Alcatraz

Turns out to be one of my favorite places we toured! On the boat ride over we got some historical background information.

• Known as "The Rock"
• Approximately 1 1/2 miles to the nearest shoreline
• In its 29 year period, there were 14 escape attempts made by 36 prisoners, all unsuccessful
• The most violent escapes led to what is known as the Battle of Alcatraz
• Average length of stay at Alcatraz was 9 years
• There were never any female guards or prisoners
• It is said that those who died at Alcatraz still haunt the place. Reports of men screaming, whistling, talking and cell doors closing are believed to have been heard. (We heard none of these! Except on the audio tape and it was supposed to be there!)

As we arrived, we were escorted up several inclines to the prison that was about a quarter of a mile uphill! Once there, we were given headphones and an audio device. You were then on your own to follow the audio tour. It was quite interesting because the audio was narrated by ex-prison guards and prisoners. They explained the prison rules, procedures, and schedules  as we went from cell blocks to rooms. Throughout the tour you could hear the background noises as if you were there in a working prison; phones ringing, cell doors slamming, sirens, and prisoners talking.  You really got a feel of what it was like to be there.

It was said if you broke the law you went to prison, and if you broke the law in prison you went to Alcatraz!

One of the most famous escapes from Alacatraz was by 3 inmates, two of whom were brothers.  It was a very complex plan that required the making of life like dummy heads they placed in their beds, a raft made of over 50 raincoats that were donated or stolen from other prisoners. It is believed the men probably perished in the waters between the prison and the shore. Their bodies were not recovered.

Presidio of San Francisco

The Presidio sits near the base of the Golden Gate Bridge. It has been there for over 200 years where it has been a military post for three nations. First established by the Spanish, it was then taken over by Mexican rule for 24 years before being taken over by the U.S. Army.

Interestingly the Presidio has at least 21 neighborhoods (we saw a few), each with architectural influence from each war period. As the guide said, "When does the Army have money to spend on housing? When there is a war and an influx of enrollment." So every time this happened the architecture reflected the popularity of the period.

In 1994, the post closed and it became part of the Golden Gate National Recreational Area.

The Exploratorium

The Exploratorium where adults can be kids again! It is a museum of science, art, and human perception.  Lots of interesting things to do and all hands on!

Beam me up Scotty!!

Palace of Fine Arts

The Palace of Fine Arts was beautiful! Unfortunately, I did not bring a jacket and it was miserably cold!

The Palace was first constructed to be used in the 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition located in the Marina District! It was designed so there was a place to display certain arts! It is one of only a few structures that are still in existence from the Exposition. There is a miniature replica of it at Disney's California Adventure in Anaheim.

Inglenook Winery

Very beautiful country!!

Originally purchased by Gustav Niebaum, a sea captain, the vineyard was named Inglenook. He wanted to produce wines as great as those internationally. He even got clippings from famous overseas vineyards. His wine was a success! At the onset of prohibition, his nephew ran the business. Prohibition did not stop them. They were able to sell their grapes to the next door neighbor who created sacramental wines. The use of sacramental wines went up 140% during prohibition. Later Francis "Frank" Coppola purchased Inglenook under the name of Niebaum-Coppola, but was able to restore the name to Inglenook in 2011. 

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The vineyard is stunningly beautiful and houses a collection of illuminators on the second floor. There is also a 1949 Tucker, only 51 made in the world. Quite the car before its time!

Sonoma Plaza

This is where the California Republic took place, also known as the Bear Flag Revolt. A group of American settlers in 1846 decided to declare independence from Mexico! This revolt lasted 26 days, and then American soldiers arrived to occupy the place.

Muir Woods

What a beautiful forest! It is actually a rainforest. These coastal redwoods grow in a thin 500 mile strip of the Pacific Coast highway. They require from 300 to 500 gallons of water a day. In the non-rainy season, the trees rely on the fog and their roots to maintain this need.

They grow as tall as 380 feet, and the bark can be as thick as 12 inches at the base. This acts as a protectant from fire, disease, and bugs. The trees drop dormant seeds around itself in what is called the 'family circle'.  When the tree dies out for any reason, it is surrounded by the growing trees from these dormant seeds. 

17-Mile Drive

The 17-mile drive is believed to be one of the most scenic drives in the world. Winding along the Pacific Coast, it holds many attractions. We were not able to stop at all of them, but we did stop at a few!


There are a total of 21 highlighted sights to see along the path which also winds around the Pebble Beach Golf Course!








Our first stop was the beach! What a beautiful shoreline!! There were lots of waves this day, but the sun was beautiful and the water was cold!

