Gon-zona-fornia

(Oregon, Arizona, California)

What a wonderful adventure to smoothly float over the wispy clouds in a shiny airship viewing expansive vistas below, trying to imagine how Icarus felt on his first flight. Softly landing, with a capable cabin crew rattling off data about connections, local time and weather, we had re-entered the world of flight.

Air travel is basically Time Travel. You can be living your life in one location, hop on a plane and float your way to an entirely different world. I think of the Pioneers and the long, endless journeys through hostile territories, uncomfortable beds, scarcity of food and water, lack of toilets, joyless days of wagon travel, and restless nights filled with the unknown. No thanks.

Flying ships are a miracle.

Double vaxed, boosted and Omicron impregnated I learned the lessons of getting the proper paper work, especially as we may test false positive on a PCR after having Covid. Lots of preparation goes into any travel especially air travel and crossing borders. Even when I think I have it all figured out, glitches arise.

First Stop-Oregon:

Spending time with Zayn, Heaven, Juno and tail wagging Shrimpy. Facing the sun gods of Mt. Hood on our sleds , what could be more perfect.

Stopping in to see my niece Jeni in her Portland studio.

Stretching Shrimpy's and Juno's legs, seeing Diane's parents (Amy and Christian) in Corvallis and checking out local wildlife in Portland.

What I’ve gained in worldly adventure I’ve lost in family meals and missed friendships. It had been 2 years since we were in the US and what a treat to return.

The reward: Family, breath taking vistas and mountains, a 5 year old child twirling spinning ribbons while on a trampoline doing jumping jacks. Dogs that greet me with the love and familiarity of a lost mother, son who enfold us into their daily lives, sledding down slippery slopes on a snowy mountain with the squeals of a child shouting "again" and my own snorts erupting with joy.

Next stop-Arizona:

Brother Bruce and Youssef's brother Khalid live within a 45 minute drive of each other, 5 months of the year. Snowbird Bruce and Marcia who yearly escape the Iowan winters take us to explore a new vista of Arizona every visit.

Most of Arizona looks like the photo above but there are communities that blossom with enough water. Sunsets are always gorgeous.

The artistic side of Arizona.

The reward: Desert vistas with tree like saguaro, prickly cactus, reuniting with close family living far away, cinemascope sunsets and sunrises, connecting dots, having family meals, being surrounded by dogs who happen to be members of the family.

San Diego:

San Diego was a good place to see our nephew Youssef and his son Malik.

The San Diego Naval Training Center, in Pt. Loma, where our brothers attended boot camp has been turned into a mixed use living museum called Liberty Station. 50,000 recruits a year were trained here for over 60 years. The goal is to honor the past while adding an urban village with art, restaurants and shops to look to the future.

I think they added the John Deere tractor to make my brothers feel at home while they were in boot camp.

The USS Recruit was the ship Bruce, Joe and Khalid trained on during boot camp.

The Hotel del Coronado, a National Historic Landmark, opened in 1888 . It made history for being the largest building in the country with electricity. Some Like it Hot with Tony Curtis and Marilyn Monroe was filmed here. It is also the second largest wood structure in the US. Youssef's sister, Bahia and family, previously lived on Coronado Island so we spent many wonderful visits to the hotel and the fine crystalline sand beach.

Laguna Beach:

Laguna Beach has a Greeter. A fun guy who waves at you, says hello and makes you wonder why every tourist town doesn't have a welcoming committee of 1.

The first greeter was a Portuguese fisherman, Old Joe Lucas who survived a shipwreck and took up residence in an old schoolhouse in Laguna. He greeted stagecoaches with a giant trident and his signature white beard, and lived off donations from the city and anyone who would give him money. He died in 1908.

A few decades later the second greeter, Danish expat Eiler Larsen, took up the role and is the most well known. Larsen worked as gardener but also lived off of donations from generous locals. 1963 he was given the "Official Greeter" title. "Helloo-oo, delighted to see you!" he'd boom to anyone who would listen. Eiler occasionally worked at the Pottery Shack, now a restaurant, where his statue currently stands.

The third Greeter No. 1 Unnamed Archer did his dance from 1980 to 2009 and yelled out "You're Perfect".

We got to watch the performance of the current greeter Michael Minutoli who considers himself just a happy guy who can't sit still.

It ain't England.

Reminds me of the Randy Newman song "You've Got a Friend in Me"

The gorgeous sunset at Heisler Park.

Sunset at the beach with smiles all around. How can it get any better!

The reward: Family, friends, views that are breath taking and awe inspiring, hikes, Mexican food, California beaches filled with bobbing seals, surfers and dolphins, flip flops, warmth and a laid back attitude. A chance to catch up, laugh and connect immediately as though no time had passed.