After a two week break from school... wham! I'm back in it up to my earholes.

It's October now. We went to Monterey, California, Labor Day weekend for a nice little getaway, improved greatly by the fact that it was about 75° there and about 105° in San Diego at the time. Got upgraded to a big suite at the Marriott. We visited the always wonderful Monterey Aquarium, which, take it from me, is the best in the world. Avoided Bubba Gumps and places of that creepy ilk, but had a truly marvelous dinner at Stokes, on Hartnell Street; had an unfortunate Gyro sandwich at a local Greek Street Fair, which made me vom.

Boy, Monterey was hopping. Those local tourists with their baby strollers were everywhere. Took an all-day drive east into Salinas County to the Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad. We briefly imagined ourselves living in the hill country around Monterey but then got over it.


Last weekend was my brother Lucien's birthday. He is living in San Diego now, so his daughters, Rohanna and Hari, drove up from LA with Lilah, Ro's 2 year old daughter. She was a lot of fun, especially at the zoo the next day. She really came alive at the turtles exhibit, which is kind of creepy. In addition to the normal turtles swimming around, they have some with really, really long necks, which look a little too prehistoric.



We've made 6 months of travel plans: Guatemala at Thanksgiving, Thailand and Hong Kong at Christmas, and Buenos Aires for spring break 2010. Woo hoo! Almost all of that is on air miles and Marriott points. Suck on that, American dollar!

Summer vacation 09

Dear Diary: Where HAS the time gone? Summer is long gone now, San Diego is starting to be chilly in the mornings and dark when I slink away from my classes each night. Anyway, Diary, we had a good busy summer, filled with all that traditional summer business like family visits and quick weekend getaways and summer school and work and such. I always hope for a big 4th of July barbecue somewhere but I think maybe I'm just hanging on to my childhood.

So in no particular order: Went to Lubbock for a July weekend sibling reunion (there's the Berrier men below) at my sister's house. Sandi and her husband, Ron, live right around the corner from the old Hayloft Dinner Theatre, where I once performed in the classic "Not With My Daughter!" It was fun to see everyone and meet my latest great-nephew, Cohen. Lubbock was as expected: quite hot and quite Texas-y.

That asparagus won't cook itself!

Hector & Steve & new great-nephew Cohen Lenhart. He still has the price tag on!


Also, Carlos and Vanessa Ramirez came from Kentucky for their annual visit with the bachelor uncles. We took them up to Santa Monica for one night and walked along the pier, went up to Griffith Observatory (jazzed up since I was there a decade ago), wandered around the 4th Street Promenade, shopped on Rodeo Drive. They are very fun kids; it's our annual opportunity to learn the latest fashion trends from the Midwest.

Carlos & Vanessa on Rodeo Drive



We also had the pleasure of attending nephew Jorge Ramirez's high school graduation in Chula Vista. Here he is with his big sister, Ericka. Are they movie stars or what? Each time a grad's name was announced, hundreds of Dominguezes and Ortegas and Escalanteses rose to their feet in a show of family pride. No such thing happened at my graduation, which I didn't even attend now that I think about it...


We did our annual August week at our time share in Palm Desert , where it was so hot that you could fry an egg on the top of my skull. Our Marriott Vacation Club there is getting more and more crowded with ... well, people... every summer so we have decided to throw in the towel on that tradition and trade for a more exotic locale. Currently awaiting news on our request for Aruba in August 2010. Will keep you informed, diary.




Hiking in Palm Desert

Las Vegas

New Las Vegas Shoes

We used to come here several times a year. I like to play the slots and Hector likes to lay by the pool and go to the spa. But the past couple of years it's felt like a real extravagance, so the last time was last summer for Bobby's fun 50th birthday bash.

So Mark and Arturo got offered 3 free nights at Bellagio as part of a Players Club promotion, so I called and they offered it to us, since we're members, too. That shows they are really trying to drum up business because there is no chance in hell that we gamble enough to get comps. We came in on Saturday and got a great corner room, 7th floor, pool view, big window above the jacuzzi tub in the bathroom. It often takes a little work to get a good room. Hector likes to pick out a Latino desk clerk for check-in, then proceed to become their long-lost best amigo. I love to see people breeze in and try to act like a hot shot at check-in. Nobody can shut you out like a Las Vegas front desk clerk.

I always have an eye out for who's in town; it's always fascinated me that foreigners seem to love to come to Vegas as much as [many] Americans do. Each time we're here there seems to be a particular country heavily represented, and this time it's the French. I mean, they are everywhere. I used to think it was really funny to see French people just at Paris Las Vegas, since it's such a garish American copy of the real thing, the kind of thing you'd think French people would just LOATHE, but they stay there. There's always many Mexicans and Asians here, of course, just like all over.

I hear how Vegas is really taking it hard in the recession, but there seems to be lots of people here right now, although the upscale stores here at Bellagio are deserted and MANY restaurants, even upscale ones, are offering good deals for 3-course prix fixe menus. We're seeing no shows this time. I just bought a pair of sneakers at d. fine downstairs and the sales clerks were all over me, like pigs on shit. By the time I left, they had pulled down half a dozen silk jackets off the rack, offering 40%! NO, 50% OFF!! It was like fleeing from the market in Marrakech.

