Rambling with Russ: Santa Barbara and More Southwest

Santa Barbara

July 1998

Tuesday, 7/21:

Son Matt’s having a good time doing music in Santa Barbara, why should he have all the fun? A parental visit sounds good to us. Our very early flight leaves on time before 7am, but rerouting around some thunderstorms makes us late into Chicago. Luckily, connecting flight also delayed, we’re only a little late into LA at 11:15. Pick up our Thrifty car, a Neon, and head to Santa Barbara about 100 miles up the coast. Clouds there, some hazy sun later, about 75°. Weather along the coast usually low clouds & fog in the AM (a “marine layer”), at least some clearing by mid-to-late PM. Plus nice cool temps & fresh breezes. Into the Sandpiper Lodge, outside the city but on the main road, so easy access. No AC when we arrive (tho it hardly seems necessary), but install it by our return on Thursday. A drive thru ritzy Hope Ranch residential area ̶ beautiful homes and landscaping ̶ and along the shore and harbor areas, views of surfers, beach volleyball, other California diversions.

We meet up with Matt at Music Academy of the West, in Montecito, where he’s rehearsing w/ percussion buddies. A walk around the pretty grounds w/ flowers and a giant fig tree (these are common around here), then into Montecito to an Italian restaurant that’s a favorite of Matt’s.

Wednesday, 7/22:

Up early, cloudy & cool. After a nice continental breakfast at the motel, north to Solvang, a Danish-themed village (in California?) that’s a major tour bus destination. We have a “Danish breakfast” of hardroll and, of course, a Danish, then walk around a bit to view flowers, windmills, etc. Have to call Thrifty because our car is having increasing problems shifting (especially into drive and reverse!). Directed to a franchise in San Luis Obispo (on our way) to have it checked; they discover we’re almost out of transmission fluid because of a leak, give us another Neon.

After Solvang a drive through Lompoc, flower fields used for seed companies. Only a few in bloom, but this is supposed to be spectacular in June. It’s a very agricultural area, workers harvesting in a lot of places. We also pass an “oystrich” ranch (OK , so I misspoke ̶ seafood on my mind ̶ but do you think Marjorie could just let it pass?). After switching cars in San Luis Obispo, a “California lunch” of sandwich w/ guacamole and sprouts, then strolling a bit, seeing the pretty mission in the center of town.

On to Morro Bay and Ascot Inn; a nice room good views of the harbor and Morro Rock, a massive volcanic outcropping in the middle of the bay. We like the town, uncrowded and laid-back. A walk around the Embarcadero, then excellent seafood dinner at Dorn’s overlooking the bay. After-dinner drive out to the Rock (now connected to the mainland): surfers, pretty flowers, lots of birds (this whole area is a bird sanctuary). Tho we had a little sun at San Luis Obispo, it’s remained cloudy here. But the horizon is brighter, a scenic view of the setting sun in the distance along the coast.

Thursday, 7/23:

Breakfast at Kitty’s Kitchen, a nice little place in town suggested by the couple next to us at the motel. Then 30 miles up to San Simeon and Hearst Castle. We arrive earlier than our tour reservations, able to take an earlier one (lasting about 2 hours).

Very interesting and beautiful tour, in a swirling fog, of grounds & gardens, guest house, spectacular pools, first floor of the main house (w/ wonderful artwork & furnishings). Since we’re ahead of schedule, Marjorie takes a 2^nd tour that includes the kitchen (now, why would she want to see that?) and second floor.

I head about 15 miles further up the coast, beautiful vistas and a beach (access involves climbing over a locked gate, but everyone was doing it) with at least 50 elephant seals, more in the water. You could walk right up to them, tho the size and growls of the bulls made it clear that this would not be sensible. But it’s fascinating to be so close to them.

