The month of March graces us with a visit by dear friends from
Vietnam. Since this visit is their first to the United States, my wife & I
want to expose them to the richness and diversity of this country, especially
of Arizona and the Southwest.
We depart from Phoenix and its surrounding desert by car for San
Francisco, with an overnight stay in Los Angeles. Along the way, we plan to
introduce our friends to American "street food", such as the infamous
hamburger and hot dog, as well as a myriad of other cuisines, from Italian to
Mexican, which make up the pot of fondue making up America. As we approach Los Angeles, we are hit by
torrential rain. So in the short span of
a few hours, our friends experience the dryness of the desert and the wetness
of a thunderstorm.
Our drive to San Francisco along the Pacific Coast Highway
(California 1) includes stops along the way to take in the natural beauty of
this region. Unfortunately, the cold temperature and the high wind lessen this
pleasure.
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| California Coast Line. |
We arrive at our rental condominium in San Francisco just before
midnight. Its location is at the top of a hill giving us a breathtaking view of
the city below. We thoroughly enjoy our stay in this City by the Bay, as we
visit the Golden Gate Bridge and other landmarks.
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| San Francisco at dawn. |
Of course, no visit to the
Bay area is complete without tasting the clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl
and a drive down Lombard Street - the "Crookediest Street" in the
World. Both my Vietnamese friend and my
daughter handle this challenge with flying colors. Also on one such outing, we
have a chance encounter with a handsome dog at a café in beautiful Sausalito.
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| A dog at a cafe in Sausalito, CA. |
Our return to Los Angeles begins after a brief stop in Monterey.
Again high wind and low temperature make the enjoyment of this scenic area
difficult.
After a good night's rest, we visit to Universal Studio Hollywood.
We thoroughly enjoy our time with our friends at this theme park. We also stop
by the Walt Disney Concert Hall near downtown Los Angeles.
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| Dinosaur at Universal Studio Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA. |
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| Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, CA. |
After Los Angeles, we head further south to San Diego. Another dear
friend and his gracious wife welcome us all into their beautiful home. We have
a great time visiting the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.
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| Golden Eagle at San Diego Zoo Safari Park. |
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| Lion at San Diego Zoo Safari Park. |
We
truly have a very pleasant time with friends. And a lot of pictures are taken during our friends' stay in the United
States. But only a handful of photos are generic enough for publication.
As always, your valuable comments & critiques are welcome. Thank you for visiting.
Paul
