Day Two in Santa Monica

Yesterday we walked a couple of blocks from our hotel to the Third Street Promenade. Along with shops and restaurants, on Saturdays there’s a big farmers’ market.  We saw beautiful artichokes and other veggies, but of course, I was most taken with the flowers.

We also bought some roasted, salted walnuts from a local walnut farm that has been a family business since the early 1900s.  Delish!  Along the Promenade, these two friendly guys caught my eye:


We browsed in the big Nordstrom, then headed back to the hotel for naps. We passed the First Presbyterian Church of Santa Monica (almost across the street from our hotel), but the signage was impossible to photograph, and the church very unassuming.  

We had a lovely dinner in the Penthouse restaurant atop our hotel.  We shared a huge and delicious Caesar salad. Charlie enjoyed his scallops with housemade pasta, and I opted for the short ribs and pasta, also delicious (if not very photogenic).



For dessert we shared the profiteroles, filled with a really good ice cream and topped with chocolate ganache.

Today it has been REALLY windy. I wish I could show you the palm trees lining the streets swaying alarmingly. We tried to get out and walk, but we had to keep a hand on our caps and at times it was hard to make forward progress — no kidding!  I hope those arriving on the red carpet for tonight’s Academy Awards don’t get blown away!

I did capture a couple of photos with my dear readers in mind.

One of two succulent walls at the hotel entrance

View from our hotel room

Birds of Paradise blooming along the beach walk

The famous Santa Monica Pier

Tonight we have reservations at 1212, a place our travel agent recommended.  And tomorrow morning we’ll get picked up at 9:00 for the drive to the pier to board Navigator of the Seas. The first cruise is a short one, to Catalina Island and Ensenada, Mexico, then back to Los Angeles. The same ship will then take us to Cabo, Mazatlán, and Puerto Vallarta. Should be fun!




Comments

  1. RachelMarch 3, 2025 at 3:07 AM

    Beautiful flowers! Glad y’all are having some good meals.

    ReplyDelete
  2. JanieMarch 6, 2025 at 12:58 PM

    Love the plant wall!!

    ReplyDelete

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