Tonight we're eating at Aureole, at Mandalay Bay, tomorrow morning we head back home. I haven't won anything, Hector did pretty well at a 1-cent slot machine. The most you can hope for is to spend a bit less than you planned, that's my Las Vegas motto.

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Post script:

Days later and we're home sweet home now. Our dinner at Aureole was good, but very inflated. Service was apathetic, except for the sommolier, who was charming. Can't say I'd recommend it. Eat at Joel Robuchon at MGM instead. Reminder: never book Las Vegas departure before noon.

San Francisco

Shopping in Chinatown

After our 2 Up With People houseguests moved on to continue their tour of the least interesting parts of America, Hector and I left for San Francisco. He had to work for a couple of days so naturally we stretched it into a longish weekend. Flew into Oakland, always the better alternative, and returned to the Renaissance Stanford Court, an historic old building atop Nob Hill. They've remodeled since we were there a year and a half ago and it's really nice. We got a comfortable corner room and settled into some intensive relaxation. Well, I did for sure.

We walked, did a small amount of shopping in Chinatown and environs, visited the wonderful De Young Museum, and ate at a few fun restaurants: L'Ardoise, a great French bistro on Noe Street, Scala at the Francis Drake Hotel, and our little Chinatown dive, New King Tin, at the corner of Washington and Waverly. In order to appear frugal to the Company, we didn't rent a car this time, just walked and took expensive cabs. There's so much to see on foot there's not really a need for a car unless we want to leave to go to Napa or Muir woods or somewhere. Weather: partly cloudy and breezy, just what one wants in one's San Francisco weekend.

Granada

Balcony View of Alhambra

Alhambra Courtyard


Carved plaster in the Alhambra

The Generalife Gardens at the Alhambra

As a break from luxuriating at Al and Marc's house, Hector and I drove up to Granada for two days. I'd heard a lot about this town, mostly the famous Alhambra, which is a restored palace, built by the Moors, who controlled Spain until the 13th Century. The drive through the mountains was spectacular, and Granada itself is quite beautiful. We stayed at another Room Mate Hotel, the Migueletes (115€ for a balcony room with a view of the Alhambra), situated on a narrow little alley off the Plaza Nueva, very centrally located.

There was some doubt that we would be able to get tickets without an advance reservation to tour the Alhambra, because it's very popular. And after hiking to the top of the mountain where it's located, we were indeed turned away in shame. So our hotel booked a group tour for us, we were with about 25 others, which was fine. We got a lot of historical background we wouldn't have touring it alone. It's an incredible structure, or series of structures, really, since it was changed and added to over the centuries.

The rest of our stay we walked around town and visited churches and museums and ate tapas and drank wine. Granada has a very large university so there was a definite college town atmosphere. All the restaurant workers were students, and there was no shortage of pot smoking backpackers. It's not a place I'd like to live, but it is fun for a few days.

Returning to Al and Marc's, we chose a different route that took us south to follow the coastline, which was dotted with little resort towns, full of sunburned British and German expats, looking very out of place. Not my cup of tea. We had a good seafood lunch at Nerja, then back to our mountaintop for more luxuriating until time to return to Madrid and home. Once back in Madrid we visited all the places we liked so much the first time. Adios.

Costa del Sol

Al and Marc's House: El Carligto

Ronda

View from the Hilltop

After 4 days in Madrid we caught the brand new high-speed train heading south. Oh, what a pleasure…clean, quiet, stress-free travel. Our coach ticket was 78€ each. 165 miles an hour and 2½ luxurious hours later we arrived in Malaga, which is on the Mediterranean at the Costa del Sol. We never got to see much of the city because we rented a car at the train station and headed immediately out to Al and Marc’s house, near a village called Canillas de Aceituno (trans: Olive Crossings or Olive Pits, depending on who you talk to).

I began to get a little concerned as our directions led us higher and higher up into the mountains. By the time we reached the village, I had already stopped breathing, and was hanging upside down from the ceiling. This fucking village is quite literally hanging on to the side of the mountain. Marc and Al met us at the village roundabout and proceeded to lead us around a series of twists and turns on a cliff-face dirt road just wide enough for a car and a half. After about 15 minutes we reached their property, perched on top of a summit facing south, toward the sea. They have a 4-bdrm house with pool and 500 yards away is a duplex with another 4 bdrms and pool. They are about to refurbish it into a luxury guest house so we snuck in before they start charging people. They are surrounded on all sides by hillsides of olive orchards and grape vines, although how anybody can pick grapes at a 45 º angle is beyond me.

We spent 4 luxurious days here at El Carligto (trans: the eucalyptus tree), sunbathing, sleeping late, drinking wine, and having long dinners. It was heaven. The four of us took a day trip to Ronda, a gorgeous little town built over a ravine so deep that I can’t even talk about it.

Madrid

Changing of the Guard

At the Plaza Oriente

On the Gran Via

Spiderman at Plaza Mayor

Well, we had a strange route. San Diego-Dallas-Miami-Madrid, but lucked into a full upgrade using VIP stickers or something instead of air miles… not sure how that happened, but more to the point, why doesn’t it happen more often? Incredibly, there are no Marriotts in Madrid so we were forced to actually stay someplace different. And pay for it. I stumbled online onto a charming little Spanish hotel chain called Room Mate. They are all small boutique hotels with that loungy minimalist look and basic amenities. Free breakfast and wifi and I loved the location of ours (Alicia 90€ a night)—smack dab in the center of the historical district at the Plaza Santa Ana. So we were happy.

