Day 5

View from the orange tree.

Step out of the large master bedroom patio doors and this is the view, built to protect from the hot summer sun.

There is that bowl of oranges again. Since this photo was taken, we have eaten about half of them.

Thursdays in Palm Springs is the big street merchant event. About one kilometer of Palm Canyon Drive is blocked off to traffic and it becomes a pedestrian mall, four lanes wide, with every street vendor you would ever want to see. Parking was scarce but we managed to find a spot at one end of the event and then walked through to the other end and back. It was a jeans and jacket night, but actually quite pleasant with all the sights, sounds, and smells of a desert festival. The location is in old Palm Springs, a rather unique place, with a mix of old and new, and one gets the sense that there are things down here that have not changed since the days when Bob Hope first made the area famous. We thought we might go back there during the day and check out all the interesting shops and eateries. 

One is struck by the fact that the Coachella Valley, stretching from Palm Springs all the way to Indio is a huge place. It is all referred to as Palm Springs, but there are individual cities, tied together by the amazing network of roads. Speeding is the order of the day here. The roads are all a minimum of four lanes wide with double left turn lanes and U-turns allowed at almost every major intersection. We are in the middle of the valley and yet, our trip to the street fair was about a thirty mile round trip. 

It is imperative that you know where you are going before you leave. Even though the streets are well marked, because you are approaching them at breakneck speed, just to prevent road rage, you will find that you cannot read the road sign until you are past the point where you should have angled into the left turn lane. I am still trying to memorize the main drags that will take you anywhere, providing your compass is working. 

This morning we checked out the Palm desert visitor center, an awesome place, or so we were told. It is an impressive building, but there was a sign on the door saying that they had just moved to a new location. We found it without any problem, but my, my, what a downgrade. I made a comment to the staff inside and I could tell that they were depressed about it, but the city had to cut back on the tourism budget, and this little place was all they were given. (from 10,000 sq. ft. to 2,000 sq. ft.) 

We then 'cruised' Paseo Drive, where the rich and famous shop. The streets were very quiet and almost empty of shoppers. There was a booth with a well dressed young man waitng for customers. His sign read "Valet Parking", in the midst of a sea of free parking spaces, all empty. He probably had dreams of bygone years dancing in his head as he sat there watching the Honda's and Toyota's cruise by where once the Mercedes and Rolls Royce's used to drive.

We then checked out a mega mall because yours truly forgot his 'bathing attire' in the heat of the moment while packing his bags. How interesting that the area with the most swimming pools per capita in the western world would not have such things for sale in their stores in the winter. The Ralf Loren crotch covers were over the top pricey and other than those, there were none to be had. I ended up at a Nike store and bought a pair of running shorts. This should be interesting, but I assure you, all comers will be checked for cameras before entering the danger zone. 

Then it was major grocery shopping. Albertson's likes us and we like them. We got a member card and are saving enough money to finance our trip home. Besides, they let us pay with our Visa. 

We came 'home' to the sound of a burner in the back yard and discovered in our absence that the pool people have got the heater going on the pool and hot tub. It is overcast and a cool 65 F so I might be soon trying out that item I purchased today, while there are no spectators around.  

Photos of the inside of our house next time.