The Dude Abides

Los Angeles, the City of Angels. Multiple viewings of "The Big Lebowski" have largely colored my pre-existing notions of L.A. We didn't manage to go bowling while we were in town, and I didn't order a Caucasian at dinner last night, but we did manage to squeeze in Lebowski moments whenever possible.

We started out Saturday morning by taking a walk down Hollywood Boulevard, which is home to Mann's Chinese Theater and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. I accidentally poured a signicant part of my coffee right next to Jeff Bridges' star, which fans of Lebowski will find cosmically appropriate, as it's not unlike the time in the film when the Chinaman peed on the Dude's rug ("Asian-American, please").

El Duderino, if, you know, you're not into the whole brevity thing

We had our sole celebrity sighting of the day by Mann's Chinese Theater. Well, you know, this isn't really Johnny Depp, but my nieces our big fans of Pirates of the Caribbean, and I thought they would enjoy the photograph. And his costume was really good (unlike the Jack Sparrow down the street, who was much less convincing).

Captain Jack Sparrow, mugging for the tourists

Next up was a quick hike in Runyon Canyon to work up an appetite for lunch (more on that later...). Josh lives less than a block away from the entrance of this popular city park. The dog to human ratio was about 1:1 (although we were probably bringing down the average), and Andrew heard more than once, "Aww... I want a dog!" Perhaps when we get back from New Zealand... The weather was great, and the sky was surprisingly clear - we were able to see all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Its always nice to find beautiful outdoor spaces within an urban setting.

Los Angeles skyline from Runyon Canyon

Andrew and Becky with the Hollywood sign behind them

Having worked up an appetite on our walk, we headed towards a Los Angeles (and Lebowski) institution: In-and-Out Burger. I think the photograph tells the whole story.


Other highlights of the day included a visit to "The Grove" - an outdoor shopping mall that feels like the Disney World of retail. There, Josh spotted Scott Bakula, sadly not of Lebowski fame. The Grove also had a terrific Farmers Market, where we could have enjoyed a delicious lunch had we not already gorged on cheeseburgers.

At dinner at the Cabo Cantina, Josh also saw David from the Los Angeles season of "The Real World" (Josh has a sixth sense for the celebrity sighting, apparently developed after five years of living in L.A.). The restaurant featured a two-for-one happy hour (with every one drink you order, they bring you two) and was very popular with the former fraternity brother and wannabe starlet crowd. Our stomachs full of nachos and margaritas (this certainly hasn't been a healthful visit to L.A. thus far) we headed back to Josh's to rest up for our last day in the states.

Bon Voyage! (Or the Maori Equivalent)

Your intrepid world travelers have arrived safely in Los Angeles (notice the update on our Jauntlet map). We managed to cram all the necessities into our backpacks (it's not so easy to pack for a whole year!) but did have to leave a few of Andrew's t-shirts behind (I'm sure he'll be constantly replenishing the supply during our travels). Although initially we thought I (Becky) was carrying the heavier load, the airport scale confirmed that Andrew's pack was indeed heavier (Becky = 35 lbs, Andrew = 36.5 lbs). Although, I would like to note that proportional to my body size, I am still carrying more weight... ahem.

Photo on the porch in Mount Gretna

Our families gathered in Mount Gretna to send us off, so after some last minute packing - and much picture taking - we were on our way to Newark. Fortunately, I was mostly cried out from the night before (I was a mess...), so there were minimal waterworks on our way to the airport. Mom did try to make a wrong turn on to the turnpike (intentional or no? You decide...). Other than that, we arrived at the airport without incident and on schedule. My tear ducts must have had a chance to refill during the drive, so there was a teary curbside drop off at Newark as we said our last goodbyes.

Six hours later... Los Angeles! Josh (a.k.a. Chipper) picked us up at the airport, and, after a quick bite to eat, we went to the Three of Clubs for a nightcap. Several years ago, Andrew and his brother Adam saw Vince Vaughn there, which is amusing since they were at the bar since it was featured in the movie Swingers, and Andrew has persisted in telling this story of his brush with celebrity ever since. Unfortunately, the bar had ridiculously loud and piercing 80's music on tap last night, but no celebrities, or even pseudo-celebrities in attendance.

Speaking of celebrities, Andrew has decided that the celebrity I now look like (post-haircut) is Parker Posey (a la her celebrity guest judge appearance on Project Runway). The altitude on the plane must have affected his brain functioning, because I, of course, disagree.

Finally, for anyone suffering from trip envy, at least the weather is just as nice where you are as it is here. It is 67 degrees and sunny in Los Angeles... but that's the same forecast for Lebanon, PA. Al Gore, get to the bottom of this!

(Not quite) The Final Countdown!

A simple check of the calendar shows 37 days between now and when our plucky adventurers Andrew and Becky begin their week-long trek to New Zealand. Only 37 days until NZ day - it's hard to believe. It seems far away now but is likely to pass with lightening speed. So many questions will be answered in the next month: What will Andrew get for Christmas? Will Andrew sell his car ? (And if not, how does his dad feel about buying it from him, selling it at some near point in the future, and splitting some of the profit?) Will the current political situation in Fiji result in a full military coup before our visit? How bad will our ulcers be that result from the previously mentioned military coup? Is there a Guinness record for eating potato filling on consecutive days for which Andrew is eligible? I'm exhausted just thinking about these exciting possibilities!

As far as our trip goes (Kassy, hopefully you recognized that as a transition), it doesn't actually take a week to get from PA to NZ these days; we just thought we'd stretch out the trip and stop a couple of places along the way. When we started looking at booking the trip to NZ, the cheapest flights have you making stops in California and Fiji, so we decided to stop for a few days at each place. By taking extra time, we actually saved a couple hundred bucks per ticket, which should pay for our expenses at each stop.

First, we're headed for Los Angeles, La-la Land, home of the Clippers and the Chipper. Josh, if you're reading this, I know no one in LA calls you that. Unfortunately, college nicknames last a lifetime; condolences bud! Anyway, Becky's never been to LA, so we thought it'd be a good chance for her to get her picture at the Peach Pit and try to see some kids from the Real World at the bars in Hollywood. Also, there will be stops at In-N-Out Burger.

After a couple days in LA, off to sunny Fiji ... I've already mentioned the impending political chaos in Fiji. For more info, ask your buddy Google. For now, Becky and I will be thinking happy thoughts, especially about Fijian military chief Commodore Bainimarama. If you're reading this, we'd ask that you mentally send him your thoughts of "Don't overthrow the government." Power of positive thinking, people! Actually, we probably shouldn't take any stand in this argument, as who knows what will happen, and I have a suspicion that we'd make terrible political prisoners. Officially, we only support whoever lets us on and off the island peacefully, especially if poi is involved. My other goals are to try some Fiji Bitter and perhaps score a t-shirt, and to take pictures so that I can add Fiji to my Flickr map. After a couple days in hopefully sunny (and peaceful) Fiji, we're off to New Zealand. But I don't want to ruin all of the surprises already, so I'll save that for later, toodles!