I guess I expected Madrid to be like Mexico City: trashy, chaotic, obnoxious. But it’s just wonderful. The tourist area is spotlessly clean and the architecture gorgeous. Every day we walked miles around town, from Plaza Mayor to the Parque Retiro to the Palacio, it’s just a fantastic city for walking. We visited the Prado Museum, (celebrity sighting: Ethan Hawke) went rowing on the lagoon at Retiro, sat for hours at the Plaza Mayor to watch the flow of tourists and performers, and generally dithered until it was time for more tapas and wine. On weekends, thousands of local families stroll through the parks and plazas; it was extremely civilized. I’m smitten. We spent a couple of extra nights in Madrid at the end of our trip. The Alicia was booked so we moved to the eccentric, wonderful and considerably more costly (285€) Casa de Madrid. Check it out.

Sunday at El Parque Retiro

Catalina

Steve, Ron, and Sandi

I made my first trip to Catalina last week. Imagine living in Southern California 23 years and not going to Catalina! As the song says, it’s just 26 miles across the sea. Anyway, my sister, Sandi, was in town for a visit, so six of us drove to Dana Point, caught the ferry ($70 roundtrip each), and made a day of it. The ride over was fun-- an hour and a half, calm seas so there were no barfing passengers. We saw no whales, it’s a bit late for them, but we did see a huge school of dolphins surfing in the wake of the boat. It was just spectacular.

The view as you enter the harbor is the best one; it’s the famous one of the hillside and the old casino, now turned into a museum or something. Things were pretty quiet in town, but Ron, Sandi’s husband, knew the place well, so he was our guide. We had lunch at one of the cafes on the harbor, then rented a six-person golf cart ($60 per hour!) to circle around above the town for all the views. The botanical garden is a great place for a walk, heading up the hill through all the native plants to the huge Wrigley Memorial Phallus. More great views as we continued the drive around the top of the mountain above the town. Most of the island is controlled by the military so it’s only possible to see a small portion of it. We saw deer but none of the famous wild bison.

Back in town we stopped for a coffee and a stroll around the dull, touristy shops selling T-shirts and birdhouses. It’s odd, nobody mentioned it until later but it looked like everybody who lives and works on the island is Mexican. Where does everybody live? Surely not in the expensive condos and vacation homes. What do they do until all the tourists arrive in summer?

We caught the 7pm ferry back to Dana Point, drove an hour back home to San Diego, exhausted as though we’d swum home.

Waxahachie

Friday before last, I joined Hector after he finished working in Dallas all week. It was a shock to see how brown everything is this time of year. Our Marriott "Suites"was pretty ho hum. Friday night we had dinner with my niece and hubby, JAnne and Colin, at Mi Cosina in Highland Park. They're expecting a baby named Cohen Jacob Lenhart. Mi Cosina was absolutely squirming with yuppie blond couples and their kids with expectations.

Then we had dinner with Diane and Marc and his son, Michael, at another Mexican restaurant on Saturday night. Sunday, we drove down to Waxahachie to check up on all the family graves, of which there are many. Hector made a nice little arrangement of WalMart perma-flowers (plastic) for Mom and Dad, then we headed out to the sticks to visit my great grandfather, who is buried in a tiny 100 year-old cemetary called Greathouse. As always, the bored local teenagers had come through knocking over headstones, so we re-arranged the place a bit. Great grandad is hidden behind a tree so he was safe. Later we drove to Red Oak Cemetary and found Aunt Velma and her clan.

We had lunch at the 1886 Cafe, across from the Ellis County Courthouse (see photo). It was busy with all the families getting out of church. We drove around town a bit so I could show Hector, for the 500th time, all the houses I once lived in there. I made many original remarks about how much things had changed, and we returned to Dallas. On Monday, we fled back to San Diego.

Disneyland

Yesterday, Friday, Leslie and I snuck off and went to Disneyland for the day. She goes all the time with grandkids and such, and she has always had an annual passport. Hector and I used to go quite often, too, but I had not been in a couple of years. It’s always a thrill, walking up to the entrance gate. I find I always want to start running, just like the 6 year-olds. It was a gorgeous day and since we got there early, we rode a bunch of rides quickly before the crowds made their way back toward Frontierland and New Orleans Square. Got a 10 am drenching at the log ride.

She was pretty set on eating lunch at Blue Bayou, or whatever it’s called, overlooking Pirates of the Caribbean. That place is so over-priced and the food is never great, of course, but it was nice to be out of the sun and away from teenagers for a bit. Why weren’t they all in school? They all seemed to know each other, walking around in giggly throngs. Fortunately, Frontierland is mostly too square for them; they were all congregating in Tomorrowland. Leslie was very entertained by all the teenage girls, with the attitude and cell phones and nonsense, but really I was thinking they all need a good shaking. There were many clumps of 3 or 4 girls; each clump had a sullen younger brother attached to it, who hung off to the side, looking humiliated. My sympathy was entirely with the brother.
By 3pm I was beaten by the sun so we walked back through Downtown Disney toward the parking structure, where we wandered for over an hour until we finally found the car in a different building altogether. Dropped Leslie in Carlsbad, home at 630!

