Santa Monica with Forrest fans (Ch 3)
Chapter 3 of the FairyBlogTale as our Family enjoys some LA action… or not.
Once again, food features heavily. As do seagulls. It’s THAT kind of FairyBlogTale…
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So you recall how our Family spent the Longest Day Ever arriving at, and trying to stay awake in and around Rodeo Drive?
Well after a decent night’s sleep, they inhaled some breakfast (where The Princess discovered pancakes pretty much = pikelets) and spotted one of these vehicles…
And with all the forethought and planning for which the Mother was famous, they decided to jump on board and see where it took them…
As the bus ploughed through traffic in a westerly direction they saw sights like this…
And this…
And this…
Whereupon the Mother began humming ‘When the sun comes up over Santa Monica Boulevard… doo-doo-do, doo-doo’ to the annoyance delight of the Father and the bus driver, who we doubt had EVER heard that melody before.
And before they knew it, they were here…
And if that photo didn’t clearly illustrate the famous location enough to you, Gentle Reader (you would think the photographer was obsessed with how the traffic was all going the wrong way, wouldn’t you?)… then THIS might help:
According to legend, this is the site of oldest pier on the West Coast of the USA.
But the Family remembered it most from the movie Forrest Gump. You know, where Forrest runs to one side of the country stands at the end of a pier, and then turns back?
And the Mother couldn’t help but think that with houses like this build ON THE SAND…
…that Two and a Half Men must be taking place somewhere nearby.
So she kept her camera at the ready for a good Charlie Sheen shot – who knew where the beret-wearing, porn-loving, stark-raving star might turn up (hopefully not in a BlogFairyTale – it would totally blow it’s current G rating).
And while the weather was a little gloomy and not terribly beach-ish, the Mother kept taking photos anyway.
And the seagulls took pity on her, and decided to keep things a little interesting…
And the Mother wondered if maybe American seagulls were BIGGER than their Antipodean counterparts. Cause the Mother sometimes thinks in big words like that. She’s a freak.
The birdlife took over the FairyBlogTale for a little while…
Apparently LA birds play up to the camera better than Oz birds. It’s the Hollywood influence.
Then the oysters on the pier pylons caught the mother’s eye…
Mmmmmmm…
So anyway, the Prince and Princess and the Father huddled against the cool wind and gazed out over the Pacific towards home…
And took in some of the historical information about this famous landmark…
They also spied on beachgoers and pretended to shoot each other with the telescope. The Prince is a real little BOY sometimes…
And even though beachgoers were few and far between and not at all Baywatch-ish…
They enjoyed the peace that they did NOT expect to find anywhere NEAR LA.
Actually, that would be a little lie. The Prince and the Princess did NOT enjoy the peace ensure by the fact the Pacific Park amusements were NOT open the particular week-day the Family decided to visit Santa Monica Pier.
Not at all what was anticipated from the colourful flyers for the Pier.
Nonetheless, one arcade attraction WAS open and some quarters were gambled in time-honoured fashion at pinball machines and…
The Deal or No Deal game. The Mother is NOT a gambler, but was secretly sucked in to this game. Although she didn’t actually play, but cheered on her daughter who took home the loot. Well, some string necklaces and rings worth about $1.08 anyway.
And the Prince’s loot… well…
Judge for yourself!
Then, all that fresh sea air prompted some grumbly tummies to seek out this place…
Bubba Gumps Shrimp Company (Seafood Restaurant). How could they resist?
The eatery proved quite an excellent choice for the windblown and hungry Family who snacked on a little of everything.
The real highlight was the waiter, however, whom the Mother failed to take a photo of. He entertained and made the Family feel pretty special and was suitably blown away when the Father answered ALL of the Forrest Gump-related questions in the pop-quiz correctly.
Including WHAT SHOES DID JENNY WEAR AT HER WEDDING TO FORREST? (Answer in comments if you don’t know)
It was heartening to see all those hours spent watching movies was well-invested.
And despite the fact that we are only HALFWAY through the day, your narrator is going to call it quits here for this Chapter. Cause she thinks your computers will all explode if she crams any more photos in.
That should be enough to make EVERYONE smile like this…
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16 Comments
Bush Babe
Answer: NONE. Jenny was barefoot.
🙂
BB
Kate
Oh, I love that last shot! They were all fantastic, though. And you with the kids in front of Bubba Gump’s.
And yeah, I knew she didn’t wear shoes. I think I’ve seen that movie 16 times. Love it.
Kate´s last blog post ..A long week
julia
Hi, What a great time you are having!! Love the pictures.
JulieinOz
Smiling my way through all these posts BB…love the way you tell stories….keep ’em coming.
Nah…cant have too many photos…load em up!
Drooling over the food photos…especially the seafood ones…oh my!
JENNY TALIA
OK, I’m just here to check out if my new avatar works
And because I love reading about your adventures
Even if they do make me homesick
And hungry!
x
Bush Babe
Smokin’!!!!
debby
I love the movie Forrest Gump, but I have not seen it in years. (I would have flunked the Gump Quiz). I would have remembered, however that everyone has a gift for this world and that a kind and good heart will get you through terrible, terrible times.
I hope that Dash and Violet are making scrap books of their own. Your narration would be perfect.
debby´s last blog post ..Winter Worlds
A Novel Woman
Forget shoeless Jenny, I remember she was noticeably braless under that wedding dress.
A Novel Woman´s last blog post ..Guilty Face
Bush Babe
That’s why we like to call you ‘Eagle Eyes Pam’!! 🙂
Leenie
What fun! Glad you took us along! I could hear that Cheryl Crowe song in my head as soon as I saw the sign.
Yeah, we found that only tourists thought the California beach was wonderful in February or November. Their loss. More room for inlanders with with eskimo blood to enjoy the surf and sand.
Leenie´s last blog post ..PERSPECTIVES
jeanie
And now it is stuck in my head. I hate it when I only know a few lines of a song stuck in my head!!!
‘Salina love the bling.
jeanie´s last blog post ..the week that was the week that is
Donna Gunn
I love seeing LA through your eyes. It reminds me of when I moved to LA from Colorado in 1980. Santa Monica was the first beach I visited.
Donna Gunn´s last blog post ..Iditarod 11
Theresa in Alberta
Excellant story telling BB!! I can visit LA from the comfort of my office computer (A lot more inexpensive)
Nancy in Iowa
I am so thoroughly enjoying your trip with you! Of all my US travels, I never made it to Hollywood, CA, although I’ve stayed in Hollywood Beach, FL. Same pink buildings, same palm trees – well, it IS named after the famous one, afterall!
Mikey
Jenny didn’t wear shoes (and I didn’t have to cheat to know that)
I LOVE BUBBA GUMPS!! I will travel far and wide to sit down and eat their shrimp buckets. Oooohhhh how I love that place…
We also want to go to the Pier. I’m bummed that most of it wasn’t open for you 🙁
Mikey´s last blog post ..The Honeymoon Roping
Maev
My long time chat friend walks Santa Monica beach…almost daily…Her children grew up with movie stars kids…but just lived ordinary lives…