Sunday Travel Shot: Malibu Sunset

Malibu, California sunset

Tags: california, malibu, sunset, Travel

Guest Nomad: Public Art in San Francisco

This week’s Guest Nomad is Kirsten Alana. Kirsten is a recently-single photographer and avid traveler who learned the hard way in 2009 that the secret to happiness doesn’t include only fulfilling the expectations of others, while ignoring her own desires.

She now tries to live each day as if it were her last, fully pursuing her love of adventure while also trying to serve others in big and small ways wherever her travels take her. You can check her out online at her website and twitter account.

As the daughter of an artist who did many murals on many buildings during my growing-up years, I’m intensely fascinated by public art. Just ask some of the brides and grooms who I’ve posed in front of graffiti.

Show me a mural on the side of a building and I get a little giddy. That is a backdrop just waiting to be taken advantage of in my opinion. Never mind that actual graffiti is still considered destruction of property to many. I’m a fan!

So, it is probably no surprise that I make it a habit to take a walking tour of every city I visit and one of my main objectives is to find all the public art I can.

Museums are wonderful, and I most certainly visit those whenever possible, but public art has one advantage over most museums: it is free. And usually charged with political and/or social opinion that I almost always learn from.

During a recent trip to San Francisco, I was quite pleased to find it a town of abundant public art. No matter the neighborhood – from Dolores Park to The Mission, everywhere I walked I was able to find public art to marvel at and photograph.

While some art was more hidden or subversive, some was blatant and often famous in one way or another. Some murals directly paid homage to famous artists, such as Frida Kahlo. Some art was evocative of historic periods long past, like the age of Art Deco.

I even had one extensive conversation with a shop-owner who seemed more proud of the mural on the side of his building than he was of the shop he owned.

As a photographer, and a woman descended from artists, it’s mostly likely not shocking that I have this fascination. But I hope you will agree, looking at these images, that public art is something we should cherish and try to preserve whenever possible. I also hope it will make you more aware of art in the places you travel to and live in.

Tags: art, california, san francisco, Travel

Sunday Travel Shot: Lone Cypress in Pebble Beach, California

Lone Cypress in Pebble Beach, California (Photo courtesy of Kirsten Alana)

Tags: california, pebble beach, united states

Guest Nomad: Torrey Pines…Hikes, Picnics & Swimming…Oh My!

This week’s “Guest Nomad” is Colleen Lanin. Colleen is the creator and editor of TravelMamas.com, a site for parents who want to travel with children…and stay sane! She is a freelance writer and author of the upcoming book, The Travel Mamas’ Guide.

She has written articles for such magazines as Babytalk, San Diego Family, and 101 Things To Do San Diego. She lives in San Diego with her husband and two children. You can follow her on Twitter at @TravelMamas.

Colleen Lanin, a.k.a. the Travel Mama, with her daughter on the Beach Trail in 2007.

With the high cost of housing, gasoline, and even groceries, San Diego County residents like me pay what we call “the sunshine tax.” That’s the price we pay to live in a beautiful city where the weather is mild and sunny year-round.

Luckily, there are many affordable activities visitors and locals can enjoy here, such as hiking or spending a day at the beach. A perfect place for both is Torrey Pines State Beach and Reserve in La Jolla. Go here to picnic on the expansive beach and splash about in the ocean’s waves or to hike one of the reserve’s several trails.

Torrey Pines State Beach

This is my family’s favorite San Diego beach. We love its long stretch of sandy shoreline set against the beautiful backdrop of the reserve’s cliffs…and it doesn’t hurt that it’s a ten-minute drive from our house! Torrey Pines State Beach is popular with locals because of its lack of tourists.

There are no kitschy gift shops, no beachfront bars selling beer on tap, and no boardwalk bustling with tattooed college students on beach cruisers. If that’s your cup of suds, then head to Pacific Beach or Ocean Beach instead. Come here for a laid-back, family-friendly beach scene.

Be sure to bring along some drinks and snacks since there are no restaurants either. Bathrooms and outdoor showers are available.

Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve

The reserve is named for the rare, twisty Torrey Pine Trees, which only grow here and on a coastal island near Santa Barbara. You can also spot Yucca, Prickly Pear Cactus, and many varieties of Spring wildflowers along the trails. If you’re lucky, you may even see California Gray Whales on their migration between the Bering Sea and Mexico.

