Saturday 29 th February 2020.....Day 20!!!

Happy birthday to all those leap year babies!!!

I stayed up fairly late last night watching a show hence went to bed late and so the boys slept in till 7 am

but then they were looking for their breakfast!!

This morning was overcast and a tad cool and after all the hectic ness   of yesterday I decided a good day stay around the house..

Especially as I could watch a great live soccer game from England on the big screen!!

The dogs cannot go for long walks so they get plenty of short ones.

I did some laundry, some planning on routes for later this week, read, drank tea and became a house boy.....

Later in the afternoon the sun came out and it was quite nice so after taking the dogs out I went on a brisk hike to the closest beach about 25 minutes away and snapped some nice sunset shots.

What do you think Grandma and Grandpa seagull are watching?.

Yes you are right the sunset...hint bottom left hand corner!!

At home cooked myself a nice dinner consisting of a lovely piece of Tri steak(thank you Linda) and Russet potatoes and corn, a good Pearson meal and it was very good.

What do you think Teague wants????

Heading downstairs and into that lovely tub!!!!

Hope you have a great weekend!!

Yashi Kochi!

Friday 28 th February 2020...Day 19!!!

The morning routine is now set......the boys come to my bedside around 6.15am and politely inform me it is time to go for a walk......

So we go out and around the block and come back for breakfast and that is all the care they need.

Today was a big day for me because I drove up to Pepperdine University it is a beautiful campus over looking the ocean 

and I met Stella and Caron and got to watch Ashley play a doubles and a singles match.

I have know Stella and Caron for almost twenty years and Stella introduced me to her grand daughter, Ashley, when she was 12 years old.....she has been playing tennis since a really young kid and I have read about her exploits and infrequently seen her play since, but I have not seen her for three years.

Caron is Ashley’s Aunt and a huge supporter so it was nice for them to be there along with Ashley parents, Pauline and Corning!!

This was a big inter collegiate matchup against the fourth ranked team, Texas Longhorns .

Ashley and he partner won the doubles game, overpowered their opponents!!

There are very committed to the concept of team!!!

Watching the final match...

Then in the singles match Ashley downed her opposite number in two sets and that victory vaulted her to the number two ranked player in the country.

It was a great day for the team as they won all their matches.

What a joy for me to be in the stadium and watch her...she is strong, tall and very competitive.....hard to believe she graduates in May and has some major decisions to make about her sporting career and her medical career.

So nice to get a shot with her and a treat to be around my friends on a special day!!

The drive back in rush hour traffic took twice as long as it did to get there...

Took care of the dogs when I got home and got showered and dressed and went again down town this time to the huge old theatre to hear this band...

The place was full about 2000 people and they had them dancing in the aisles, a good night!!

That was a long but special day for me!!,

Yashi Kochi!!

Thursday 27 th February 2020....Day 18!!!!

The dogs were really good slept all night and woke me up 

around 6.30am with wagging tails.

I got dressed and took them out for a short walk and came back and fed them, that is about all the work they are.

Relaxed this morning and enjoyed my breakfast out on the deck with the ocean view......took the boys out for another walk and then set off on my afternoon hike.

I went the opposite direction this time and it is very pretty along the top of the cliffs.

This was the first place I visited..

This massive and intricately-decorated bell and pavilion was donated in 1976 to the people of Los Angeles by the people of the Republic of Korea to celebrate the bicentennial of the U.S. independence, honor veterans of the Korean War, and to consolidate traditional friendship between the two countries. The bell is patterned after the Bronze Bell of King Songdok, which was cast in 771 A.D. and is still on view in South Korea today.

The bell was cast in Korea and shipped to the United States. Weighing 17 tons, with a height of twelve feet and a diameter of 7-1/2 feet, the bell is made of copper and tin, with gold, nickel, lead and phosphorous added for tone quality. When it was built, it cost the Korean people $500,000. Four pairs of figures, each pair consisting of the Goddess of Liberty holding a torch, and a Korean spirit , are engraved in relief on the body of the bell. Each of the Korean spirits holds up a different symbol: a symbolic design of the Korean flag; a branch of the rose of Sharon, Korea’s national flower; a branch of laurel, symbol of victory; and a dove of peace. The bell has no clapper but is struck from the outside with a wooden log.

The bell is set in a pagoda-like stone structure which was constructed on the site by thirty craftsmen flown in from Korea. It took them ten months and costs $569,680. The pavilion is supported by twelve columns representing the twelve designs of the Oriental zodiac. Animals stand guard at the base of each column. Recently the Korean Bell underwent extensive renovation and restoration. On January 10, 2014 the Tarps were removed .

