Eating in the rain

 

Some friends and I had planned to meet for lunch at La Grande Orange Cafe in Pasadena. Because of the flooding in my building I wasn’t sure if I could make it. Fortunately that was squared away in the morning and I was able to catch the Expo Line train to the Red Line and join some of the others at Union Station. From there we took the Gold Line to the Del Mar station where we met up with another friend.

I just love how we can all come from different areas in Greater Los Angeles and travel by train to our destination!

The cafe is part of the Del Mar station so we only had to walk a few footsteps in the rain once we debarked the train.

I asked G jokingly if we were going to ask for an outside table. The rain was really coming down at that point. The joke was on me. The restaurant was so crowded inside they seated us in the outdoor patio. I told the waitress the table had better be right under a heat lamp. It was. The waitress had to wipe the rain off our chairs before we could be seated!

Our table was sandwiched between the fireplace protected by a glass screen (photo above) and a heat lamp.  You can see one of the heat lamps in the photo at top.

The patio is under canopies but the precipitation managed to sneak through and every once in a while the rain spat on us… but in a very friendly way!

My Bloody Mary and Huevos Rancheros more than made up for any bad weather. They were both excellent.

I am always happy when I decide to go out and do something as opposed to staying curled up on the sofa, which I easily could have done!

Back in Culver City the rain was coming down in Velociraptors and Tyrannosauruses as I left the train station. I thought about waiting for the bus but decided to take a chance on walking. I did a lot of puddle hopping but as the bus never passed me in the entire walk home I obviously made the right decision not to get soaked standing at the bus stop. Better to get soaked walking. And I did. Get soaked.

We have at least another day of rain. But by Wednesday the sun should be back and we’ll have a few dry days. I hope this isn’t the end of the wet stuff but it will be nice to have a chance to dry out.

Oh, and our flood… it was still a flood when I got home but the pump is doing a pretty good job… so we may get lucky and it won’t seep into the garages this time. Fingers crossed.

All photos and content copyright roslyn m wilkins unless otherwise noted. No commercial usage without express permission. Please feel free to pass along this post via email or social media, but if you wish to use some of our images or text outside of the context of this blog, either give full credit to myself and link to One Good Life Los Angeles, or contact us for proper usage. Thanks!

Peacocks prancing in the park

One of the reasons I love living in Los Angeles is access to all the parks and gardens. The Gold Line recently added six more stations, all the way to Azusa. One of those stations is Arcadia where the 127-acre Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden is located. The free shuttle bus that stops at the mall, Santa Anita Race Track and The Arboretum now also stops at the train station.

Yesterday several explorer friends and I visited The Arboretum. Most of us met at Union Station in downtown LA for the trip on the Gold Line.

The Arboretum is known for its peacocks. They are VERY raucous and can be heard “meowing” throughout the park. The above photos are of the same peacock back and front. Both views are pretty impressive.  They are not shy about posing for the camera.

The Arboretum is made up of small pocket gardens, sprawling lawns and water features. We decided to take the 2 1/2 hour docent-led tour

This wood creature was part of a temporary art exhibit but he looked very much at home.

This is jacaranda season and the purple trees are showing off all over town.

The garden, like everywhere else in Southern California, is suffering from the severe drought. But this “flowing” pond is made of stone and needs no water.

Can you find the hummer? Maybe not as impressive as the peacocks but certainly a sweetie.

A giant lizard slithering across the path? No, just a peacock all folded up for travel.

Eucalyptus deglupta Mindanao gum showing off its rainbow bark.

The pea hen is looking for lunch. The female has no need for extravagant opulence to attract a mate… there are plenty of males strutting around the premises.

The Seed Saving Garden is dedicated to growing heirloom vegetables and herbs.

We had several ideas about what these extraordinary giant flowers looked like, I thought of elephant ears.

Even the Arboretum is not free of exotic bugs!

Effects of the drought on these trees.

The once beautiful ponds are also ravaged by the drought.

But this turtle family doesn’t seem to mind!

If you were a fan of the TV show Fantasy Island, you will recognize this Queen Anne cottage. It was where Tattoo rang the bell when visitors came to the island.

There’s a lot more to the park but we were pretty tired and hungry after the tour so it was time to head out to lunch. We took the shuttle to the California Pizza Kitchen close by. I always order the Moroccan Spicy Chicken Salad at this restaurant chain… but I decided to be a little daring and ordered the Roasted Veggie Salad instead. That is now my new favorite.

Click on an image below to start the slide show.

The Arboretum even has its own song!

All photos and content copyright roslyn m wilkins unless otherwise noted. No commercial usage without express permission. Please feel free to pass along this post via email or social media, but if you wish to use some of our images or text outside of the context of this blog, either give full credit to myself and link to One Good Life in Los Angeles, or contact us for proper usage. Thanks!

Saturday’s adventure – part two – South Pasadena

We hopped on the train to South Pasadena after visiting the Southwest Museum. See previous Part One post here.

From the Foothill Gold Line website: “Astride-Aside”: A larger-than-life walking man stands as an icon atop formidable granite cubes at the entrance to this station. Made of annealed bronze strips that have been welded over a supporting armature to create a woven latticed form, the figure represents a unique community that is determined to move forward in its own distinct way.

Okay!

It was still rather a gloomy Southern California day but the six of us were managing to have fun anyway!

G had researched a place to eat, Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain, in business since 1915 and located on historic Route 66 no less! It was restored in the early 1990s to its original turn-of-the-century splendor.

Not one to break with tradition I first had to visit the restroom. While waiting I noticed this wonderful ice cream sundae curtain.

The ceiling decorations caught my attention. Where else are you going to find Japanese lanterns and plastic vines but in a vintage pharmacy?

Everything you could possibly hope to find is in this place.

Yup, the soda fountain.

We had sit down service and I immediately spied the Tuna Melt on the menu. Excuse me, the California Melt! Why is it California? You get ten points if you guess before I type it…. running out of time… okay, it has AVOCADO! What could be better than a tuna melt than a tuna melt with avocado, I ask…. nothing!

Don’t really think this was a working popcorn machine, do you? But look at those classic Coke bottles on top. Growing up in England I never had the opportunity to become addicted to that stuff and I feel fortunate!

Okay, I had to take my selfie…

G had noticed this museum when we left the train station so we had to investigate. The building was first a grocery store and hotel, then later it was modified into a blacksmith and iron works shop. Today it serves as the South Pasadena Historical Museum. 

This wonderful organ once graced the endangered Rialto Theatre and it is hoped that when the theatre is restored the organ can once again be placed there. Yes, that’s an ostrich you see poking his head into the picture. There was an ostrich farm in South Pasadena in the 1920s.

The docent at the museum was wonderful, answering our many questions.

Poster as a reminder of uglier times when Japanese Americans in World War II, including those who were born here, were rounded up and interned in camps, losing their homes and businesses.

And another wonderful day of exploring came to an end.

All photos and content copyright roslyn m wilkins. Please feel free to pass along this post via email or social media, but if you wish to use some of our images or text outside of the context of this blog, either give full credit to myself and link to One Good Life in Los Angeles, or contact us for proper usage. Thanks!