Arroyo Monthly June 2009

I N E LINI V I NSAN G GABRIEL I N T HVALLEY E G R E A T E R FINEF LIVING THE

P A S A D E N A

A R E A

THE

JUNE 2009 JUN

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ARROYO VOLUME 5 ~ NUMBER 6

M O N T H LY

36 GREAT ESCAPES 8 LUXURY TRAVEL ON A DIME The recession is fueling great deals for travelers willing to do a little sleuthing on the Internet.

–By Gary Dretzka

12 DESTINATION HOTELS A Date With the Grande Dame: The Hotel del Coronado in San Diego –By Michael Burr The Eagle’s Nest: The Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort in Solvang –By Irene Lacher

32 TRAVEL DISPATCHES What’s new this summer at vacation spots around the world –By Carl Kozlowski

36 THE VACATION OF CHAMPIONS British Columbia showcases its historical treasures for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

–By Irene Lacher

THEATER PHOTO: Whistler vista by Leanna Rathkelly and Paul Morrison

43 KELLY MCGILLIS’ SECOND ACT The “Top Gun” star returns to her first love — the stage — in the Pasadena Playhouse production of “The Little Foxes.”

–By M. John Seeley

DEPARTMENTS 7 FESTIVITIES The Pasadena Museum of History, the Pasadena Showcase House of Design and the Tufts Poetry Awards

45 THE LIST The Glendale Youth Orchestra, “Dim Sum Funeral,” Wayne Thiebaud at the Norton Simon, Jennifer Holliday with the Gay Men’s Chorus and more

48 KITCHEN CONFESSIONS A taste for travel leaves this columnist with a yen for stewardesses and sporks.

ABOUT THE COVER: Photo of Jade Mountain pool by Joe McNally

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 5

When it comes to your pet – Only the Best!

• Dogs & Cats

Rose e City y Veterinary y Hospital

• Full Medical Services • Surgery • Dentistry • Routine Care & Vaccinations

EDITOR’S NOTE

THE MORE THE RECESSION CHIPS AWAY AT discretionary spending, the more one luxury becomes an

• X-rayy & Ultrasound

absolute necessity — getting away from all that. But fear not:

• Wellness Exam

Travelers willing to do a little investigating may find that their money buys a lot more indulgence now than it did just a little while ago.

Veteran travel writer Gary Dretzka went prospecting for sales on high-end escapes and found the Internet overflowing with options, from Southern California to

Extended Hours!!!

Istanbul. And summer voyagers willing to battle traffic can find a vast array of

Mon. & Wed. 9am – 8pm Tues., Thurs., & Fri. 9am – 6pm Sat. 9am – 4 pm, Sun. 9am – 3pm

tempting possibilities relatively close to home, including destination hotels happy to take care of all your needs. Join the ranks of stay-cationers and you can skip the tariff for air fare, leaving more leisure dollars for artisanal chocolate at the Hotel del Coronado’s Eno wine bar in San Diego, for example, a delight Michael Burr sampled in a recent visit.

Or spend your transportation dollars on horseback riding at the Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort in Solvang, a trip not only to Santa Barbara wine country but also back in time. As I discovered during a recent family reunion at the 63-year-old resort, the

626.796.VETS (8387) 2695 E. Foothill Blvd. • Pasadena (near San Gabriel Blvd.)

owners, whose main game is cattle ranching, have fended off the bugaboo of development and maintained the place as a jewel of California history encased in amber.

If you do hop a plane so you can, say, visit British Columbia for the 21st Winter Olympics (see page 36) or grab one of those incredible travel deals abroad, make

Give Your Pets

The Quality of Life They Deserve

sure you pack some homemade granola bars for the trip. In our travel issue, Kitchen Confessions columnist Leslie Bilderback tells you everything you need to know to keep your tummy from rumbling while you’re in the sky.

— Irene Lacher

Does Your Pet Suffer From Any of These Conditions? · · · · · · · · · ·

Stiffness / Pain / Spasm Muscle Atrophy Paralysis Trouble getting up and down Lack of Endurance / Stamina Post Surgical Complications / Recovery Arthritis / DJD Hip / Elbow / Shoulder Dysplasia DM (Degenerative Myelopathy) Obesity

ARROYO MONTHLY Altadena, Arcadia, Eagle Rock, Glendale, La Cañada Flintridge, La Crescenta, Montrose, Sierra Madre, Pasadena, San Marino and South Pasadena

