Mal and Lauren

September 27, 2026

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.

September 23, 2026

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.

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.

September 15, 2026

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.

September 8, 2026

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.

August 7-8, 2026

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.

August 6, 2026

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.

July 31 – August 4

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.

July 30, 2026

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.

July 23, 2026

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.

July 9, 2026

After our tour of the Walt Disney Concert Hall, we walked next door with Kylie and Oli to visit one of LA’s other architectural gems. Designed by the acclaimed firm Diller Scofidio + Renfro with Gensler, the Broad art museum is covered in a white honeycomb-like exterior that filters natural daylight. The interior atrium, by contrast, is rather cave-like.

The museum opened in 2015 and such was its popularity that for years it was impossible to get in without lining up for hours. Even now it is very popular. At the moment there is an ongoing exhibition of Yoko Ono’s art, entitled Music of the Mind.

Like much of Yoko Ono’s work, many of the pieces were interactive and came with instructions. This one was pretty self-evident.

Here are some of the others.

This installation, called Bag Piece invites viewers to interact with the black sheets. Lauren performed a dance.

Here viewers were invited to draw an outline of their shadow on the canvas in a work aptly called Shadow Piece.

This piece called Painting to Hammer a Nail shed visitors to nail something onto the canvas. Kylie added a photo of Oli.

Oli’s visit was also memorialized in this installation called Add Color (Refugee Boat). At the start of the exhibition, the room and boat were completely white. Visitors are given blue markers and asked to white or draw anywhere in the room. It gives some idea of how many people have visited the exhibit so far.

This piece, entitled My Mommy is Beautiful asks viewers attach photos, note and objects relating to their mother.

Some mothers were apparently more successful than others.

The permanent collection features some of America’s most important contemporary artists, including Jeff Koons, whose Balloon Dog (Blue) was an inspiration for one of Kylie’s tattoos.

Other artists included Andy Warhol

Roy Lichtenstein

Jean-Michel Basquiat

Cindy Sherman

Jasper Johns

Kara Walker

Barbara Kruger

And Kehinde Wiley

And no exhibit would be complete without a giant table and chairs, courtesy of Robert Therrien.

The Yoko One exhibit continued alongside the museum. This is the latest rendition of one of Ono’s most popular artworks, where visitors are invited to write a wish on a small paper tag and tie it to a branch of the tree. After the exhibit closes, the wishes are sent to Ono to become part of here ongoing Imagine Peace project. Millions of wishes from around the world have been gathered over the years and archived.

We don’t think this puddle was part of the Yoko Ono exhibit but it could have been. We can imagine Ono giving instructions along the lines of “make indention in the pavement so that when it rains the resulting puddle forms a heart.“