Our intrepid traveller bids farewell to LA
Time-jumping a little, after our trip to Yosemite mum and I spent a night in a cute, sleepy seaside town called Cayucos, in the kitsch Seaside Motel. Run by a couple Rick (a leathery old surfer) and Rebecca (super friendly old gardening lady whose voice sounds like she smokes 40-a-day), each room has been painstakingly decorated to a different theme by Rebecca's artistic hand. Our room had a huge tree rising up one corner, with painted shelves containing plant pots and gardening tools. Too cute. We only stayed one night but I'd have loved to have had more time in this lovely town.
Rebecca's garden
'Shelves'
Live entertainment
Next up was the fabulous Hearst Castle, or La Cuesta Encantada. The dream home of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst this was far and away the most incredible building I've ever seen. Twenty-eight years in the making, it is the result of Hearst's visionary brilliance and the tenacity and innovation of his architect Julia Morgan, and was hugely influenced by an extended childhood trip to Europe with his mother. Filled with ancient art pieces, contemporary commissions, centuries-old ceilings from Italy and the Middle East, vintage Tiffany vases: you name it, it's there. Despite its lavish opulence and astronomical expense, I couldn't help but love this place, as it showed such a passion for art, architecture and artisans. The nearby village was only born because of the full time workers employed for almost 30 years to build the castle, and of course the tales of Hearst's parties once it was finished are delicious gossip in themselves. Charlie Chaplin, Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, Carol Lombard and Jimmy Stewart were among his notable guests.
The magnificent dining room
Beautiful tiles
Hearst and his architect
The front of the main building
It's all in the details
Tiles
Stairs
Sculpture
Pool #1
Pool #2
Built on an immense scale, the main building alone (Casa Grande) has 59 bedrooms and 61 bathrooms. Guests stayed in one of the several guest houses but all came to dine together in the lavish main dining room, on the insistence of Hearst, who was clearly a sociable creature who loved bringing people together. It was also home to the world's largest private zoo, although Hearst had to sell off the zoo and donate animals to public zoos in the 30s when he came into financial difficulty. Some of the zebras escaped and their ancestors still live in these Californian hills, hanging out with the cattle. Imagine our surprise when we saw some grazing at the side of the road on our way south!
Our next stop was Carpinteria, a small town just outside Santa Barbara. My aunt on my father's side, Topaz (or Janet, as she's known in the UK) lives here. I last saw her in 1999 when I stopped off on my way home to the UK from a trip to Japan -- 15 years ago! The three of us enjoyed a delicious brunch prepared by Topaz and a massive walk on butterfly beach in Montesito, catching up after all this time. Topaz also showed us the thrills of California thrift store shopping, where I stocked up on travel-friendly silk tops, a 100% cashmere jumper and a much-needed new jacket, for $3 each. Bargain. We also met up for a Mexican dinner at Yolanda's. California used to be part of Mexico and the influence is still very much felt today.
Zebras!
Mum getting close to nature
Herro!
Baby seals from the Carpinteria bluffs
The road to nowhere
With ma on the bluffs
Topaz on the tracks
Ma and flowers
With Topaz at Yolanda's
With ma at Yolanda's
Topaz singing
A neighbour leaves out tangerines every day
Fruit
House in the hills
Mailboxes in the hills
Continuing my quest for good coffee
Packing my backpack
I've already blogged about my birthday weekend in Las Vegas, but some other things I didn't mention about that section of the trip include the fabulous 1950s diner we stopped at on our long desert road-trip out there, Peggy Sue's, where mum had the best chocolate milkshake this side of the Damn Yankee and I enjoyed biscuits and gravy. The trip out to Vegas from LA was well worth enduring the thirst and the heat of the desert, for the magnificent ever-changing scenery and to marvel at the madness of a town built in the middle of nowhere. On the way back we visited a ghost town, once-thriving during the gold rush but now reduced to an eerie empty place. Apparently there are many such towns all over the US.
The road to Vegas
Giant solar farm...
