Full set of photos here
Monday
-Mental soundtrack ---> The Reflecting Skin
-Oh my aching back.
-LGB, an airport where you still get to walk across the tarmac.
-Being greeted with a warm cookie and a view of the water at the fabulous Hotel Maya.
-Nothing makes me feel more at home than a row of shipping cranes on the horizon.
-Dinner at Delius: asparagus and split pea soup + spinach mascarpone risotto with portabello mushrooms, oven-dried tomatoes, yellow squash, crispy lotus root + sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream.
-The lights of the city and the oil islands twinkling from the top of Signal Hill.
-A Duchesse De Bourgogne at 4th Street Vine.
-Short sleeves at night.
-A caipirinha by the fire pit at Fuego.
-Ship horns!
Tuesday
-Mental soundtrack ---> Pink Martini
-Breakfast at Fuego: orange juice + eggs Florentine.
-Monumental sculptures by Michael Heizer, Walter De Maria at LACMA.
-Lunch at Ray's: spaghetti with black trumpet mushrooms, peas, Grana Padano.
-Plunging back into LACMA for Chris Burden, Kiki Smith, Robert Mapplethorpe, exquisite porcelains, Jack Stauffacher, Ming masterpieces, Maruyama Okyo, and the most well-curated Stanley Kubrick retrospective a film nerd could ever hope to see.
-Music-browsin' at Fingerprints.
-A green tea latte at Berlin.
-Free admission on the Queen Mary thanks to the arrival that evening of the Queen Elizabeth.
-A glass of champagne in the Observation Bar.
-Friends and food trucks in Santa Monica.
-A Korean BBQ tofu burrito from Bool and a PB&J cupcake from Sweet Arleen's.
-A Malbec and a cheese plate at Wine Down Lounge.
Wednesday
-Mental soundtrack ---> Marthas & Arthurs
-Breakfast at Kafe Neo: apple/lemon/ginger juice + a Greek omelet with tomato and feta topped with avocado and house-made marinara + baklava for later
-The small but mighty Pacific Island Ethnic Art Museum and their oasis of a sculpture garden.
-Amazing shopping along 4th Street's Retro Row, including vintage emporium inretrospect (and groovy in-store boutique J.j.Rowe), nautical duds at Port, and handmade art department store Bauhausu.
-Lunch at Steamed: a ginger ale + a steamed tofu salad with Thai peanut sauce, brown rice, and a pile of gorgeous veggies.
-A chocolate salted caramel tart at Shortnin Bread.
-Tale of Two Views harbor cruise/bike ride with Cali Bike Tours and the inspiring Elizabeth Williams, local biking advocate and entrepreneur extraordinaire.
-Dinner at Siem Reap: a Thai iced tea + veggie stir-fry + pumpkin tapioca.
-A James brown ale at Beachwood BBQ and Brewing.
Thursday
-Mental soundtrack ---> Gigamesh
-Breakfast at the Coffee Cup Cafe: potato scramble with cheese and spinach.
-Denied from hydrobiking by Long Beach's version of Karl the Fog but a nice morning with the water fowl of Alamitos Harbor nonetheless.
-Surprisingly delicious crispy potato tacos at the Aquarium of the Pacific.
-Wandering happily amongst penguins and sharks and pinnipeds and sea otters and lorikeets and more.
-Acres of books (and old National Geographics) at the $1 Bookstore.
-Dinner at Congregation Ale House: a hard cider + a vegan apple sage sausage.
-A gin & tonic and karaoke at Roscoe's Seabird Jazz Lounge.
Friday
-Mental soundtrack ---> Mungolian Jetset
-Breakfast at Fuego: French toast topped with bananas and strawberries.
-A visit with the fishmongers at the San Pedro Fish Market.
-Lunch on the dock: a dozen oysters on the half shell with fresh-squeezed lemon.