I have explored many of the reserve’s eight trails. None are overly strenuous. My favorite is Beach Trail, which descends over three-quarters of a mile from the cliff’s top to the beach. It affords gorgeous, sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean.

The easiest path, Guy Fleming Trail, is a two-third mile loop. This is probably the best pick for older seniors and families with young children. Everyone, including those in wheelchairs or pushing strollers, can enjoy Discovery Trail, a short half-mile loop featuring information markers near the Torrey Pines Lodge.

Ample free parking is available along the beach but those spaces fill up quickly, especially during summer. Paid parking is $10 per vehicle, your money supports California State Parks, and it’s tax deductible. If you don’t want to hike all the way up the mountain on a paved road to reach the trails, drive and park half-way up for Guy Fleming Trail or park at the top to access the others.

No food or drink (besides water) is allowed on the trails, so plan your picnic for the beach below.

Torrey Pines Lodge

The lodge atop the hill opened originally in 1923 as a restaurant. Today, the lodge acts as a museum, visitor center and ranger station. It houses displays about the Kumeyaay Native American Indians who once lived on the land, the Torrey Pines and other local plants, and a history of the lodge itself. Stop by to pick up a free brochure about common trail plants for a natural scavenger hunt of sorts .

More Information

For additional information about hiking in San Diego County, pick up a copy of Afoot & Afield: San Diego County, a wonderful resource for those wanting to explore San Diego’s natural beauty. For more on San Diego’s beaches, check out this listing on the City of San Diego’s website.

Tags: california, San Diego

25 Interesting (And Odd) California Facts

A few months ago I wrote a piece called “25 Interesting (And Odd) New York Facts” for my blog. It received many “re-tweets”, a few comments and a lot of clicks to my site. It is still in my top 10 most read blog entries since I posted it back in July. So I figured why not mooch off that story’s  popularity with a sequel featuring another U.S. state.

California is a part of the United States that provides travelers with many great attractions such as the Golden Gate Bridge, Lego Land, Highway 1 and tasty Mexican food. But it is also home to the likes of Paris Hilton, the “Governator” and the Brooklyn…er I mean Los Angeles Dodgers. So sit back, relax and enjoy a little California love.

1. California is bigger than eighty-five of the smallest nations in the world.

2. Nicknames include The El Dorado State, The Golden State, The Grape State, and The Land of Milk and Honey.

3. Death Valley is the hottest and driest place in the United States. Summer temperatures reach over 120 F!

4. About sixty percent of the world’s tallest trees can be viewed along the 31 mile Avenue of the Giants.

5. California is the king of dairy production in the United States.

6. Do not even think of molesting a butterfly in California. A law on the books will fine offenders $500.

7. Like turkey? California produces more of the gobbling bird than any other state.

8. Los Angeles ranks as the fourth largest economy in the United States when compared to other states.

9. The Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles is the world’s largest outdoor amphitheater.

10. The Raisin Capital of the World is located in Fresno.

11. The Artichoke Capital of the World is located in Castroville.

12. The world’s largest almond plant is located in Sacramento. It turns out 12 million pounds per day in during the high season.

13. With more than 300,000 tons of grapes grown each year, California produces 17 million gallons of wine annually.

14. San Francisco is home to the Classic Toy Museum, Pez Memorabilia Museum and American Antique Slot Machine Museum.

15. One out of every eight music festivals in the United States is held in California.

16. The oldest Jazz Festival is held every September in Monterrey.

17. California has the largest economy in the United States.

18. If the size of California ’s economy were to be measured by itself to other countries, it would rank the 7th largest economy in the world.

19. More than 87 million people board a plane each year in California.

20. The massive migration caused by the Gold Rush was the largest in the history of the world.

21. Between 1848 and 1852, four short years, California’s population grew from 14,000 to 223,000.

22. The first motion picture theater in the United States opened in Los Angeles on April 2, 1902.

23. San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge has enough steel wires in its to circle the earth’s equator 3.5 times.

24. Blue jeans, Barbie Dolls, the pill, white zinfandel wine, soda, the computer “mouse,” the wetsuit, and theme parks were all invented in California.

25. One out of every eight United States residents live in California.
    

Tags: california, los angeles, sacramento, San Diego, san francisco