USA Adventure - Fall '24

With a cold, I had a couple of days to enjoy Brandy's spacious house in the suburbs at Twin Lakes, complete with deck, hot tub, lake views and the biggest TV i've seen. Despite a temperature, I walked 20 minutes to an Antiques Centre and Thrift Shop and bought 2 more Daher Tins for my collection. I soon realised it was best to hide my Raybans and Apple Watch as by crossing Route 66 I had entered into 'The 'Hood' (as a colleague of Chris's later told him). The next day I took a bus to the nearby Mall - extremely quiet and expensive - which confirmed what I was told about the 'socio-economic' status of bus use; i.e. anyone who can't afford a vehicle, an Uber or wont pay for one like me! It was a one-time, slightly edgy experience, but I did have a nice chat with a young black man who had swapped drugs for God, had a fantastic 'jive-talk' (in addition to psychosis) and gave me some good advice about life! Under Oklahoma's  'permitless ca...

Well we have seen and heard a lot about the weather in the US, they are obsessed by it and I love Fox weather!  After having to change plans to fly to Tampa, Florida, because of Hurricane Milton (Gulf of Mexico is the hottest on record and with Hurricane Helene has proved a devastating year) and the predicted storm surge problems for Chris' colleagues, we flew instead to San Diego for 3 weeks in California. We arrived in Temecula to 35 degree dry heat, then moved to Oceanside to a lovely 21-24 degrees once the morning fog had burned away. We had mist descend during the day on our visit to Laguna Beach, which gave the place an unsettling, eerie feel before the sun came out again. The biggest change was the flight east to Oklahoma City, where the forecast was for thunderstorms, torrential rain, flooding and the odd Tornado. I was slightly worried as we were flying on a small Bombardier jet but we managed to get a gap in the weather for landing and the lady Captain gave us a fairly sm...

Chris and I felt very connected to our former military life in San Diego County. From our Oceanside balcony, we watched a US Navy vessel on exercise with Viper and Venom helicopters and Ospreys from nearby Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton. Chris flew with their helicopter Squadron in Gulf War 2 and the base is one of the largest marine training camps in the US. Watch Netflix film 'Purple Heart' if you want to see more and Oceanside (love story between a Marine and a singer that Annie told us about). Chris's company is staffed by former military personnel (from a 3-Star General downwards) and others still serve at nearby March Air Reserve Base. He is still surprised at being 'thanked for his service' over here, as in a 25-year career in the RAF, often on the front line, it didn't happen much! Veterans are revered here; even contemporary servicemen and women have their photos displayed in the park outside City Hall, Old Temecula. Veterans also have priority...

Needing a fix of plants and gardens, I encouraged Chris to head north towards Dana Point (whale and dolphin capital) and Laguna Beach (gorgeous clifftop gardens) for an aquarium visit, spot of Sunday lunch and Niguel Botanical Preserve. The aquarium was a research centre and we got to touch a horned shark, stingray, rays and sea stars This featured Mediterranean plants and others from hot climates like South Africa which could be grown sustainably in Californian gardens, with the aim of attracting pollinators like hummingbirds as well as the usual bees and butterflies. Monty Don would have been in his element, but like me, he wouldn't have been keen on preserving the Rattlesnakes. The best time to visit this area is in spring after rain  when there is a lot of colour, and not autumn when many plants die back to sustain themselves after near drought conditions over the summer. Still, I found beauty in their form and tone. Later that week I headed to San Diego Botanical Gardens ...