Yes, a new season started yesterday and, appropriately, Boston did not get its predicted snow today. I was at the radio as usual this morning, and News Director Caitlin Kenney and I managed to crank out eight updates with just two people rather than the usual four, as the other two were sick.
As promised, I'll tell the story of the rest of the California trip over Spring Break.
After leaving San Simeon, Carnegie and I drove the Dodge Neon through a much more populated area to the south, which included the city of Santa Barbara, home to the ongoing Michael Jackson child molestation trial. We did not see the Jackson cavalcade but caught plenty of it on television and in the newspapers throughout the week.
It turned out my dad, who helped us plan the trip, scheduled us for one less day than he'd intended. Hence, when I called my parents and told them we were almost in Los Angeles, he was surprised. We didn't have the Best Western hotel in Santa Monica Beach in LA reserved until Thursday night, so we stayed in a Holiday Inn and got a late-night meal along the pier. I'll probably edit this entry later with details of the food, because I know that's important.
On Thursday, our goal was to make the most of our one full day in LA. We decided to venture up to Hollywood after checking out of the hotel, and one of the highlights was visiting Grauman's Chinese Theatre, where you can put your hands and feet in the prints of famous movie stars. Carnegie got hers in Marilyn Monroe's prints, and I put my appendages in Gregory Peck's. We had a late lunch and walked in front of the Kodak Theatre, home to the Oscars.
That night, Carnegie and I checked into the Best Western and walked down to the beach before eating. We took a ferris wheel ride and snapped some photos along the beach. The venue we chose for eating was really quite a place. I had delicious pasta with bolognaise sauce and my first Pinot Noir of the trip. Most of the way through the meal, a man sitting next to us answered a question that one of us was asking the other. We then proceeded to start talking to him and the lady he was with. A few minutes later, we learned they were both actors--Cyndi Marinangel from "Coyote Ugly" and Michael Merrins, who played an Alcatraz guard in "Murder in the First," with star Kevin Bacon. That certainly made up for the stars we didn't see in Hollywood, and they were excellent conversationalists. I'll certainly be keeping my eyes and ears on them when I watch their movies.
Speaking of acting, Carnegie and I were inspired to see the three-hour film "The Aviator," about pilot and filmmaker Howard Hughes, and I was quite impressed with both the acting talent and the quality of the film. It was a "piece of work."
On our final day in LA, we went to the Beverly Hills Hotel and had a light lunch after checking out of the hotel. That place was luxurious, no doubt about it. The weather, as it had been all week, was warm and full of sunshine, perfect for walking around the area.
We didn't stay too long because we wanted to meet my friend Alicia Yaffe from college in Culver City, a section of LA. She was heading to San Diego later that day. Even though we gave ourselves time, the traffic was busy and we made it a few minutes late. It was great to see Alicia, though, who I've known for about four years now. She's working for a company that organizes concerts and often travels with a band called Bourne, whose music I'm meaning to sample. We went to a pleasant cafe with her and caught up on old and new times before she had to get back to work.
Airport time, there were no people or significant places we had time to visit, so Carnegie and I fed ourselves in the LAX Airport and had our final bonding moments of the trip before I left for my gate.
And so friends, family, and visitors, went my Spring Break of 2005.
I'll be back with tales of Boston next time. For now, goodbye.
