Here's one more L.A. picture -- the so-called "cactus promontory" at the Getty Center, a huge art and cultural complex on a mountain in Bel Air. The Getty consists of a series of museum buildings featuring all kinds of art, linked by patios and formal gardens. We went there on Friday morning before catching our flight -- we had a few hours to kill and though it wasn't enough time to see much art (and Dave's not that into art museums anyway), we at least got to see the center itself.
To get there, you have to park at the bottom of the hill and take a tram to the top -- a much more dramatic tram, I might add, than the Angels Flight! It offers scenic views of the surrounding city and traffic moving ever-so-slowly, as always, on the San Diego Freeway. It even has its own soundtrack, some very stirring music that plays for riders during the climb. I felt like I was in "Raiders of the Lost Ark."
While we were at the museum, Dave ran into someone he knows from Drum Corps International -- a guy who lives in San Diego and happened to be visiting the Getty with his family. Again, what are the odds?! Dave randomly ran into TWO people he knows during our six days in greater L.A. (You may remember he saw a former student Thursday night at the Disney Concert Hall.)
Anyway, around 1:30 p.m. we got on the freeway ourselves and joined the steady stream of traffic headed south toward LAX. It took a while, but traffic was moving, and we had plenty of time before our 6 p.m. flight so we weren't worried. We gassed up the car, dropped it off at the Budget lot and caught the shuttle bus to our airport terminal. I was SO relieved to get rid of that car. I'm a fairly decent driver, I think, and nothing very dramatic happened to us on the roadways of L.A., but I was still about 40 percent terrified the whole time just given the volume of traffic and my unfamiliarity with the city. I'm patting myself on the back for making it through without so much as a scratch. (I can say that now without jinxing myself!)
The flight was smooth, though some poor person had a medical emergency of some kind in the back of the plane. I only knew because I went back to get some water and found the flight attendants bent over him as he lay on the floor in the galley. They were administering oxygen, but I heard him talking so he was conscious. No one made any announcement and the plane continued on its path so things couldn't have been too critical, though they did bring paramedics on board when we landed in London.
And here we are!
Olga looks glum in this picture but she's actually been quite happy to see us. She was licking my face just seconds before I took that photo! Oh, and that's my mango-colored Pann's shirt, which I've decided I like after all.
Now the washing machine is churning and I'm neatening up around the house, even though our friend Warren took good care of it. No matter how neat a house-sitter is, when I get home I instinctively want all traces of them gone and everything back in its proper place. I think Olga agrees with me.
30 comments:
Welcome back and thanks for a great la tour!
The Getty museum looks quite interesting, I love plants growing on roofs. Glad you had a good trip home.
you packed a lot in to a short visit. Dave encountering two people he knows reminded me of the time Marc and I were in Colorado with the kids at Garden of the Gods when we heard a voice. we knew that voice. it was our friends Wiley and Sandra coming back from a art and craft show and they had stopped there on their way home.
The Getty is an amazing place. Glad you were able to spend a bit of time there before the flight. As for the medical emergency on your flight, I begin to wonder if that isn't becoming the norm these days. I've been on many flights in recent months and have to say about one third of them had medical emergencies. Very bizarre. Happy you two made it home safe and sound.
I'm glad you made it to the Getty Center. It really is a beautiful spot. I think we spend as much time outdoors among the various gardens as we did inside for the art. Good to hear the flight was uneventful (for you at least). I like the shirt. That's a great color. And, I'm sure Olga is very happy to see you back where you belong.
Loved your choice of places to visit/things to do in LA. Thanks for sharing!
Olga looks calm, she probably missed you a lot.
I love the shirt and think it looks great on you. The color is unusual which I also like. My older daughter lived in L.A. for six years so I was often there but NEVER drove. So, I salute you! Daughter lived near a car rental place; we would rent a car and she would drive. She was a timid child but has (by necessity) become a fearless driver, having lived in L.A. and New York. Olga looks very content!
Man, that was a whirlwind of a trip, y'all packed a lot into a short time! Even better, the airline demons were good on both ends. Great picture of you & Olga.
Lightening fast trip- thanks for the photos- superb choices! I would not drive in LA, unless i wanted to have a stroke! It was bad enough thirty years ago! You are so brave.
Olga, setting things right again, and your shirt is gorgeous! Love that sunshine color!
i like that color on you. Glad you had fun and that you returned home with no drama.
The photo of you and Olga makes my day! 😊 I think that color looks fine on you. Does it have a design on the back that we need to see?
That’s a great shot of you and Olga. And the cactus promontory is one of my favorite views at the Getty. Dave and Jerry seem to bump into acquaintances wherever they go. I never have. So glad you're home safely.
