Palm Springs, California

December 7 - 21, 2008

Thousand Trails - Palm Springs, California

We actually had a very calm, uneventful trip from Menifee to Palm Springs. On the way we passed several ENORMOUS wind farms. I'm sure you all know about the debate regarding erecting a wind farm in Nantucket Sound. I've always believed we need to find alternative forms of energy. Wind farming seems to be a clean alternative. But, to fill Nantucket Sound with these monsters of energy just doesn't seem right to us. There has to be another way!!!

And, here we are at Thousand Trails - Palm Springs! Easy trip. We're right here next to The 10. That's how Californians describe their highways...we've noticed this since Newport Dunes...The 10, The 215, The 8. Every highway has a title, beginning with "The". Anyway, we're right here next to The 10...and on the other side is the railroad tracks. Those trains go by and it's not that you just "hear" them...you "feel" them. Trains are a sound we don't mind; except we're so close to the Andreas Fault and a couple of times that first night we "felt" like this was the big one, but soon realized we were okay.

It's amazing...no matter where we travel we're in our own home. When I close my eyes at night I know exactly where I am yet we're in a new place having a new experience every time we stop! This year we bought a little Christmas tree and some decorations for the coach to help put us in the holiday spirit. I am so glad Sarah is joining us this year because spending the holidays away from all our family would be just too hard.

So far we've really enjoyed our stay here at Thousand Trails - Palm Desert. It's very level with large palm trees; great for walking in the mornings. Our neighbors next door, Bob and KC Jordan from Washington, have segways and offered to let us try them out. They really are great fun, but you don't get the needed exercise with these things. Thanks Bob and KC!

Unlike other Thousand Trails we have been to, this one doesn't have a resident bobcat or wild boars, but they do have a roadrunner who hangs around a lot. He certainly isn't afraid of getting too close.

Every once in awhile we get some outstanding sights while we're just sitting around relaxing. No exception this time around...from balloons to moons!!

After spending hours and hours on the web to find the best, most affordable golf prices, we played at Indian Palms Country Club on another beautiful Southern California afternoon. This course was certainly a bit better manicured than Seven Hills in Hemet, but was no better for the money. To top it off, it was one of the hardest courses (slope- and rating-wise) we've played...and it showed. Scores didn't show it, but feelings did...we decided to take a sabbatical from golf, at least during our stay here in Palm Springs...it doesn't make sense to spend all that money for all that frustration!!!

We visited the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway and climbed into one of the world's largest rotating tram cars, traveled 2-1/2 miles in ten minutes beginning at an elevation of 2,643 feet and traveled through five unique life zones (or so we were told) to 8,516 feet...described by some as taking a trip from Mexico to Alaska in minutes. That may be true in the heat of summer, but we didn't feel that much difference in mid-December.

After lunch at the Peaks Restaurant, where we met the restaurant's host, a fellow Massachusettsian (???) who was (three years ago) the chef at the Shoreway Acres on Shore Street in Falmouth and remembers Jen from the BBC (small world). Ken had what he thought was the "best quesadilla" in the world (he was on track...it was delicious). We then visited Grubbs View where we got a 360 deree view of the Palm Springs Valley.

There are 54-miles of hiking trails offered in this Mount San Jacinta State Park.

As you see, on the day we visited there was some snow on the ground. Since then we have had two separate days of rainfall (our first since August) which meant snow in the mountains. It's a lot colder and there's a lot more snow up there today.

In the distance we could see the Salton Sea, a saline lake covering an area of 376 square miles. The salinity of the lake is greater than the ocean but less than Great Salt Lake.

The most amazing part of this trek was that I wasn't frightened by the height from the tram; however, Ken found it a bit uncomfortable, especially when the floor of the tram started to spin around.

We visited Palm Springs' Villagefest on Thursday night when they close the "main drag" for an evening "farmer's market". I have to say...I didn't buy anything. I guess that means it wasn't that good!

Both those who have already visited TT-Palm Desert and those here in the park now told us we had to see The Follies. So, we “penciled it in” for a Sunday afternoon. I have always enjoyed live musical theater (Jen, Sarah and Jodie: remember “Mama Mia”; and my Hopedale friends, remember the many shows we've seen including our trip to “Annie Get Your Gun” when Alice was so tired from so much shopping and sightseeing in New York that she slept through most of it?).

We arrived at the theater, the first number started and out came the dancers. However, instead of those young, agile chorus lines you normally see, these people were quite a bit older. All were introduced later in the show and their ages ranged from 55 to 85!!!! The 85-year old, Dorothy Kloss, is billed in the Guinness Book of Records as the “Oldest Still Performing Showgirl in the World”. I couldn’t get over her energy (and looks and shape).

The show was hosted with the comedy of Riff Markowitz who has never missed a Follies performance in its 18 years. We saw show dogs, a ventriloquist and Freda Payne (remember 1970’s “Band of Gold”?) who did a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald. There was a big Christmas production and a patriotic production that brought goosebumps. It was truly a great show and, if you ever get to the Palm Springs area, you have to “pencil it in”.

Here’s Ken at the end of the show with Jill Gordon, who is one of the younger ladies at 65 and who is in her 12th year with the show. She danced on the Andy Williams, Glen Campbell, Dean Martin and Carol Burnett Shows. When Ken asked for her birth certificate proving her age to be 65, she answered she doesn’t have it anymore…it disintegrated!!

We spent the rest of our stay here taking care of everyday matters. Even though we're not on vacation, taking care of these issues is a lot more fun on the road. I even enjoy going to a new grocery store to see what they might have to offer.

We're heading next for San Diego where we'll enjoy the Christmas holiday with Sarah; we'll be visiting with family and spending a lot of time sightseeing.