was filled with boiling mud spouting up all over with sounds that plopped, spurted, beeped and groaned. One lone eruption looked like a miniature volcano spewing a silky gray material with streaks of black.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, a swirled section of untouched snow appear to be the lightest whipped cream in all the land. So light in some ways it seemed like it was made of cotton, or perhaps I should say cotton candy. I felt the need for fingers to caress the pattern the snow carved, to feel the smoothness.

Even the gentle ripples the wind created enhanced the flawlessly pebbled bottom of stream we hiked. One particular section was strewn with the same color, size and shaped pebbles. The color pattern was consistent with no shading to mar the area. No singular stone diverted attention from the creek floor as a whole. There was just the wavelets tracing watery diamond shapes across the top of the stream bed.

Similarly a section reminiscent of Zion, looked as if they had chiseled horizontal waves carved into them. Yet pastel shades of red, orange black and beige replaced the blue and green hues of water. Something as hard as rock could be designed so strikingly as to mimic the horizon during a spectacular sunset is amazing.

But another type of rock, the red sandstone for which Sedona is famous, has finger size holes everywhere. These air pockets are typically found in volcanic rock. The sandy feel of this rock begs for me to try out the finger size holes as if I were looking for the perfect bowling ball. I contemplated the idea that some tiny creature could use these for home rather like the hermit crab that moves from one discarded shell to another as he grows.

The realization that it is neither the speed at which you travel, covering more ground, nor the places you go, the more exotic the better, but rather the how much you really look that enhances the journey and makes worthwhile memories.Close

Oakland is famed for being a workers’ enclave in the East Bay Area, but the first glimpses showed a different picture; spending a day there turned out being an enjoyable adventure. Cain had left me at his home and went to his business. We…Read More

Oakland is famed for being a workers’ enclave in the East Bay Area, but the first glimpses showed a different picture; spending a day there turned out being an enjoyable adventure. Cain had left me at his home and went to his business. We agreed to meet in the late afternoon. I dropped my backpacks at his living room and went out; the BART metro system turned out to be economical and reliable.

The 12th Street BART station was at the very center of Oakland’s downtown; the exit of the station through the shopping plaza offers a splendid view of downtown and an opportunity to buy a bottle of cold water before beginning to explore the city. One block to the north was the Ogawa Plaza and a block away at the corner of Broadway was a spacious branch of Tully’s, which served an excellent coffee. After the four bus trip, that was what I needed to recover my stamina. Fully awake, I began noticing a substantial Eastern touch to the city.

Oakland’s Chinatown was enclosed between Broadway and Franklin streets and 8th and 11th streets, between downtown and the waterfront. Smaller than its neighbor in San Francisco, it was less congested and more pleasant for a walk. There, I was left speechless by BC Deli Sandwiches at 818 Franklin Street, which offered twelve variations of Vietnamese Bahn Mi sandwiches. All of sudden, I was aware my favorite places on earth were just across that large pond named the Pacific Ocean. The bread used was slightly different than in Vietnam, and sandwiches cost here up to $2.25. That was roughly twenty times the price in Hanoi or Saigon. I accompanied them with a good version of Vietnamese coffee, which was prepared with condensed milk, thick coffee prepared through a metal filter, and ice.

Shortly afterwards, I found someone to tell me the story of this New Southeast Asia. Chinese were the first Asians to arrive in Oakland in the 1850s; they were followed by Japanese, Koreans, Filipinos and South East Asians, who began arriving in the 1970s during the Vietnam War. The area was highly diverse with shop signs in a plethora of languages and alphabets.

Walking southwest along Broadway, the Jack London Square and Waterfront appeared after crossing the Amtrak railway; across the Oakland Inner Harbor is the island and city of Alameda. The place features half of the author’s original hut in Alaska (the other half was given to a Canadian city; the missing logs were replaced), with high grass growing on its roof. The hut was surrounded by a plethora of shops and boats and metal wolf-steps—featuring donors’ names—on the sidewalk, nearby was the historic Heinold’s First and Last Chance Saloon. However, the latter couldn’t fool me; the area was mainly Asian. I was delighted.

West from there was Lake Merritt, which was wonderful with its gentle curves, blue waters, grassy shores, ducks and joggers. The lake was a tidal lagoon surrounded mainly by parkland and a 3.5 mile walking and jogging path. After Oakland’s foundation in 1852, the estuary became the city’s sewer; in 1870, it became the United States’ first official wildlife refuge. Since 1925, a "Necklace of Lights" brightly surrounds it at night. The lake is home to the Black-crowned Night Herons, Canada Geese, Great Egrets, Cormorants, American Coots, Mallard Ducks, Pelicans, and Western Gulls. The Lake Merritt Wild Duck Refuge became a National Historic Landmark in 1963.

