Santa Catalina

To celebrate a big birthday for Jess’s dad, we set off to California. Riding in the shuttle + plane + Uber + boat to get to Catalina Island was half the fun. 

But first, we got to Long Beach a day early and enjoyed some activities. Unbeknownst to me, Long Beach is more of a port city and is not bursting with tourist stuff. 

Still, we found some things to do, like riding in Swan Boats (where we spotted a Great Blue Heron):

and visiting Queen Mary (a boat bigger and faster than the Titanic). 

We also found an old, abandoned shopping area across the street that gave off Disney vibes. Then we happened upon these trees made of styrofoam. Um, what? Apologies if these tree characters haunt your dreams tonight. And apologies if you were really looking forward to going to Long Beach sometime in the future and now you’re not so pumped. 

Back to Catalina, we got on the ferry and arrived. We made our way to the hotel. We had ice cream and seafood. We rented golf carts and enjoyed the sights and sounds of the island. The views were stunning. 

We spent time at the beach too. It was a brisk 65 degrees, but this did not stop the kiddos from enjoying the sand and the sea. 

It was a wonderful time! It was so nice to be with family in such a beautiful spot. One last thing, we like to call what Ian is wearing in the above photo “gym leisure” (he had gym shorts on with this sweater. With this clothing, you can go on a run to get to the nice restaurant where you have reservations.