Pepsi ad
New York rollercoaster wot I went on
Out in Fremont, the original Vegas
Elvis!
Rollercoaster ride: before
The joy of uncontrollable screaming
Gals in Vegas
The final leg of our Californian trip was LA. The least-researched part of our trip, we spent most of the time sitting in traffic and marvelling at the locals' complete lack of adherence to road rules -- unlike any other place we'd been! We drove around some of the most amzing parts of LA: Mulholland Drive, Laurel Canyon and along the streets of Beverly Hills to oggle at the mansions. Mum really loved Venice Beach and we stopped off in Paradise Cove in Malibu. All too soon our mother-daughter road trip was at an end. I've loved having this opportunity to hang out with mum and discover a wonderful part of the world together. I farewelled her at LAX knowing that I'll see her again in only 6 months time in Corfu! So fab to share these experiences.
Peggy Sue's diner
Hitchin' a ride
Word
Calico ghost town
View of the desrt from Calico hill
Hillside house
Calico school building
Sunset on the road
Nighttime on Pearblossom Highway
Hollywoodland
Beverley Hills
After mum left I had a few more days in LA, so met up with some filmmaker friends of mine who live in lovely Los Feliz, Suzanne who is a costume designer I met back in my NFT days and her husband Rudolph who is a film director. They were wonderful hosts and we enjoyed some interesting conversations together about the film industries in the USA, UK and Australia, as well as debating the inspirational nature of travel and the importance of taking great leaps into the unknown. It was a novelty to be in Hollywood while the Oscars were on, but after the fun of watching the red carpet we got bored and watched a movie instead: You, The Living. On a Scandinavian roll, we also watched Flame and Citron, a beautifully-shot femme fatale story set in Nazi-occupied Denmark, starring the ever-fabulous Mads Mikkelsen. Suzanne enjoyed giving me the local eye view of LA, which certainly endeared me more to the city than the tourists' eye view, and I enjoyed film pilgrimages to the Griffith Observatory (Rebel Without a Cause) and the Bradbury Building (Bladerunner).
Coffee in Laurel Canyon, darling
Griffith observatory
Observatory
Inside the Bradbury building
Bradbury building
Hangin' with Charlie
LA was also where I had my first pretty wholeheartedly negative travel experience, I'm sure the first of many such things, which feel awful at the time but which make for a good story later on. Look away now if you're squeamish, but I did promise to write this travel blog warts and all! I stayed in a $25-a-night hostel in West Hollywood, being frugal but wanting to be central too. It immediately didn't have the same lovely vibe as the one I stayed in in San Francisco, but I persevered. Unfortunately there were no more female dorm rooms so I had to go in a dorm with five guys, and when I arrived there were only top bunks available. Imagine my disgust when I woke up in the middle of the night to feel the whole bed moving rythmically from the guy going at it solo on the bunk underneath me. Unable to do anything I stuck my earplugs in and endured it, horrified, until he finished. The next day Suzanne rescued me after I told her the tale, and I stayed at hers for the rest of the trip. That'll teach me to book ahead in future and get a female dorm!
Despite this, I did enjoy LA, although I think it's a tough nut to crack and it's much better when you're being guided by a local. Suzanne's tips, as well as those from my friend Caitlin who used to live here, made me enjoy the city, but I think I need to spend much more time in this city to scratch beneath its fake, showy exterior and find its true heart. The Getty was a fun trip and I did go to some cool bars and cafes, and my favourite thing of all was the massive hike I took in Runyon Canyon Park and its rewarding views of the city. If you're not 'someone', or someone who wants to be 'someone', it must be tough sometimes to maintain a sense of authenticity and wholeheartedness in this town without feeling disillusioned. It's heartening to meet people who are succeeding in this and it gives me hope that I might be able to also achieve it. Another city I've added to my 'to live in' list.
Hollywood sign
Downtown mural
Hollywood's biggest night
View from Runyon Canyon
View from Runyon Canyon
Downtown from the canyon
So, I'm 5 states down out of 50. One tenth of my way around the US. Next stop: Texas.
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