EDITOR IN CHIEF Irene Lacher PRODUCTION MANAGER Yvonne Guerrero ART DIRECTOR Joel Vendette • JUNIOR DESIGNER Evelyn Duenas WEB DESIGNER Carla Marroquin COPY EDITOR John Seeley STAFF WRITER Carl Kozlowski CONTRIBUTORS Karen Apostolina, Jenine Baines, Leslie Bilderback, Michael Burr, Michael Cervin, André Coleman, Caroline Cushing, Mandalit del Barco, Patt Diroll, Gary Dretzka, Lynne Heffley, Katie Klapper, Bettijane Levine, Jana Monji, Arlene Schindler, Ilsa Setziol, Kirk Silsbee, John Sollenberger PHOTOGRAPHERS Johnny Buzzerio, C.M. Hardt, Melissa Valladares ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Dina Stegon ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Fred Bankston, Dana Bonner, Elizabeth Guzman, Leslie Lamm, Alison Standish ADVERTISING DESIGNER Carla Marroquin VP OF FINANCE Michael Nagami • HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER Andrea Baker BUSINESS MANAGER Angela Wang ACCOUNTING Alysia Chavez, Archie Iskaq OFFICE ASSISTANT Emma Rodriguez Luna PUBLISHER Jon Guynn

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CONTACT US

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ADVERTISING dinas@pasadenaweekly.com • EDITORIAL editor@arroyomonthly.com PHONE (626) 584-1500 • FAX (626) 795-0149 MAILING ADDRESS 50 S. De Lacey Ave., Ste. 200, Pasadena, CA 91105 www.ArroyoMonthly.com ©2009 Southland Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.

FESTIVITIES

1

“Star Trek: The Voyager” star and South 1

Pasadena resident John de Lancie hosted a patron dinner honoring Matthea Harvey and Matthew Dickman, winners of the 17th annual Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards, at the Colburn School of Music’s Colburn Café on April 23. The Brooklyn, N.Y.–based Harvey, a Sarah Lawrence professor, won the $100,000 Kingsley Tufts Award for her 2007 book, “Modern Life.” Dickman, of Portland,

2

3

4

Oregon, took home the $10,000 Kate Tufts Discovery Award for his first book, 2008’s “All-American Poem.” The awards are

1. (From left) Karen Craig, Claire Bogaard, Randy and Judy Wilson, William Kruse 2. Barry Jones, Tink Cheney and William and Eileen Zimmerman 3. Tirage Gallery owners Karen Hackett and Kevin Casey with PMH founders Ed and Paulette Lee 4. Randy Wilson with Tom Siefert and Dianne Philibosian

Judy and Randy Wilson, former board presidents of the Pasadena Museum

administered by Claremont Graduate

of History (PMH), drew a warm gathering of supporters at an April 22 dinner at

University. Also honored at the post-cere-

the Altadena Country Club, honoring the couple’s philanthropic legacy. PMH

mony dinner were retiring judges Robert

board member William Kruse chaired the event, which raised $37,000 for the

Pinsky, Alison Joseph and Eugene Gloria.

museum’s educational programs. Revelers included Claire Bogaard, honorary event chair; Karen Craig, PMH president; and PMH trustees John Baatz and

1. John de Lancie with wife Marnie Mosiman (left) and Leelee Doughty of South Pasadena

Don McIntyre.

PHOTOS: Pasadena Museum of History by Jim Staub, Tufts Poetry Awards by Lee Salern

Arts supporters celebrated the 45th Pasadena Showcase House of Design during the April 17 premiere night party at the San Gabriel Country Club. Organizers Joy Sullivan, 2009 Showcase House president; benefit chair Marti Farley; and premiere night chairmen Liz Giordano and Kathleen Wilson welcomed guests to a blue-and-white party landscape. Silver votives and centerpieces of

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hydrangeas, roses, tulips, freesia and succulents, designed by Pasadena florist Mary Falkingham, topped tables covered in silvery blue cloths. Guests dined on Chef Edward Ungrue’s diver scallops and filet mignon with Hudson Valley foie gras.

1. Lisa Lipman and Dana Marevich, exterior co-chairmen 2. Liz Giordano and Kathleen Wilson, premiere night chairmen 3. Pasadena Showcase House of Design

2

3 ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 7

GREAT ESCAPES

TURKISH DELIGHT: The Çiragan Palace Kempinski in Istanbul offers sybaritic experiences and discounts to summer travelers.

LUXURY TRAVEL ON A DIME

NO, “AFFORDABLE LUXURY” ISN’T AN OXYMORON. THE RECESSION IS FUELING GREAT DEALS FOR TRAVELERS WILLING TO DO A LITTLE SLEUTHING ON THE INTERNET.