Our first stop was Bird Rock which is located at Carmel Canyon, part of the Monterrey Canyon. In 1992, it became a sanctuary, the Monterrey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. When we first pulled up I saw the name Bird Rock and looked out over the water at a large rock and thought, "Wow, what a bunch of birds!" As I got off the bus I realized those were not birds but sea lions! You could hear them barking all the way to the shoreline. It is hard to see in the picture below, but there must have been 100's of sea lions covering the top of this!

While at bird rock, we noticed small animals coming out from the rock embankment.  Some actually came right up to us and begged! Others just sat there while we took pictures.  I noticed a sign that said "do not feed squirrels, deer, and birds". So this had to be the squirrels!

 Next we passed the Pebble Beach golf course!

Our last major stop in this 17-mile trek was a tree called the Lone Cypress. It is a Monterrey Cypress!

Hearst Castle

Hearst excelled at journalism in college, so when his father gained a newspaper as payment for a gambling debt, he persuaded his father to turn it over to him. This began a successful career in the newspaper business. Shortly after he acquired the New York Journal, and at the height of his career he owned 24 successful newspapers. He also began a line of magazines currently known as Hearst Magazines.

A try at politics was a short success, so he then ventured into radio and film. He was a serious producer of movie newsreels. He is also credited with creating the comic strip syndication business. King Features Syndicate is still today the largest distributor of comics in the world.

I have discovered lots of interesting stories as I researched Hearst Castle.  Just recently on the news was a story about Hearst and “Citizen Kane”. It appears the Hearst was offended by the movie and refused to advertise it in any of his newspapers.  The movie, “Citizen Kane” is the unflattering portrait of a character resembling Hearst, a sensationalistic newspaper tycoon with political ambitions, a young mistress in show business, a jaw-dropping mansion and an insatiable zeal for collecting art”.  A showing of the movie at Hearst Castle was arranged in March 2012 to end this idea. Hearst’s great-grandson claims the event will present the film as a work of fiction rather than as a documentary about the life of Hearst. “It’s a great opportunity to draw a clear distinction between W.R. and Orson Welles, between the medieval, gloomy-looking castle shown in ‘Citizen Kane’ and the light, beautiful architecturally superior reality”.

Wow is the appropriate term for describing Hearst Castle! The second largest castle in the United States, and exceptionally beautiful! Hearst decided to build his “castle” on what was the family camping site at their ranch when he was young. He told his architect, Julia Morgan,  that he wanted something a little nicer than a tent. It took approximately 28 years to create what is there now. The architect, from San Francisco was chosen because she had studied in Europe and studied concrete reinforced structure which was important for a home in California (which was put to the test in 2003 with a quake that registered 6.5 on the Richter Scale).  After 28 years, the structure was said by Hearst to be only half way through. 

The ride up the mountain to the castle was quite an entertaining ride, as Alex Trebeck, describes the workings of the ranch as it was and is now. The area surrounding the castle is considered the ranch.

Everyone in our group was scheduled to take the Grand Tour, but then we had an option for the second tour. I chose the Kitchen & Cottages tour and was not disappointed! We started in the wine cellar which was very large. It was interesting that Hearst believed it okay to partake but not to overindulge.  If you did you were not invited back. What his friends did not understand was that he was trying to protect his girlfriend, Marion Davies who bordered on being an alcoholic.

Next we proceeded to what was considered the “small” cottage. As we entered, we saw them repairing a statue with broken fingers. It was primarily for guests and had 4 bedrooms. Hearst believed that each individual should have their own bathroom so throughout the house there is one attached to each bedroom.  The view from this is beautiful! This is the cottage Winston Churchill stayed in when he visited and Bob Hope and his wife stayed in during their honeymoon.

Small Cottage

Our next stop was the cottage that Hearst himself eventually moved into and stayed in until his heart attack, where he then decided to move closer to a hospital.  It had one of the most beautiful views of all the cottages! Looking out towards the ocean it was breathtaking! The cottages had lots of antiquities and influence from Spain and Italy.

Then we went to the kitchen! Every woman’s dream would be to have a large kitchen like this, well that is if they like to cook. There was a very large prep area, with a kitchen behind it.  Everything in the house was fully electric, and the kitchen was no exception.

Our next tour was the Great Rooms tour but we had about 20 minutes so we explored on our own and found the Neptune Pool! What a glamorous inviting place to swim! The grounds were exceptionally beautiful

The Great Rooms included a formal living room, a dining room, and the movie room. The living room was a combination of influences from Spain, Italy, and France.

The dining area has hosted meals to such celebrities as Clark Gable, Charlie Chaplin, Joan Crawford, George Bernard Shaw, Calvin Coolidge, Cary Grant, and Amelia Earhart.

