Randall & Debbie’s California Vacation, Part I

Randall & Debbie’s California Vacation, Part I

LA & Santa Barbara

We (along with Mr. Duck and the turtle) just came back from two glorious weeks out on the left coast.  We drove (well Randy did the driving) over 1600 miles up and down California coast.  We visited friends, ate lots of great vegan food, took many photographs of beautiful vistas and wildlife and had a wonderful time!

We started in LA with lunch at Sage Vegan Bistro and experienced our first AirBnB, a loft apt. right downtown. We were surprised at how vibrant downtown LA was on a holiday weekend but happy that there wasn't that much traffic.

We loved the art deco architecture and did a self guided tour.  One of our favorite spots was the Oviatt building. From there we explored the beautiful downtown library and the stunning Biltmore Hotel where we went for a nightcap on our 2nd evening in town.

The best part about LA was spending time with Judy.  We met for dinner at Crossroads an expensive but tasty all vegan restaurant on Melrose.

It was great to catch up!

Up early on a quiet Memorial Day morning in LA, we headed to the renovated Union Station.

With a few hours to kill before meeting Judy again for lunch, we decided to go to Hollywood and look at the stars.

The  we met with Judy in  Santa Monica and ate at our favorite, Native Foods Cafe.

We then went down to the famous Santa Monica Pier and had our first look at the Pacific in years.

The next day we hit the Getty Center Museum where we saw a photography exhibit and walked around the beautiful grounds.  Later we had lunch in the Westwood Native Foods before heading up the coast to Santa Barbara and our long awaited visit with Carol and Artie in their beautiful new home on the west coast.

Santa Barbara, the real life home of Sue Grafton and the setting for Kinsey Millhone's Santa Teresa.  

I had to do the alphabet series tour and with our hosts Artie and Carol we succeeded in seeing many of Kinsey's haunts.

Debbie also got to catch up with her high school friend Doris who lives nearby with her husband and three children.

To be continued...