Category Archives: Scenic drives

Eastern Sierras trip!

We had a family reunion in Big Pine, in the Eastern Sierras, organized by my sister and her husband at their vacation home! I was sad that my parents couldn’t come because my mom was recovering from an injury. But my brother and his girlfriend came from Hawaii, and so did my son (who was visiting during summer break). My niece, nephew and his girlfriend, and daughter and husband came too! I’ve never seen this area before so it was interesting to explore it. It is four hours north of LA in the hot desert. Because there was such a large snowfall this year, there was still a lot of snow on the mountains even in June! There was also an incredible snowmelt that made Birch Creek roar beside our cabin, and made the stream and waterfall on the Big Pine Creek North Fork Trail truly spectacular! We were lucky!

On the way we stopped at two places we’d been five years earlier, real favorites with the kids. I couldn’t wait to go back to them! The first was the Fillmore Fish Hatchery, where the kids loved throwing food in for the trout!! Even just walking by and making a shadow made the trout go crazy! Next we drove to Vasquez Rocks where we climbed the otherworldly landscape! It was already getting unbearably hot. Last time we went in April and that was probably a better idea.

We found a nice modern area in Palmdale with tons of counter-service fast restaurants so we stopped there for lunch, at Panda Express, and stocked up on supplies across the street at Trader Joe’s. Next we drove through the desert, stopping at a wacky roadside attraction my sister recommended called Indian Wells Brewing Company. Here they bottle beer and also sodas in all kinds of interesting flavors. You can ask at the counter to sample the flavors. We liked the lemon meringue flavor the best. We bought four sodas and it quenched our thirst and took away our boredom as we drove along. At this stop there are some cool things like a skeleton driving a truck, and a giant cow near the ceiling.

The mountains started to look fantastic as we headed further north. Wow! What lovely chiseled shapes, all outlined by white snow. We passed through a cute western-style town called Lone Pine, and then stopped for gas in an adorable town called Independence. Finally, we reached Big Pine, and my brother and daughter played some music together! It was awesome! In the evening, we walked in the desert near Fish Springs Hatchery, checking out the abandoned mines, the silvery green desert plants, and the snowy mountains beyond.

There was a heat wave taking over this part of California so the next day was around 103 degrees! We had to stay near the creek, pond, or inside! We decided to take a drive to Bishop and enjoyed a frozen yogurt at the very modern and trendy Good Earth Yogurt (highly recommend!). Then we browsed Spellbinder Books, which has a good kids section and places to sit. And we got coffees at Looney Bean Coffee. That night we played cards and competed to be the Crazy 8s Champion of the World!

The next day was hot again so we headed out early to Big Pine Creek North Fork Trail. This is the trail that the area is famous for. Many people do overnight camping hikes here. I’d love to see First Lake, the prettiest lake on the trail, which is blue-green. It is two and a half hours in. You don’t need to go a long way to be rewarded on this hike because there’s an invigorating waterfall that flows under a bridge, just a short walk in! The scenery was incredible, with the towering pines and soaring snowy mountains above! It looked nice to rent a cabin there at the Big Pine Creek Campground, and sit on the balcony listening to the stream. This hike was the highlight of the trip, just a gorgeous amazing place! The drive to the trailhead is pretty too, with desert flowers dotting the landscape.

We enjoyed a pink-orange sunset over the desert that night, and more card games!

The next day was the drive home with my husband, daughter and son. We made some cool stops on the way. The first was Mt. Whitney Fish Hatchery where you feel like you’re in Austria, with the granite stone half-timbered building and the high majestic mountains! Next, the family grumbled as we stopped at the Eastern California Museum, but it turned out that everyone loved it! It was a humble place, and dusty-smelling, but there were very interesting displays, with something for everyone! We stayed quite a while and got a nice sketching book that entertained our daughter for the entire day. As we continued the drive, we pulled off at a hair-raising exit to see the impressive rocks at Red Rock Canyon. This was just a five minute stop but beautiful. We had lunch at Voyager Restaurant at the Mojave Airport but were pretty disappointed because the food wasn’t great and we didn’t see any planes land or takeoff. As we drove along, at some points our car said it was 112 degrees outside! Wow!! Like being in Arizona again! We were happy when we finally made it to the coast, where it was 73 degrees in Ventura!!

The Eastern Sierras has cute towns in an unusual and beautiful landscape. Make the drive to explore it if you get a chance!

