California

Lenny Kravitz’s song “California” goes something like this:

I was converted to the other side
From the day I'd gotten there
…
When I moved to California
California

This is how I felt when I first came to California in 2002. As soon as I was here I knew there was something magical about this place. I had always been a city guy. Living in the NYC metropolitan area suited me perfectly well. But LA was very different from all other mega-cities; it had this inexplicable aura of bliss. The weather was one factor, always pleasant, the ocean played a major part, and I was thrilled to see the pacific. Then the magic of tinsel town and the glamour of the city make it even more the American Dream. It has always been the golden land of the American dream since the gold rush of 1849 until contemporary times where it has become the entertainment and the technology capital of the world.

Right now I am still on route to the Golden State, flying over the Mojave Desert at the moment. The site is beautiful, desert everywhere with some outcrops of rock interrupting the terrain. There was a wonderful site near Phoenix as we flew over Lake Pleasant; the water amid the barren landscape was such a contrast. I had been to this lake in 2002 and had navigated its waters; it was good to see it from an aerial view.

The purpose of this trip of mine is for business. I am going to the LA region to bring two major hotel sites up to date with their hotel management software. The work isn’t much and I expect to do a lot of sightseeing on this trip. I am still planning for places to visit, I will try my best to see the ocean today after I land, perhaps go to Malibu.

So far the trip has been decent, apart from my neighbor on seat 20F on the flight from Newark to Phoenix. He should have purchased tickets for 2 seats. Him occupying the center seat, limited me to just half a seat. And on top of that, the constant snoring made the trip very unpleasant for me. Had it not been for that girl sitting across the aisle from me, a hot looking young college girl, that flight would have been a bad memory. For once I was glad that I had read all the Harry Potter books, she was reading the “Order of the Phoenix”, it was easy to break the ice talking about Harry and Hogwarts and get a good conversation going. Flying over the Sierra Nevada Mountains now, with their snow capped mountains providing some sight. We are about to land soon, will finish this later.

So my room is pretty nice. It’s a suite with a living room and kitchen area and then double doors that lead to the bedroom and bathroom. I am watching both the TVs at once, the NBA finals on the one in the living room and “Ronin” on the bedroom TV. The staff here at the hotel is very friendly, especially Genevieve, the receptionist who was showing me around the back office (Unfortunately nothing along the lines that you are thinking.)

Later on I went to Malibu; I was told that the beach was very good there. I looked at the map and found a scenic route to Malibu, going through the Malibu Canyon; it was really nice, especially when the ocean is visible from the top of the mountain. Unfortunately I was driving and couldn’t take a picture. But Malibu was a big disappointment. The beach was not so great. Or perhaps I did not go to the right area. But anyway, I drove down to Santa Monica, which I have always liked. But I had wasted the better part of the day going to Malibu. The beach there was good but the sea was very rough. It was windy and the waves were strong. There weren’t many people surfing either. It was cooler today, a pleasant 70 degrees so most people at the beach were covered up and avoiding the chilly breeze. I hope to see more of the beach later on in the week when I move to the other location.

Do comment and let me know what you thought of this.