After another California lunch at Cambria, a nearby artist colony, 130 miles back to Santa Barbara. We pick up Matt at the Music Academy and drive around in the hills above Montecito, including a stop at San Ysidro Ranch, a retreat for the rich w/ lovely grounds & “cottages” (this was where John and Jackie Kennedy had their honeymoon). Incredible estates all through these hills. We also encounter a place where a stream runs right across the road ̶ must be a problem when there’s much rain. Then to dinner at the beautiful home of Matt’s “host” family. All “students” (who range in age from 16 to 30+) at the Music Academy have sponsors. Matt’s sponsors (for his fellowship, which paid all expenses plus a nice bit extra) were unavailable, Mary & Doug stepped in. Doug’s in London on business, so it was Mary & 5-year-old John, a real cutie who greets us at the door, helps serve, draws a picture for us. Mary invited some friends to join us, including John & Georgia, whose daughter has the apartment across the hall from Matt in NYC ̶ small world! These are really rich folks, also very hospitable folks. Matt says they’re nicer than the rich in NY. After dinner we drive Matt back to Cate School, a private school in Carpenteria where he stays in a dorm. Luckily a friend comes just in time to open the locked gate so we can get in.

Friday, 7/24:

Cloudy & cool AM again. The ground is wet, so there was rain or maybe accumulation from the misty fog. No rain here in the last couple of months, which is normal, but El Nino had dumped 36” earlier in the year (about triple the normal). A walk around downtown Santa Barbara, quickly learning pedestrians have the right of way (and are given it!), tho Matt says there are hefty fines for jaywalking. A beautiful city: pretty shopping areas, lots of flowers everywhere, old adobes.

We especially like the Spanish-style County Courthouse, with nice views of the area from a tower. Not much activity in the downtown until about 10:30. Pick up Matt between rehearsals for lunch at Natural Cafe.

We meet with Erin, manager of the restaurant and daughter of our friends Vern & Hannah in Pasadena. More wandering in the city after lunch.

Then out to Mission Santa Barbara, a lovely complex with rose gardens in a park opposite the main church. A family burial plot includes a woman who was born in Ballston Spa (near Albany). Back to the Sandpiper, we encounter a group in town for a corporate track meet this weekend.

Beautiful sun starting at about 4:30, out to Stearns Wharf to beat the crowds for dinner. Good seafood at Moby Dick, apparently a favorite of Frank Sinatra. Excellent views from the wharf of the city & mountains beyond. People fishing, many pelicans hanging around for handouts ̶ what clumsy birds they are on land!

Up to the Music Academy for a “picnic concert.” Our friends Katrina and Yin arrive just in time from LA, we’re able to sell our extra ticket to a women who is so excited to learn our son is performing. These Friday concerts feature small ensembles, the music is wonderful: an achingly beautiful cello/piano piece by Bruck, a 17-year-old (!) soprano w/ an incredible voice accompanied by clarinet & piano in a piece by Schubert. The percussionists, of course, bring down the house with two very clever pieces that include some “comedic” segments. Much cheering & whistling from the audience. After the concert, Katrina and Yin find a room at the motel next to ours, we join them for a late dinner (for them) and dessert (for us).

Saturday, 7/25:

Cloudy & cool morning (what else!). To a farmer’s market downtown with Katrina & Yin. Marjorie says it’s the best she’s seen, lots of wonderful fruits (peaches, berries, etc.). We pick up some sprouts & stuff for Sunday dinner in Manhattan Beach.

We meet Matt after his orchestra rehearsal, walk around with another swing through the market, then after lunch head up to Cate School. Beautiful views & grounds, avocados & oranges growing in the surrounding area. More sun today beginning about noon, best weather so far, nice views of the mountains.

Back to the motel to relax a bit before going to the Botanical Gardens up in the hills. This displays a variety of California vegetation, including desert-like areas, a canyon, redwoods. Nice, but not really the kinds of flowers we were looking for. Back into Santa Barbara to Alice Keck Park, which is just perfect: tranquil and uncrowded w/ many flowers, palm trees, a pond w/ impressive water lilies, lots of turtles, a variety of big colorful koi fish. Dinner outside (w/ guitar accompaniment) at Old Towne Cafe in a courtyard in El Paseo (an older shopping area in the heart of downtown).

