A desperate plea to Carey Price.......

Dear Carey,

I was checking out your website and now I'm scared. There have been a few people posting comments and saying they're your number 1 fan......I hope she's not one of them.

Promise me that you'll have good tires this winter and please for the love of God, take extra precautions in a snow storm.

Signed,

A fan.

A desperate plea to Carey Price.......

Dear Carey,

I was checking out your website and now I'm scared. There have been a few people posting comments and saying they're your number 1 fan......I hope she's not one of them.

Promise me that you'll have good tires this winter and please for the love of God, take extra precautions in a snow storm.

Signed,

A fan.

LA la land ......wrap-up

Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco


I've visited California several times and I have also spent an extended period of time there during my year long hiatus between jobs. I'm just going to speak about my personal favorites, all of these places have Moey's seal of approval. If you plan on going, take at least take two weeks to get the most out of it. Fly into San Francisco, rent a car, drive along the coastal highway and end your trip leaving out of L.A., Mr. Moey and I did this on one of our trips and it worked out extremely well.

San Francisco is a small but nice city. You won't need a car and can cover a lot of ground on foot. Ferries run from the main pier daily to Sausalito and Alcatraz.

Sausalito

Sausalito is a very picturesque little town that houses unique boutiques, restaurants and art galleries, it's a great little spot for an afternoon or overnight visit.



Alcatraz

Alcatraz is a must, but try to book tickets ahead of time, they are usually sold out. The view from Alcatraz is great, a three hundred degree panoramic view of San Francisco Bay. You really get a feeling of how frustrating it must have been for the inmates, freedom seemed so close but was yet so far. The day that I visited Alcatraz I lucked out. One of the former inmates had written a small book on his time served from 1942-1952 and he was there to answer questions. His was a rare success story, he received a full pardon from Jimmy Carter in the early seventies and went on to become a radiologist. I bought a copy of his book which he signed for me and we had a little chat, hearing it straight form the horse's mouth gave you a sense of how tough it was to be incarcerated at the Rock, better than any book or tour guide ever could.

The last thing you should do is book a day trip to Sonoma. It's a scenic drive through wine country, a stop at one of the wineries is mandatory, there are some interesting bottles of wine that you may not find in the stores.

View from Top of the Mark, Mark Hopkins Hotel, San Francisco

On your last night in San Francisco, go to the Top of the Mark, it's a bar featuring live music on the top of the Mark Hopkins hotel and it has a fantastic view of the city at night. Great place for a night cap.



View from the Tickle Pink Inn



Wine and cheese on the deck at sunset

After spending three days in San Francisco, we slowly made our way down to Southern California. We headed south on Hwy 101, picking up Route 1, the coastal highway. You can check out interesting places like Bodega Bay, this was the little town where Alfred Hitchcock filmed "The Birds." We stopped in Carmel overnight, it's such a pretty place with plenty of restaurants and galleries. We did the seventeen mile drive which takes you right by the Pebble Beach golf course. We ended up spending the night at the "Tickle Pink Inn" a lovely spot with a great sea view, they also served complimentary wine and cheese on the deck at sunset.

Big Sur


Route 1 (this was my third attempt to do this drive, the previous times the road was closed due to mudslides and fallen rocks) has been rated as one of the top ten drives in the world. I can't vouch for the other nine, but the drive through Big Sur is jaw dropping. Just when you think it can't get any better it does, I spent a lot of time pulling over and taking pictures.

The highway finishes around Morro Bay, we got back on to Highway 101 South and checked out Santa Barbara where we visited a couple of nice wineries and had a picnic lunch.




Catalina Island

I also really enjoyed an overnight stay on Catalina, it's about an hour by ferry out of Long Beach. There are very few cars on the island, most people get around on golf carts, there are a variety of restaurants and shops, nice place for a mini getaway.