For entertainment there was the billiard room and the movie room. Lots of entertaining took place in these rooms. In them movie room, it could be a movie produced by Hearst or possibly a movie one of the guests starred in. However, it would NOT have been the movie Citizen Cane.

The final stop before getting on the bus was the Roman Pool. It was an indoor pool below the tennis courts.  Another awe inspiring creation!

We finished our visit there by having lunch in which the beef came from the ranch itself!

Mission Santa Barbara

A Little History
Fondly and affectionately referred to as the "Queen of Missions"! Over 220 years old, the mission was the 10th mission built by Spanish Franciscans in the 1700's. The present church was built and dedicated in 1820. Prior to that three adobe churches were built, the last one falling to an earthquake. 

Our Very Cool Experience

Mission Santa Barbara was so much more than I ever expected! We arrived and were immediately taken to the garden area, and when I say garden, I mean a real fruit and vegetable producing garden. All of the plants in the garden were all “introduced plants” that were brought in to California. We were divided into groups and sent in three different directions.

We were introduced to some prickly pear cactus and all of the many things they used them for. Of course we were all amazed at one thing in particular! Sometimes the cactus gets this white stuff on it. It is actually left behind by beetles (one guide told their group it was beetle poop?) Many cactus owners wash it off, but it has some value! When wiped off and squished it contains a deep reddish dye. It was actually used in to dye the “Redcoats” clothing.  She also told us that the Passion Tea Lemonade from Starbucks was actually colored from this when it first came out, but after complaints they have now switched to a red dye.  Hmmm….organic to chemical now?

My group toured the garden and learned about the different fruit bearing trees and some of the vegetables grown. Best part of this was that we actually got to taste some of these! We had Ana apple slices which have no core and when cut looks like a star inside, mini bananas (ABSOLUTELY the BEST), orange slices, popcorn (picked from the corn patch and popped for us!), zucchini muffins that one of the ladies had made, and guava jam.

Our next stop was on a little hill over the garden where we were introduced to many different plants including some herbs. I have to admit, it smelled very good here! Apparently the bees thought so too because they were out in number as well! Our guide, and her sweet granddaughter who was helping, displayed a type of reed that was picked and woven together to make houses. We laughed as she told us that when the house got dirty they could just burn it down because it only took them a day to build the cone shaped structure! She also discussed the use of the abalone shells. We each got to pick one to take with us. They are very beautiful!

My group’s last stop was with a guide named Abby. She was quite a character! She took us back through the garden where we learned about plants and seeding. On our trip through we each picked a stalk of wheat and then some learned how to use a rock to free the seeds and separate them from the chaff. The seeds where then ground into a rough flour. 

This area next to the mission was inhabited by the Chumash Indians. They know through carbon dating that these Indians existed as long ago as 12, 000 years!

We then began our tour of the actual working mission. We had to walk quietly to our first stop, as we were passing by the Friars living quarters. The gardens in the mission were absolutely beautiful! There were stunning, vibrant flowers, and interesting cactus.

One of the most interesting places was the actual church. Designed very symmetrically, if there was a door on one side there was another across from it and same with pictures and designs. It only varied in a few places and those meant they were not original to the building.  There is actually a crypt under the church. Those whose remains are within are listed on some panels on the floor that cover the entrance.  The first Bishop of California, Fray Francisco Garcia Diego y Moreno, did not want to be placed in the crypt or in one of the vaults. He has a special place in the wall at the front right of the altar. Since this is a working mission, they hold services regularly. 

Remember the book, Island of the Blue Dolphins? This was a story of about a young girl who was stranded on an island off the California coast. It is based on the true story of Juana Maria, an Indian left alone for 18 years on San Nicolas Island.  The mission is where Juana Maria's remains were brought.  They have a plaque in honor of this.

The cemetery was beautiful and had a Mission Fig tree in the middle that was hundreds of years old. It was absolutely beautiful. They have actually remodeled their vaults recently. We saw what the old ones originally looked like and then saw the new ones.

We then toured the museum and saw artifacts. One really interesting piece was a stool made from a whale’s vertebrate. These Indians were not whale hunters but if one washed up on shore they knew what to do with it!

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Hollywood to President: Ronald Reagan Library

"I know in my heart that man is good, that what is right will always eventually triumph and there is purpose and worth to each and every life." ~ Ronald Wison Reagan

A Little History

Ronald Reagan was the President that symbolized the average American boy making it to the White House. After majoring in economics and sociology in college, he began his career as a sports broadcaster for a local radio station. He then joined the Army where he was approached by a Warner Bros. agent thus starting his acting career. During WWII he was called for active duty where he was assigned to the First Motion Picture Unit, and made over 400 training films. He returned to Hollywood where he continued making films for the next 20 years. He then becomes the Governor of California, which eventually led to his running for President. As President he held two consecutive terms.

