Like Aerosmith - Back in the Saddle Again

Hello again everyone, sorry for the undistinguished message above. I have an older laptop I use when I’m one the road and thought I could use no problem to keep up with writing this blog and other things. This turned out not to be true as the laptop or WiFi at the hotels were not a good match and I was powerless to do anything about. If I had known this would have occurred, would have informed everybody about what I was doing. Again sorry, it won’t happen again. Besides vacation time is officially all used up.

Myself and a friend ventured to SoCal to take a baseball vacation. This fine fellow, like me is sports nut and enjoys traveling around seeking new adventures, like visiting baseball stadiums. Here is what we saw.

Day One and Two

Arrived in Los Angeles and stayed not far from Universal Studios. They have this City Walk area that is a lot of fun and we sauntered around there for awhile soaking up the ambience and a few other things. Took him to the dark side, where there is a Raiders football store. That’s right, nothing but Raiders merchandise, black and silver everything, including Al Davis pictures wearing the same warm-up suit through the decades.(Not actually true)

Went down Sunset Strip and saw famous places like the Laugh Factory and Whiskey-A-GoGo and all the people sitting outside eating dinner at 10:00 PM. For Midwesterners, this is a REAL different lifestyle.

Next day went to world famous Santa Monica Pier and drove north to Malibu, eventually stopping at Duke’s, a great spot, literally right on the ocean for eats and drinks. (Overheard this was the place Mel Gibson last was before DUI arrest)

Went to Phillies at Dodgers game. Maybe is was the travel, but Philadelphia was flatter than the rolled out Santa Monica beach, with horrible body language throughout the game, players walking around acting like they didn’t care. Shortstop Jimmy Rollins waved at more than one ground ball and covered second base on steal attempts like am eight-grader, instead of an All-Star. The Dodgers white uniforms are even more striking in person, equally as white as any Hollywood starlet having teeth whiten for that full mouth smile.

Dodger Stadium is big, with multiple decks and very good sight lines. The parking lots are gi-normous (biggest in baseball) and yes they are a late arriving crowd. A good experience, but we both agreed not great, as first-times to Chavez Ravine.

Day Three

Traveled south to Venice Beach and walked by all the shops and sites this area had to offer. This is a must stop for any visitor to the area. My friend Chip (not real name) and I both agreed if anyone would want to drop out of sight and likely never be seen again, you don’t have to leave the country, just blend in to the counter-culture of Venice Beach and you will NEVER be heard from again. There is a number of INTERESTING characters masquerading as retailers and performance artists. One fellow caught our eye with this catching tune, “Have a Merry Happy Christmas, since I’ll be drunk all day.” Surprised he doesn’t have record deal yet being in L.A. area. Long Beach area is must see, having plenty of cool areas to visit along the waterfront.

Having been to the Big A in Anaheim previously, I knew it was pretty sharp ball yard, though older. Chip (once again not real name) was immediately struck how the fans are dressed like going to football game. We guesstimated 75 percent of the people walking into the Stadium were wearing Angels gear. Of course, we saw the source of this affection, as the Angels gift shop, which might be 1000 square feet, had eight checkouts humming with people buying Halos merchandise. No recession here. Granted having the best baseball team in 2008 certainly helps, but this place was rockin’ as fans really get into the game. The Angels took three over the wall and beat sorry Seattle.

Note to owner Artie Moreno- Artie we loved what you have done to make this a beacon of baseball, but please paint the Big A structure outside the stadium, the paint is so faded it looks like a 1960 Chevy El Camino. Went to Hooters after the game, the food, drinks and women, not good.

Day Four

Headed south, with San Diego next destination. Drove along Pacific Coast Highway, seeing all the surfer dudes in the water waiting for waves. Went to La Jolla to view The Cove and ended up walking about the equivalent of 15 miles, (bad parking spot on my part and modest exaggeration) and had lunch downtown. Went to Coronado Island to take in Hotel Del and sit by the ocean again, in incredibly relaxing area.

Left there to take in Petco Park and what a unique place. Built in the downtown waterfront district, the Padres home is a wonderful and unique modern park. Children’s sand play area and benches for fans in right-centerfield, this place is loaded with features we both have never seen. Perfectly blending the local landscape with modern touches, this place is awesome. If you are in the San Diego area in the summer time, definitely a must see facility. The Padres stink, lacking talent at most positions on the field.

This explains what I did and where I was. One more thing to cover, never ask somebody what their favorite college uniform is, it’s often conversation killer. I asked my friend and he responded with Penn State. The only comeback for that response is to change the subject. Next I asked him what his favorite kind of vanilla ice cream was.

Back in the saddle for the rest of baseball and football.