Week 2 of our Grand Road Trip!

View from Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail, on the way to Grotto Falls.

Week 2 started with the best part of the trip, Memphis! And it started off with a bang, at the best attraction we visited, Sun Studio! What a cool place, with a super cool tour guide. We learned so many interesting stories. After, we had a chocolate malt in the cafe area where the musicians used to do the same thing! Delicious!

Next we explored the Memphis Botanical Garden, which has a fun area for kids called My Big Back Yard. Here kids can run between different houses and become very inspired by all the imaginative things they see along the way. We spent hours there!

To top off an already great day, we experienced Jerry Lee Lewis Honky Tonk Cafe, on Beale Street! The lead singer of the band put on a real show and even lit the piano on fire! As we drove to our hotel, we saw the sun setting over the riverfront and it was a gorgeous sight.

The only downside of our time in Memphis was that we booked a hotel that was way out of town and this added two hours of driving to our day each day. What a waste! We were careful to check where our hotels were before booking after that- hotels might have the city in their name but not actually be close by.

Day 2 in Memphis we left early for Graceland. At first it seemed like it was going to be a terrible tourist trap but once we disembarked the bus at the house and entered with our self-guided audio tours, we were pretty happy with the attraction. It was very interesting to see the funky 70s decor in Elvis’ house, and amazing to see how many awards he won! The tour didn’t give us any new information about Elvis though.

We headed to a playground to get some running around time. Shelby Farms Playground has some amazing, modern contraptions but boy is it a hot place with not a puff of breeze.

For dinner we headed back to the Jerry Lee Lewis Honky Tonk Cafe for some more gumbo, and this time a Johnny Cash band. Great times! Best of all, we stopped at Beale Street Landing, a park and development on the riverfront, on the way home and watched the sun setting over the river. There was an amazing playground and a huge sloping grass roof you can sit on or kids can roll down. What an awesome place! I fell in love with this place.

The two days in Memphis were awesome, and now we headed to Nashville. We ate at the main street, Broadway, while listening to some live country music. In Nashville we visited a super place, Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage, the former president’s house on farmland outside the city. The audio tour was done so well, and you could even choose from three options at each station: regular, from his wife’s perspective, or for kids. The kid’s audio tour was fantastic and it kept my daughter happily occupied through the entire visit. We learned a lot and it was peaceful just walking around in our own world listening individually to our audio devices. We continued our long drive, staying overnight in the cutest spot under a pointed mountain, in a town called Kimball.

Now we were in the mountains! We visited some way touristy attractions: Ruby Falls, a huge underground waterfall that was pretty incredible, and Rock City, gardens with a view. After these our wallets were empty! Next we had lunch and walked around the lovely town of Chattanooga. What a cool development on the river, with a pedestrian bridge called Walnut Street Bridge where you can feel a great breeze high up over the river! We were so happy to be out of the heat and in the mountains! Although it would have been good, we were tired of attractions so we didn’t go to the Tennessee Aquarium or the Hunter Museum of Art, though I’d like to do that next time. Instead we went to the carousel at Coolidge Park and had dinner at the same place as lunch, on Market Street.

Because this part of the trip was not really planned in advance but was a last minute add-on I didn’t really have time to research the spots to go. Once home I realized that I missed a great bakery (always a bad thing to do!)- good bakeries in America are a rare thing, so I will have to go back for this. This one is in that lovely part of town I described earlier, where cliffs over the river make for great views, the Bluff View Art District. It’s called Bluff View Bakery.

The next day we visited University of Tennessee at Chattanooga bookstore for a fun browse and then headed on our way, to Knoxville. Knoxville has a very nice square called Market Square, with sidewalk cafes, a splash fountain, and statues. It was a great find for a lunch stop!

We continued our drive- the kids were real troopers- and arrived in Gatlinburg, a town at the entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. What a weird surprise this was. Instead of finding a charming nature-filled get-away town, we found three towns (Pigeon Forge and Sevierville included) with the most gaudy stores and attractions- true tourist traps! Gatlinburg was the prettiest of the three at least, so we settled in for the night, eating a very patience-requiring dinner at Bubba Gump.

Oops I forgot the best part- one of the loveliest, nature-filled parts of the trip. In the afternoon, we did a hike to Grotto Falls in the national park! It was getting stormy and we didn’t know if we’d get stuck in a lightning storm but we had to continue on because my son had gone way ahead. I’m glad we did because it was beautiful. On the trail were flowers everywhere. We saw alpacas, returning from a delivery of supplies to the LeConte Lodge, which can only be reached by foot. Once at the falls, we stood behind them and it was exhilarating to see the sheet of clear water in front of us!