Queen Mary, Long Beach

Another cool thing to do is stay aboard the Queen Mary which has been docked in Long Beach since 1967 and is now a hotel or if you just want to visit, there are good restaurants on board too. The rooms still have a nautical flair to them and it's fun to walk along her decks checking out the many pictures of celebrities that were amongst her passengers during the fifties.


There are many other places worth visiting, San Diego, (the Hotel Del Coronado is especially worth a trip) Newport, Laguna and Zuma Beach to name a few others. And of course if it's your first trip, the bus tours of the stars' homes in Bel Air and Beverly Hills are fun, along with a visit to Universal Studios.


As I was writing this yesterday, I was speaking to my sister who has been living in California since 1994. I need my California fix and I'm plotting a visit somewhere around March 7, 2010. The fact that the Habs are playing the Anaheim Ducks that day is purely a coincidence.

LA la land ......wrap-up

Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco


I've visited California several times and I have also spent an extended period of time there during my year long hiatus between jobs. I'm just going to speak about my personal favorites, all of these places have Moey's seal of approval. If you plan on going, take at least take two weeks to get the most out of it. Fly into San Francisco, rent a car, drive along the coastal highway and end your trip leaving out of L.A., Mr. Moey and I did this on one of our trips and it worked out extremely well.

San Francisco is a small but nice city. You won't need a car and can cover a lot of ground on foot. Ferries run from the main pier daily to Sausalito and Alcatraz.

Sausalito

Sausalito is a very picturesque little town that houses unique boutiques, restaurants and art galleries, it's a great little spot for an afternoon or overnight visit.



Alcatraz

Alcatraz is a must, but try to book tickets ahead of time, they are usually sold out. The view from Alcatraz is great, a three hundred degree panoramic view of San Francisco Bay. You really get a feeling of how frustrating it must have been for the inmates, freedom seemed so close but was yet so far. The day that I visited Alcatraz I lucked out. One of the former inmates had written a small book on his time served from 1942-1952 and he was there to answer questions. His was a rare success story, he received a full pardon from Jimmy Carter in the early seventies and went on to become a radiologist. I bought a copy of his book which he signed for me and we had a little chat, hearing it straight form the horse's mouth gave you a sense of how tough it was to be incarcerated at the Rock, better than any book or tour guide ever could.

The last thing you should do is book a day trip to Sonoma. It's a scenic drive through wine country, a stop at one of the wineries is mandatory, there are some interesting bottles of wine that you may not find in the stores.

View from Top of the Mark, Mark Hopkins Hotel, San Francisco

On your last night in San Francisco, go to the Top of the Mark, it's a bar featuring live music on the top of the Mark Hopkins hotel and it has a fantastic view of the city at night. Great place for a night cap.



View from the Tickle Pink Inn



Wine and cheese on the deck at sunset

After spending three days in San Francisco, we slowly made our way down to Southern California. We headed south on Hwy 101, picking up Route 1, the coastal highway. You can check out interesting places like Bodega Bay, this was the little town where Alfred Hitchcock filmed "The Birds." We stopped in Carmel overnight, it's such a pretty place with plenty of restaurants and galleries. We did the seventeen mile drive which takes you right by the Pebble Beach golf course. We ended up spending the night at the "Tickle Pink Inn" a lovely spot with a great sea view, they also served complimentary wine and cheese on the deck at sunset.

Big Sur


Route 1 (this was my third attempt to do this drive, the previous times the road was closed due to mudslides and fallen rocks) has been rated as one of the top ten drives in the world. I can't vouch for the other nine, but the drive through Big Sur is jaw dropping. Just when you think it can't get any better it does, I spent a lot of time pulling over and taking pictures.

The highway finishes around Morro Bay, we got back on to Highway 101 South and checked out Santa Barbara where we visited a couple of nice wineries and had a picnic lunch.




Catalina Island

I also really enjoyed an overnight stay on Catalina, it's about an hour by ferry out of Long Beach. There are very few cars on the island, most people get around on golf carts, there are a variety of restaurants and shops, nice place for a mini getaway.

