As we used an ATM this morning, I was amused by the sign on the door, wondering what response it would get from a Geordie reader?!  But it's nicely worded, isn't it? (I didn't really mind waiting outside, either)

 

 

We enjoy staying out here on the coast, where it's some ten degrees cooler but where the "marine layer" (sorry, been watching The Weather Channel too much) results in a little early morning and evening mist.  I'd refer to this as "sea roke" and if we hung around Santa Monica long enough in the morning, we'd see it burn off fairly quickly.  But as we walked a few blocks early this morning, in search of breakfast, I remembered to look up and appreciate some of the fine details on the buildings on Third Street.  There's usually way too much going on at street level to distract me from the quieter features of the city!

 

 

Come to think of it, perhaps the Geordies have been influencing life here a little more than we thought.  This billboard has amused us each time we've driven along Wilshire Blvd.  We headed that way again this morning, towards Mary who lives in the Hollywood Hills.

 

 

This morning, we sat at the traffic lights at the junction of Fairfax and Sunset, looking towards this house and asked ourselves the same question as we've always done: "who lives in a home like that?" even though we're only mildly curious and not really interested in any form of star spotting.  A car journey here is never boring, for there is always something interesting to see, to watch, to notice.

 

 

Of course, there's plenty of evidence concerning the new boy in town, too.  I imagine next weekend will be wall-to-wall Gustavo and would love to be there at the concert in the Hollywood Bowl or the Disney Concert Hall to hear some magic happen!  We hear that tickets went like hot cakes and in spite of energetic efforts none of our friends have managed to get one.

 

 

To Pasadena today, then, "where the grass is greener" .  Can't really say about that, but it's certainly a favourite of ours with a walkable city centre, some of our favourite haunts in the shopping category and some fine buildings with character too.  We pottered around the shops, had a spot of lunch in Jakes and fulfilled our supermarket wishlist (Googone, ziplock bags, press'n'seal, Altoids), Trader Joes and Vroman's books before returning to Mary's in the late afternoon.

 

 

An early dinner at Mozza, followed by an evening of Dancing with the Stars chez Mary (where was Len this week?) and our day was complete.  We said our goodbyes - Mary has to teach tomorrow - and headed back west, out to the coast where the marine layer had descended once again and where a comfy bed was waiting!