Sonny And Barer

 I debated whether to use that corny headline.  We just came back from spending the Memorial Day Holiday weekend in the Palm Springs area.  Mayor Sonny Bono, famous as part of the 1960s and 1970s singing duo, Sonny And Cher, is immortalized with a statue in the center of town.  

The concourse of the Palm Springs Airport is also named after Bono. 

Palm Springs V--The Plaza Theatre

The beautiful Plaza Theatre in Palm Springs has been dormant since the The Fabulous Palm Spring  Follies closed in May of 2014.  Local residents and indeed, some visitors, are working to restore and reopen the theatre.
We watched the Follies many years ago and found it fun and entertaining.

Palm Spring III--TKB Bakery And Deli

Out in the desert,  New York style delis are extremely popular.  We heard a lot of great things about TKB Bakery and Deli and it didn't disappoint.  Named by Yelp as the number one place to eat in the nation, it features friendly service and delicious food.
Started in 1991. TKB stands for "The Kids Business".

Palm Springs II--The Salton Sea

We had been coming to Palm Springs for well over a decade, but had yet to visit the Salton Sea until this year.  It is actually a salt lake, located on the San Andreas fault.  From a distance, it is very inviting, but when you get close, it is dirty and very dead, only limited species of marine life can live in the lake. 

 It was formed in the early 20th century when the Colorado River overflowed into an ancient lake bed.  We came to the almost deserted town of Bombay Beach.   At 223 feet below sea level, it is listed as the lowest community in the US.     We took this picture of the sign at the  town bar, oddly called the Ski Inn.  It bills itself as the lowest bar in the Western Hemisphere.

Late Winter Trip To Palm Springs

We have just returned from a three day trip to Palm Springs.  Our friends are somewhat irritated because this area is still amerced in one of the worst winters in memory.   Even Palm Springs itself suffered from uncharacteristic storms, but the weather was nice for our trip.
Above is the bust of Sonny Bono, who was the husband in the pop duo, Sonny And Cher, until they divorce in the mid 1970s.  The beautiful concourse of the Palm Springs Airport is named after him.  Bono went on be mayor of Palm Springs and eventually would serve in Congress.

Palm Springs II-The Escape Room

With our nephews and my in-laws, we went to a Palm Spring Escape Room.  A group is put into a room and is put on the clock.  It is up to the group to find and solve a series of puzzles to be able to exit the room.  We were grouped with another family that had children and a talent for that kind of thing.
We were given an hour to find a way to solve the puzzles. With the help of the other family in our group we were able to get out with 12 minutes left.  We were told that only 28% are able to solve the puzzles in the allotted time.
We finished the evening with a great dinner at Trio in downtown Palm Springs.

On To Palm Springs!

Actually Indio, which is considered Palm Springs. It is actually the Coachella Valley which consists of several cities in the desert of Southern California.  The top two pictures were taken from the World Mart time share where we stayed.   The top two pictures were taken from the property.  Top was looking at the mountains from the front.  The middle, of course, was our pool.  The bottom when was taken at the flea market that is held on weekends at the College Of The Desert in Palm Desert.

Palm Springs Trip

Deb and I spent the last four days with family enjoying the warm weather of the Palm Springs area.  Top picture, Dinner at the Marriott in Palm Desert Saturday, My nephew Ethan poses in the beautiful sunset.  We took the boat ride at The Mariott on Valentine's Day.  Bottom, I'm with my nephews on the grounds at the condo where we stayed.

Weekend In The Desert

We are returning four days in Palm Springs.

Welcome To The Hotel California

One of the most popular songs of all time, there actually is a Hotel California.  Actually, there are several in Southern California.  This one is located at 424 East Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs and is old world charming and romantic.  I'm hoping that we can stay there on one of our next vacations.

Marilyn Monroe Forever In Palm Springs

Love it or hate it, the first thing you notice upon arrival to Palm Springs is this 26 foot tall statue of Marilyn Monroe.  Known as "Forever Marilyn", this statue arrived in May of 2012 and depicts a famous sceene from the movie "Seven Year Itch".  The statue originally stood in Chicago.

Barers Of Maple Valley Goes To The Desert

We left for Palm Springs last Wednesday expecting to catch an early morning flight, only to find out that our plane had been delayed until 1. We decided to try to get on an earlier flight and after a couple of failed attempts, we were able to grab another morning flight to Oakland. Once there, we had to find another flight to Ontario, where we would rent a car and head another 100 miles to Palm Springs. We finally made it to Ontario around 7. We where too late to attend a show at McCallum with my Dad and Jean, however, they where able to give away our tickets. We finally arrived at 8:30 to my Dad's condo in Rancho Mirage.

The next day, was sunny and we went to the pool. We went to dinner that night at "The River", a stylish shopping mall in Rancho Mirage. The third photo from top shows the man made river. The name of the restaurant was Acqua Pazza Bistro. After dinner, Deb and I took them back and we headed to the Thursday Market in Palm Springs. After checking out the vibrant night scene, we spent a little time at the Spa Resort Casino.

On Friday, I met up with my Dad and Uncle for coffee, later joining my Dad's old friend, Andy Epstein for lunch at The Palms.

We moved over to Indio, where we would stay with thein-laws at their time-share (5th picture down is the view from the balcony. I noticed that some supermarkets had parking spots for golf carts (second picture down).

Saturday, it was a trip to the Market at the College Of The Desert in Palm Desert (top picture). We then went to the Living Desert, which is the local Zoo. We ended the day at a Mexican Restaurant in Palm Desert.

On Sunday, we met with my brother and his wife, then headed drove back to Ontario, fourth picture is one section of the many windmills that are seen as you enter or leave Palm Springs from the West. We had a smooth flight home.

Palm Springs III--Sherman's

Sherman's is another place not to miss if you are visiting the Palm Springs area. There are two locations, one in the heart of Palm Springs at 401 E Tahquitz Canyon Way and another in Palm Desert. I have eaten at both, Palm Springs is the one you want to stop at. If you are a celebrity watcher, Sherman's is the place to go, so far, I have not found any celebrities there, but everyone is treated like one. Sherman's is a New York style kosher deli. They are hard to find in the Seattle area, now that Brenner's of Bellevue is no longer in business.

Palm Spring II--The Old Creek Restaurant

I wanted to say a little something about the Old Creek House Restaurant located at 1555 S Palm Canyon Way in Palm Springs. On the way to the airport, my wife and her sister stopped to do some shopping at Steinmart nearby. My nephew was bored and I'm really not a shopping person so I wanted to take him where we could get some ice cream or something. There is really no fast food place near by, so I took him to the Old Creek, in spite of it being a fancy dinner place, we really were treated well and the deserts were fabulous. It may seem like a small thing, but the place made a great impression on me.

We just returned from our yearly visit to the Palm Springs area. We spent time by the pool, saw both of our families, celebrated the birthdays of my nephews and also caught Palm Springs Follies. It was our second time to visiting the follies which features chorus girls ranging in age from the mid-fifties to 80s and the delighfully red-neck host Riff Markowitz. This year's featured performer is Melba Moore.