Accomplishments and highlights of his career:

• Strengthened the nation’s economy by reducing inflation, increasing employment and cutting taxes
• He was instrumental in appointing the first female Supreme Court Justice, Sandra Day O’Connor
• Started a war against drugs
• His economic policies started in 1981 are known as Reaganomics
• Increased defense spending and built up the military
• Encouraged new defense technology
• His presidency is often known as Reagan Revolution as it caused political re-alignment
• Many attribute the fall of the Iron Curtain to Reagan led to the end of the Cold War

Our Experience

I think the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library has become one of my favorite Presidential Libraries, as well as my colleagues after listening to them talk about it! We arrived and had a 2 hour Professional Development. It was one of the most interesting PD’s, and we were given binders and CD’s full of materials and information to use in classrooms. We had an awesome instructor named Mira Cohen, the director of education at the library! 

We were then treated to a “Jelly Bean” tour! If you know anything about Reagan, you know he loved jelly beans. We each received an iPod, headphones, and were placed with a docent. The iPod had an app on it that when given the code by the docent we would put it. This code would be a series of colors and we would touch the jelly beans of those colors to get a question about an exhibit or to watch a movie on the iPod and then answer. You earned jelly beans for answering which then created a picture of Reagan.

Air Force One #2700 is housed at the museum. When it was retired, Reagan had the more miles on it than any other President.  We were allowed to tour it but not take pictures inside. The wing that holds Air Force One has Texas ties! T. Boone Pickens was the financial support of this wing.

When they built the oval office replica in the museum, Reagan visited and said there was something wrong with it. Sure enough it was 3 feet too short, so they had to dig out the floor area to get it to the necessary size.

Reagan’s burial spot is really a crypt. There are 4 sidewalk panels that are slightly newer looking than the others.  These cover the door that leads to the crypt.

The grounds surrounding the Reagan library are spectacular as is the view from there too. It was pretty foggy when we first arrived that morning, but began clearing as we left. The gardens were funded by Merv Griffin, actor and close friend of the President.

Griffith Observatory

Griffith was a man who desired great things for his home, Los Angeles. During a trip abroad, he saw great public parks. He decided that in order for his home to be considered a great city, it would need a “Great Park”. He donated over 3,000 acres to the city in which to create a public park. “It must be made a place of rest and relaxation for the masses, a resort for the rank and file, for the plain people, “ Griffith said, “I consider it my obligation to make Los Angeles a happy, cleaner and finer city.”  

So not surprisingly, after visiting the newly built research observatory on Mount Wilson in 1904, Griffith was described by a friend, “The experience moved him profoundly - a distant, heavenly body suddenly being brought so close and made so real!” He also quotes Griffith as saying, “Man’s sense of values ought to be revised. If all mankind could look through that telescope, it would change the world!” He then offered the city of Los Angeles $100,000 to build an observatory on top of Mount Hollywood.

We arrived at 9:30 in the evening and the observatory closed at 10 pm, so we had just a short time there! However, what we saw was very interesting.

On a personal note, I love the scales at the Observatory! That is the scales of Pluto! For every planet there is a scale you can step on to determine your weight. Pluto says I only weigh 3 pounds! Here is proof, because I know some would find that hard to believe!! Hahahaha!!

Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust

“Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust (LAMH) is the oldest Holocaust museum in the United States.  In 1961 at Hollywood High School, a group of Survivors taking English as a Second Language classes found one another and shared their experiences.  They discovered that each of them had a photograph, concentration camp uniform, or other precious primary source object from the Holocaust era.  They decided that these artifacts needed a permanent home where they could be displayed safely and in perpetuity.  They also wanted a place to memorialize their dead and help to educate the world so that no one would ever forget.  Some of these founding Survivors remain active on the LAMH Board of Directors today.” ~ Museum of the Holocaust, Los Angeles

Michele was our guide at the museum. She was so very interesting, and you could hear the compassion in her voice at the wrongs that had been done.  She has a personal interest in the holocaust because her mother was was a preteen during this time! She was part of the Kindertransport and sent to live with friends who were from Switzerland. She never saw her parents again. 

Michele pointing to a picture of her mother in the museum!

The museum went in a chronological order of how things happened. 

One display is the boxcar replica we were asked to go sit in. During WWII, Jewish families thought they were being moved to safe places when in reality they were being taken to death camps. There were pictures of them loading the boxcars smiling. Cramped tight in the cars, they soon realized that freedom was not to be theirs.

