The Silent "I"

Renaissance Esmeralda Resort & Spa: A Desert Oasis

If you're looking for a true oasis in the desert, with luxury spa, swimming pool complex that includes a mini-beach for the kids, and an excellent restaurant, the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort & Spa in Indian Wells, California is the place for you.  Thanks to Klout Perks, we were fortunate enough to spend the night in this luxury resort, and enjoyed every minute of our brief stay here.  We booked a special rate that included a "Kids Eat Free" promotion. We enjoyed two meals at the Cava Restaurant, with their fresh, well-prepared menu items and well-stocked buffets.

After driving all day into the wilds of Southern California and Los Angeles, we finally made it to Palm Springs on our Holiday Road Trip 2011. We passed through the glittering lights of swanky downtown Palm Springs, home of movie stars, golf courses, and Sonny Bono, and ventured a bit further to Indian Wells and the Renaissance Esmeralda.  The lobby decor was tastefully simple, and I liked the display of candles in the entryway. The Renaissance Esmeralda was the exact counterpoint to the glitzy, over-the-top Madonna Inn we stayed in the night before.

Our room overlooked the massive swimming pool, with a view of the mountains in the distance.  The room was decorated with clean simple lines in muted desert tones. The beds were comfortable, with plenty of soft, cushy pillows. We had a small balcony overlooking the pool area, and in the morning, could see the mountains off in the distance.

The hotel did not seem terribly busy, so the pool was empty most of the time we were there.  It is heated year round, but the chilly air probably kept most of the guests at bay.  Our son, who must have been raised by dolphins in a past life, is never deterred by a little cold when it comes to swimming.  He insisted on trying it out the night we arrived.  He was particularly fond of the little sand beach, a great place to build a sandcastle.

Renaissance Hotels are part of the Marriott chain, but on of the higher-end of the spectrum.  Even so, the price for a night was only $129, including free meals for kids with the purchase of an adult entree.  There is a separate resort fee of $25 that covers parking, internet access and other amenities. The prices vary from $99 to $329/night depending on the season and check-in dates.

Alex was so enchanted with the place he asked,"Can we come back here and stay for a week?"

I was inclined to agree with him, and would love to go back and check out the Spa and other restaurants, and see more of what the Palm Springs area has to offer.

Disclosure: Thanks to Klout for sharing a $200 gift card with us from Renaissance Hotels as a Klout Perk. I received no other compensation or incentive to write this post.  All opinions expressed herein are my own, and do not necessarily reflect those of Klout, Renaissance Hotels, or Marriott.

Funky, Cool Madonna (Inn)

Driving on Highway 101 from Los Angeles to San Francisco, there is an unmistakable midway-point that every frequent traveler knows: The Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo.  The glowing neon sign, complete with animated horse-drawn stage coach, beckons weary travelers into a giant themepark of a hotel, where each of the 109 rooms is unique. If you love Americana, kitsch and funky decor, this place is a must-see.

We're on the road again, this time on a holiday road trip to visit family in Texas. When plotting our course, Frank asked me what stops along the way would be on my wishlist, and the first thing that came to mind was the Madonna Inn.  I have seen the neon sign and the sprawling property from the highway on a number of trips, and heard that some of the rooms featured showers shaped like rock waterfalls. I knew I had to stay there someday.

The Madonna Inn has been a mainstay of California hospitality since the late 1950's, when Alex and Phyllis Madonna opened a 12-room inn. Alex was an architect and Phyllis was an interior designer and the two of them had a vision of a new kind of hotel that featured a different decor in every room, on a larger scale than a traditional bed and breakfast.  The Inn expanded over the years as it became a popular venue for weddings, parties, and honeymooners, and became an attraction unto itself.  I have wanted to go there for years, and finally had my chance.

When my trusty travel agent (aka my husband Frank) tried to book a waterfall room, he was informed that these rooms only have single king beds. Since we're traveling with a child, we had to choose a double room due to their "no rollaway policy."  We opted instead for the España Room, having no idea what we were getting into. It sounded vaguely European, and being adventurous sorts, we went for it.  Frank read a bunch of bad reports on a certain travel website that I can't stand, but I convinced him that one night would not kill us.  Frank told our 11 year old son Alex that the place was allegedly haunted. Alex was expecting a Ghost Hunters type of adventure, and was ready to film it, should anything go bump in the night.