Christmas Over

I suppose we're back in the swing of things now. It always takes me several weeks to get over the holiday comedown. Rush, rush, excitement, travel, parties... hangover. Hector was recovering from pneumonia all of December, but was well enough for us to take a little pre-vacation vacation to Palm Springs for 3 nights. We stayed at the charming Viceroy, a swanky place created from the ruins of a couple of old 1930's Hollywood getaways. Just a block off Palm Canyon Dr, so it was very convenient to walk around. We got an upgrade to a one-bedroom casita with fireplace because the joint was pretty dead. Did a spectacular drive through a snowy Joshua Tree National Park.

Then we left for a week in San Francisco with Mark and Arturo. Our Marriott at Post and Mason was very nice, but the Exec Lounge was closed for the holidays so we didn't get all the free breakfasts we usually do. Lots of walking, San Francisco is such a great city to walk around in, even with all the hills. Let's see...we rented a car and drove up to Napa/Sonoma one day to do some wine research, hiked in Muir Woods, we visited the new Academy of Sciences Museum in Golden Gate Park (along with a million others), ate wonderful Dim Sum in Chinatown, went to a great restaurant for dinner one night, Gary Danko's, which is across the street from Ghiradelli Square. They did a 3-course tasting menu that was out of this world. Great food, wonderful service. After three hours, the 4 of us got poured into a taxi by the sweet hostess, with hugs and little gift bags of cookies each.

Next day we toured a coffee factory that supplies Mark's bakery with coffee and tea. It was wonderful. Big, loud roasting and grinding machines and automated assembly lines, with that heavenly smell everywhere. They made us swear we wouldn't divulge any of the Labels we saw being packaged but one was Trader Joe's.

I had expected the city to be sort of quiet, but because of all the department store sales it was crawling with shoppers from all over the place. In fact, dowtown was gridlocked most of the time we were there. Lots of French and Spanish overheard. People dragging huge shopping bags up the hills. We bought nothing. Came home in time for a relatively quiet New Years Eve, after which we both caught bad colds. Have now gone through 3 boxes of Kleenex with Aloe Vera.

Athens

Cafe in the Plaka

Temple of Olympian Zeus

At the Ancient Agora

Acropolis

Parthenon

So I flew into Athens to meet Hector after he wrapped up a week-long work trip to Dubai. I had upgrades all the way but I’ve come to the conclusion that all that pampering (relatively speaking) isn’t really that satisfying when you fly alone. One leg was Chicago to Brussels-- which we also took in September on the way to Berlin--and it’s a great airport. Minimal immigration, no Customs. American Airlines has joined up with Brussels Air so it’s a much better alternative than Heathrow when passing through Europe.

Our Marriott was nice but a bit faded, but had a well-equipped Executive Lounge. It was about a mile walk to the tourist area and the Acropolis but entertaining; it was our daily obstacle course through life-threatening intersections, sizzling electrical wires sticking up through the sidewalk, abandoned cars parked bumper to bumper along the street and the endless stray dogs, any of which might choose to adopt you, following you for several blocks, only to abandon you later.

There were very few tourists in town this time of year, so we had the run of the place, basically. We walked miles each day, explored all the historical sights, visited the wonderful Archeological Museum, made a number of hikes up to the Parthenon (undergoing huge restoration), and endlessly wandered the narrow streets of the Plaka and Monastiriki neighborhoods. It would have been ideal to have a hotel in that old charming section, but we enjoyed all the walking and of course the history is just unbelievable.

I’ve heard lots of people say that Athens is really not that great a destination, other than the Temples and such, but we had a very enjoyable and relaxing week, traveling the way we do (leisurely, to say the least). The trip home was okay, except that Hector was developing pneumonia and got really sick with a high temperature on the plane. He’s recovering just fine now.

The Athens riots began the day after we left so we really can’t be held accountable.

London and Dublin

Canterbury Cathedral

Friday, another easy flight into London City Airport. The city seems crowded and congested after serene Switzerland. After a cranky afternoon getting our Marriott room straightened out, we went out to fabulous weather and did a marathon walk through St James Park and down along the Thames, then up to Charring Cross for fish and chips.

Saturday we hopped a train for Canterbury. The train and the town were full of rotten teenagers with spikey hair and bad attitudes but we toured the spectacular Cathedral and walked around town. It’s totally tourist, with every shop and café themed around the olden days and Canterbury Tales. Full of local riff-raff. Then back to Victoria Station in London, where we raced back to our hotel and free glasses of wine.

Sunday we discovered a new area for us- Spitalfields and Brick Lane. It’s on the East End and full of Bangldeshis, Bohemian types and big street markets. Thousands out on the streets! It was very festive and fun. Stayed all day, toured a church, saw an old pub that Jack the Ripper met one of his victims in.

Monday, we opted NOT to take a train to Stratford but just stay in the city and roam around. So we walked across Hyde Park to the new Whole Foods, had pastries there, then went on to another new area for us- Holland Park. It’s lovely, there’s an actual park that is just beautiful and the residential area around it is wonderful. We decided that’s where we’d be living if we lived in London (and were billionaires).

