With the amusement park portion of our trip completed, it was time to head to the beach!
During our 2019 vacation in Florida, our “beach day" in Daytona was one of the trip's highlights (read my blog post).
This is the first time in my life I’ve visited the west coast, and the first time I’d get to experience the Pacific Ocean.
Bridget and I had considered splitting off from our family and visiting some beaches north of Los Angeles (recommended by our friend Greg). The concern we had was traffic heading back north from Anaheim to those locales (we didn’t want to spend our last full day in California in the car).
Neil and Theresa were taking the kids to Laguna Beach — a destination they had visited in the past (on multiple occasions) that has a lot of significance for them. They took this selfie on Laguna Beach during an October 2010 trip:
And while I'm sure they would have liked a break from us (😉), I wanted to see the California destination that they enjoyed visiting in the past.
We left our AirBNB a little before 10 a.m. for the drive to Laguna. It is roughly 25 miles from Anaheim to Laguna Beach.
We parked in a free public lot at 1900 Canyon Road that Bridget found (see map above), and took one of the trolley buses down to a stop a few blocks away from the beach (it was about a 5-minute ride). It was early mid-morning and we were only one of a few cars in the lot, and the only ones on the trolley.
We made our way down to the Main Beach (which includes basketball “half courts” and volleyball nets near the entrance).
We strolled along the ocean for quite a while, enjoying the mild temperatures, sand, water, and sea life found on the beach.
There was a group of lifeguards training along the beach when we arrived. Since Bridget is the licensed pool operator at Robin Hill Pool (the private neighborhood pool across the street from our home), she was amused watching the Laguna lifeguards train. (She also looked up to see how much they are paid and found this job posting, which she sent to our niece, Sophia, who is a lifeguard and co-manager at the pool this summer.) Although our lifeguards got a raise, it can’t compare to the $21.49-$25.34 hourly for part-time (seasonal) ocean lifeguards. We also don’t require our guards to carry each other.
Neil took our picture by the Main Beach Lifeguard Tower (the city actually considered demolishing this tower in the 1970s — and the lifeguards are permanently housed in a structure down the beach):
As we walked along the beach, Scotland was fascinated by the rocks and shells she spotted.
PRO TIP: Taking sea shells from the beach is prohibited. So Scotland just looked at them while we were at the beach.
I got a lot of terrific pictures of the beach and the ocean. I also took some pictures of Neil, Theresa, and the kids along the beach:
We walked up the main Laguna Beach to St. Ann’s Beach (it’s all part of the same stretch of coastline).
The beach was rockier in this locale, featuring more evidence of sea life.
There was a man flying a drone in this area while the kids were looking at the rocks. (I looked on YouTube to see if I could maybe find his video posted there, but didn't discover anything.)
I took this picture of Blaise observing the drone:
The kids really enjoyed this stretch of beach.
We spent a little over an hour on the beach. It was 12:30 p.m. when we returned to the Main Beach and washed off our feet (using the outdoor showers) by the public restrooms. More people had arrived at the beach during the noon hour — so there was a lot of activity percolating in the midday sun.
I took some video as we walked along the shore — of the beach and the Pacific Ocean. I put together this compilation of footage (Note: A number of these “clips” were taken from snippets from Live Photos on my iPhone):
PRO TIP: Theresa hates sand (and balloons, for that matter). If you are planning on visiting Laguna Beach (or any beach), it is worthwhile to invest in a pair of Crocs. You can walk in the sand comfortably and they are easy to rinse off afterward. I had on a pair (and was glad I did!).
We were hungry. Bridget hoped to eat someplace along the beach, but most of the beachfront property is occupied by lodging and residential structures.
We decided to walk up the road (the South Coast Highway) to Gina’s Pizza (dubbed “The Best Pizza in Orange County”).
It was quite a hike from the restrooms (and the Main Beach) to the restaurant. It was about three-fourths of a mile — all uphill.
There were a number of fun looking shops and boutiques along the way — like this clothing shop Scotland posed in front of:
Even though we were fatigued after the walk, Gina’s Pizza is worth the hike.
The food at Gina's Pizza turned out to be terrific, casual Italian fare.
We started off with an order of the Crispy Ricotta Balls (served with marinara, pesto aioli, and garlic aioli dipping sauces). They were pretty fantastic.
We also ordered the Parmesan Herb Fries (with the pesto aioli sauce):
For her main meal, Bridget ordered the Sicilian Chicken Fettucine Alfredo (minus the chicken):
I had the Italian Sausage sandwich:
We also ordered a small pepperoni pizza (why not?):
It is readily apparent that Bridget and I were doing our level-best to put ourselves into a food coma. It all just sounded so good that we wanted to sample as many items as possible.
Neil and Theresa — having more modest ambitions — ordered an extra large pepperoni pizza.
It should be noted that we didn't actually finish all this food (someone would have had to wheel us down the hill). It turns out that Anson didn’t like the “big slices” on the extra large pepperoni, so he had most of the slices from our small pizza. That ended up working out well.