Upon arrival, the first thing Alex asked the desk clerk was, "Is this place haunted?" 

She seemed a little startled by this question, and abruptly answered, "No." 

Alex was crestfallen. I told her he was looking forward to seeing a ghost or two, and she said, "Well, I haven't seen any, but who knows? Maybe Mr. Madonna is hanging around somewhere." 

Encouraged by the possibility, Alex perked up and set out to find a bathroom while we checked in. There were a number of loud Christmas parties and a quicenera going on in the restaurants, and when he returned, he was elated and told us, "There is a bathroom AND a dance party going on down there!" He didn't see any ghosts, but teenagers doing the Dougie was way more fun.

The España Room was everything I imagined it to be, and more. If the name "España" evokes bullfighters, flamenco dancers, and Spanish style furniture from the 1950s, then this room is for you. The room features two very spacious bedrooms, and a bathroom with a large outer dressing room. While the bathroom did not have a rock waterfall, it was adorned with black, white, and teal tile that looked like something used for infant brain stimulation, and a gilded sink that looked like it was stolen from Elvis' boudoir.  The toilet was the only non-Spanish themed piece in the rooms; instead, it a was a fancy Japanese Toto toilet with a heated seat and bidet.  I almost expected it to play flamenco music when I sat on it, but it was remarkably silent.  I was overcome by the urge to do the Paso Doble on the faux-parquet linoleum.

All of the furniture was ornately carved, and the window shutters featured a stained glass that made the room glow pink in the morning light. The walls were painted to look like stucco, with trompe l'oeil exposed brick in parts, to give it that "old world" feel, I suppose. I particularly liked the bullfighter painting in the bedroom, and the big resin bull statue by the bed.

Alex and Frank ventured out into the chilly night to the pool, which is heated year-round and has an adjacent jacuzzi.  They returned and Frank, the skeptic in all this, declared it "delightful."  We were sold.

Alex did not see any ghosts at the Madonna Inn, so he settle for a marathon of Ghost Adventures on the Travel Channel. My only complaint about the room was that the bed was not terribly comfortable, so I tossed and turned a great deal and could not get comfortable. He complained the next day that I was grinding my teeth like a chainsaw and was moaning and groaning all night... 

Or was I?

We enjoyed our stay at the Madonna Inn, but I will warn you that a night in one of their themed rooms is not cheap, ranging in price from $179 to over $500.  It's a fun place to stopover on a family trip, and if you have time, there are several restaurants and spa services available.  The grounds overlook the mountains and a large fenced-in farm next door.  It is definately worth the price, for a little bit of fun California history in a lovely setting.

The Madonna Inn is located at 100 Madonna Road, San Luis Obispo, California, just off Highway 101. For reservations call (800) 543-9666.

 

 

The Road to Hana is Paved with Good Intentions

The Road to Hana is a legendary stretch of road through the northeast coast of Maui, through lush tropical forests and along the jagged, rocky coast of the island.  It is probably one of the most beautiful roads in the world.  While only about 50 miles from Kahalui, it takes about three hours to make it to the town of Hana, because of the many twists and turns and 46 one-lane bridges you have to cross to get there.  Count in carloads of tourists stopping to take photos every mile or so, and you have yourself a day trip.

On our trip to Maui, we decided to explore this famous highway, and see what we could find at the end of the road. We had some Dramamine along for our motion-sickness prone boy, and for the first half of the trip, he was just fine.

The highway is probably one of the greenest roads I've ever been on.  In parts where a light tropical rain was falling, it looked almost neon.  We slowed down in a stretch of bamboo forest that seemed like it could glow in the dark.  I half expected Po from Kung Fu Panda to come bounding down the mountainside, snacking on some delectible bamboo treats (and yes, I do know there are no pandas in Hawaii, kung fu masters or not).

When the warm tropical rain started to fall, all I could see out my window was a soft, green blur.  In some parts, we hugged the mountainside and could see the ocean stretched out below us, like a misty blue blanket. When the rain cleared, we found ourselves looking out over a green valley and some gorgeous blue water below.