Queen Mary, Long Beach

Another cool thing to do is stay aboard the Queen Mary which has been docked in Long Beach since 1967 and is now a hotel or if you just want to visit, there are good restaurants on board too. The rooms still have a nautical flair to them and it's fun to walk along her decks checking out the many pictures of celebrities that were amongst her passengers during the fifties.


There are many other places worth visiting, San Diego, (the Hotel Del Coronado is especially worth a trip) Newport, Laguna and Zuma Beach to name a few others. And of course if it's your first trip, the bus tours of the stars' homes in Bel Air and Beverly Hills are fun, along with a visit to Universal Studios.


As I was writing this yesterday, I was speaking to my sister who has been living in California since 1994. I need my California fix and I'm plotting a visit somewhere around March 7, 2010. The fact that the Habs are playing the Anaheim Ducks that day is purely a coincidence.

LA la land cont'd................

Harry Winston Beverley Hills


So picking up where I left off, we finally got off that cruise and did a little cruising of our own around Beverly Hills. We were enjoying our window shopping when suddenly I spotted Harry Winston's jewelery store, famous for outfitting "A" list celebrities on Oscar night. "C'mon Mr. Moey, let's check it out, they should have some gorgeous jewelery." So in we went, closed the door behind us and looked around. Not a single piece of jewelery in sight, the only items in the room were two desks. We looked at each other, puzzled. Suddenly a salesman appears from the back of the store. He says, "Can I help you?". Mr. Moey is silent, so I pipe up, "ah yes, I'd like to see some diamond rings please, solitaire, oval and pear shaped around two carats would be fine." Mr. Salesman is looking at me up and down in my jeans and flip flops and says "you do realize I have to go and get them out of the vault." "No problem, I said, take your time." Off he goes, Mr. Moey and I sit down at one of the desks, look at each other and say "holy crap." About five minutes later our salesman returns with three beautiful diamond rings in hand. My favorite was this one:


So I try it on, it was stunning, the colors bouncing off the lighting in the store were dazzling. As I was admiring it all of a sudden our salesman lets out a squeal, "oh...Mr. Moey that watch you're wearing is just fabulous, can I try it on?" Our salesman was (to be polite) a little light in his loafers. He took this sudden shine to Mr. Moey's watch and I suspect to Mr. Moey as well. Mr. Moey obliges while I'm still sitting mesmerized by the ring. The topic quickly changed to watches, Mr. Salesman insisted on retrieving a few timepieces from the vault for Mr. Moey's perusal. He comes back with three watches one of which he informed us Mel Gibson had purchased, it was now on back order for six months, but he could probably get his hands on one if we decided to buy it. No offense to Mel Gibson, but I wasn't impressed, the strap looked like it was made of rubber. Meanwhile, I had tried on several occasions to take the ring off, he would have none of it. "Keep it on," he insisted, "make it yours." The next thing we know he retreats to the vault again and brings out a matching necklace and bracelet in white and pale yellow diamonds. "Here Moey try these on, they will look gorgeous with your tan." So there I was, with a half million dollars of diamonds dripping off me in my jeans and flip flops. We ended up spending an hour there and at the end of it Mr. Salesman slipped Mr. Moey a card with the model number of the ring and the price. He told Mr. Moey if he came back on his own, they could negotiate a better deal. Price of ring $48,000.00 U.S., an hour in Harry Winston's; priceless. I'm still waiting for Mr. Moey to go back and negotiate.....

LA la land cont'd................

