When I left the van at the shop they said it would be a couple days before they got the new axle, but a week later they were still waiting. I had friends from the Alaska cruise to meet in Laguna Beach, and had secured campsites, had my plans all worked out, but it all had to be jettisoned. Thankfully my new friend Suzi offered to not only pick me up and take me to the van to pack, but also drive me to San Diego. Let me back up a bit. After the first cruise with Uncruise Adventures, I booked another one; “In the Wake of Steinbeck”, a ten day cruise over Christmas in the Sea of Cortez off Baja Peninsula. It follows Steinbeck's expedition during WWII and also happens to be when humpback whales are mating, manatees, stingrays and all kinds of wildlife are abundant. The timing fit my itinerary coming down the west coast, so I thought, why not?! But I thought I'd be back with the van in a few days, so I only packed a couple changes of clothes.
Tessa celebrated her 70th birthday on Saturday, so i wanted to make sure I was there for that, and I reconnected one day with Alison and Parke as well. All this meant I was in LA for most of a week. I had time to be a bonafide tourist. I kept my rhythm of hiking every day, but now I was hiking in a city that favors cars over pedestrians. Suddenly I was passing tent camps for LA's unhoused, chain-link fences keeping people from camping under bridges, piles of litter, several people speaking angrily to no one, as well as gleaming skyscrapers for big-name banks. The contrast coming from the silent Redwoods, the California coast and the desert was jarring.
I hiked up to Griffith Observatory, took buses to the Grammy Museum, followed advice to see Disney Concert Hall, and happened upon an LA Opera production of La Bohéme, so I went! I had an hour for dinner so I ask the ticket person for a recommendation. Her exact words: “Around the corner is Au Lac restaurant. The Chef has taken a vow of silence. He only speaks through his food.” Having eaten, I shall translate; “I am fresh; I nourish and satisfy”.
Tessa has a grand piano. Every day I gravitated to it and composed spontaneous pieces. However, my classical repertoire has atrophied like never before; pieces I've played since college are no longer fully accessible to my fingers. I played for the cocktail hour at the party, which is my happy place.
Suzi had the brilliant idea that if I made it to Seal Beach first, we could take the carpool lane back to the van. Everything in LA seems to revolve around highway strategy. I'd like to say I was proud of my resourcefulness figuring out mass transit, but Google makes it too simple. Alison reminded me about the Monuments exhibit at MOCA, and it was right on the way. The first thing I saw after I checked my bag was the base of the Robert E Lee statue from my hometown of Richmond, VA, decorated with the vibrant, spray-paint resistance sentiments following the murder of George Floyd. I felt proud. And sad. The whole exhibit pointed to the reality of our country's original sin of slavery, segregation and its itinerant racism. I left the museum, and wandered right into another exhibit about the internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII. I felt the two exhibits should have been paired together.
Still lost in reverie about our country's storied past, I hopped on the train towards Seal Beach. Twenty minutes later I suddenly realized I had left my suitcase at the museum and had to backtrack. Back on the train, I went through Watts and Compton, more places that reminded me of institutional racism. Suzi picked me up, we had a delightful dinner, she crashed early after having hosted grandkids for a week, and I watched “Everybody's Fine” with Robert DeNiro. The description pulled me in; Retired widower wants to get his children together, but when they all cancel he decides to go cross country to visit them.
I almost forgot my passport when we got to the van. Sometimes it's hard being me.
Suzi dropped me in San DIego. Instead of a campsite, I'm in a sad little hotel, but I gamely went out on the town and saw dueling pianos at Shout House. Not sure what I expected, but the bar scene singalong wasn't it.
Tomorrow at 5AM I'm taking an Über to the border, walking across the pedestrian bridge into Mexico, flying from Tijuana to San Jose del Cabo, taking a shuttle bus to La Paz, and getting on the boat. I anticipate zero service for the next ten days, so I wanted to drop this update tonight. Happy Holidays, everyone!