Tuesday we flew to Dublin, where we met Hector's colleague, Terry, a fun Irish guy. He took us around to see Trinity University, The Guinness Museum, and then we had dinner at an historic Irish Pub named Johnny Fox's. We stayed at the beautiful Shelbourne Hotel in downtown Dublin. Back to London next day.

Thursday and Friday we just walked a lot, up and down the Thames Walk, toured fabulous Buckingham Palace, and had a final dinner with Marc and Al, who had just returned from Spain, where they are hoping to buy a home. They showed us pictures of a picturesque hillside estate in Southern Spain and now I just hate them. On the other hand, they said we could come stay in the guest house so maybe I don't after all.

Zurich

Zurich Old Town

Lucerne

Quick/easy/cheap flight on Airberlin to Zurich. The Marriott here is a bit old and run down but the spread in the Exec Lounge is to die for. Huge breakfast and huge evening snacks with free liquor and cappuccinos all day! There are lots of well dressed business people staying here. We walked around the historic district of Zurich the first day, which didn’t take long. Everything here is placed along the River Limmat that runs down into Lake Zurich. It’s really quite pretty.

Next day we took a bus tour with 5 other couples (Italian, Argentinean, Canadian, American) to Appenzell, where they make famous cheese and the natives are little ruddy-faced hobbits. The tour guide says they are the joke of Switzerland. But the area is gorgeous, all rolling hills and little Swiss cottages with dairy cows. The town itself is very quaint, chock full of tourists and all the little hobbit people snuffling around. Later we toured a rather dull chocolate factory and then drove back through the gorgeous countryside to Zurich.

Thursday, we decided at the spur of the moment to take the train to Lucerne, about 2 hours away. It’s beautiful too, right on the shores of Lake Lucerne with grand 19th century hotels and casinos lining the shore. Lucerne has more of a historic district than Zurich, which means there’s a lot to see, but also lots of tourists as well. Everywhere we’ve been, we’ve seen mostly European tourists. I guess the Americans are back in school and too broke to travel. We are definitely being frugal this trip.

Berlin

At the Reichstag

Holocaust Memorial

What a comfortable flight! San Diego to JFK, then to Brussels, (very nice, efficient airport) then on to Berlin. Comfortable bed-like seats on the overseas leg. American has spruced up their big planes. Immigration at Brussels Airport was so easy and friendly, very different than the assholes at U.S. immigration. Our Berlin Marriott was brand new and very nice, and the executive lounge was so well stocked and staffed that we didn’t even mind that we got a tiny room. So, our plan for this whole trip is to have 2 meals a day for free at the lounges. They do serve a full, delicious breakfast here, and then for dinner heavy hors d’oevres with our (free) cocktails! Take that, inflated euro!

First jet-lagged day in Berlin we did the double-decker city tour and strolled around nearby sites: Bradenburg Gate and The Holocaust Memorial. Out Marriott is right on the Tiergarten (big Central Park-style garden) so we went through there too but not sure how safe it is at night. Then, Sunday we walked hours up Unter der Linden street to Alexanderplatz to see all the old historic buildings. This part of the city was all East Berlin at one time and a lot of the tourist focus is on the history of the Nazis and the Wall, of course. There are still portions standing as a memorial.

Monday we went the other direction toward Charlottenburg. Visited the zoo, designed like a beautiful Hansel and Gretel fantasy and walked around the main shopping district. Then we went to the Reichstag, which was once the big Parliament building until it was burned during the War, now it is rebuilt as a combination of old remains and brand new modern design. It’s fantastic. Berlin is really clean and well-designed, so much was destroyed that they had to come up with new ideas to rebuild around all the old stuff so it’s a great combination of new and old.

Panama

Plaza Bolivar, Casco Viejo

Hector with Panama City in background

In Panama City now, on a work trip with Hector. Since it's summer, it's considerably more humid than when we were here in February. Every day it rains a bit in the afternoon. They've taken to referring to their seasons as the "Dry Season" and the "Green Season", which sounds a bit less wet, I suppose. Even with the humidity I like it here a lot. The people are very easy going.

Our Marriott is big and bustling, it has a nice gym, a lovely pool and, best yet, a casino. We went for dinner last night over to the old colonial part of the city, Casco Viejo, where things were pretty quiet. When we were here in February, they were filming a James Bond movie in some abandoned buildings down here. Panama is standing in for Bolivia, I believe, which is making the Panamanians irate. We caught no glimpse of Daniel, although we decided we might as well say we did. Who's to know?

We had planned to come home Thursday but decided to postpone a day so we could return through Dallas and avoid any weather delays that might stick us in Miami. That will give us a full day to goof off-- we want to go back to visit the Panama Canal.

Yesterday I took a taxi back to the hotel from a nearby shoppping mall around noon. The traffic was just horrendous- things would just stop dead for 10 minutes at a time and my driver was cursing at everybody and honking nonstop. The trip should have taken 10 minutes but took 40 and the poor old man was red and sweating, it had just stopped raining and I thought he was about to explode. At last we pulled up at the hotel and he turned around and looked at me like he was going to either kill me or start crying. I asked him how much and he said, "two dollars".

Do you, Steven...?