On the drive to Grotto Falls, I was happy to get a shot I’d been wanting to get for a long time: of the layers of blue mountains. And even with a bird in it!

The next day we drove through the park on the Newfound Gap Rd. What a beautiful drive! As you get higher the vegetation changes and you see spruce-fir trees like in Canada! It was a rainy day and mist filled the valleys, adding atmosphere. At Clingman’s Dome we couldn’t do the hike because of heavy rain and winds, but Ron ran up despite it! On the way out the park, we stopped at Mingus Mill, an interesting turbine mill on a beautiful stream, and Mountain Farm Museum, where trees with big leaves line the river and historic farm houses have been transported from other areas to this one spot.

We headed onward to Asheville, which is always voted one of the best places to live, so I was curious to see what it was like. It wasn’t actually that pretty, with some fairly ugly streets and architecture, and not many mountains views, but the people were interesting. They are a sort of hippy meets goth, with a ton of tattooes. The main street in town, Lexington, has some great restaurants, and we had a heavenly meal at Mela Indian Restaurant. Omg the mint sauce that came with the samosas- yum! We were really enjoying dining with huge windows open and fresh air blowing in. What a contrast after months of summer heat in Florida!

The next day we rose early to go to another touristy place, Biltmore Estate. This place was grossly overpriced, at $60 each. It is a gorgeous mansion though, in an adorable French style, with some small gardens filled with flowers. My daughter was not interested in the kid’s audio tour, however, and we were all getting a bit vacationed-out. We ate at Lexington Street again, this time not as lucky with our restaurant choice. Then we drove to Columbia SC. We were too tired to look around! So we ate at Chick-Fil-A (you really know you’re burned out from traveling when you do this!) and stayed in a roadside motel in a dreary part of town. The next day we headed to the main street, Gervais Street, near the university, but it was pretty dead on a Saturday morning. We ate at a Starbucks in a pretty historical building with a decorated ceiling. Then we drove to Savannah.

It’s hard to say whether Savannah is a place I like because by now we were exhausted. It is in a low-lying marshy area (not the prettiest) but the town itself is gorgeous with its famous squares. Every few blocks there is a square with a fountain, statues, and huge oak trees hung with Spanish moss. These squares were built for defense purposes originally. The architecture all around you is lovely, with ironwork staircases, balconies, and gates. We visited the square where Forrest Gump was filmed, when he says “Life is like a box of chocolates…”

It was hard to enjoy ourselves because the heat and stickiness was really out of this world, and hundreds of gnats were flying around us. Note to self- come in winter next time! There was a wonderful playground in Forsyth Park, but there were also lots of sketchy people there that harass you when you stop to look at the beautiful fountain. We ate lunch, which ended up giving two of us an upset stomach, and then headed on. Yikes we were glad to be in the AC once we reached our car.

Again, we stayed in a roadside hotel and ate fast food for dinner, in Jacksonville. First thing in the morning we ate at Dunkin Donuts and then drove straight home. We made it home by lunchtime on Sunday, and were satisfied to have completed our epic road trip! The south definitely has some great places to explore and I’m glad we had to opportunity to see it!

Grand road trip around the south!

Jackson Square in New Orleans.

We recently went on a summer road trip covering 3,000 miles in the south! The unanimous favorite place was Memphis!

We started in Florida, having our favorite Jamaican food for dinner (palm hearts curry-amazing!) at Reggae Shack in Gainesville. It was incredibly hot, 98 degrees everywhere for the first few days of the trip. Our first attraction was a dud, Haile House, which is not air-conditioned (yikes!) and not pretty either. To cool off, we went to Ginnie Springs, gorgeous nature but loaded with drunk people. The next day we had another miss- the Challenger Science Center in Tallahassee, which is no longer a science center but solely an Imax theater- what bad marketing! We were finding there’s not much to do in this kind of heat. We went to a mall- not much fun- but then had a good idea to go to the Florida Caverns which are always cool since underground! It was our second time there and we loved it. Next we visited Falling Waters State Park just nearby, and it was so interesting to look into the deep chasm where a waterfall usually falls (it was dry on the day we came but still so gorgeous). We walked the boardwalk peering down into sinkholes which was a little unsettling!