Harry Winston Beverley Hills


So picking up where I left off, we finally got off that cruise and did a little cruising of our own around Beverly Hills. We were enjoying our window shopping when suddenly I spotted Harry Winston's jewelery store, famous for outfitting "A" list celebrities on Oscar night. "C'mon Mr. Moey, let's check it out, they should have some gorgeous jewelery." So in we went, closed the door behind us and looked around. Not a single piece of jewelery in sight, the only items in the room were two desks. We looked at each other, puzzled. Suddenly a salesman appears from the back of the store. He says, "Can I help you?". Mr. Moey is silent, so I pipe up, "ah yes, I'd like to see some diamond rings please, solitaire, oval and pear shaped around two carats would be fine." Mr. Salesman is looking at me up and down in my jeans and flip flops and says "you do realize I have to go and get them out of the vault." "No problem, I said, take your time." Off he goes, Mr. Moey and I sit down at one of the desks, look at each other and say "holy crap." About five minutes later our salesman returns with three beautiful diamond rings in hand. My favorite was this one:


So I try it on, it was stunning, the colors bouncing off the lighting in the store were dazzling. As I was admiring it all of a sudden our salesman lets out a squeal, "oh...Mr. Moey that watch you're wearing is just fabulous, can I try it on?" Our salesman was (to be polite) a little light in his loafers. He took this sudden shine to Mr. Moey's watch and I suspect to Mr. Moey as well. Mr. Moey obliges while I'm still sitting mesmerized by the ring. The topic quickly changed to watches, Mr. Salesman insisted on retrieving a few timepieces from the vault for Mr. Moey's perusal. He comes back with three watches one of which he informed us Mel Gibson had purchased, it was now on back order for six months, but he could probably get his hands on one if we decided to buy it. No offense to Mel Gibson, but I wasn't impressed, the strap looked like it was made of rubber. Meanwhile, I had tried on several occasions to take the ring off, he would have none of it. "Keep it on," he insisted, "make it yours." The next thing we know he retreats to the vault again and brings out a matching necklace and bracelet in white and pale yellow diamonds. "Here Moey try these on, they will look gorgeous with your tan." So there I was, with a half million dollars of diamonds dripping off me in my jeans and flip flops. We ended up spending an hour there and at the end of it Mr. Salesman slipped Mr. Moey a card with the model number of the ring and the price. He told Mr. Moey if he came back on his own, they could negotiate a better deal. Price of ring $48,000.00 U.S., an hour in Harry Winston's; priceless. I'm still waiting for Mr. Moey to go back and negotiate.....

Adventures in LA la land.....

Well, there's really no hockey news to speak of, so I'm continuing on with my beaches series. For the next few days I'm going to focus on California, starting with Malibu and finishing with San Francisco. I spent quite a bit of time in California, I was laid off from my company after 21 years, (they relocated to Ontario) so I happily took my severance pay and took a year off. I drove to California at the beginning of August, spent three months with my sister then purchased a circle the globe ticket returning back to L.A. in February and made my way back to Montreal in April. Poor Mr. Moey was in Montreal keeping the home fires burning, after all somebody had to keep working and pay the bills. He did have a lot of business in San Francisco at the time, so we managed to have some great long weekends in California. The first spot I took him to was one of my favorite places; Malibu beach and Geoffrey's restaurant, both pictured below.






Geoffrey's is located on the Pacific Coast Highway, it has an amazing view in a gorgeous setting. We had dinner there but the Sunday brunch is a do not miss. They make a great Eggs Benedict with a twist, they used toasted croissants and prosciutto instead of the standard English muffin and ham. That along with a couple of Mimosas (champagne and orange juice) was a piece of food heaven. Mr. Moey loved it; the weekend was off to a great start, that is until I dragged him kicking and screaming on a four day cruise to Catalina and Mexico. Mr. Moey is not a big fan of cruises, from the trough dining to lining up like cattle to board the tenders into shore it just doesn't do it for him, he'd rather stick pins in his eyes. He did manage to pick up a few leather items in Mexico at a very good price, so that eased the pain a little. Back on dry land, we did some shopping on Rodeo drive with a little visit to Harry Winston the famous jeweler to the stars. I'll recap that adventure in the days to come.