Hector & Steve with City Hall halo

I've been pretty ho hum about this whole gay marriage deal here in California. Basically, I haven't noticed it doing much good for straight people, not to mention that Hector and I don't really need it-- we've got our domestic partner registry and our wills and powers of attorney all done. But, at the last minute, we decided to do it while at our annual week in Palm Desert. We got our license last Friday in Indio (the pits), then drove over to the Palm Springs City Hall, where we were given a very sweet, moving ceremony by a very friendly Justice of the Peace. It was really great. And now I have to say, I really DO feel married!

Saturday night in Boulder

Lilah meets Grandpa

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

Bette Midler in Vegas


Carlos & Vanessa at Mission Beach


Steve, Pollard, Lucien in Boulder

Oh hell, rather than pretending that I was keeping up with this blog all summer but forgettting to hit the publish button, I will just do one entry that encompasses the whole summer. But fear not-- I shall try to be concise. We went to Vegas in June (112 degrees) to celebrate Bob Brady's 50th birthday with a bunch of guys. Kent and Bob rented a big house with a pool and we all just partied and hung out there, even though Hector and I stayed at Bellagio. We went to a local art gallery gala of what looked like high school art AND we went to see Bette Midler's show at Caesar's and it was lots of fun, possibly even $225 worth of fun. Tons and tons of foreigners all over the place, they're the only ones who can afford it now. I did very little gambling this trip. We're poor Americans.

In July, Hector's niece and nephew came from Kentucky for their annual visit with the bachelor uncles. Carlos is 10 and Vanessa is 13, they were exhausting but lots of fun. We learned last year to limit their soda intake. It makes for a much more enjoyable stay. We had a few Ramirez reunions at our house while they were here so we got to see everybody we hadn't seen for a while. Oh, they all grow up so fast.

Then, Hector and I flew to Boulder, Colorado to celebrate my brother, Lucien's, 70th birthday. The whole family met there: siblings, his kids, new grandbaby, and us. We had a great, quick weekend. Boulder is really pretty, the weather was gorgeous. It reminds me of Santa Barbara. We took over a couple of restaurants for dinner, we kids (ha) took a hike one day, sat around visiting, very enjoyable.

Finally, I finished summer classes and I have to say I really enjoyed them, especially my freshman english class. We read a bunch of interesting literature and had to do a lot of writing, but it was fun. Probably not so much for the 19 year olds that were in class with me. I'll get an A in that class and a B in my Intercultural Communications class. So, now I'm done with school for a couple of months... just enough time for a trip to Panama at Labor Day, 3 weeks in Europe in September and a trip to Athens in November. Heaven!

Del Mar Fair

We made our annual trip to the San Diego County Fair (formerly known as the Del Mar Fair, but changed because it sounded too snooty) with Mark, Arturo and Sonia. We started doing this ten years ago with M&A. We'd spend hours, wandering among the prize hefers, the botanical show, the arts & crafts. But these days we've thinned our priorities and now we begin at one end and eat our way to the other end, and then back, then go home. This year I had a hot dog on a stick, BBQ sandwhich, homemade potato chips, and a chocolate dipped ice cream bar. Hector had even more, if you can believe it. Now, 2 days later, I'm still in a kind of lard-induced stupor.

The Parker, Palm Springs

Entrance of The Parker

Our room

The Main Lobby

Hector returned from Bogota late Saturday night, then we left early Sunday for Palm Springs. This was a birthday getaway for him, fortunately it was also Memorial weekend and we both had Monday free.

We arrived at The Parker amid throngs coming and going. It's a big property but there were people everywhere. I think a lot of them were sight-seeing. A Bravo reality show (Welcome to the Parker) was filmed here a couple of years ago. No way were they going to let us into our room before 4pm, so we just wandered the grounds, had lunch, then wandered some more. There's a croquet lawn, petanque courts, 2 pools, hammocks, a fire circle, and a big spa, all tucked into a nicely landscaped desert area. It's actually the former estate of Gene Autry. They've done it all up sort of 60's funky. Actually, I read that the designer described it as a place that looks like where your Auntie Mame used to live. It's fun and funky and comfortable. And really expensive. I hate to sound like an old lady but My God. When you check in and give your credit card for the room charges, you think the worst is over, but no... wait until you order a lemonade by the pool ($6) or have a light dinner from room service ($100 for 2). So we just tried not think about it and have a good time. Breakfasts were delicious ($65 for 2) but we skipped dinner at the signature restaurant in favor of a steak in Palm Desert for 1/2 the price.

On Sunday there were so many people we couldn't get a chair at the pool, but by Monday morning they were all heading back to LA and we had a nice long day poolside with a manageable crowd. It was a very nice mix of gay/ straight. I'd say 50/50. Plus lots of families. Service was pretty good, much better after things calmed down. Loved the spa! Full pool, steam and sauna for men and women separately. Our room (the cheapest) was very nice and spacious, with quality bathroom amenities: L'Occitane and Hermes.

We decided we'd gladly go back but maybe during a slow week when the prices are perhaps not so high. Plus, it's MUCH more enjoyable not to have to share it with people from LA.

Atlanta

I came with Hector to Atlanta because he was presenting at the International Reading Association Convention. 25,000 chubby, middle-aged teachers in sneakers and pedal-pushers. We stayed at the Marriott Marquis downtown, one of those concrete behemoths with a huge open atrium that soars upward 50 horrifying stories, including glass elevators, in case you're not already freaked out enough. We were on the 42nd floor. I can honestly say I did not look down once in 4 days.

