California Dreaming: Tom and Tracy’s California Journal
From The Maitai Vault
What’s great here in the Golden State? There are some stops in California that demand extra time and energy to explore. Others require just a quick stop. That’s what we’re here to do. From magnificent museums to gorgeous settings to events unique to our great state…and even a fork in the road…this section gives you a unique cross section of California, and the places you should spend some time exploring while visiting. My most recent posts are at the top as we keep adding places that we travel, and add additional information to spots we revisit more frequently. Hopefully this will give you some ideas on what to see in our great state.
January 23, 2016
Pasadena’s “Secret” Japanese Garden Storrier Stearns Japanese Garden – Pasadena Visited: January 21, 2016 Always on the search for new gardens, I was alerted by a Facebook post about a garden I had never heard of and only located only ten minutes from our house in Pasadena. Far from being new, […]
December 2, 2015
Thoroughly Modern MaiTai The Broad – Los Angeles Visited: December 1, 2015 My life has been turned upside down. If you read my Spain report (or any of my trip reports for that matter), you know Tracy and I are not aficionados of contemporary art. From the Fundació Joan Miró […]
June 29, 2015
Getting To See An “American” Icon Santa Anita Park “Seabiscuit Tour” – Arcadia It’s not often (if ever) you get to see a Triple Crown winner up close (especially since there is only one horse currently alive who has accomplished that feat), but Tracy and I hoped we would get […]
May 12, 2015
“The Battleship Of Presidents” Battleship USS IOWA Museum – San Pedro My dad was a naval officer who served in World War II on Guadalcanal, so the Navy (and especially naval vessels) have always held a special interest for me. Tracy and I toured the USS Midway in San Diego […]
January 10, 2015
Getting On Track Union Station – Los Angeles Having already been on a couple of Los Angeles Conservancy tours in the past, Tracy and I headed downtown on a Saturday morning to check out an historic Los Angeles landmark that celebrated its 75th birthday in 2014. For this tour, we’d […]
January 2, 2015
A Ringing Endorsement Of Friendship Korean Bell Of Friendship – San Pedro It had been quite some time since I had traveled to San Pedro, but when Tracy and I finally did, we certainly made a day of it. We visited the USS Iowa, Point Fermin Lighthouse, Fort MacArthur and […]
December 18, 2014
Everything’s Coming Up Roses The Rose Parade – Pasadena When you grow up and live in the Pasadena area for most of your 60 years, there is no way to escape going to the Rose Parade. Believe me, I know! I’m not sure exactly how many Rose Parades I’ve been […]
July 6, 2014
Controversial Statue Comfort Women Statue – Glendale During World War II, it is estimated that up to 200,000 Asian women and girls were forced to be sex slaves by the Japanese Imperial Army, although Japan disputes that fact. In July 2013, the city of Glendale unveiled a statue of a […]
January 10, 2014
The Curtain Rises Pasadena Playhouse – Pasadena On a small street off Pasadena’s famed Colorado Blvd. you will find the Official State Theater of California, the Pasadena Playhouse. I have been lucky enough to see a plethora of plays there since I was a little boy growing up in the […]
January 1, 2014
“The Granddaddy Of Them All!” The Rose Bowl Game & Tour – Pasadena Since I have attended 30 Rose Bowl games in my 60+ years (including the 2014 Stanford-Wisconsin contest…the 100th), it only made sense that on the first day in its 91-year history that the famed Rose Bowl held […]
December 3, 2013
Going Greene (and Greene) The Gamble House – Pasadena Located about a mile north of the Wrigley Mansion, just off of Orange Grove Avenue’s former Millionaire’s Row, is the crown jewel of homes designed by famed architect brothers Charles and Henry Greene. The home was commissioned by David and Mary […]
September 15, 2013
Visit One For The Gipper Ronald Reagan Presidential Library – Simi Valley Located about 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles is the “other” presidential library in Southern California. Having visited The Nixon Library in July, Tracy and I (along with friends Lenny and Susan) decided to drive out to Simi […]
August 21, 2013
Controversial Cathedral & Gregory Peck Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels – Los Angeles I must confess (pun intended) that I can see why there was some controversy when it came to the construction of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels that serves as the Mothership for […]
August 19, 2013
Up, Up And Away! Flight Path Learning Center & Museum – Los Angeles Looking for something fun, informative and free (yes, FREE) to do in Los Angeles? Then I’ve got your ticket! Stop by the Flight Path Learning Center & Museum located adjacent to Los Angeles International Airport where you […]
August 18, 2013
Don’t Fight City Hall…Visit It! Los Angeles City Hall – Los Angeles If there’s one building in the City Of Angels that stands out from all the others, it is definitely Los Angeles City Hall. From the old Superman (Daily Planet building) and Dragnet (“This is the city…Los Angeles, California…”) […]
August 17, 2013
Not A Mickey Mouse Concert Venue Walt Disney Concert Hall – Los Angeles Tracy and I had recently been to a Walt Disney Hall concert featuring Mozart and Brahms (well, it was their music…it would be quite an event if Mozart and Brahms really showed up), so when we were […]