Gina’s Pizza was a relatively small establishment (with limited indoor and outdoor seating), but it did have something of a sports bar vibe inside. There were TVs in the restaurant and we watched part of a NBA playoff game featuring the Boston Celtics. We also had a view of the ocean out the window.
I thought these signs on the restrooms were kind of fun:
Bridget took my picture with the Brooks Street sign (the cross street south of the restaurant) after lunch (since that’s our last name). Apparently the Brooks St. Beach in Laguna is known for its waves and surfing.
I also took this selfie with Blaise and Scotland (they both look great, but I need to be better about avoiding a “double chin” look when I take iPhone selfies):
We decided to catch one of the free trolleys back down to the Main Beach area. Bridget and Scotland scoped out the schedule.
It was a nice ride down the hill (certainly better than trying to walk after all the pizza, pasta, and cheese).
The trolley bus dropped us off along the main drag, and we proceeded to walk to where we had been dropped off. Neil managed to get us lost (as he tried to navigate us to the morning’s drop off point), but that’s okay because it was a chance to get to see more of the shops and walk off some carbs.
And we also saw this vintage Plymouth Woody Station Wagon driving around as we were orienteering on the streets:
Once we found the original drop-off point (it is possible that the trolley we had hopped on at the pizza place would have eventually taken us to this stop had we stayed on), we visited the restrooms and waited for the next trolley to arrive — that would take us up the road to the public lot we had parked it (Lot 16).
Bridget gave Scotland some coins for this meter (the money put in goes to help the homeless in the area).
Not long after our arrival, the trolley showed up.
When we arrived at Lot 16, I decided to take a picture of this art sculpture next to the benches.
I dunno what it represents. To me, it looks like the stone creature Korg (from the movie “Thor: Ragnarok” — read my review) and a member of his family carrying solar panels.
Our next stop was Fashion Island Mall. The mall is roughly 8.5 miles north of Laguna on the North Coast Highway (17 miles from Lot 16) in Newport Beach.
During their 2010 trip, Neil told me that he and Theresa had actually walked the 8.5 miles from Laguna to this mall (they didn’t have a car during that trip to Orange County).
While the journey on foot would allow you to experience some pretty scenery along the California coast, it would be quite a hike.
Fashion Island Mall was originally called Newport Town Center when ground broke in 1966.
We parked outside of Macy’s. I took a picture of Bridget and Scot in Macy’s Toys R Us section.
I used to love Toys R Us (even as an adult) and was sad to see the chain go away (another victim of online shopping).
Neil actually worked a second job at the Toys R Us near Oakview Mall before the store closed in 2018 (I took this picture back in 2016):
I last visited a Toys R Us in August, 2016. We were there to get Scotland and Blaise a prize for going off the diving board at Robin Hill Pool. This is a picture of Scotland trying to figure out what she wanted:
Anyhow, we looked around Macy’s for a little bit as we walked through the anchor store. Bridget and saw some bedding that we liked (but didn’t pull the trigger).
Fashion Island Mall currently features ~180 stores. One of the retail centers long-standing features is a large koi pond (the koi pond was originally installed in 1969).
The first store we stopped at in the expansive mall was Tesla (located near Macy’s and Nike).
Bridget got this picture of me awkardly touching one of the Tesla Solar Roof tiles (I've seen them online and wanted to know how they felt):
She took a picture of Scotland sitting in the Model 3 that was on display:
They had a Model S, a Model 3, and a Model X on display (no Model Y). I took this picture of Bridget and Scotland by the rear hatch of the Model X:
I took this picture of Blaise in the back seat of the X:
I also got Scotland playing with the screen that serves the second row passengers (she scrolled through YouTube):
Bridget took this picture of Scotland in the driver’s seat of the X (check out that stylish looking couple on the other side of the car 😎):
Neil got a picture of Scotland holding the controversial “yoke” steering wheel. It was introduced during the 2021 refresh of the car — and mandatory on that model — but buyers now have a choice:
While Scotland isn’t currently old enough to drive, she does own a detailed toy version of the upcoming Cybertruck in mint green — no word yet if the actual truck will ever come in any color other than “stainless steel,” but the toy version her grandma got her comes in multiple shades.
We continued to traverse the mall after our stop at the Tesla showroom.
If you look closely at the upper part of this picture, you’ll see the sign for Blaze Pizza — a restaurant we first ate at during our 2019 trip to Orlando and really enjoyed (there is a new location in Lincoln that we need to visit sometime):
Neil, Theresa, and the kids looked around Nordstrom. I took a picture of this candy area in the store (I thought the offerings looked good):
Bridget and I visited the men’s and women’s restrooms in the store and refreshed a bit. Then we headed down to look at the Apple Store:
I always enjoy going into an Apple Store and looking at all the tech, but the “Genius” (are they still called that?) who chatted with us spent most of his time trying to get us to sign up for an Apple credit card. I mean, I appreciate Apple’s drive to enhance the company’s services revenue (and the fact that you get perks when using the card to purchase Apple products), but that’s not why I go to an Apple Store. 🤷
I continued to browse around the store while Bridget checked in online for our Sunday flight. The kids were looking at various shops in the vicinity.