A great trip! I am so pleased to hear that you are a decent driver as indecent drivers disgust me! Really though - for someone who is not a regular car driver you did well!
Boy, that seemed quick! I know sweet Olga is thrilled to have you back. :)
Love the photo and glad Olga was happy to see you, though I didn't doubt that for a second. That color is great on you -- I'm glad you decided you liked the shirt! (I hate driving a rental car -- makes me nervous!)
Thanks for showing us so many good images. Great T shirt. Enjoy settling back into home life routines.
That was a great trip. Thanks for sharing it.
You had an outstanding vacation. You traveled widely and saw lots of LA and Palm Springs. Thank you for sharing your adventure on the blog. Driving in CA is challenging and you did marvelously well. Sweet Olga looks happy to have you home. No doubt you missed Olga.
Olga also wants everything in its place, including you and Dave.
Welcome home. My gosh. You don't look like a man who just flew (what?) like 14 hours?
Mango looks fine on you.
I thought those were green tomatoes in that top photo - hahaha! I would also have been VERY nervous to drive in LA - good job! Love your shirt - and that Olga photo. She actually looks kind of smug to me.
Well, you know what I call that need to get everything at home back to normal- peeing in the corners. Which I don't really do. But it gets the idea across.
I know that Olga is probably so very happy you're home. And you guys probably are too although it sounds as if you had a fabulous trip.
I would have been terrified to drive in LA traffic.
Not that I dislike going on vacations, but one of the greatest feelings of any trip I go on, is turning that last corner home and seeing my house still standing and waiting for me. Welcome back!
Great trip and you documented it well. Thanks for taking us along.
Not driving for long periods at home wouldn't help your confidence either.
That first picture looks like a bunch of stuffed olives! LOL
Glad to know you two are back home safe and sound!
That was a very worthwhile trip. You saw some old things and some new.
I'm the same when people have been in my home, I walk around putting things just right and wiping off surfaces.
I love the Pann's shirt colour.
I had a lovely vicarious trip to LA thanks to you! I so enjoyed all the photos you shared with us. The best of all, though, was seeing you with a happy Olga when you got home!
Boud: Glad you liked it! Now that it's over it seems to have gone so fast.
Pixie: I'm not sure that promontory even is a roof. I think it's just a walled garden. I don't think there's a building under there.
Ellen: It's so weird when things like that happen! I remember one Christmas we ran into my brother's teacher and her family in South Carolina when we were driving north to Washington, D.C. (I guess everybody making that drive stops in about the same place -- right around Orangeburg/Santee S.C.)
Mary: That IS bizarre! I wonder what's going on? People taking too much anti-anxiety medication, or drinking too much, or a combination of such things?
Sharon: I wish we'd had more time for the art but at least we got a sense of what the place is like.
Jonboi: Glad you enjoyed the vicarious traveling!
Yael: I think she did. She did a happy dance when we came in the door!
Margaret: I found that driving in L.A. is a matter of constant negotiation. Fortunately the traffic is rarely moving very fast!
Jim: Yeah, thank goodness the airlines made it all happen smoothly!
Linda Sue: It might have been even worse 30 years ago, with all the smog and gas-guzzling land yachts!
Allison: The color works better than I thought it would when I first bought the shirt!
Kelly: It DOES have a design on the back. Maybe that can be a future post. :)
Mitchell: I never do either! And I feel like I know a ton of people! What's up with that?!
YP: L.A. is possibly the most challenging place to drive in our entire country, so I felt pretty good about my results!
Jennifer: It DOES seem quick, now that it's over! At the time it felt very leisurely.
Jeanie: I'm pleasantly surprised about the shirt!
Sabine: Glad you liked the pictures. :)
Rachel: You are welcome! Going to L.A. so you don't have to, right? (Kind of like your trip to Albania for me.)
Susan: I'm pleased at all we were able to do -- pretty much everything on my list.
Debby: I may not look it, but I sure felt it!
Bug: Ha! They DO look tomato-like!
Ms Moon: Ha! That is a GREAT expression. And that's exactly what it is -- reclaiming the space for our own.
Ed: Absolutely! It's often said the best part of any vacation is coming home.
Catalyst: Glad you enjoyed it!
Andrew: Well, exactly. I drove all the time in Florida, and briefly when I lived in New Jersey, but I haven't really had a car in more than 20 years.
Marcia: Ha! Now I want a martini! LOL
Red: It was very worthwhile. I'm pleased at how it turned out.
River: It's funny how weird it feels when you get home and things are out of place.
Pam: I'm glad you enjoyed it! Getting home was definitely a high point for us, too.
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