Lee’s World
California and Nevada - May 2009
In May 2009 I returned to California. After a night's rest at LAX, I stopped off at Jonathan Adler's wonderful store on Melrose, and then drove up to Palm Springs to join Mark. We were going to Las Vegas for a couple of nights as guests of the Encore Resort, the new Steve Wynn resort.
We took the old desert road through Kelso and Amboy. Kelso Depot is now a visitor attraction and features an exhibition of how the town used to be like.
The Encore is a wonderfully, over-the-top, opulent hotel. It puts the others - which are not exactly short of opulence and luxury - in the shade. And it's beautifully done. The view from our suite on the 38th floor was like a film set beneath us - including a volcano and a pirate battle!
We caught the Phantom show at the Venetian Hotel and dined at Daniel Boulud, by the lake at the Wynn and Derek Burke's at the Venetian.
Palm Springs was celebrating Restaurant Week. The week didn't seem as popular as the previous year, and only one restaurant we dined at was full. The surprise of the week was Mister Parker's in the Parker Hotel - a great space and fabulous food. We'll certainly return there.
Whilst in Palm Springs we drove up to Yucca Valley to
visit a new showhome developed by Blue Sky Homes - the setting
and
the home were outstanding, although I'm not certain I would have wanted to
live with quite so much wildlife (coyotes, rattlers, etc) around me!
After a week we drove into LA to see a dire production of Dirty Dancing at Hollywood's Pantages Theatre, before seeing the diva Chita Rivera perform at the Disney Concert Hall. Memorable meals were enjoyed at Malibu Beach Inn on Carbon Beach, The Hungry Cat in Hollywood, Loteria in the Farmer's Market on Fairfax, and at Rivera, near Staples Center, Downtown.
We
spent a night on Catalina Island which whilst interesting to see, was
disappointing foodwise. The Wrigley Casino proved an interesting building
but we missed the tours which only take place once daily. Our hotel upgraded us to a very nice
suite though!
No trip for Mark and I would be complete without
searching out a building or two, and this was no exception. On our return
from Catalina, we sought out Lloyd
Wright Jnr's Wayfarers Chapel in Paso Verdes. Clearly talent ran in the
genes as it was an astounding building overlooking the sea. Well worth the
side trip. We also sought out the new Annenbergy Photographic space in
Century City.
All too soon the trip was over and time to get on a flight back to London.
Still, not long until I'm back!