A short walk to Matt’s orchestra concert in Lobrero Theater. Matt is disappointed by a somewhat mixed audience reaction to a contemporary piece, which we enjoy, in part because it features some good percussion. We fail to find Matt after the concert because of some mixed signals, but enjoy dessert at an outdoor cafe on the main street. Santa Barbara is really hoppin’ on a Saturday night. It’s also very easy to get in & out of the city, and very tourist-friendly for parking ̶ we parked in two places in the heart of downtown for about 4 hours for only $1!

Sunday, 7/26:

Cloudy AM, but sunny by 10:30. To Mass at the Mission, the oldest continuous parish church among the missions out here. The church is filled, congregation and priest are very spirited singers. We pick up Matt for breakfast at a nearby IHOP.

Then back toward LA, this time taking along the coast highway (Rt. 1), slower but more scenic, especially around Malibu w/ houses up on the cliffs. We continue to Manhattan Beach to stay w/ at Katrina & Yin’s condo (with beach view!). They’re selling this one to move to another nearby ̶ they fix these places up as an investment, which looks like quite a job. Down to the beach. While Katrina bobs in the surf w/ her boogie-board, we stroll along the edge of the water watching surfers & shorebirds. I feet my California experience is complete after two young men walk by carrying surf boards and refer to some “dudes” they’d been talking to (Marjorie suggests maybe they were talking about the “old dude,” meaning me). This is a nice area, much less crowded than other beaches we drove past on our way down the coast. People walking, biking, rollerblading along paths lined w/ flowers.

Katrina & Yin fix a Cantonese-style dinner that includes lobster and a deep-sea fish from Mexico. Marjorie thinks of this as a private cooking class, but she contributes a peach cobbler, while I’m the appreciative diner. Best meal of the week!

Monday, 7/27:

Bright sunny AM, still cool but it’s going to get hotter today. I walk down to the beach before breakfast, enjoying another look at the flowers all around. We drive down to the pier and watched surfers for a while, then a short drive to the car rental place and shuttle to the airport. Our flights back are uneventful, tho our pilot informs us over Kansas that we’re “in the same airspace with Air Force One” (the Pres is returning from something in New Mexico). Arrive in Albany a little before midnight.

A great trip! Lots of walking, as shown by tan lines from my sandals. We had been disappointed that Matt wasn’t going to be at Tanglewood again this summer, but sure happy to visit him in Santa Barbara. We hope his music will continue to take him to places his parents would like to go. Of course, we didn’t have time to experience everything. Lots of famous people live in and visit Santa Barbara ̶ Matt’s seen “Elaine” from Seinfeld (she’s a regular at piano master classes at the Academy), Dennis Franz from NYPD Blue, Jonathan Winters, and others ̶ but we didn’t see any notables (tho we heard Christopher Lloyd was at the orchestra concert). We also didn’t meet Mitchell Peters, timpanist for the LA Philharmonic and Matt’s mentor out here. Matt really likes him, but he wasn’t able to get here for the concerts this weekend. No whalewatching, tho apparently it’s better than usual now for sighting humpback and blue whales. And we heard on the news there was an earthquake in the Santa Barbara area on Friday ̶ a small one (2.3 magnitude) that we never felt. Oh well, maybe we’ll do some of these things another time.

Other Southwestern Travels

California (1972):

This is our “second honeymoon” (after the excitement of the Ramada Inn in Milwaukee! ̶ shoehorned into the semester schedule on a grad student’s budget). We start in LA: Knotts Berry Farm, Universal Studios, Disneyland.

A drive north to Sequoia NP & Yosemite (staying in the park lodge)

and make a new friend.

To San Francisco and down the coast to Monterey Peninsula (including Lone Cyprus Pt), along the coast road to Nepenthe’s on Big Sur.