Searching for a proper end for such a day, I entered the nearby Lake Merritt BART station, and while looking at the station names, one of them caught my attention: "Fruitvale." Was it a valley of fruits? Would I find peaches and oranges amidst the metropolis?

The place turned out to be one of the southern neighborhoods of the town; at the exit from the station was the Fruitvale Village, which combined apartments on its upper floors with a small commercial center at its base. Powderface, at suite 134, was one of these. It offered fresh and tasty New Orleans Style Beignets. The latter was the name given to fried dough, covered with powdered sugar. Square and hollow in shape, it was served piping hot. The sugar melted in the mouth and combined with the soft inner crust to create a delightful experience; it was similar to the "buñuelos" served in Bolivian markets. Their coffee is excellent; the place is spacious and comfortable. Oddly, the classical music played in the background fits the surrounding.

Climbing deeper into the neighborhood along the 35th Avenue, I reached the True Buddha Vijaya Temple, 3440 Foothill Boulevard. A Buddhist temple in a mainly Hispanic neighborhood was worth a visit. Renee, a friendly American in charge of explaining the place to non-Chinese visitors, showed me the place and commented about its history. The temple practiced the Vajrayana Buddhism, which is related to Mahayana Buddhism. That was hinted by the hanging flags around the main altar featuring five imposing statues over many other lesser ones. Despite belonging to the "big-vehicle" schools, the Vajrayana Buddhism speaks about the personal achievement of illumination. Spreading out the message was their path to the global illumination preached by more traditional Mahayana schools. With over one and a half million students around the world, it seems they are working hard at it. However, by now, one of the sights at Fruitvale Village kept bothering me. After saying goodbye to Renee, I almost ran all the way back to Fruitvale Village for a Saigon wrap.

(Excerpt from The Cross of Bethlehem II – Back in Bethlehem; the book reads independently of Part I, The Cross of Bethlehem - The Memoirs of a Refugee.)

The Cross of Bethlehem II – Back in Bethlehem is available at Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions.

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Since we live in an area inhabited by 18 million people, we have many places of interest to keep us entertained. Although we are close to Disneyland we did not go there or to any major theme park. Instead, we went one day to the…Read More

Since we live in an area inhabited by 18 million people, we have many places of interest to keep us entertained. Although we are close to Disneyland we did not go there or to any major theme park. Instead, we went one day to the Eastern Sierra where the highest mountain in the lower 48 states can be found. The Visitor Center in Lone Pine gives good information on the area. There are books and souvenirs available also.
The wind did not stop us. On we went to Manzanar, Lone Pine and the Alabama Hills.
The Mojave Desert was awesome as always. Seeing the sun set in the western skies made the day complete.
Other places we visited were a winery, Market Night in Redlands and Citrus State Historic Park in Riverside where we were doted upon by the staff and volunteers. We learned more than we would ever want to know about citrus. Another fascinating stop was the historic Mission Inn.
This is a functioning hotel that you can stay in if you want to enjoy all the luxuries. At Christmas time they have thousands of lights decorating the outside of the Inn.
Then we were off to Los Angeles. After a few mistakes finding our destinations, we managed to see Watts Towers, Little Tokyo and Olvera Street.
No visit here would be complete without a visit to a beach to catch the surf and sand.

Dana Point is a favorite of ours. Doheny State Beach is great for watching surfers.




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We left our hotel on Bush Street and headed east towards the financial district. It was a crisp clear December morning and to our surprise, few people were out on the streets. We felt lucky to have the place to ourselves. We continued as far…Read More

We left our hotel on Bush Street and headed east towards the financial district. It was a crisp clear December morning and to our surprise, few people were out on the streets. We felt lucky to have the place to ourselves. We continued as far as Grant Avenue, where the three banks of floating green tile roofs indicate the entrance to San Francisco’s Chinatown.

It was a funny experience to walk through the area in such a quiet state. It is the largest Chinatown in North America and is usually teeming with tourists and local merchants. One of the few signs of normal life was a modestly sized walking tour group. They rounded a corner across the road from us and their leader announced matter of factly that they would now be going into a shop to sample tea.

This wasn’t our first visit to San Francisco, which is why we only passed through Chinatown but if it’s your first time, I can recommend spending some time in this area, visiting souvenir shops, tea houses and food shops. Chinatown comes alive at night so it is also a great place to come for dinner.

We turned right on Jackson Street, passing the Great Star Theater and catching our first glimpse of the Transamerica Pyramid skyscraper. It’s not possible to visit the building but it strikes a unique outline on the Chinatown horizon. Just in front of the skyscraper and equally as arresting is the Sentinel Building. Also triangular in shape, it has beautiful rounded window bays bound together by broad copper frames that now have a green patina. Film director Francis Ford Coppola rescued the building in the 1970s, renovating it and installing Cafe Zoetrope and his own business in other parts of the building so that its legacy could live on a little longer.