Atlanta is a charming city. It immediately reminded me of Dallas and that opinion never changed. It’s very green and slightly rolling, it has a respectable skyline but the downtown area is filled with these huge concrete hotels so it’s not so great a downtown for strolling. It must have the largest black population in America. I had plenty of opportunities to overhear the use of AAVE, or African-American Vernacular English, which we’ve been studying a bit in Linguistics class. (formerly and infamously known as Ebonics.)

All the cab drivers must have recently gone through a required course in boosterism because they all acted like unofficial tour guides, pointing out highlights and providing tourist data. Did you know that the new Atlanta Aquarium is the largest in the world? So we went to the aquarium. It’s very nice but still doesn’t come compete with the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Did the Botanical Garden: very nice, CNN Tour: pretty entertaining (Did you know that the escalator in the CNN Building is the longest freestanding escalator in the world?) Last night we attended the Braves vs Padres game at Turner Field to watch the San Diego Padres get their lazy asses kicked. The stadium is fun, it’s newish, like Petco Park in SD.

Hector, Tere Rivera, and I had a great Southern meal of fried, horribly unhealthy food on Monday night at a restaurant I can’t remember the name of. I had hoped for more of that kind of thing but after that one I really couldn’t take much more, so the rest of the meals were a bit lighter in the carbs. Fortunately, we did a lot of walking.

Istanbul

Hotel in the Sultanahmet District (me on top)
The Blue Mosque
Grand Bazaar
1000 year old mosaic in the Haghia Sophia Mosque

We just returned from a week in Istanbul. I met Hector there, where he was presenting at a teeny little conference of Eastern European Schools. Five hours to JFK, then 10 more to Istanbul. But Turkish Airlines is quite comfortable, unless you find yourself sitting next to a retired army sergeant who wants to talk from the instant she flings herself down. Fortunately, my coffee cup-sized Bose earphones always do their job. We did have individual TV screens, 2 meals and free booze, in coach! I watched 4 movies and still had time to sober up.

Istanbul was much cleaner/friendlier/prettier than I expected. We left our Marriott after one night because it was so far out in the suburbs and moved into the Alzer Hotel, a charming guesthouse directly across the street from the Blue Mosque, so we could watch the minarets light up at dusk as the muezzin did his loudspeaker call to prayer. There is absolutely no way in the world one could not hear this, as all the mosques seem to have a competition for who can be loudest and most overly dramatic. We were there for some special event where the baying went on into all hours of the night and men were scurrying in and out well past bedtime.

The Turks are a pretty friendly bunch. Granted, we were staying in the tourist area, but even strangers approached us on the street, wanting to converse in English. It was kind of sweet. In the US when a stranger walks toward you with a big smile, you quite naturally assume they are crazy or wanting money. In Istanbul they would say,"Where are you from? Are you enjoying Istanbul?" And then just walk on. Turks think Istanbul is just the greatest thing in the world-- just like New Yorkers: Aren't you thrilled to be here? There were very few American tourists, but a million loud Spaniards, Germans, tough-looking Russians, aloof Japanese.

The food was good, lots of lamb and beef kabobs, vegetables, rice. Superb desserts. Mostly we just walked around, getting a bit lost, stopping for tea at a cafe, seeing all the hotspots: Topkapi Palace (2 days worth), Blue Mosque and Haghia Sophia Mosque, The Bazaar and Spice Market, Aquaduct, Basilica Cistern, Archeological Museum (fantastic!). We bought a lamp and a tile mosaic. It was fun chatting with the locals-- they are eager to not be mistaken for a fundamentalist Islamic country. Several said they wanted to visit the US but it's very difficult to get a visa, big surprise.

Back from LA

I'm trying to keep up with Hector's movements on the other side of the world but since he's going to bed as I'm getting up and taking flights at all hours it's pretty hard. I send him a good morning email as I'm going to bed and vice versa. He told me he was walking through the Dubai airport last night and out of nowhere heard someone shout "Hector!" It was a former Harcourt employee who used to be head of the International Division. So they chatted a bit and are going to get together for coffee later.

I just returned from LA where I went for the weekend to visit with my nieces, Rohanna and Hari. Ro is breathtakingly pregnant. You can almost see the baby's face pushing through her belly. Had dinner with them & their mom, Sophia, and Tom, the baby daddy, at Parc in Hollywood. Good food, fun atmosphere but very loud. I hate to say it but I'm too old for those places. After dinner, I walked back to my hotel, The Renaissance Hollywood, just a couple of blocks away, past the amazing freak show that is Hollywood Blvd at 10pm on Saturday. On one corner, a bunch of hip hop kids performing for tips next to a group of Christian something-or-others singing What a Friend We Have in Jesus. I kid you not.

I also worked on Saturday for Mary Carlisle Blakeley, my old customer on Rodeo Drive I've known for 20 years. Mr Blakeley, her wonderful 97 yr old husband, has died and she had a bad fall 2 weeks ago that left her pretty banged up. But she was outside with me as I built some shelves in the garage: sweeping up, shoving old rotten fainting couches out of the way. Her old mausoleum of a house is just falling down around her ears but still she's talking about pulling it all together to have dinner parties, maybe even replacing the old burned-up Rolls Royce... This morning she showed me a gold ring given to her by Anna Q. Nilsson, a silent screen star in the 20's! Really, when she goes, she must surely be the last of that era. It's hard not to be taken aback when she starts talking about swimming at the Basil Rathbones' and visiting San Simeon with Marion Davies.

