Cali - August 8-11, 2014

Cali Trip

 8-7 to 8-11-14



Hoover Dam

This has been our first Mother-Daughter trip in many years and what better destination than to see what Jason has been up to in far off Redondo Beach, CA.  It has been several years since we’ve both seen him so off we went in the big jet plane.  Jenni was busy squeezing my hand in terror of flying as we traversed the breadth of this great country.  We finally got a glimpse of the incredible topography below us including the Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon, after convincing the guy hogging the window seat to share the view! 

Jason picked us up at LAX and off we went to do a little grocery shopping before seeing where he lives.  The weather is absolutely perfect.  No humidity and no bugs.  Jenni has fallen in love with the succulent plants that are the predominant feature of every Cali garden.

large canvas painting created by Jason

 

Jason lives in a cozy little bungalow.  Look, there’s Jake, “Hey ole boy”.  Gracing the main wall of the living room is a large canvas of Jason’s creation and flanked by a few surfboards.  Very cool.  We shared some lovely meals out back under the olive tree.  Jason turned me on to red zinfandel.  One brand stands out, Old Zin Vines.  

Venice Beach reminds me a lot of Daytona Beach boardwalk but in a larger scale, hosting a transient group of people in a flea market kind of atmosphere.  We passed hundreds of vendors and shops as we made our way along the beach.  Flocks of people stopped to watch a group of break dancers warm up in anticipation of their show.  We stayed and watched for quite a while. It was fun.

Nice photo of Jason and Jenni taken at Gjelina.

 

Venice Beach graffiti

heirloom tomato salad

Fine dining at Gjelina.  The heirloom tomato salad was to die for.

 

Jenna's Boutique

 

 

 

 

 

Hiking to Abilone Cove.  Just look at those beautiful crustaceans.

 

Julie in front of the Shark Stage
after Buffet Concert.

Replica of "Jaws"
pretty fearsome

 



A free Jimmy Buffet concert marked the
beginning of “Shark Week” at Redondo Pier then off to Manhattan Pier via taxi to see Jason.


 

A road trip to Malibu with Jason and Ruya followed with a yummy lunch on the beach. 

Afterwards, we did a little hiking up the bluff for some spectacular views.

 

 

 

beautiful view of Malibu Beach

Jenni has jet lag

Yo, supp

Felt so good to hug my Jason
 

 

We jetted in and out of LAX in a matter of 5 days.  Bye Jason.  Could you make it back to Florida for Christmas?



LEAF - October 11-25, 2014

On top of the world at Mamma Gertie's

Dreams of fall color.

It has been a year since we've traveled.  Need to relearn the ease of it in our new 5th wheel...

Our goal this trip: to reach Black Mountain, near Asheville, NC for the LEAF.

"Mamma Gertie's Hideaway"
Swannanoa, NC

Biltmore House
seen from one of the gardens

We arrived a few days early and decided to check out the Biltmore House, Gardens, and Winery.  So much to see but we had a two day pass.  I loved the art work in the mansion, especially the portrait of Edith Vanderbilt. 

     




Randy and Julie in the Biltmore House

The Biltmore is tucked into
 the landscape in upper
left corner.
The roses were so fragrant.



The conservatory

LEAF stands for Lake Eden Arts Festival which occurs in May and October each year in Black Mountain, NC. A four day event full of music, art, fun, and frivolity in order to raise money to help preserve cultural arts around the world for future generations. Quite an impressive happening.  Everyone smiling and happy.  Kind of like a Woodstock event without the drugs.

Beautiful weather was ours to
enjoy.  I loved the colorful tents tucked into the landscape and the reflection of clouds on water.

Quite a climb up to Chimney Rock.
Randy took the elevator,



while I climbed the stairs.

lovely fall foliage

Where are ya Ran?



 

The Broad River and Lake Lure
in the distance.

 

Destination:  Chimney Rock
our reward were panoramic views.

 

Here we are at the Black Mountain
Cider Works to taste some hard cider.

Cheers!

Bottoms up!

Well that went right to my head!
I'm feeling very happy.
 

"Glamping" in our new 5th wheel

We Stayed at Crooked River State Park
in Georgia on our way home. 
Its a "Bestie" with spacious camp sites. 
We took a quick tour of nearby St. Marys where you can connect with the ferry to Cumberland Island.  Got back to camp with a few groceries, went for a bike ride and enjoyed a campfire before bed.  It was hard to
leave in the morning.  But all good
things must come to an end.