There were many touching displays at the museum.

There was a display that all of the teachers loved! Interactive and very interesting! It was like a SmartTable. There were thousands of pictures floating around, you touched and dragged one to the edge of the screen and information came up in regards to the picture. Very fun! Of course, now they all want one!

One of the most touching scenes was the Children's Memorial. This is a special place outside and when you enter you notice the holes in the wall. Some of the holes are small, some medium, and some kind of large. Small pieces of paper sticking out of some of the holes immediately catch your eye. In the middle of this area is a small box with some slips of paper and pencils in it. There were 1 1/2 million children killed during WWII, and the holes in the walls represent them. The slips of paper in the box have names of children and you are to pick one out, write a message on the back, and place it in one of the holes in memory of them. 

The Man and The Villa

The Getty Villa

I try to keep my posts short, but there is so much interesting information to share! The Getty Villa is as interesting and unique as the man whom it is named after. Some interesting history about both:

The Man

Working as a “roustabout” in his father’s oil business, attending colleges in California and England, and touring Europe all shaped the man J. Paul Getty would become.  After striking it rich in his own oil business at the age of 24 in 1916, he decided to retire to Los Angeles as a wealthy bachelor. This did not last long. He was back expanding the business and in 1957 Fortune magazine listed him as the richest man in America. The public was fascinated by him. He was known by many as being a miser. Could it be because he put a pay phone in his house for guests and employees to use? Maybe they thought this when his grandson was kidnapped and a ransom of 3.2 million dollars was requested? Which he refused to pay. After 3 months of holding the 16 year old captive, the kidnappers cut off his ear and sent it to a newspaper. Eventually (after 5 months), J. Paul Getty paid 2.2 million of the ransom (the largest tax deductible amount he could pay) and then he loaned his son the rest of the ransom money at a 4% interest! The money he saved by being miserly was spent freely on art and architecture.

The Villa

The Getty Villa is a replica of the Villa of Papyri. Once a house in Herculaneum, near Naples.  Historians believe that it may once have belonged to Julius Caesar’s father-in-law, Lucius Calpunius Piso. Completely covered by lava in the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79, parts of it have been excavated. J. Paul Getty, though living in England, was very active in the construction of the Getty Villa. Unfortunately, he died before ever getting to see it.

HIs art collection began in the 1930’s. J. Paul Getty believed art to be “a civilizing influence in society”, and strongly felt it should be available to the public for enjoyment and education. He originally opened his ranch house as a small museum a few afternoons a week, and eventually built the Getty Villa which houses the art now. Most of the art were Greek and Roman antiquities with some French furniture and European paintings.

Our Experience!

Stunningly beautiful!!! Art dating back as far as 4000 B.C., gardens that were absolutely breath taking, and architecture that left you in awe! The detail in their pottery and jewelry was absolutely incredible. 

The gardens were unique in that they held lots of unique and rare plants! The featured display was on Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take pictures in that display. I am hoping that some of our teachers will comment on this with their favorite sites from the museum!

Just Drivin' LA

I have to share some of the sights and sounds from our trip around LA yesterday to and from some of the places we visited! They were awesome! And yes...we definitely acted like tourists! It was quite amusing as we approached an icon of LA and someone would say, "Oh, look! There is ..." and then simultaneously you could see all these arms with cameras attached going up! With a little music we would look similar to a synchronized swim meet!

Apparently it is significantly cheaper to pay "cash" for your gas here!

Hard to see, but this is the Hollywood walk of fame on Sunset Blvd. 

Yes, that is someone posed as Johnny Depp on the left, and we saw some other

"characters"! Charlie Chan was one of them!

The Hollywood sign......at a distance! Hard to see!

Vroooom!!! Planes of Fame

Still having trouble with pictures! Will try to post more tomorrow!

Jim and Jurrie

Truthfully, I was not sure what to expect here. However, it was quite interesting! I have to give a lot of credit to the tour guides. Again we were separated into two groups – Jim and Jurrie (pronounce ur-e)! I had the latter and he was quite the character! Before retirement he worked for NASA for 30 years, and prior to that he was in the Royal Air fleet and flew for the Queen of the Netherlands.  He had stories for many of the planes we saw, some were personal, like the time a bomb skidded along the ground beside him as a young boy and he turned tail and ran for his life! With a slight accent and lots of colorful words (not bad, just unusual) he portrayed tales that had us laughing! 


There are several different hangers we explored.  They housed WWI, WWII, and Naval aircraft. We also toured the hanger where the restoration of these planes takes place. All planes are running and flyable planes!