1996 California Vacation
In late April and early May of 1996 I was sent to California along with my supervisor (Troy) to represent
our employer at an annual software convention. I took some time after the convention concluded to explore
some of the sights in California and surrounding area. In the end I drove about 1700 miles in about a week
and enjoyed every minute of it. The area is quite different from what I am use to in Minnesota, especially
during that time of the year (when I left we had a heat wave in Minnesota and it was up to the mid 40's - I drove
through 102 degree weather in the California desert a week later).
Here is a short travelog of my adventures and some comments. Click on the small pictures nearby each day
for some pictures from the area's mentioned (warning - these pages may take some time to load due to the
graphics included).
Sunday April 28th - Arrival in California
Monday April 29th - Conference, Beach, Harbor Cruise
Tuesday April 30th - Conference, Beach, 3D Imax film
Wednesday May 1st - Conference, Beach, Night on the town
Thursday May 2nd - Conference, San Diego Zoo
Friday May 3rd - Conference, Universal Studio
Saturday May 4th - Disneyland
Sunday May 5th - San Diego (Museums, Sea World, Beaches)
Monday May 6th - Training, Drive to Las Vegas
Tuesday May 7th - Hover Dam, Grand Canyon
Wednesday May 8th - Utah, Las Vegas, back to LA
Thursday May 9th - More Beach
Friday May 10th - Return to Minnesota
Sunday April 28th
We left on Frontier Airlines in the morning and after a short stop in Denver we arrived at LAX around
noon time. Picked up our rental car (after finally getting to the correct agency-thanks Troy) and headed
down to our hotel in Newport Beach and checked in. We were staying at the Marriot Golf and Tennis
club. After checking in we went down the coast a bit exploring and found a beach to walk. This was
the first time I had 1) flown on a commercial airplane, 2) been further west than South Dakota let alone
California 3) seen an ocean (The Great Lakes just are not the same).
Monday April 29th
Cliff Stoll (author of Silicon Snake Oil) was the guest today at our conference. He did a good lecture
about his attempts to pinpoint a security breach into classified documents that resulted in an international
investigation and arrests.
After the conference concluded for the day we spent some time exploring and enjoying the beaches of
Newport Beach. Body Surfing was a new experience that I tried out. That evening we were afforded a
sunset cruise on Newport Beach Harbor.
Tuesday April 30th
Today Glee Cady from Netcom spoke with us at the conference about the importance of the Internet
and today's businesses. She has a pretty lively speech and presented some interesting facts.
After the end of the day's conference events we went to the beach again. We were then provided
the opportunity to experience the Edwards 3D IMax theater at the Spectrum Entertainment complex
which was located a few miles from where we were staying. The 3D IMax concept is truly amazing
in it's depth. Unlike the old paper colored lens glasses movies of the past this uses a high tech
computerized goggle to display different frames of the move to each eye in a blinking fashion. The
effect really works well and the movie about the nearby ocean was very good. If you have a chance
to partake of this type 3D movie check it out!
Wednesday May 1st
After the conclusion of the conference for the day we headed back to the beach again and soaked up
a few more rays. There was an open house tour of the software development company that was
hosting the conference ( Monitoring Automation Systems )
but we had a little trouble getting there. Tip from Troy - remove the rental car keys from your pocket
before you go swimming! We then spent a relaxing evening at a local eatery and enjoying the pool
and hot tub at the hotel.
Thursday May 2nd
Today was the start of the second phase of the conference where the users of the software hold their
Users Group meetings. Yesterday was the end of the Software developments meetings.
After the conclusion of today's activities Troy and myself drove down the coast to San Diego and visited
the San Diego Zoo for the afternoon, then back to Newport Beach for the night.
Friday May 3rd
Today was the last day of the Users Group meetings. After their conclusion we spent a little while on the
beach. I brought Troy back to LAX when he would be returning to Minnesota and I would get to start
the vacation portion of my trip (if I hadn't been enjoying the last 5 days). We also traded in our car (whom we
had nicknamed "Christine") for a different one. Christine had developed a tendency to turn on and
off the dome light and lock and unlock the car doors with out us doing anything. It was interesting to
drive down the road with all this happening.
After dropping off Troy I headed over to Universal Studios and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon and evening
on the tour and entertainment complex there. I was even afforded the opportunity by CBS to preview a
new possible series for the next years television line up. The show was named "Malone" about a
psychiatrist police officer. It was a Comedy/Drama show and I enjoyed it. It will be interesting to see if
it makes it on the schedule next year. Universal Studios complex includes not only the tour and rides
of the actual studio that you hear about, but also an entertainment complex with a Movie theater, Numerous
restaurants and nightclubs, and other entertainment sites all in one general location. I enjoyed a nice
dinner there at a seafood restaurant and then returned back to Newport Beach for the night.
Saturday May 4th
First I located a discount store in the area (Wal-Mart) and purchased some more film (going thru it like
crazy) and then went over to Disneyland. I've never been to it (or their other theme parks) before and
the experiences there were unique. The crowds and long waits in some of the lines were something that
I really didn't have a concept of until I actually saw them. From some of the horror stories that I had
heard however I think things went pretty well. The only line that I thought was too long and moved to
slow was the new Indiana Jones ride. It is very popular and well deserved. Even with the long line and
wait in line it is the one ride that I suggest for everyone. It was the best of the whole park in my opinion.
The lines in the other rides, although long, were not nearly as bad and did seem to move well. I also
recommend Star Tours and Space Mountain as being the other 2 top rides. I spent all day there and
tried to see just about all the place. I warn you, you can spend a lot of money there if your not careful.