BY GARY DRETZKA

THE TRIPLE WHAMMY OF RECESSION, SKYROCKETING GAS PRICES AND SWINE FLU HAS FORCED CONSUMERS WORLDWIDE TO RECONSIDER VACATION PLANS, BUT NOT ALL NEWS FOR SUMMER TRAVELERS IS GRIM. WITHOUT MINIMIZING THESE VERY REAL PROBLEMS ONE BIT, IT’S WORTH strategy to ride Southern California’s new wave of stay-cationers, recessionminded travelers who are staying TO FIND OPPORTUNITY IN THE SPACE ONCE DOMINATED BY THE DARKEST OF CLOUDS. closer to home.

Consumers who aren’t concerned about losing their jobs any time soon, or “We know that a lot of travelers are taking one family vacation, where, in have money socked away for just such occasions, will find bargains in places the past, they might have planned one for the family and another for themselves they may never have thought to look. Indeed, after being gouged for fuel and alone,” said Denise Chapman, marketing director for the resort, which recently airport surcharges on planes and rental cars, paying baggage and security fees, underwent $140 million in renovations. “People in Southern California are disand being forced to wait in lines for passports and visas — all for the privilege covering La Costa and other great resorts they hadn’t experienced previously. of enduring flights that are overbooked, overcrowded and rarely on time — Typically, 50 to 60 percent of our guests are from California, but, in the last six some travelers might even relish the opportunity to gloat at their good fortune. months, it’s closer to 70 percent. That presents a challenge for us. Even though Some hands-on computer time may be required, of course. For those La Costa is known for being a spa and golf destination, we’ve begun to truly conversant with Internet commerce, however, luxury travel is more accessible embrace kids and family-oriented activities throughout the resort.” than ever. “I think there has never been a more affordable time to travel,” Even Las Vegas, once considered a recession-proof destination, has seen a observes Jacque Salentine Busby, travel advisor for luxurytravelmagazine.com. dramatic downturn in most key economic indicators, especially construction, “This is a terrific opportunity to upgrade from what you would normally convention bookings and wagering. The recent addition of thousands of new receive for the amount you are willing to spend … to a more exclusive hotel, for rooms, mid-Strip, at the Encore and the Palazzo – sister properties of Wynn’s instance, such as the Mandarin Oriental or the Peninsula. Due to the laws of Las Vegas and the Venetian – has forced other resort properties to work harder attrition, [luxury hotels] have needed to expand their reach. People are still to attract new guests and retain loyalists. traveling, but they are reducing the length of their stays or not traveling as far.”

Even before the current economic slump, Las Vegas Strip hoteliers hadn’t Even the legendary 400-acre La Costa Resort and Spa, situated in the been able to rely as heavily on gambling, which hasn’t been the primary drawcoastal foothills of Carlsbad, is feeling the pinch. With a customer base that ing card for almost a decade. Tourist dollars are now being diverted to designincludes prominent athletes, celebrities, business executives and politicians, La er boutiques, world-class spas and nightclubs, outdoor-adventure packages, Costa has long been one of those places for which the cliché, “If you have to ask ever-more elaborate shows and restaurants whose kitchens are overseen by how much it costs, you can’t afford it,” was devised. celebrity chefs.

But a recent glance at the resort’s home page revealed several attractive The broadened appeal is good news for the typical traveler. Where weekend propositions: “Kids eat, play, stay FREE,” “$319 Suites (50% OFF),” “Villas from occupancy rates once toyed with the 100-percent barrier and conventioneers —CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 $369,” “20% to 30% off rooms.” The enticements stem in part from La Costa’s 8 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

PHOTO: courtesy of Kempinski Hotels

REMEMBERING THAT SEASONED AGENTS AND FOOTLOOSE ADVENTURERS HAVE ALWAYS MANAGED

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 9

GREAT ESCAPES

TURKISH DELIGHT: The Çiragan Palace Kempinski in Istanbul offers sybaritic experiences and discounts to summer travelers.

LUXURY TRAVEL ON A DIME

NO, “AFFORDABLE LUXURY” ISN’T AN OXYMORON. THE RECESSION IS FUELING GREAT DEALS FOR TRAVELERS WILLING TO DO A LITTLE SLEUTHING ON THE INTERNET.

BY GARY DRETZKA

THE TRIPLE WHAMMY OF RECESSION, SKYROCKETING GAS PRICES AND SWINE FLU HAS FORCED CONSUMERS WORLDWIDE TO RECONSIDER VACATION PLANS, BUT NOT ALL NEWS FOR SUMMER TRAVELERS IS GRIM. WITHOUT MINIMIZING THESE VERY REAL PROBLEMS ONE BIT, IT’S WORTH strategy to ride Southern California’s new wave of stay-cationers, recessionminded travelers who are staying TO FIND OPPORTUNITY IN THE SPACE ONCE DOMINATED BY THE DARKEST OF CLOUDS. closer to home.

