Vacations Blog

Napa Valley Mustard Fields

February 2008

From guest blogger, Marsha Takeda-Morrison, of Sweatpantsmom.

If you happen to stop by my house on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday between 8 and 9:30 and you’re not delivering a pizza, chances are you’ll be left standing at the door. Okay, maybe my husband will answer, but he’ll be under strict orders to get rid of whoever is there as soon as possible. This is because me and my two daughters cannot be disturbed while we’re engaged in that most noble of American pastimes: Heckling the performers on American Idol.

I admit to being completely disinterested at first in the blatherings of Ryan, Randy, Paula and Simon. I managed to avoid any Idol talk at parties and playgroups, proud to be the .0001% of the viewing public that wasn’t part of Idol hysteria. That is until my daughters watched it at their friends’ house, convinced me to tune in one fateful Tuesday night, and got me absolutely, hopelessly hooked.

You know the part where Randy shouts out, “Welcome to Hollywood, dawg”? Well they actually do come to Hollywood, believe it or not. The shows leading up to the finals are taped at CBS Television City, home of legendary shows like the Ed Sullivan Show, All in the Family and Hollywood Squares. More recently the studio has been the location for Dancing With the Stars and Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader. That’s a lot of TV dinners.

If you’re one of the gazillion viewers that would like to attend a taping of AI, you might want to check out OnCameraAudiences.com, a source for tickets to various show tapings. Once you’ve scored your ticket and flown, driven or hitchhiked your way to Hollywood, stop by Swingers Diner which is just down the street from CBS Television City. They have an awesome turkey meatloaf and a cool retro vibe. (Contrary to popular belief, it wasn’t the setting for the Vince Vaughn movie “Swingers.” That would be the Hollywood Hills Coffee Shop, located a few miles to the north.)

The finals of American Idol are filmed at the Kodak Theater, home of the Oscars. I attended an industry awards show at the Kodak a few years back, and have to confess that one of the most thrilling things was going to the ladies restroom. I couldn’t help but think, “Angelina Jolie might have sat in this very spot!” But even if you don’t make it into the theater, the surrounding Hollywood and Highland Center is worthy of a day trip. It’s a massive complex with shops, restaurants and clubs, and great for people watching. We like to take the kids to the Lucky Strike Lanes bowling alley, which is bowling at its most high-tech and luxurious. (More useless trivia: Brandon Routh from “Superman Returns” was a bartender here.) The complex also has one of those dying relics: an actual brick and mortar record store. You’ll find the Virgin Records Megastore on the ground floor if you ever decide to take a break from downloading your favorite AI tunes and buy one of those round, shiny things. What were they called? Oh yeah, CDs.

Who do you think will be the next American Idol? (Sorry, I won’t be answering comments on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday between 8 and 9:30.)

The few times I visited the Monterey Peninsula in California in the past, I went for work or with adult relatives. I thought Monterey was a little dull and Carmel a symbol of tourism gone awry. This time, I went with my kids and found a wonderland.

At my nine year old daughter’s request, “Mom, everyone has gone to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, but me.” (I never knew kids really said that all the time…) I finally made last minute plans for our family to go to Monterey for President’s Weekend. Monterey is idyllic, I think God created it for seven and nine year olds.

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After Marsha’s post from Tuesday, I got to thinking about our celebrities up north, here in the Bay Area. Pat kindly provided me a list of Hollywood-ish celebrities in San Francisco, including Robin Williams, Clint Eastwood, Linda Ronstadt, George Lucas, Stephan Jenkins (lead singer of the homegrown rock group Third Eye Blind), all the members of Green Day, Chris Isaak, Carlos Santana, Huey Lewis and the News, and Nicolas Cage (for a while anyway). But (IMHO, the geeky side of me) the real celebrities are in Silicon Valley, home of Google, the iPhone, and Sand Hill Road venture capitalists. And if I were planning a visit to the Bay Area and wanted to get in some celebrity watching, I would definitely start on the Peninsula….

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Golden Gate Bridge, February 2008

From guest blogger, Marsha Takeda-Morrison, of Sweatpantsmom.

Did you watch the Academy Awards? Did you enjoy hanging out with all the winners at the Governors Ball afterwards? Yeah, my invitation got lost in the mail, too.

But there are other ways of brushing elbows with the A-listers, without having to lie your way into the Oscars by telling the guard that you’re Nicole Kidman’s obstetrician there to administer an ultrasound. (Which totally would have worked, by the way, if Keith Urban hadn’t noticed that I was flashing my library card and not a medical ID.) Here in L.A. the celebs are everywhere – buying sweaters, having coffee, eating lunch – just like you and me! Except with more money and better hair.

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Since our school is closed this week, we decided it was time for a quick trip south to San Diego. Our son is almost at the age when Legoland will not longer be interesting, and both my husband and I went to college at the University of California, San Diego. That, and the generally good weather in San Diego year-round, helped us decide on this quick family vacation.

We drove down from the Bay Area (a wonderful 9 hour trip in the car with two small kids!) and stayed at the Pacific Terrace Inn in Pacific Beach, and visited Sea World and the San Diego Zoo. Both places are excellent for families, and the American Automobile Association (AAA) is even running a special for Sea World! My kids loved Sea World, my daughter commenting to me that she was surprised that Shamu could jump so high.

After a day of visiting Sea World, and another day spent on the beach (we could see the Pacific Ocean from our hotel room), we drove north, visiting UCSD on our way to Legoland. U.S. News and World Report ranks UCSD as the 7th best public university in the nation, and 32nd among the nation’s top 50 universities. Clearly, this all happened after I graduated, but I still looked forward to visiting the place where participation in the Overseas Travel Program in my junior year helped me discover my desire to explore the world through travel.

Following our morning visit, we headed up to Legoland in Carlsbad. Our friends have told us great things about this park, and my 7 year old son and 5 year old daughter certainly found much to entertain them. My daughter loved the fact that she was tall enough to ride any ride she wanted. My son, of course, wanted to spend all his time on the Knights Joust. However, both kids were slightly disappointed in Legoland, after our action packed Disneyland experiences. Legoland is great for a first-time amusement park visit and is also perfect for the toddler set, as many areas of the park are specifically designed for the experience of little kids. That night, we stayed at the West Inn & Suites, which offers a double king room and complimentary breakfast, great for our family of four. And, they provided complimentary shuttle service to the park!

After a second half day at Legoland, we headed back home, taking an easy drive up the coast. All in all, a pleasant trip to San Diego for our family!

From guest blogger, Marsha Takeda-Morrison, of Sweatpantsmom.

When Kango asked me to make this week’s post about wintertime in Los Angeles, I thought about it for a moment, as I sat outside in my tank top and capris sipping an iced tea. What do Angelenos know about winter anyways? Even a drop of rain has the weatherman on the local news drooling with excitement. Speaking for myself, any day where it drops below 65° is reason to bundle up in a ski parka and thermal underwear.

But there are places where us sun worshippers can get a little taste of what the rest of the country experiences during these winter months. We may point and laugh when we see you on TV, digging out your cars and putting on boots just to get your newspaper, but we secretly want a little of the cold weather – just as long as we can still drive home in our shorts.

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