You also will really wear yourself out trying to see everything. If you have the time and money try the
2 day admission price (they don't have to be 2 consecutive days) and you will have a much easier
paced day. The Main Street Parade (1996 is the last year) was very well done and a nice end to the
evening (along with the fireworks).
Sunday May 5th
Drove back down to San Diego today and visited some of the museums near the Zoo. I was not
real impressed with the Science Center and Theater. The best displays in my opinion were the fully
functional submarine periscope that went out thru the roof of the bldg, the small Star Trek prop exhibits
(why I liked that, I just don't know???), and an extensive display on the bridge that was torn apart by
winds back in the 60s. I've seen film clips of this often and it was nice to see the whole thing in one
display.
Next was the National Aerospace Museum which I found pretty interesting. There were many models
from small reproductions to full size actual aircraft on display inside and around the building. They also
had some spacecraft displays presented. All in all a very nice exhibit for anyone interested in aircraft
or aerospace.
From there I traveled back up to the north side of San Diego and visited Sea World. They have many
varied and interesting displays. I would also recommend this for anyone in the area. I watched many
of the "acts" and toured the animal displays for most of the afternoon. Give yourself time here to
see it all and expect to do some walking (or running) to get from one venue to another. The nice
thing about this park is that they give you a customized schedule upon entry that you can use to
plan your trip around the park.
After it's closing I headed up along the costal highway and stopped in at Torry Pines Beach. This
beach was a bit different from the ones that I had visited earlier in that it was narrower with cliffs and
rocks on the landward side with only 50 to 100 of beach between it and the ocean. It is however very
long. I walked the length (about 2 miles) of it (actually 2 beaches attached Torry and Black's) and
watched a beautify sunset from the seashore in the semi-rugged setting. I got back to the car long
after sunset and headed back up along the coast to Newport Beach.
Monday May 6th
I had to spend the morning in some specialized one-on-one training at our Software Supplier in Irvine,
then headed northeast into the Desert. It was hard to believe that a short while ago I thought that
45 was pretty warm (in Minnesota it is for that time of year), but here I ended up traveling thru 102 degree
weather around Barstow. I was glad that I had brought along some water and other liquids to drink. At
least it was dry and the heat was bearable.
Arrived in Las Vegas in the late afternoon and had to take a little nap I was so tired. When I woke up it
was dark and I walked The Strip. The amount of electricity that they must use there is just staggering.
The atmosphere is really charged with excitement and at the same time kind of a sinister feeling.
I was stopped many times by people wanting to hand out flyers about entertainment possibilities
there. When I got back to my motel room I decided to check the Yellow Pages out, and found over
100 pages of "entertainment" available. All I can say is that the $1.99 steak and eggs breakfast was
really good.
Tuesday May 7th
I headed out with the intention of visiting Hoover Dam and maybe getting to the very west side of the
Grand Canyon (as far as I could figure it out from the maps). I did tour the Dam and it was very
interesting. It is hard to believe that people can build something so massive in as short a time as
they did. The size of everything there is overwhelming. The area that it is located in is so desolate
and harsh looking, but at the same time so wonderful.
After checking out that area I struck out for the Grand Canyon area and ended up driving all the way
to the South Rim entrance and observation points (about twice as far as I had expected to go). Once
on the way, I just made a decision to go all the way. This was the best decision of the trip I think.
I got there about 1 to 2 hours before sunset and checked out all the unique vista's of the canyon
available from there. I felt unbelievable moved by the sights. I sat on the cliff and watched a
sunset over the canyon. I just can't describe totally my feelings on seeing the canyon, it is just so
fabulous. After sunset I drove out and around the east side and into Utah to spend the night.
Wednesday May 8th
I spent a good part of the day on the road today traveling from Utah back into Arizona, Las Vegas, and
finally back to LA area where I'm going to spend the last days of my vacation again. I went back and
spent some more time down on the beach (I really enjoy the beach at Newport Beach) before
returning for a good night sleep.
Thursday May 9th
Spent most of the early day on the beach relaxing and body surfing. I ended up one time just about
poking my head through the sand when I got flipped the wrong way by a wave. In the evening I went
back to the 3D IMax complex and saw the other show that was playing there. This one was more of
a "real" movie than the first. It was about some of the first Airmail Pilots delivering mail across the
Andes Mountains in South America. The 3D really does enhance things in the movies (when it isn't
used as a shock factor like many of the older movies had been made).
After getting back from the movie I started getting things ready for my trip back home the next day. I had
to figure out how to pack up many of the things that I had collected while I was down here and
finally decided to get a box ready and pack up a good chunk of it to mail back to myself in
Minnesota so that I would not have to carry it on the flight. There was not enough room in my luggage
for it all. I assembled most of the stuff and will seal the package and mail it off the next day after I
use the beach stuff for the last time. I don't think that I will have to much need for the beach stuff in
Minnesota for a month or more.
Friday May 10th
Spent the last day on the beach again. I'll have a pretty good tan to show off when I get home, as well
as a respectable start on a beard. I haven't shaved in a bit now. I finished packing up my stuff and
mailed that package back to Minnesota, turned in the car and boarded the flight back about 4:30
California time. I got back in Minnesota about 10:30 Central time after a short stop in Denver
again (boy is that airport big).
It was a very nice vacation, but I'm kinda glad to get back and see everyone also.
Recent activities site located on my main server
Return to George Madline Home Page
This document was created using FlexED
Last update 03/26/97