Greetings from Maui: Surf's Up

We're in Maui this week, staying at the Westin Ka'anapali Ocean Resort Villas, on a long-overdue family vacation. We were supposed to come here in June, but Frank was not fully recovered after having open heart surgery in March.  Frank and I visited Maui about twelve years ago, before Alex came along, so this was Alex's first visit to Maui.  He's been to Kauai four times, and Oahu a few times, but never to magical, mystical Maui.

On arrival, Alex picked up just about every brochure the concierge had to offer. He promptly decided that he wanted to try surfing, parasailing, ziplining, and extreme hula. He was disappointed to learn that: a) his parents are not made of money; and b) are old fogies who like to just lounge around on the beach with rum drinks in hand.  He was also disappointed to learn that he had to have a parent with him if he wanted to plunge to his death on the jungle floor on a zipline or into the depths of the Pacific from a parasail. It's hard out there for a kid.

After much pressure of the sulking variety, we opted for surfing lessons.  The concierge cheerfully arranged for the lessons with a local shop called Outrageous Surf on Front Street in Lahaina at a discounted price. Alex agreed not to mention the words "parasailing" or "zipling" again for at least fifteen minutes after the lesson. We had a deal.

We arrived as instructed at 10:30 am for an 11:00 lesson, forgetting that nobody is ever on time for anything in the entire state of Hawaii.  Slowly, other intrepid surf-bum wannabes trickled in, including an Italian family who informed the shop manager that their combined surfing skills were "less than level 0." 

The shop manager assured them that they could teach anyone, which got a big eyeroll from Alex, who said, "I think I'm going to be the only person who ever surfed before in this class," and yawned.  By "surfed before" he meant the one time in Kauai when he managed to stand up once and declared himself ready for the Mavericks competition.

The shopped filled up quickly around 11:00, and Frank and I were shooed out and given beach chairs to hang out on the beach to wait for the surfers to arrive.  The shop had a small truck that they loaded surf boards onto while the students watched a safety video.  Frank and I decided to have a snack at Maui Swiss Cafe, a small ice cream and pastry shop next door with pink umbrellas.  Who knew that you could get homemade crepes in Maui? Not us, that's for sure. We ate some freshly baked mango and banana bread, then strolled down to the beach to watch the surfers.

San Francisco Chinatown: Fun Things to Do on a Budget

One of my favorite movie musicals as a child was Rogers & Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song, mainly because it was the first movie I ever saw that had Asian and Asian-American actors in leading roles. It didn't matter to me that the plot was ridiculous or that some of the actors weren't even Chinese (or even Asian in some cases).  I just remember being proud of the fact that people who somewhat resembled people in my family had made it to the big screen. 

One of the most memorable songs was the song called "Grant Avenue".

A western street with eastern manners,
Tall pagodas and golden banners
Throw their shadows through the lantern glow.

You can shop for precious jade
or teakwood tables or silk brocade
Or see a bold and brassy night club show,
On the most exciting thoroughfare I know.

We call it
Grant Avenue, San Francisco,
California, U.S.A.
Looks down from Chinatown
Over a foggy bay.

I had this romantic notion of San Francisco's Chinatown as a child.  I thought of it as an exotic, bustling thoroughfare of commerce and cable cars in the town where they invented Rice-a-Roni, quite possibly on Grant Avenue itself.  I think I made up that last part, but it made sense to me, since that was all I knew of San Francisco as a kid in Ohio in the 1960's was what I saw on television.  When I was about five, I used to stomp around the house singing "Grant Avenue! San Francisco! Cal-i-forn-i-a! U! S! A!" until my mother informed me that we were not Chinese and I needed to knock it off.

Anyway, San Francisco's Chinatown holds a special place in my heart.  Last weekend, we did a little mini-vacation and spent the weekend in San Francisco.  We stayed at the Orchard Garden Hotel, courtesy of the We Blog Travels Travel Writing Contest that I won last year with this post about San Francisco for kids.  We decided to see what we could do in San Francisco on a tight budget, and we started off with a walk through Chinatown.

