wind at our backs: LAGUNA BEACH OCT 08

Back in Las Vegas for only about 3 days and we headed out to sunny California. Laguana Beach is a trendy, artsy, hip, surfers paradise. Long stretches of white sandy beaches overlook Catalina Island. Hip clothing stores and wonderful art galleries are only accented by wonderfull restaurants for all tastes. Mexican, Brazillian Steak houses, Sushi, and of course California cuisine. Located on old Highway 1, Laguna sits at the edge of the foothills and opens up to the Pacific Ocean.

Daniel has had this same room reservation for about 17 years. Room 101 at the Laguana Riveria. It is a older hotel but boosts the saying that "Ye canno be both grande and comfortable"
It is a great great great location. You park your car and walk where ever you need. Nothing is too far away. Grocery stores ect. It is easier to walk on the beach as it is flat and the roads are up and down. Good for the cardio though. LOL

This is the view as you start to do down to our room. They have 3 levels and we were on the bottom. No one in front of us to obscure our view.

And what a view it is.......this is our private deck. You can watch the surfers challenging the waves all day. They start as early as 7 am. Great for reading and having romantic dinners at. Also, fun for playing cards or dice late in the afternoon.

The walk way up to the lobby is full of tropical plants and very pretty flowers.

These looked kind of like honeysuckles

Every day "surfer boy" and I would hit the sand and walk the beach. Good exercise for us both, since we figured we were on holiday's and ate and drank whatever we wanted!!!!

We were there for a week and for the last part of it, our friends, Steve and Jackie, joined us for some fun. We had lunch here looking over the Pacific after we played some golf. We had crab natchos (yummy) and margarita's.

Daniel practicing his new swing.....

Sunday brunch was so good. I also loved the restaruant. It used to be a house on the beach (hence the name tee hee) that a old movie actor owned and someone had made the decision to make it a eatery.

The courtyard was so pretty....

The gang enjoying some great food....and "sunshine mimosa's" (champagne, oj and a splash of grand marnier)

And, no Sunday Brunch would be complete without a Bloody Mary "Beach House" style. I think that Julie still wins in that department though. This is a close second!!!!

Crab cakes benedict!!!!

We took a walk after breaky and found this quaint shopping area with a funky chocolate shop in it. This reminds me of New Orleans...actually a bride was in here having her pics taken. Very nice

Chococlates made for the election...republicans and democrates

And, whenever I see beautifull flowers I have to take a pic for my friend Sue Dean. She loves them all and seems to be able to grow almost anything. I didn't ever find out what this was but I think it might be a relation to a clematis plant....very pretty.