Today was another example of how close nature is to the city. The coyote was watching us quietly while we played with our two year old grandson. I have have owls and hawks swoop down in front of me in Hollywood.
Venice Beach is both exhilarating and disturbing. On one side the real estate is more expensive than Santa Monica and they look at the homeless from their windows. It is without a doubt people watching paradise.
The morning was a wonderful concert for children at the Hollywood Bowl. Then off for more exploration of Los Angeles. Ennis house, a Frank Lloyd Wright design that is undergoing a 5 year facelift. The blocks used for the construction were made of soft material and has been repaired several times already.
Richard Neutra, was chosen by John Nicholas Brown to build a house (called Windshield) on Fisher’s Island. The house shown is in silver lake.
The Los Angeles Conservancy officially launched their new web site this evening. Click: HERE to view it. The Conservancy has done a marvelous job of conceiving and building this site which is expandable and offers many ways to search for places of interest.
The Adamson House in Malibu a real treasure. The tiles are naturally a topic, because the tiles were manufactured by Malibu Pottery existing only from 1926-1932.
The State of California took the property by eminent domain and was going to destroy the house to create a parking lot for surfers. It was through the efforts of preservationists that the house stands today.
No visit is complete to Santa Monica without walking the Third Street Promenade. Every walk of life is there. Don’t forget that Whitey Bulger was hiding in plain sight there for 15 years.
I have been waiting several years to see the Mission Inn, in Riverside California. It was a bit trying and I will tell you why. We arrived at the museum shortly after 11 am. A tour was scheduled for 11. we were the only people there for the tour and being a few minutes late meant we had to wait for the next tour; at 2pm. At 10 minutes before two in the afternoon, we arrived back at the appointed location, still the only people interested to take the tour. Which started at 2pm. not a minute sooner.
It slowed our progress a little as I had mapped another ambitious day. After a brief stop at the Swaminarayan Mindar, an extraordinary structure, nestled between the highway and a shopping center. Then continuing to Artesia, Ca.
Today we visited another two of the 21 missions on the camino real in california; San Luis de Francia and San Juan de Capistrano. Both have been extensively restored and probably bear little resemblance to their original splendor. The swallows have not returned to the mission capistrano in some time. So the annual festival continues without the guests of honor.
My favorite continues to be San Miguel, which is as close to original as possible. Still and all I am glad to have seen them.