The Orchard Garden is located next to the the Chinatown Gate, on Bush and Grant Avenue.  We were able to walk down the famed Grant Avenue, checking out a thousand and one souvenir shops, selling everything from silk purses to shoes to sculptures to tourist trinkets.  I have to admit, I had the "Grant Avenue" song stuck in my head as we walked along, stopping at nearly every souvenir shop along the way.

Althought it's called "Chinatown", the wares sold on Grant Avenue are sort of Pan-Asian, so you can find imports from Korea, Japan, India, and Thailand as well as China. Some of the best buys are comfy shoes and slippers, porceline dishes, and souvenirs of San Francisco. Alex salivated over racks of reproduction Samurai swords in one shop, and we beat a hasty retreat out of another that featured posters of nude Chinese women from the 1940's.  Every time my mom comes to town, we go jewelry shopping in Chinatown. The jewelers are usually open to bargaining on prices if you chat with them, and will usually throw in a jade bracelet or earrings if you press them. 

Some of the shops feature upscale artwork, Buddha sculptures, pottery, and fake designer bags.  I like the more Zen-inspired ones, with incense, stone garden Buddhas, and inspirational paper weights. 

Disneyland's New Soundsational Parade

Disneyland's new Mickey's Soundsational Parade down Main Street litterally takes off with a bang...of drums played by a rocking drumline, and then the Mouse himself. Part of our press tour last week involved some excellent viewing of the new spectacle.  Mombloggers Ana from Finding Bonggamom, Charlene and Liling from Trekaroo, Akemi from Chalk & Cheese Chronicle, and  Colleen from Travel Mamas were all on hand with me and hundreds of other members of the media to take in the sights and sounds. We could hear the drums coming long before they reached our vantage point across from the train station. 

When the drums finally made it our way, they were keeping a funky beat to an old classic, the theme from "The Mickey Mouse Club."  For some reason, I thought Mickey would be at the end of the parade, kind of like the arrival of Santa at the end of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Instead, the Mouse in Charge followed the drummers on his own float, and showed his talent as a drummer.  Who knew Mickey could even hold drumsticks? Not me, that's for sure.

Ariel's Undersea Adventure: The Little Mermaid Comes to Life

Attention all "Little Mermaid" Fans: There's a new ride in town with your name on it.  It's called "Ariel's Undersea Adventure" and is a colorful, musical extravaganza located in Disney's California Adventure.  I was one of the lucky members of the media invited to the grand opening last week, and got to experience it first-hand.

The ride opened with a great deal of fanfare, with a live musical performance by some talented Disney Cast Members and special guests, including composer Alan Menken. 

The original voice of Ariel herself, Jodi Benson, was on hand to sing "Part of Your World", and honestly, she doesn't seemed to have aged a bit since the movie opened 22 years ago.  Pat Carroll, the original voice of Ursula the Sea Witch was in the audience.  Broadway Star Sherie Rene Scott was on hand to sing Ursula's famous number, "Poor Unfortunate Souls" and later joined Jodi for a duet. Sherie portrayed Ursula in the Broadway production, and she is a fantastic singer.  It was like a mini-musical highlighting music from both the movie and the ride.

Disneyland's Star Tours: New and Improved

On June 3, Disneyland unveiled the newly refurbished Star Tours attraction. We were fortunate enough to be sponsored to attend the media events surrounding Star Tours, Ariel's Undersea Adventure, and the new Soundsational Summer Parade by the folks at Disney Parks & Resorts.  For my 10 year old son, Alex, getting to ride the 3-D Star Tours attraction until it literally made him nauseous was a dream come true.  It's a wonderful, fun-filled ride that will delight the Star Wars die-hards like Alex and the Star Wars skeptics like myself.

When the ride officially opened on Friday, the line to get in at 9:00 am was like nothing I have never seen before.  At 9:00 am,  it hadn't even opened and the line was four hours or more long.  These were the true Star Wars afficianados, who came to the park just for this ride, many carrying light sabres and in costume. There was also a huge crowd of onlookers gaping at the crowd in line, most of whom had no idea what was going on.  There were no FastPasses available for opening day, but I understand that they will be available later.

