Friday, September 11, 2009

Yes... It's Catalina


After a particularly stressful morning trying to get all out of the house and on the road to Long Beach to meet a helicopter (me and boats have a sad, sad chronicle) and a catamaran (wife and kids), we've made it to Santa Catalina Island. Here to attend a nephew's wedding this weekend on a tiny strip of sand along Avalon Harbor, it's the first time for the kids and I. My wife used to come regularly for work when she was at USC so we have a guide, of sorts. Important note: I've been assured by she-who-must-be-obeyed that the ceremony and reception will be over by 5 PM PDT (so we can catch the kickoff for the USC vs. Ohio State game in Columbus).

Needless to say, I had to include this particular tune. And though the old song has an interesting history, when it says 26 Miles across the sea, it's actually just under 23 (but hey, that's not very catchy and who's counting, anyway). And after being here a morning and an afternoon, I can now safely attest it's definitely a unique location and has a way more laid back atmosphere than the rest of L.A. County.





But then again, there are still those quirky SoCal touches:







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8 comments:

  1. Shoot, if I was on Catalina I'd forget the game and enjoy the island! I thought of that old song, too. Maybe there's been a lot of erosion since it came out...

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  2. Whats up with the heli, did you have an entourage? LOL
    Fly with out an airport, now thats cool.

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  3. Corey: or, it's plate tectonics drawing it closer. After prepping for (spouse is doing the flowers and coordinating this) and attending the wedding + reception, I'm really going to need some football ;-).

    HnL: [Son: "Mom... Dad looks green!"] I have absolutely no sea legs in me. None. Nada. Zilch. I can take the sea sickness pills, but they make me kinda of dopey (more than usual). The short heli ride of 15 minutes was perfect... and cool ;-).

    Thanks guys for your comments.

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  4. Oh crap! I think I need to visit Catalina the next time I come out there. Topless Tacos? That's hilarious...does that mean you get no tomatoes or what? Or maybe I don't really want to know! Ha!

    Hope you have a wonderful time!! Go Buckeyes!!

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  5. I think you'd like it, Jen. Has your sister been out to Catalina? Thanks.

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  6. Note: nephew's wedding came off great! But, only when we were setting up the reception at the restaurant did I realize that we hauled those smooth stones (for table decoration) in our luggage. I couldn't believe that! No wonder the luggage was soooo heavy.

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  7. Yay, I'm glad you made it there without turning green! I'm the opposite--have no problem with boats but the helo would've made me faint from sheer terror.

    Did you stay at the Zane Grey hotel by any chance? Since you like Westerns, I thought that might be a fun place for you, especially in picking out which room to stay in.

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  8. PCN: we stayed at the Villa Portofino Hotel which faces the tiny strip of sand along the harbor where the ceremony took place. The wedding party used their restaurant as the reception facility. Maybe next time, we'll try the Zane Grey (looks like they have some great views from their website). Thanks, Elyse.

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