Off to Istanbul

The school quarter is winding down, only ten more days to go. But the assignments are becoming more fevered and frequent. Big lesson plans due, papers on foreign cultures, final exams. Keeping my head above water, though. I might actually make an A or two.

I've got the dreaded nasty-cold-that-you-thought-was-over-but-came-back-a-month-later that everyone seems to have. Just when San Diego was ready to come out into the sunshine, we're struck down again.

Hector leaves tomorrow for an extended work trip to the mideast that, by all that is right, I should be accompanying him on. He goes to Kuwait, Dubai & Abu Dhabi, and then Istanbul, where I'll join him next weekend when classes are done. We'll spend a week exploring, eating yummy food, smoking water pipes and whirling in circles with long, white skirts on.

Now I Can Die

It must have begun in Mrs. Sharpley's 4th grade geography class because I've always had a strong desire to see the Panama Canal. It just always has seemed so exotic to me, like it was unimaginable that I could ever be there, just like the Pyramids at Giza.

Gaspar drove us over yesterday and we had lunch at a little restaurant overlooking the Miraflores Locks. I mean really overlooking. You could throw a dinner roll and hit a passing ship, were you so inclined. But it's a real production, all the ships' crews come out and wave to everyone on the observation deck. As we had lunch, 3 big ships went through, along with a few sailboats they throw in as a package deal. You can see the tankers lined up for miles, waiting their turn.

Panama City

Sitting at the Dallas-Ft Worth Admirals Club Lounge en route to Panama. Hector is working there next week and I am going along for the ride. I’m looking forward to seeing the Panama Canal. Bad storms in Texas so our arrival was like a tilt-a-whirl.

I was awake most of last night with a weird vertigo sensation. Every time I tried to move, my head would feel like it was spinning. It felt exactly like when you were a kid and you’d spin in one direction a bunch of times then stop and try to walk straight. Very unsettling. And since it was me, my thoughts naturally turned toward brain tumors, spinal meningitis and worse. Around 330 am I was planning my own funeral.

But today I’m fine, no dizziness, just exhaustion and the low-grade crankiness that goes along with air travel.

Later… Finally we arrived at our hotel (Courtyard) in Panama City at 2am., then slept until almost noon the next day. We went over to the old section of the city, Casco Antigua, and walked around and had a late lunch. It’s very much like the old city in San Juan, Puerto Rico, maybe 10 years behind in restoration. Still a lot of families living in the old colonial buildings with laundry hanging out on the balcony--loud music coming out the windows. We might have been in Havana. We had drinks under a big umbrella at an outdoor café and a huge rainstorm blew in. It was very nice.

Today, Hector is working and I am heading to the mall next door to see if there’s a latte with my name on it.

Later still... found two lattes with my name on them, also a red windbreaker at a store called Helly Hansen. Reminder: grave error to shop alone when the staff is a couple of bored, good-looking young guys who want me to buy something.

Unfortunately, I haven't had much time for my posting here but I thought I'd better check in. School is going well, we're into week 5 now and I have to say I'm really enjoying all my classes, even though I'm forced to read chapters and chapters of this kind of drivel: "...parallel to the interest in developing rational principles for vocabulary selection was a focus on the grammatical content of a language course." Say what? I've enrolled in 3 more classes for next quarter so that means I should be done with the class work by the end of summer.

We're off to Panama for a Hector work trip next week (I'm cutting class) and then to Istanbul during the spring break. Very excited about both. I've always wanted to see the Panama Canal (actually, I've always wanted to sail through the Panama Canal but this will do for now) and I'm especially thrilled about Istanbul, of course. I think my desires to see all these places are related to movies. I keep thinking about that silly Peter Ustinov movie Topkapi that takes place in Istanbul.

Also, we're tentatively planning a Country Walkers trip to Slovakia in September. The tour begins in Budapest and ends in Krakow so you get 3 passport stamps for the price of one. Anyone care to join us?

Okay, I'm not as stupid as first feared. I got to my Teaching Grammar class and no one, NO ONE knew anything about past participles or 3rd person singular or copulas. And some of these students are already teachers.

In San Diego, even more rain this weekend! I had a quiet few days, Hector spent the weekend in Guatemala between work weeks there. I went for a few long walks, between rain showers, and had dinner last night with Dave at Kitima. Just trying to be frugal and studious. Translation: dull. I'm ready for a trip!

TGIF

When did I become so old and stupid? At the end of my first week of classes I'm exhausted and confused. I can't remember which textbook is for which class (granted, they all are connected to teaching English) and I'm not sure if I'm doing the right homework. It reminds me of the shock I went into when I attended the Spanish immersion school in southern Mexico a few years ago. For ten days I was a nervous wreck, not sleeping, walking around in a daze. Then, one day it all just changed and I got it and became the star pupil. Hope that happens here, but for now I don't know a past participle from a gerund.

Hector is back on the road again (and not here to do my homework for me) and I'm doing a few measly jobs but spending most of time being a student. Most of my classes are filled with giggly Asian girls over here from Japan or Korea to get some sort of credential for back home.