California 2020 Revisited

I was doing a bit of a look-back and realized I needed to write a catch up blog. So, let's roll back the time machine ...

In March 2020, we made a very hurried return to Canada when Mr. Trudeau recommended that all Canadians get themselves homes soon as possible. In our rush to get back, and with all the new things we were learning about CoVid on a daily basis, I never got around to finishing up our 2020 winter stay.  

After talking about it every year, finally in March 2020, we took ourselves on a touristy trip to Los Angeles. We stayed in a hotel not far from Santa Monica Boulevard and upon our arrival, enjoyed a nice walk along the boulevard to the pier.

The Santa Monica Pier, Late Afternoon

We spent some time walking the length of the pier, taking in the buskers, and having some ice cream before we made our way along the beach and back to the hotel. 

Early sunset along the beach

The next day, we went on a city hop-on-hop-off bus tour. This was an interesting way to see a lot of the sites and hear interesting stories shared by the guides. We rode past the gates to Beverly Hills, walked along Rodeo Drive, looked up at the famous Hollywood sign, and went passed Universal Studios and other production lots as well as the theatre where the Jimmy Kimmel show is filmed. My sister and I were big Beatles fans, and I was amazed to see the Capitol Records building looking just as it did in our ’60s teen magazines. (Capitol Records was the Beatles' recording label at the time.)

Capitol Records building

A fascinating stop was the La Brea Tar Pits and Park.  From the website (tarpits.org), “The black gooey substance bubbling to the surface is actually asphalt. That this heavy, viscous substance is commonly called tar is misleading. Asphalt is the lowest grade of crude oil, and it can be found seeping to the surface throughout the Tar Pits park.”  We found lots of spots where the goo was right at the surface and were careful not to step in any of it.  Staff set out makers so one can try to avoid the goo, but not all of spots were marked as new seepages can arise anywhere, any time.  

Sandy says, "Mind the gooey stuff!"

I have always been a HUGE Carol Burnett fan, so I made it my mission to find her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame along Hollywood Boulevard. This, of course, is a tourist heavy area and also frequented by street people. Dodging the crowds, I quickly made my move and had Sandy take a picture of me by my favourite star’s star.  

Star-struck Kate

Our timing for this tourist trip was pretty good. Shortly after we returned to our La Quinta home, a nasty storm made its way over the mountains and into the desert.  We don’t get much rain there, but when we do, it makes it worth it’s while and this storm caused flash flood warnings to be issued.      

Storm Coming Over the Mountains

A Whole Lotta Rain (2 1/4 inches)

Flooded Road on Next Day's Ride

Because of the new arrival of CoVid (remember when it didn’t exist?) things were changing rapidly. While the Coachella Valley dried up from the storm, things heated up with regards to CoVid-19. With news of its spread internationally, I told Sandy that I thought it was a pandemic and we should head home. Sure enough, two days later, WHO officially declared the pandemic, and shortly there after, Mr. Trudeau said “get home!”  

The First CoVid Information Poster 

Panic Buying Had Begun

We heeded the call, and in one and a half days (record time!) we had our house shut down and the vehicle packed up, a process that usually takes about a week.  We started to make our way home more than a month earlier than planned. There was an upside to this in that there was next to no traffic on freeways that are usually bumper to bumper, especially through Las Vegas and Salt Lake City.  

Next to No Traffic in Las Vegas

Although we knew he was getting up in years, at the time, we didn't know this would be Benny's last road trip.  He always loved spending time in the vehicle and a long road trip was his idea of a great time.

Benny (on the right) Enjoying the View 

After our usual three days of driving, we were safely back home and started our compulsory 14 days of quarantine.  We didn’t complain about that too much cuz it was -20C when we got back and we weren’t keen to go out in that kind of cold after being in shorts the last 4 months!  Many thanks to our friends Deb C and Vivian H who kindly did grocery drop-offs for us. The only place we could go was outside for short walks and a bit of fresh air. 

Braving the Cold During Our Quarantine Walk

So, that was just over two years ago. Hopefully, we are getting closer to CoVid being a lot more manageable than the beast it has been.  Wouldn't it be great if it would just go away? We wish you lots of happiness and good health.  

Probably Still Good Advice