Los Angeles (03-09-14)

It’s very nice having at least one of our kids living someplace that we can visit during the winter. Although Los Angeles is not our favorite place to visit- (lots of people, millions of cars, narrow roads) it’s worth it to be able to stop by on a fairly regular basis to see our daughter.

The last time we were here, we went hiking with Jess, and I figured we’d try to do that again, but the weather forecast called for temps in the mid 80s so we decided to take to the water instead.

Jess and Geoff and Paul and I headed out on a beautiful sunny day to get some kayaks. Since it was off season the kayak rental place wouldn't make a reservation, so we had to wait over an hour for the boats.

Once we had them, we paddled around the Marina Del Rey area for a while before stopping at a beach to eat the lunch we had packed.  This is the first time Jess has ever kayaked, but she did great.

We also managed to meet up with Paul’s brother Tom and his wife Sue for an evening, and we went to P.F. Chang’s for dinner.  It was my first time eating at this restaurant chain. Great food!

One more dinner out during our short visit- Jess and Geoff took us to one of their favorite restaurants-Gyu Kaku- a Japanese Barbecue. It was a bit noisy, but I really enjoyed the interesting dishes, the pace, and the cooking of parts of the meal right at the table.  Luckily they knew what they were doing, because Paul and I wouldn't have had a clue how to order from the menu.

We crammed a lot of activity into a short, 4 day visit.  Much too soon it was time to leave, and we headed north to Pismo Beach, where we’ll meet up with some friends.  Next week we land in Fresno for 6 weeks, partly to prep the truck camper for our trip to Alaska.  I’ll take advantage and fly home to Boston for a week while Paul works on some projects.