Another landmark establishment is close by at 255 Columbus Avenue. The bar that is now forever associated with Jack Kerouac opened in 1948 and became a home to a number of Beat Generation artists, writers and musicians. The artwork on the outside of Vesuvio’s Bar is difficult to ignore, as is the bare-bottomed sign hanging above its doors.

While the urge to stop at Zoetrope was strong, and would have been for Vesuvio too had it been a little later in the day, we continued on as we wished to try out the coffee at Caffe Trieste at 601 Vallejo Street. Just off Columbus Avenue and on the cross street of Grant Avenue, Trieste is off the main road on a quiet street but people obviously know that this is the place to come for good coffee. They also have giant cakes and pastries although a few items in the display case looked like they were past their prime.

All the tables at Trieste were taken, even the few outdoor benches, so we ordered lattes to go and continued on along Columbus, turning off onto Stockton Street which took us all the way to Fisherman’s Wharf.

The Embarcadero is a long curve that runs from a small park by Ghirardelli Square all the way to the Ferry Building at the end of Market Street. We made an early lunch stop at Boudin for a sourdough bread bowl full of white clam chowder and then headed east and south along The Embarcadero.

There is a lot to explore along the 19 or so piers that stretch out from the Bay Bridge. The piers around Fisherman’s Wharf target souvenir hungry tourists and there is an opportunity to see a colony of sea lions, usually found sunbathing on Pier 39. You can usually smell them before you see them.

We walked on passing signs advertising boat trips. Tours to Alcatraz leave from Pier 33 and unless you scare easily, it is a tour well worth doing. The pier numbers descend by odd numbers only (even numbered piers are located south of the Bay Bridge) and eventually we reached Pier 1 and the Ferry Building. The Marketplace inside the old building is a tall, grand, slate blue building that looks not unlike an iconic train station (www.ferrybuildingmarketplace.com).

Inside are rows of well appointed stalls selling everything from Scharffen Berger chocolate to Cowgirl Creamery cheese to organic skincare products. Recommended stops are Blue Bottle for coffee and if you like mushrooms, there is a dizzying array at Far West Fungi. Just before Christmas, the Marketplace was incredibly busy and seemed like a great place to pick up party snacks and last minute gifts.

From here we said goodbye to the bay and took the Muni all the way to Golden Gate Park and the De Young Museum but if you want to take things at a more leisurely pace, the route we walked can easily take up a full dayClose

Our bike ride from Manhattan Beach had taken us around Marina del Rey and deposited us into the midst of the action on Venice Beach. Possibly LA’s best known beach area, I had expected to see all types of bizarre characters but in fact things…Read More

Our bike ride from Manhattan Beach had taken us around Marina del Rey and deposited us into the midst of the action on Venice Beach. Possibly LA’s best known beach area, I had expected to see all types of bizarre characters but in fact things seemed fairly tame. Perhaps the most striking sight was that of the medical marijuana shops. Bright green eye catching stalls with a couple of girls out front dressed not unlike cheerleaders.

The famed muscle beach body builders must have been taking a day off, as we didn’t see them. The skateboard park was busy though and had attracted a decent number of spectators.

We took our bikes off the bike paths and walked along the boardwalk, admiring the colourful mix of shops, fortune-tellers, souvenirs and artwork. To me, most was pretty bad. Even the majority of the clothing shops were pretty tacky, but the walkway certainly didn’t lack character. We took our bikes off the boardwalk and wheeled them into a long narrow courtyard with a cafe at the end. We stopped for a frozen yogurt and enjoyed being away from the crowds for a short while.

We then continued on towards Santa Monica. The Santa Monica pier was no less busy than Venice Beach. We were able to push our bikes onto the rough wooden boards of the pier and walk around the perimeter. The pier seems to have it all: restaurants, entertainers, a roller coaster, Ferris wheel, a trapeze school and an aquarium. It is even part of Route 66. We walked to the far end, where a row of anglers went about the serious business of casting lines out into the quiet swells of the Pacific. Their pursuit was a far cry from the noisy leisure pursuits of most people who visit the pier.

Back along the pier we observed an entertainer in puzzlement. He wore a shabby tracksuit with a gorilla mask and danced, not very well, to a string of old pop songs. He made us laugh if nothing else.

We passed the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company restaurant, apparently owned by the production company responsible for making ‘Forest Gump’ and continued towards the pier entrance. After over 100 years of operation, the pier shows no sign of losing its appeal.

We wanted to explore further but it was time to turn back. We cycled back along the winding Venice Beach path, competing with pedestrians and roller-bladers for space. The skate park and the boardwalk were still busy. It isn’t until you reach the edge of Marine del Rey that the crowds disappear and the quieter side of LA beach life returns. Close