TRAVEL THERE: FAMILY FUN IN SANTA MONICA, CA
After several hours exploring the Getty Villa in Malibu, I had a hungry group of relatives on my hands, so finding something to eat was the next order of business.
THE TOURIST WERE HUNGRY
One thing I’ve learned from my husband is that Egyptians are a little more leisurely about their travels that I am. Truth be told, almost anyone is more leisurely about traveling than I am, but I have so much that I want to see that when I do go somewhere I’m driven to rush.
Poor Bill usually gets dragged along at my pace whether he wants to be or not. However, I knew better than to attempt that sort of thing when he had reinforcements with him. On my own, I would have spent more time at the Getty Villa enjoying their multi-media Gallery Guide and taking in as many of the tours as I could have squeezed in. My visit to the Santa Monica Pier would have been a quick stroll up and down the pier, and I would have eaten a hot dog while I was at it. Then on to forty-seven other things.
SLOWING IT DOWN
Instead our two car caravan found parking places at the pier and then headed inland to find food. The tykes needed some space to run about in and the adults needed some down time. So we headed up to street level and found a shopping mall called Santa Monica Place. The top floor was a food court and had a patio overlooking the Pier.
Then we relaxed and everyone else enjoyed themselves. The food was good for food court food and the view was outstanding. I did enjoy visiting with everyone, but I was in sight-seeing mode and I really had to rein myself in.
Eventually, everyone had been fed and alcoholic beverages were consumed by the adults. My waiting paid off, we headed to the pier.
THE SANTA MONICA PIER
The truth of the matter is, a stroll while eating a hot dog is probably all the of your time that the Santa Monica Pier deserves. The kids enjoyed this taxi, but for the most part, the pier was entirely too crowded and loud for their tastes. I agreed with them. I admit. I’m the one that had dragged everyone to the place, but you don’t know until you check it out.
Perhaps if you’re a little older than the grands and a little younger than their moms, you might enjoy what the Pier had to offer, but it looked a lot more interesting than it actually was.
The next day we visited Huntington Gardens. I loved it and you will, too. Come back next week and I’ll tell you about it.
jane sadek 