Resting peacefully on the knoll overlooking the sea gate from which U.S. troops sailed into the Pacific, the bell site affords an unsurpassed view of the Los Angeles harbor, the Catalina Channel and the sea terraces of San Pedro hill. The bell is rung each year on: Independence day, July 4, National Liberation Day of Korea, August 15, 9:00a.m.-12 Noon and New Year’s Eve, September 17 to coincide with bell ringings around the country to celebrate Constitution week, also on January 13 for Korean-American Day. The Bell is also rung 13 times on the 1st Saturday of the month at 11:30 a.m.

Then it was down to Fermin point..

Next was an area called the Sunken City...

This is an article about it..

In 1929, a landslide in San Pedro, California, caused a neighborhood of exclusive homes to tumble into the ocean. At its peak, the land movement was measured at an astounding 11 inches a day. During the slide, part of the adjoining Point Fermin Park also fell into the ocean.

Today, the area is called “Sunken City” by locals, and consists of the broken foundations of houses, abandoned streetcar tracks, buckled sidewalks, and empty streets. The area is now a popular hiking spot.

It’s been featured in travel vlogs, television shows, and films such as The Big Lebowski. It was also showcased by professional skateboarder Kilian Martin, giving new life to its unique destruction in the film Edge of the World.

Know Before You Go

Do not attempt to enter the Sunken City. Not only is trespassing not tolerated, but accessing the ruins is dangerous and therefore should not be attempted. Due to the danger of the ruins, the site is strictly off-limits to the public.

And finally down to the beach by the harbour...

As you can tell it was an overcast but still warm day...

Walking along the pier a fisherman stopped me and told me about a small baby grey whale that kept surfacing..

Who would have thought in this stretch of water 

you could see this baby!!

Made my day!!

It was a good walk maybe five miles...back and took the boys out and then fed them got myself cleaned up and went down town to the Little Fish Theatre and was thoroughly entertained by this play...a great script and wonderful acting!!

As usual back home and out with the boys before bed!!

Yashi Koshi!

Wednesday 26 th February 2020...Day 17!!!

Was up bright and early and on the road by 8.30am....

it was only a 45 minute drive to San Pedro and my house and dog sit for seven days.

I have had frequent contact with the owners and was given instructions how to access the house and waiting for me were Rufus

and Teague

They took to me right away and are very sweet dogs, both are getting on in life and have a touch of arthritis so they only go on slow flat and short walks and I took them out right away, they were good on the leashes!

The house is very lovely and has everything I need included this great view from the rear deck 

This will get plenty of use!!!

After I got settled in it was time for a live soccer game from Spain....

Nice big screen Tv..

The took the dogs out for another walk and then set out down two blocks to the ocean and a great walk along the cliffs...

There is a longer walk which I will do tomorrow but for now I went down to the beach and watched the sun going down.

Back home and gave the boys their dinner, they get along really well and can tell they are going to be easy to take care.

Then it was time to soak in that lovely tub....

Now going to have my tea and watch the show and then take the beds out before bed..

Yashi Kochi!!!!

Tuesday 25 th February 2020... Day 16!!!

Today was hiking day!!

I did my research and found what I thought would be a great ocean cliff top hike and it was!!

I started out at this lighthouse area...

And I then continued along the cliff tops with amazing views....

Before dropping down to the stunning beach....

In walked to the end of this point..

Some weird rock formations..

There is just something about beaches and oceans that soothe me I guess all those years in Bermuda may have something to do with that!!

On the walk back..

The black circle is the furthest point I went to..

It was hot but I was well prepared.

I reckon I walked around eight miles and it felt really good!!

And my reward!!!!

Going here

For this..

Because this is what we did as kids ...

Shrove Tuesday / Pancake Day

Shrove Tuesday is the day before Lent starts on Ash Wednesday. The name Shrove comes from the old middle English word 'Shriven' meaning to go to confession to say sorry for the wrong things you've done. Lent always starts on a Wednesday, so people went to confessions on the day before. This became known as Shriven Tuesday and then Shrove Tuesday.

The other name for this day, Pancake Day, comes from the old English custom of using up all the fattening ingredients in the house before Lent, so that people were ready to fast during Lent. The fattening ingredients that most people had in their houses in those days were eggs and milk. A very simple recipe to use up these ingredients was to combine them with some flour and make pancakes!

Yashi Kochi!!!