Bridget went and got the two of us these cold-pressed juices from Pressed.
I had the “Citrus 2” juice which featured apple, pineapple, lemon, and mint. Bridget had the “Citrus 3” offering — a mix of grapefruit, aloe vera, and mint.
We sipped on the refreshing juices while we walked with our family to Dick’s Sporting Goods.
In addition to the Tesla showroom, Fashion Island Mall also has a Lucid Motors showroom. The electric car company is one of the newer entrants in the luxury EV market.
We visited a Lucid Motors showroom in Sept. 2022 when we traveled with our friends Jason and Jolene to the INBOUND22 conference in Boston (read my blog post).
The kids found some clothes they liked at Dick’s and stopped at the Lululemon store for Scotland. They also got some cookies at Hudsons Cookies. Theresa asked me if I wanted a cookie (they looked amazing), but my system was still recovering from the food at Gina’s Pizza. 😉
I enjoyed visiting Fashion Island Mall.
I spent a significant portion of my life living two blocks north of Crossroads Mall (here in Omaha), and spent a lot of time at that mall. I love to watch “dead mall” videos on YouTube, and often wonder how long the “shopping mall experience” will be with us — something that became a part of “Americana” when the automobile gained prominence in the 1950s.
Bridget and I actually live near the mall that some have claimed was the “first indoor mall in the country.” While there is some debate as to whether the Center Mall was actually “the first,” it is certainly one of the oldest in the nation (and oldest in Nebraska).
Speaking of “Americana” and things “lost to history,” Neil spotted this pay phone at the mall. The Maroon 5 song notwithstanding, does anyone actually still use pay phones?
Bridget and I split up with our family at this point.
We were tired and decided to head back to the hotel in Sherman Oaks. It was about 7 p.m., and we were starting to fade.
Neil, Theresa, and the kids were headed to The Outlets at Orange to do some more shopping.
When we got back to Sherman Oaks, we checked in to our room, and then headed to the Cheesecake Factory down the street to get some dinner.
We had thought about eating at the restaurant, but the place was packed. So Bridget ordered takeout on her phone and we took our food back to the hotel.
We shared an order of the Crispy Fried Cheese:
A brown bread baguette:
Bridget had the Oreo Dream Extreme Cheesecake and I had the Cinnabon Cinnamon Swirl Cheesecake (which has a whopping 1,370 calories per slice 😳):
While we were enjoying our snacks, the rest of our family was perusing the stores at The Outlets at Orange. It sounds like there are a number of terrific stores at that outlet mall.
Neil took a pic of the Polestar showroom for me. I am not as familiar with this EV brand, but there is definitely a robust market for electric cars in California. I was interested to see a picture of what they look like in person.
They all decided to eat at a BJ’s Restaurant that is at the mall. Loyal readers will recall that we had eaten at a BJ’s location earlier in our trip (read my blog post).
But as they waited outside to be seated at the Orange County locale, two large groups of teens across from them started shouting back-and-forth at each other. The older group appeared to be accusing the younger group of stealing something … maybe a phone.
A teenage girl walked by dragging a metal baseball bat — the “business end” made a terrible racket as it rubbed along the rough cement. 😳
The sun had set, so the kids were wrapped together in a Monkey Mat because they were chilly. Theresa decided to grab the mat and told the kids to get up (getting ready to make a quick getaway).
Then Neil yelled, "Hey! Get out of here!," hoping the teens would disperse.
One group of teens went inside. The other group (with the baseball bat) left the area.
Theresa, Neil, and the kids then sat back down on the bench.
One of the boys — from the group of teens that went inside — came back out and thanked Neil for helping them out.
Sadly (as it regards blog content 😉) no pictures or video were taken during the excitement (better safe than sorry). Theresa was too worried about the kids (and making an escape if necessary).
Bridget and I missed all that drama.
After we had consumed our calories from Cheesecake Factory, I decided to take a shower and get ready for bed.
I noticed that there was tar embedded on the sole of my left Croc. I wanted to see if I could get it off before bed.
So, I took the shoe in the shower with me and did my best to clean it up (using a plastic knife from our carryout food).
But the tar didn’t cooperate (I must have stepped in some fresh tar during the day’s festivities).
Bridget went down to the lobby to see if she could get a toothbrush, hoping that might help my effort. The manager in the lobby gave her this brush... along with the world’s tiniest tube of toothpaste:
The brush didn't help much. I got some of the tar off, but knew I would need something stronger to make a serious dent. (Resolve carpet stain remover and Dawn dishwashing liquid allowed me to get it all off after we returned home to Omaha.)
But the tiny tube of Colgate was just the best.
That was it for our sixth day in California.
Neil, Theresa, and the kids arrived at the hotel after midnight. Even though it wasn’t a “park day,” we still managed to squeeze in quite a few activities on our last full day of vacation.
We were flying out late in the afternoon on Sunday, so we hoped to have time to do “something” before we left... but what would that “something” be??
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