“HELLO” from sunny Southern California!!
Grab a cup of tea (or coffee) and sit back and enjoy the picture show. As first time visitors to southern California we had 5 filled-to-the-brim days of sunshine and seeing the sights. We’ll take you to just a couple of them today: La Jolla (Hoya) Bay and Dripping Springs State Park, north of San Diego.
Torrey Pines
Every single day, the weather was beautiful—sunshiny— delightful temperatures. This day there was a light breeze by the ocean. While there we escaped some rain, sleet, snow and very cold temperatures in Iowa. The cattle, we heard, didn’t like it very much!
The scene looks much better with the kids in it! What a fun times we were having!!
Directly across the street, the buildings look like this. Most all buildings and homes are made of stucco. This particular area is very upscale with many beautiful apartment buildings and fancy stores. The trees are so perfect looking, they almost look fake. They’re real. 🙂
Sea lions covered the rocky banks, while many visitors are capturing their poses. The coast is quite rocky in this area.
The kids were enjoying running up and down the last few steps to keep from getting wet when yet another wave would slam into the shore. The water was cold.
Jenny and Mr. Farmer say, “Hey….this is fun!” The gentleman below them is about to dive into a wave. I watched as he swam into the waves. He looked about 75 years old. He was in great shape…..and brave to handle the water temperature. We were wearing jackets!!
Many tourists were enjoying the view, like us Iowans.
Addie shot this photo looking up through the sky light of the van. I love it! I could stare at the palms, blowing in the breeze all day long!
Now we’re hiking in Dripping Spring State Park, a portion of the Cleveland National Forest. There were many species of deciduous and tropical trees and plants. These trees is in the plane tree family. Reminded me of the London, England planes we saw years ago at a park close to Buckingham Palace. The leaves look like maple leaves. (Shhh….I brought one home with me.)
Holly plant.
Lincoln is saying “helloooooooooooo”. He was trying to hear his echo. To the left of the rock path, the slope dropped off immediately—quite dangerous. The rock was slick and there were a few stumbles. We kept to the right. The view of the mountains was spectacular. Yes, there were rattle snake signs every now and again. Yes, this Grandma prayed. The kids spotted a little lizard. I’m glad it was them and not me.
“Hellooooooo,” from Jen. This hike lasted about 45 minutes. We got a work out but it was so worth it. The mountain right over Jen’s head had snow on top.
And Annie says “Hellooooo”, too.
On our way home that day, Annie drove us through vineyards and orange groves. So fun to see.
These tall skinny arborvitaes remind me of what I saw in northern Italy last summer. They were everywhere.
One of many vineyards with Spanish-style buildings. Many are B and Bs with restaurants.
Orange groves and roses. What a beautiful combo!
This photo is a little fuzzy, but you can kind of see the oranges are almost ready to pick. When I eat my oranges from Fareway, I now think about the many orange groves we drove past. Makes me enjoy them all the more.
Flying over the Grand Canyon. What a sight as the sun went down.
About to land in San Diego. I love to fly!! It’s a good thing because I plan to go back soon!
Once again I stand amazed at the beauty of this earth. And I thank God for allowing us the pleasure of this beautiful trip.
I’ll share more later.
