October 14, 2025 Whenever we visit Palm Springs we like to go for a short hike in Palm Canyon. It is one of number of canyons just outside of town, collectively called the Indian Canyons. Palm Canyon is the largest oasis of California Palm Fans in the world and it really is a magical place.Continue reading “Palm Canyon, California, USA”
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Pioneertown, California, USA
October 13, 2025 Heading to Palm Springs for a couple of days with Lauren’s sister Marion and her husband Jeff, we decided to visit Pioneertown along the way. The town was started by Actor, Dick Curtis, in 1946 as an 1880s themed live-in motion-picture set. Hundreds of Westerns and early television shows have been filmedContinue reading “Pioneertown, California, USA”
Rancho Los Alamitos, Long Beach, California, USA
October 10, 2025 A few weeks ago we visited Rancho Los Cerritos, which is near to our house. Also nearby is Rancho Los Alamitos, one of the other five ranchos formed when the Rancho Los Nieto, which had been awarded to Manuel Nieto in 1784, was split among his heirs after his death. So weContinue reading “Rancho Los Alamitos, Long Beach, California, USA”
Bixby Knolls, Long Beach, California, USA
October 6, 2025 In the early 1940s, Long Beach experienced a surge in defense-related employment, notably with the establishment of the Douglas Aircraft Company at Long Beach Municipal Airport in 1940. This facility became a key production center for military aircraft during World War II. The influx of workers necessitated the development of new housingContinue reading “Bixby Knolls, Long Beach, California, USA”
Solvang / Cold Spring Tavern, California, USA
September 27, 2025 Out in the middle of California is a little bit of Denmark. Between 1865 and 1914, 300,000 Danes immigrated to the United States. Three of those Danes acquired almost 9,000 acres near Santa Barbara and in 1911 they established Solvang (Danish for sunny field). The developers brought in Danish settlers from asContinue reading “Solvang / Cold Spring Tavern, California, USA”
San Luis Obispo, California, USA
September 26, 2015 San Luis Obispo (often known simply as SLO) is a city of about 50,000 and is the home of California Polytechnic State University. It is named after San Luis, Obispo de Talosa (Saint Louis, bishop of Toulouse). Louis (1274-1297) was the second son of King Charles II of Naples, but having beenContinue reading “San Luis Obispo, California, USA”
Central Coast, California, USA
September 25, 2025 After the Spanish style buildings of Santa Barbara, Cambria was decidedly western. In fact, it reminded us quite a lot of Winter Park, the small ski town where we met in Colorado. Our original intent had been to follow the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) all the way up to Carmel, but itContinue reading “Central Coast, California, USA”
Santa Barbara, California, USA
September 24, 2025 Santa Barbara was our first stop on our trip north along the California coast. It is a very pretty city. We started our exploration by walking along the palm lined beach. And then out onto Stearns Wharf. It was originally built in 1872 but facing a number of disasters, including an earthquakeContinue reading “Santa Barbara, California, USA”
California Heights, Long Beach, California, USA
September 22, 2025 Our friend Nick is visiting, so we decided to take him on a walk through the neighborhood where we live. California Heights is Long Beach’s largest historic neighborhood with nearly 1,500 homes built in the 1920s and 1930s, predominantly in Spanish Colonial Revival style. Here is a sampling of some of theContinue reading “California Heights, Long Beach, California, USA”
Seal Beach, California, USA
September 19, 2025 Seal Beach is in Orange County just south of Long Beach. It is a charming town with one of the widest beaches we have ever seen. So wide that the ships lined up offshore, waiting to get into the Port of Long Beach, appeared to be sitting on the sand. The beachContinue reading “Seal Beach, California, USA”
Mal and Lauren 