The next morning we hopped out of bed early and beat the traffic to Seaside! What a cute town! This is where The Truman Show was filmed. The town has tall architecture providing lots of shade, and the ocean breeze cools you as you walk around. Even more cooling is a dip in the ocean, which is paradise because of the white sand and cute views of the beach tower.

At night we ate dinner at 5 Sisters Blues Cafe in Pensacola.This was our best meal of the trip. Yum! Who knew that southern comfort food is SO good! The best part was the sweet potatoes, which had a taste like apple pie. The recorded Jazz music was great too!

We were ready the next morning to explore the military base at Pensacola! We walked around Fort Barrancas which was really fun. There are long tunnels, plenty of views from high up, and a drawbridge. The heat was pretty unbearable, but nothing compared to the heat when we watched the Blue Angels practice at 11am. Still, that was worth it! What an incredible sight! It’s amazing how close the planes fly to each other and at such speed!

Next we drove to Mobile AL for an icecream on their main street, Dauphin Street. What a cute place with a beautiful basilica and wonderful architecture. For sure check out the History Museum of Mobile if you ever go- a lovely museum with interesting exhibits, and free!

New Orleans was to be our base for the next three nights! We visited Jackson Square, which is just as pretty as you’ve seen it in all the photos, though even more tropical. The need for a clean restroom led us to have pecan pie at a restaurant in the middle of the morning- isn’t that just what traveling is all about? The voodoo museum was closed, even during its advertised open times so my daughter and husband headed to the Louisiana Children’s Museum while my son and I explored the Ogden Museum of Southern Art. This is one of the nicest art museums I’ve been to and highly recommended! Its building is inspirational and the art is colorful.

We had lunch at a favorite spot from our last trip to New Orleans, La Madeleine Cafe on St Charles Ave, and though it was more crowded and quite loud, we enjoyed it. The heat was unbearable but we bravely tried and tried to venture over the potholes to find The Fly in Audobon Park. There are so many potholes in New Orleans, it’s surprising! This spot was not worth the effort. I soon realized that we hit up the very best spots in New Orleans on our last trip without even realizing how lucky we were! So I decided to stick with some old favorites, and we had dinner at Little Gem Saloon, where we ate three times on our last trip! The interior is so pretty, the gumbo with a side of sweet potatoes was delicious, and there was live piano music.

The next day we tried to beat the heat early but we arrived an hour before opening time at Storyland so we walked around the Besthoff Sculpture Garden which is free to enter. It was a pleasant stroll. Next my daughter and I had a blast walking into all the fairytale sculptures in Storyland. For the afternoon, we escaped the heat at National World War II Museum, which my husband and son really liked, and my daughter was interested in too. The price was a bit steep, I thought. Escaping the heat can be really expensive!

We finished our time in New Orleans in the best possible way, with a stroll down Frenchmen Street listening to the sounds of Jazz wafting out the clubs and restaurants, and with a meal at Bamboula’s. Of course, a stroll always involves a lot of whining from the kids- just thought I’d throw in a little realism there! But overall we still enjoyed ourselves.

The last day of the first week involved a lot of driving, with a stop at Jackson, Mississippi for some time at the Mississippi Children’s Museum and Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum then we headed to Memphis!

See the next post for Week 2 of our Grand Road Trip!

Top Ten Beaches in California!

Coronado Beach, San Diego

The sand castle turrets of Hotel del Coronado.

Hotel del Coronado, or “The Del,” is like a real sandcastle on the fine, white sand of Coronado Beach. Walk the boardwalk then stroll around the hotel looking at the 1920s photos and imagine you were there with those carefree souls. Coronado Beach is on an island. The ride over on Coronado Bridge is a blast. Walk around the island enjoying the little gingerbread houses, mansions, and tropical flowers.

Laguna Beach, Orange County

Looking down on Laguna Beach.

Laguna Beach in Orange County is probably the loveliest beach of all! It has a tropical look with its vibrant blue-green water and abundance of palms. The steep cliffs that lead down to the beach are stunning. Make sure to walk along adjacent Heisler Park to look down the vertical cliffs at the water below. Have lunch at Las Brisas Restaurant, dipping corn chips in delicious salsa while you look down at the beach below!

Descanso Beach, Santa Catalina Island

View of the casino from Descanso Beach on Santa Catalina Island.

Check out the view of the graceful 1920s art deco casino from your pebbly spot on Descanso Beach. Here the water is crystal clear, unlike the water at any other beach in California. From out of the water you can see the orange fish swimming below the surface. Stroll under countless palm trees planted by the chewing gum magnate Wrigley’s son, beside the serpentine rock wall and past fountains. Walk through the white archway decorated with colorful Spanish tiles. This is the life! You must take a ferry from Long Beach to get to unique and yes, touristy, Santa Catalina Island.

Hermosa Beach, Los Angeles

Sand, sea, and pier at Hermosa Beach.

There are plenty of fun beaches to choose from in Los Angeles but Hermosa Beach is my favorite. When writers speak of a “summer playground,” this is what they mean! Year-round you find happy, young people playing beach volleyball, roller blading, bike riding, and pushing jogging strollers in this cheerful spot. The bike path on the sand runs south to Torrance Beach and north to Venice Beach and Santa Monica pier! In the pedestrian-only square that fronts the pier, there are cafes, some with balcony views of the beach! The sand at this beach is clean as can be and the water a luminous blue.

Paradise Cove Beach, Malibu

Looking down on Paradise Cove Beach Cafe and pier.

Tucked between cliffs is the secluded and magical Paradise Cove Beach, a private beach in Malibu. Here they have designed a cafe that is perfect for the chilly California beach air (cooled by the Alaska current). You sit behind sheets of plastic, under a roof of slats and tall, gas heaters that spread the heat around you rather than just on your head! Barrels full of colorful flowers surround you. After your meal, walk up the stairs by the parking lot for a great view of the crescent-shaped beach.

Santa Claus Lane Beach, Santa Barbara

Summer sandcastle at Santa Claus Lane Beach.

Beaches in California aren’t that great for swimming. The water never gets any warmer than 68 degrees. Even freshwater springs or mountain rivers are warmer than this! But if you must have a swim, Santa Claus Lane Beach near Santa Barbara is the place! Here the water is cleaner than at most beaches (there are no storm drains nearby) and the shallow, long entry to the sea warms the water a little. It’s fun to take a mid-summer dip here while looking up at the stunning mountains and the magical middle-eastern Isham poolhouse at the end of the beach. If you’re here from December to May, check out also Carpinteria Bluffs Beach where you can see pregnant mother seals and then later baby seals at the Carpinteria Seal Rookery.

Campus Point Beach, UC Santa Barbara

A starfish at Campus Point Beach.

Not all university campuses are on the beach, but University of California Santa Barbara is! Just a short walk from the eateries in Campus Center is Campus Point Beach, a fun spot for surfing and body boarding. Summer camps teach little ones to surf on the manageable waves. And when the tide is low you can see pink, orange, and purple starfish clinging to the rocks. There are always a few students at the beach, making for a lively atmosphere. Stroll atop the cliffs for gorgeous views galore!

Shell Beach, Pismo

View from the panoramic walk in front of Best Western Shore Cliff Lodge.

Things are starting to look more stormy and rugged as you head past Santa Barbara up the Central Coast. Shell Beach is your absolute dream as far as a beach with wild cliffs, rocks jutting up from the sea, and white and yellow cliffs below. Pelicans stand on rock ledges as the ocean swirls and crashes below. Brace yourself for the cold air and take a brisk panoramic walk along the edge of the cliffs. Then walk down to the beach below and enjoy the Pismo Dinosaur Caves.

China Cove, Monterey

China Cove in Point Lobos State Reserve.

China Cove, in Point Lobos State Reserve near Monterey, is about as pretty as a beach can get. Nothing is more adorable than a cove tucked between cliffs hung with flowers. The sand is white. The water is a shock of azure. The air, however, is biting! Monterey has an abundance of pretty beaches to explore- of all the towns in California it is the most unique and beautiful in its scenery. It looks like no other place I’ve seen. Come between August and December for the greatest chance of blue skies without fog.

Point Montara Lighthouse Beach, near San Francisco

Green headlands and pristine beach at Point Montara Lighthouse.

The beach at Point Montara Lighthouse Youth Hostel is heaven! This is a northern California beach at its most idyllic, with green headlands jutting out into the sea, golden sand, crashing surf, and salt in the air. Come here to feel alive again! It’s a 30 minute drive south from Ocean Beach in San Francisco to Point Montara. Continue south afterward to see more dreamy beaches like San Gregorio Beach and Poplar Beach in Half Moon Bay.