We got off to a slow start this morning (Wed 1st March) James arranged car hire for the last part of our holiday to San Diego, and Kenneth phoned me about Jackie. She is very ill and only has days or weeks to live. I'm so shocked, I knew that things have been difficult but I thought that her new treatments would kick in and that she would have more time. I am thinking about her all the time and sending her my thoughts and wishes across the miles. I feel very far away from her.
We took an Uber to the Getty Museum, and thoroughly enjoyed our experience. As well as the art collection, which is well worth seeing, the building itself is very attractive in a modern way, all white with courtyards and fountains and gardens, and fantastic city views. It was sunny today although rather chilly, unusually so for LA even at this time of year, and we could see snow on the mountains beyond the city. At one point as we were walking through the courtyard there was a very tiny flurry of about three snowflakes, which sent the locals running volubly for cover and the people in the coffee kiosk were slamming down their shutters! To be fair they are probably nervous because they had some snow a few days ago and there is an unusual amount of snow elsewhere in California. We had a pleasant lunch in the café before taking another Uber to Venice Beach. By this time it was nearly five o’clock, about an hour before sunset, and our Uber driver sternly but helpfully told us not to get caught in Venice Beach after dark; he said that the boardwalk is not well lit and that there can be some very unpleasant characters about. We walked across the beach to the Pacific Ocean which was crashing against the sand, dark blue and shiny in the low sun. Then we walked along the path, lined with palm trees and hippy shops, towards Santa Monica, about 5 km along the coast. Even though it’s winter there were still quite a few skateboarders, cyclists, roller bladers, and even a few stalwarts playing beach volleyball. The sun was setting as we approached Santa Monica Pier and we paused to take a few photos before it sank into the ocean. We turned inland to catch a train back to the city, which went well apart from seeing some people smoking crystal meth on the station steps! Then it was a short Uber ride back to the hotel. By now it was getting seriously cold, perhaps because it was quite windy. We went into the Chinese Theatre just across from our hotel and watched Antman: Quantumania which we both found to be very entertaining (although it has had poor reviews from the critics apparently). Afterwards we walked briskly back to our nice warm room at the hotel.
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