SueBee as Tour Guide

My niece and her 5 year old son are visiting America for the first time, coming from a very small farm village in Northern Germany. They first stayed with friends in Alamogordo, New Mexico, for two weeks, then flew to LAX where my oldest daughter, Angelika, picked them up. They stayed with her for a few days, then came to stay with me and Kat. We’ve had a very busy week so far, and today will visit The Happiest (and most expensive) Place on Earth, Disneyland! Luckily, Kat generously gave us two of her remaining free adult entry tickets (at a value of $300), from when she worked at the hotel in Disneyland.

Sunday, Angelika arranged for the group of us to gather at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. That was a blast! Monday, she took them to Huntington Beach for their first ever visit to the beach. To say they loved it would be an understatement.

Tide pool exhibit at the Aquarium

The area outside of the Aquarium

Speedboat in Long Beach

The boardwalk in Long Beach

I took Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons off work so I could tour them around my beloved Southern California. Tuesday we drove from Orange County up the freeway to Olvera Street (the oldest street in Los Angeles), where the bougainvillea were spectacular, 

then through downtown Los Angeles and on to the La Brea Tar Pits (the little boy loves dinosaurs). An early dinner at Mel’s Diner in Hollywood for a quintessential hamburger and fries, 50’s style, followed by the ever-interesting Walk of Fame on Hollywood Boulevard, up to the Hollywood sign, and finishing the day with the Griffith Observatory at sunset where we were able to view Saturn through the telescope! An enjoyable day for sure!

Hollywood Reservoir

Tourists checking their pictures at the Hollywood sign

Griffith Observatory

Moon over Los Angeles

Downtown L.A. at dusk

Telescope at Griffith Observatory

Wednesday we had a relaxing beach day, starting with a ferry ride from Balboa Island over to Newport Beach, where the waves were picture-perfect. We then drove down the coast to my favorite cliff top outlook at Corona del Mar, walked down the steep path to view the tide pools, and then drove on down the coast to Laguna Beach, and back home for dinner and Kat entertaining us on the piano! ~SueBee (photos by SueBee)

Taking pictures of his mom at Newport Beach

The perfect wave at Newport Beach

At the tide pools in Corona del Mar