In SF we take obligatory cable car rides, visit The Cannery at Fisherman’s Wharf, views of the city & bay from Coit Tower, crooked Lombard St, a ferry ride to Sausolito. [Conferences have also taken me to San Francisco a couple of times, as well as San Diego.]

And there have been other travels to San Fransisco for conferences & added to other trips (e.g., Hawaii).

San Diego (1976):

A visit w/ Marjorie’s sister Mary & hubbie Jeff in La Jolla (Jeff’s at Scripps Institute),

w/ our little 1-year-old Matthew and their not quite so little Annie.

Pretty details walking around near where they live,

in La Jolla

and around Old San Diego and Balboa Park.

Time on the beach

and pretty sunsets

Views in the harbor

Out to Pt. Loma.

Some hiking around Torrey Pines Reserve w/ pretty views from cliffs overlooking the beach; I also play some golf w/ Jeff on the famous course here, much nicer than I’m used to.

Impressive San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park outside of the city.

Another jaunt takes us to Coronado and a fancy hotel, a walk along the beach.

Along the coast for "Organ Power Pizza."

We also stop into beautiful Mission San Diego.

And a trip to Disneyland.

Arizona (1987):

A spring visit to stay w/ Marjorie’s HS classmate Keno & family (son & daughter a little older than our Matt) in Mesa. Pretty hikes in Superstition Mts, Apache Trail, Usery Mt, w/ flowering cacti. A visit to their houseboat on a lake surrounded by colored cliffs.

We rent a car to head north to Montezuma Castle, Oak Creek Canyon, and Sedona area w/ red cliffs and rock outcroppings.

Overnight at the Grand Canyon rim: pretty sunset/moonrise and then sunrise.

We watch the mule trip descend into the canyon before driving along the rim, panoramic views thruout.

Still some snow along the rim. Wupatki Natl Mon (Indian ruins), Indians selling crafts, Sunset Crater Natl Mon.

Then south toward Tucson, Mission San Xavier del Bac, to Green Valley to visit Fritzi & Jim Lyons (Fritzi was Marjorie’s boss and friend at the Madison Y). After swimming in their pool we learn how quickly you dry off in the dry air – brrrr!

A brief visit across the border into Nogales, Mexico; Marjorie bargains for a blanket.

Other stops at Tumacacori Natl Mon (old mission church)

Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum with local plants

and animals

We look around Phoenix a bit: a pretty capitol

and Heard Museum.

Easter sunrise service at pretty Pagago Buttes.

Texas & Los Angeles (1987): Christmas & New Year's

My brother Doug is now stationed w/ Dow in Lake Jackson TX, so we have a warm Christmas w/ the my Mom & stepfather Bill. Visits to LBJ Space Center (with Santa!)

and Galveston, w/ pretty homes, downtown, and harbor area.

and a pretty sunset

Then on to LA for New Year’s. Gerontologist friend Vern arranged a hotel for us until their houseguests leave after New Year’s. First up to Griffith Observatory for a panoramic view of LA.

Then visits to Universal Studios,

Mann’s Chinese Theater,

LaBrea Museum,

and Beverly Hills.

But the piece de resistance is the Rose Parade. The night before we walk thru the floats still being constructed near the Rose Bowl.

Early next AM we drive to the Vern & Hannah’s in Pasadena, maneuvering our way around road blockages. Then we can walk to the parade route.

Marjorie goes w/ them to their church w/ bleachers for good viewing. I opt to wander along the parade route for good photo angles. Spectacular colors, bands, horses, etc. – something we’d always watched as children but never expected to see in person.

Vern, Hannah and their girls head off afterward to the Rose Bowl game.

Next day we get close-up post-parade viewing of the floats at Cal Poly.

Vern then gives us a fascinating tour of Forest Lawn cemetery, something he features in one of his classes.

Also a visit to Huntington Library and Gardens. [And we learn while in LA that we got an offer on our house (our new house is under construction).]

More Texas: