Boulder City is less a city than a sleepy little town. Its sole reason for existence was the need to house workers building the nearby Hoover Dam. It was jointly built in 1931 by the Federal Government and the companies that had contracted to build the dam. It was designed to house approximately 5,000 workers whose status was reflected in the house sizes and locations. The most important employees’ residences were situated on top of a nearby hill while the laborers were located furthest away from the public buildings and parks. The town doesn’t look as though it has changed much in the ensuing ninety years. The hotel we stayed in even still used keys.
The city was founded during the Prohibition era and in the basement of the hotel is a speakeasy. It is so secret that we were its only patrons.
The Hoover Dam was built between 1931 and 1936. It remains one of the world’s great engineering feats. Such a large concrete structure had never been built before and some of the techniques used were unproven. Nevertheless, the dam was completed two years ahead of schedule. It was not without cost, however, as at least 94 and perhaps as many as 110 men died during its construction, due to the brutal heat and extreme danger. Facing such inhumane and dangerous conditions, the workers attempted to strike on a couple of occasions, but as the country was in the middle of the Great Depression, there was no shortage of replacement workers and the strikes quickly failed.
The dam sits across the Colorado River which divides Arizona from Nevada. It is not just only an engineering wonder but also has beautiful Art Deco touches.
There are clocks on two of the turbine intake towers, one showing Nevada and one showing Arizona time. Interestingly, they are an hour apart because Arizona is one of only two American states that have not adopted daylight saving time (the other is Hawaii).
The dam created Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the United States in terms of water capacity. The lake is named after Elwood Mead, who was the commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation during the building of the dam. It provides water to Arizona, California, and Nevada as well as some of Mexico. Due to increased water demand and drought, the lake is currently only about a quarter of its capacity. In fact, the last time the dam had to divert water through its spillover channels was back in 1983. In some of the above photos, it is easy to see how high the water once was by looking at the clear line between the white rock that was once below water level and the dark rock above.
Lake Mead is also a prime boating spot for the residents of nearby Las Vegas. We dropped by the lake and admired the view as the sun was starting to set , but soon were forced to take cover from a dust storm that seemed to come out of nowhere.
San Pedro is a neighborhood sitting next to The Port of Los Angeles in Long Beach. From its earliest days the neighborhood attracted a widely diverse community. It is home to the largest Italian-American community in Southern California and is also considered the heart of the Croatian and Norwegian communities in Los Angeles. The Croatian community, originally composed of seafarers and fishermen from the Dalmatia region, has been present in San Pedro since the settlement began more than 200 years ago.
We were in San Pedro to visit the annual cannabis convention that takes place in a warehouse down by the port. As most of you know, our sons, Jake and Ben, own a cannabis company called Dompen which they started over ten years ago. The convention provides a forum for producers of cannabis products to introduce their goods to buyers from dispensaries. Although the sale of cannabis is legal in California, it is still technically Federally illegal. It is, therefore, somewhat surreal to see so many companies openly shopping their wares.
Three of the dompen crew, including our son Jake in grey T-shirt.
Somebody is apparently doing well in the industry. This Lamborghini was parked outside the convention.
For a neighborhood that is known for its Italian, Norwegian, and Croatian communities, it is perhaps surprising that San Pedro’s most well known attraction is Korean. The Korean Friendship Bell, located on a point overlooking the neighborhood and surrounding ocean, is made of over seventeen tons of copper, tin, gold, nickel, lead and phosphorus. One of the largest bells in the world, it was presented by the South Korean government to the United States to celebrate its bicentennial. The pavilion that houses the bell was built by South Korean craftsmen over a period of ten months. Movie enthusiasts may recognize it as the location of the jewel exchange in the 1995 movie, The Usual Suspects.
If you were a lighthouse keeper you could do worse than the Below Point Fermin Light, which sits on the point just below the Friendship Bell. Built in 1874, it is housed in a beautiful old mansion.
We drove by Redmen’s Hall, a local lodge of The Improved Order of Red Men, a fraternal organization established in North America in 1834. The Order’s rituals and regalia are modeled after those assumed at the time of its formation to be used by Native Americans. Despite the name, the Order was formed solely by, and for, white men. The whites only rule was, in fact, part of the Order’s bylaws until 1974. In 1935, the organization claimed a membership of about half a million people, now it has a little more than 15,000. It’s hard to imagine in these more enlightened times, that it exists at all.
Redondo Beach (redondo is Spanish for round) is a coastal city in Los Angeles County. Although the different cities in LA are nominally distinct, they are really just neighborhoods of the massive sprawling megalopolis. You can’t distinguish when you leave one and enter another. We walked along Redondo Beach and through the adjacent neighborhood and loved its seaside feel. Riviera Village at the south end of the neighborhood is a particularly nice spot to get something to drink or eat and to check out the little boutiques. Fun fact: The official bird of Redondo Beach is the Goodyear Blimp, which you may have seen on TV hovering above sports events. We often see it tied up nearby just off the 405 freeway.
Here are the two cars of the day. The first is a classic VW Beetle, a car that has become synonymous with the California beach scene.
The second may or may not have been making an early start on Halloween.
Newport Beach, just south of Huntington Beach, extends along the Balboa peninsula which is named for the Spanish explorer, Vasco Nunez de Balboa and not the fictional Philadelphia boxer, Rocky Balboa.
The California coastline has been battered recently with some heavy surf and we were hoping to see some surfing at The Wedge, a legendary surf break at the end of the peninsula. We are not sure if it is due to the recent heavy surf, but the beach is now split level , with a lower part by the water and a wider higher part, leading back to the houses that line the beach.
Unfortunately, the wind was blowing onshore so the waves at The Wedge were not good for surfing. Only a few bodysurfers were out.
Around the point, on the harbor side of the peninsula it was much less windy.
We decided to go for a walk through the neighborhood at the end of the peninsula. There was an interesting mix of the original smaller beach homes and larger new and old homes.
Something tells us that these two neighbors may not necessarily see things the same way.
Kaua’i is famous for its long golden beaches sitting and dramatic green hills.
But the most beautiful of all the beaches we came across was this secluded cove just a fifteen minute walk down the hill from our AirBnB.
We thought that seals were cold water animals but they apparently like a tropical vacation as much as the next guy.
This is, in fact, a Hawaiian Monk Seal, one of the rarest seals in the world. They are only found in the Hawaiian islands and there are only around 1600 t0 1700 left alive, although the population has been increasing in recent years after decades of decline. Their Hawaiian name is ilio holo i ka uaua which loosely translates to “dog that runs in rough water.”
Another endangered animal that has been making a comeback is the the nene or Hawaiian goose. Unusually for geese, the nene spend much of their time walking rather than flying or swimming. Their ancestors flew over from North America and finding few predators and lots of suitable land habitat gradually evolved to spend more time walking. A particularly interesting adaptation is that they have less webbing between their toes then their close cousins, Canadian geese, which makes it easier for them to walk. Unlike many of the native birds of New Zealand, the nenes, however, never lost the ability to fly and swim if the need arises.
Although the nene is the Hawaiian state bird, wild chickens could also make a good claim to the title. They are simply put, everywhere. According to our friend, neighbor and local Hawaii expert, Philip, hurricanes, particularly Iwa in 1982 and Iniki in 1992 led to lots of domestic chickens being released into the wild when their coops were destroyed. We guess there is must be some truth to the old “flying the coop” adage. They are particularly prevalent in in Kaua’i where the mongoose that prey on the eggs and chicks on the other islands were never established. It’s not unusual to see a hen being followed around by six or more chicks.
Of course, it wouldn’t be Hawaii without some spectacular sunsets.
It is just a short flight from O’ahu to Kaua’i but the two islands are quite different. Kaua’i is much less developed and is more mountainous and more lush. We started our exploration of the island by driving up to Waimea Canyon, which is sometimes known as the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific”. It may not be as vast and majestic as the actual Grand Canyon but the vibrant greens and reds make it particularly striking.