 
The ride opened with a bang, with a press-only "Opening Ceremony" done in true Disney/Hollywood fashion. Tour Guide Angela welcomed everyone to the opening, including a few Jedi, Stormtroopers, and the dastardly Darth Vader.  There was only one ticket left, and both the Empire and the Jedi wanted the seat.  A light sabre duel ensued, with the bad guys being dispatched by a hooded figure, who was later revealed to be Disney Parks & Resorts CEO, Tom Skaggs. Fortunately, no lives or limbs were lost in the fight, and good prevailed over evil. With a little razzle-dazzle and some pyrotechnics, Skaggs cut the ribbon and declared the ride open.

Disney Wonder Comes to San Francisco

For the first time ever, the Disney Cruise Lines fabulous Disney Wonder arrived in San Francisco, en route to Vancouver.  The ship was on a repositioning cruise, moving from it's southern base in Los Angeles up to Vancouver for its maiden Alaska voyage in May.  Several of my favorite fellow mombloggers and I got to spend some time aboard the Disney Wonder on Friday afternoon, while most of the passengers were off exploring San Francisco.  Kimberley from Tippy Toes & Tantrums, Ana from Finding Bonggamom, and Whitney from Rookie Moms were all along for a special press tour and luncheon.

Each Disney ship features a character statue at the main floor landing, and Arielle is the star of the show on the Disney Wonder.  Ana was nice enough to pose with her. The ship, like Disneyland and Disneyworld, featured themes in every restaurant, hallway, and common area.

I really loved the giant Dale Chihuly blown glass sculpture hanging over the main atrium in the ship.  It was like hundreds of giant technicolor blue and gold poppies hanging from the ceiling.

Meet Me in St Louis: The Gateway Arch

On our roadtrip at the end of December, we had a brief stop in St. Louis, Missouri,  and got to see  see the famous St. Louis Gateway Arch.  I have been to the arch once before, but never to the top of the Arch.  You can ride a tram  in the little egg shaped compartments that roll on a fully encased track to the viewing area at the top.  I still haven't ridden to the top.

The trip on the tram takes about an hour and a half.  We were in a rush to get to Ohio to see my dad in the hospital, so we didn't have time to ride up.  Alex sat in the display car at the visitors center under the Arch, which contained an interesting mixture of a gift shop, a display on westward expansion, and an old-timey mercantile store.

It was freezing the day we were there, with a cold, gusty wind blowing all around, and the chance of snow mounting every second we stayed in St. Louis.  The main attraction for us in going into the underground visitor's center was the fact that it was warm in there. We three California weather wimps were not prepared for exactly how cold it would be.

Like many of our national monuments, the Gateway Arch is guarded by metal detectors and somewhat hostile security guards who take their jobs very seriously.  The young woman ahead of me in line had a small vial of pepper spray in her purse, which they made a huge deal about, as though she had a bomb strapped to her belt to go along with the keychain full of pepper spray.  She told them to keep it, but they insisted on interrogating her about the reason she decided to COME TO A NATIONAL MONUMENT fully ARMED when there were KIDS AROUND.  I felt sorry for her, since she clearly didn't even know she had it in the bottom of her purse.  The guards seemed to be enjoying making the woman squirm, while most people just filed on in without as much as a sideward glance from them. 

So, a word to the wise: check your purse for unruly keychains before entering national monuments.  For some reason, this reminded me of a trip I took with my girlfriends when I was still single and oh-so-carefree.  My friends and I were on a roadtrip through the Pacific Northwest, when we were stopped at the Canadian border for a routine customs check.  The very earnest customs official asked my friend who was driving if we were "carrying any protection."  She looked at him and said, "Protection? You mean like condoms? Never leave home without them."

The guard turned the color of a mai tai and said, "Uh, no, ma'am...I mean...firearms."

She replied, "No, no firearms. Do we need some?"

He waved us through, and we high-fived each other all the way to Vancouver.  This was, of course, before 9/11.  Now, customs officials are way more serious and we would likely be strip-searched for remarks like that.

Anyway, the Gateway Arch is somewhat of an architectural marvel, and a must-see for any visit to St. Louis.  Maybe next time, I'll actually take that ride to the top.  I've always wanted to ride in a metal egg.

You can purchase tickets for a ride to the top of the Arch, including parking tickets, at The Gateway Arch Riverfront website.