My third and final set of San Francisco photos from my recent weekend visit focuses on Chinatown and the nearby TransAmerica Pyramid, which dominates the skyline of San Francisco from just about every angle. The Pyramid is just a hop, skip, and a jump from Chinatown, so it's almost always present at every street crossing.... Continue Reading →

This second set of photos from my recent weekend in San Francisco includes Haight-Ashbury, Pacific Heights, and near the Ferry Building. It was a rainy Saturday (and a cloudy Sunday) for walking, but I put in the miles and took some great photos, including this mural (above) on mural-filled Haight Street. Did you know there... Continue Reading →

I was able to cram in one small (4 days) quicky vacation to one of the cities I love: San Francisco, before my life becomes an endless ramp-up to one week in July.  I love SF because it's still a city you can go to and walk around and visit actual, honest-to-god BOOKSTORES. (I also... Continue Reading →

Two weeks in a row in late March/early April found me on train rides to Los Angeles and beyond. This time it was to Glendale for a vintage paperback show (more about that later, maybe), a new passion of mine. Having gone to Los Angeles and back the week before, the only new part of... Continue Reading →

I was recently in Los Angeles for a work-related few days, and one of those days I managed to slip away and go for a walk through parts of downtown L.A. Let's be frank, shall we? There are parts of downtown L.A. you don't want to walk through, but for the most part what I... Continue Reading →

I recently traveled to and from Los Angeles on Amtrak California's Pacific Surfliner. It's been years since I've been on a west coast train ride and I forgot how scenic it was (for the most part). From just outside San Diego to right after San Clemente or so, you're traveling literally right next to the... Continue Reading →