Journey To The Sea--We arrive at last!

Well, it’s been a big eventful week here in California and we have been able to share special family time, as well as see more of this amazing country. While we’ve not quite gone from sea to shining sea on this trip, we were finally able to enjoy the Pacific part of it on a warm and beautiful December morning.

THE CALIFORNIA BEACH

 But first things first. On our way into Los Angeles to visit Sarah, Brian, Ethan and Brandon, we stopped for a wonderful visit and walk through part of Joshua Tree National Park.

JOSHUA TREE

We had been there once before, several years ago and loved it so we wanted to make a return visit before hitting the busy world of LA. We found the southern part of the park to be quite different than the northern part, with very few of the Joshua trees and huge rocks we remembered.

WALKING JOSHUA TREE

But our walk on the Cottonwood Spring trail was quite a powerful desert experience; we found that the deep silence, the isolation and finally a surprise lush oasis of bright yellow cottonwood spoke to us in some wordless, profound way.

COTTONWOOD SPRINGS JOSHUA TREE

We’re finding these walks through the parks to be important parts of our journey as we touch the earth and immerse ourselves in the sights, sounds, smells and feel of each place.

The days with family were hectic, fun times. We took the boys to the local playground, visited the trains at Travel Town in the wonderful large Griffith Park,

 TRAVEL TOWN

RIDING THE TRAIN

saw the movie Big Hero 6, feasted with extended family on
Thanksgiving Day, and even had a special “un-birthday party” and toy shopping excursion. Most importantly of all, we were able to spend lots of time with some of the most precious people in our lives, getting reconnected and reacquainted in ways we’re only able to do by “hanging out”.

During the week there, the two of us took a day for ourselves since we wanted to get over to the ocean and touch our toes in the cold Pacific waters. We started out at one of our favorite west coast hangouts, Mutt Lynch’s, at Newport Beach.

MUTTS AT THE BEACH

NEWPORT BEACH

We had lunch before strolling the boardwalk and the sandy California beach. Quite a treat in late November for these Ohio folks!
Next we headed down the Pacific Coast Highway hugging the coastline through the multimillion dollar neighborhoods of Orange County into the small and lovely town of San Juan Capistrano.


 Our goal was to tour the mission established there in 1776 and since we arrived shortly before dusk, we were able to take pictures and explore at a truly magical time.

MISSION AT SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO

The buildings are restored and it was interesting to see the original chapel walls as well as the housing, courtyard and grounds where the Indians and missionaries spent their lives so many years ago.

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO ARCHES

We left California on Saturday and now we’re on our journey home. We’re spending a few days in New Mexico, around the Santa Fe area, before the final leg of the trip.  We look forward to being home again but have a lot of miles to go before then. Meanwhile, happy travels!