Our next stop was the historic little town of Hanapepe, whose main claim to fame appears to be that it is the principal inspiration for the town where Lilo and Nani live in the Disney Lilo & Stitch movies.
We stopped by Art and Soul Gallery, where we met owner and watercolorist, Mercedes Maza. Mercedes was born in Colombia, spent here childhood traveling far and wide with her parents, before moving to Kaua’i in 1975. We bought one of her works so she can now add us to her extensive list of illustrious patrons. A list that apparently includes Hillary Rodham Clinton, Lionel Richie and Taj Mahal.
It being afternoon coffee time we decided to head directly to Kaua’i Coffee Company plantation. With about 3,100 acres and four million trees, it is the largest coffee farm in the United States.
After getting sufficiently caffeinated we got back on the road and headed north toward our AirBnB in Princeville. Along the way we took a short detour to check out Wailua Falls.
The rest of our time in Oahu was spent alternating between taking road trips and hanging out at the beach or by the pool. Among other things, we hiked up to Waimea waterfall
And visited Dole pineapple plantation where the girls chose their own pearls straight from the oyster.
And Mal pointed out the way to New Zealand
There was a fun train ride through the pineapple fields
A lot of time was spent at the beach
Followed by Mai Tais at the hotel bar
We quickly became fans of the little roadside shacks where you could buy food, drink and a wide variety of colorful clothing. By the way, if you find yourself in Hawaii and are in the mood for poke, then do what the locals do and head for the nearest Foodland supermarket, which will have an extensive selection of some of the freshest poke on the islands.
No trip to Oahu is complete without a trip to Waikiki and a luau at one of the beachside hotels.
Over the last couple of months we have been sworn to secrecy as our son, Ben, has been organizing a surprise marriage proposal. His girlfriend, Taylor, was already in Hawaii with her family on vacation. The rest of us, surreptitiously, flew in on the day of the proposal. Ben surprised Taylor on the beach with a ring and after she said yes, we all joined them on the beach for a picnic. Here are some photos from a beautiful evening.
Balboa Island is a man-made island in Newport Harbor, connected to the mainland by a bridge and to the Balboa Peninsula by a historic ferry. It was created in the early 1900s when a developer dredged Newport Harbor and used the sand to build up what had been a tidal mudflat. Lots initially sold for as little as $25. Today homes on the island typically range from $3.5 million to $8 million.
The residents of Balboa Island are either slow taking down their Independence Day decorations or are the most patriotic people in America.
These folk even had their own Statue of Liberty
While these settled for red, white and blue penguins.
There were a number of quirky touches, ranging from this old couple sitting on a bench.
To this statue, complete with bible saying
To these lifelike busts, including one, randomly, of Abraham Lincoln.
To this T Rex hiding in the garden.
To this Cadillac golf cart.
But the quirkiest was, undoubtedly, this house stuffed full of teddy bears.
Here are some other photos from our exploration of the island.
Being a jewelry enthusiast, Lauren liked the street names
This was undoubtedly her favorite.
The iconic ferry began operating in 1919 and has been running ever since, taking cars and people on a short three minute ride over to Balboa Peninsula and Newport Beach.
One last quirky fact about Balboa Island, it is the birthplace of the frozen banana. The classic version is a ripe banana cut in half and inserted onto a wooden stick. It is then frozen, dipped in melted chocolate and rolled in toppings such as peanuts, almonds, sprinkles, coconut or crushed cookies. There is some controversy as to who actually first invented this frozen convection and on the main street we saw two shops that claimed to be the first.
Some of you may know about the frozen banana business from the classic comedy Arrested Development that ran in the early 2000s. In the show, the Bluth family owns a frozen banana stand on Balboa Island that is an ongoing gag through the series. We didn’t try the bananas but did have an excellent homemade espresso gelato.