Consumers who aren’t concerned about losing their jobs any time soon, or “We know that a lot of travelers are taking one family vacation, where, in have money socked away for just such occasions, will find bargains in places the past, they might have planned one for the family and another for themselves they may never have thought to look. Indeed, after being gouged for fuel and alone,” said Denise Chapman, marketing director for the resort, which recently airport surcharges on planes and rental cars, paying baggage and security fees, underwent $140 million in renovations. “People in Southern California are disand being forced to wait in lines for passports and visas — all for the privilege covering La Costa and other great resorts they hadn’t experienced previously. of enduring flights that are overbooked, overcrowded and rarely on time — Typically, 50 to 60 percent of our guests are from California, but, in the last six some travelers might even relish the opportunity to gloat at their good fortune. months, it’s closer to 70 percent. That presents a challenge for us. Even though Some hands-on computer time may be required, of course. For those La Costa is known for being a spa and golf destination, we’ve begun to truly conversant with Internet commerce, however, luxury travel is more accessible embrace kids and family-oriented activities throughout the resort.” than ever. “I think there has never been a more affordable time to travel,” Even Las Vegas, once considered a recession-proof destination, has seen a observes Jacque Salentine Busby, travel advisor for luxurytravelmagazine.com. dramatic downturn in most key economic indicators, especially construction, “This is a terrific opportunity to upgrade from what you would normally convention bookings and wagering. The recent addition of thousands of new receive for the amount you are willing to spend … to a more exclusive hotel, for rooms, mid-Strip, at the Encore and the Palazzo – sister properties of Wynn’s instance, such as the Mandarin Oriental or the Peninsula. Due to the laws of Las Vegas and the Venetian – has forced other resort properties to work harder attrition, [luxury hotels] have needed to expand their reach. People are still to attract new guests and retain loyalists. traveling, but they are reducing the length of their stays or not traveling as far.”

Even before the current economic slump, Las Vegas Strip hoteliers hadn’t Even the legendary 400-acre La Costa Resort and Spa, situated in the been able to rely as heavily on gambling, which hasn’t been the primary drawcoastal foothills of Carlsbad, is feeling the pinch. With a customer base that ing card for almost a decade. Tourist dollars are now being diverted to designincludes prominent athletes, celebrities, business executives and politicians, La er boutiques, world-class spas and nightclubs, outdoor-adventure packages, Costa has long been one of those places for which the cliché, “If you have to ask ever-more elaborate shows and restaurants whose kitchens are overseen by how much it costs, you can’t afford it,” was devised. celebrity chefs.

But a recent glance at the resort’s home page revealed several attractive The broadened appeal is good news for the typical traveler. Where weekend propositions: “Kids eat, play, stay FREE,” “$319 Suites (50% OFF),” “Villas from occupancy rates once toyed with the 100-percent barrier and conventioneers —CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 $369,” “20% to 30% off rooms.” The enticements stem in part from La Costa’s 8 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

PHOTO: courtesy of Kempinski Hotels

REMEMBERING THAT SEASONED AGENTS AND FOOTLOOSE ADVENTURERS HAVE ALWAYS MANAGED

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 9

GREAT ESCAPES

—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8

filled rooms during the rest of the week, last-minute vacationers are now finding a jackpot in deals, primarily on the Internet.

Gamblers are also on a winning streak when it comes to travel deals. The velvet rope separating the pampered whales (who gamble more than $1 million a visit) and mere high rollers has been lowered precipitously over the last year. The downturn in revenues has forced casinos to lower the qualifying bars that result in tournament invitations, upgrades and other perks.

Even low and no rollers can find Internet deals that open the doors to suites at the Bellagio, Venetian, Caesars Palace and Wynn’s that previously had been closed to them.

Las Vegas nightlife is on sale as well. A year ago, people waited in line inside the Mirage on the off chance they could purchase a pair of tickets that went unclaimed at the will-call window for the Cirque du Soleil show “Love.”

Today, purchases made through the company’s Web site can result in savings of 25 percent. It’s the same great show set to Beatles music, only substantially 10 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

more affordable. Similar discounts are available for “Ka,” “Ô,” “Mystère,” “Zumanity,” Criss Angel’s Luxor show, “Believe,” and “Blue Man Group” at the Venetian.

Access is the other coin of the realm in Las Vegas, and that’s also on sale. On any given night, one or more of the current celebrity flavors-of-the-week can be found hosting birthday, record-release or after-concert parties in a state-of-the-art club. Until recently, the only way to reach the front of a block-long line was to bribe a bouncer and then pay separately for admission. A simple Internet search now permits customers to buy tickets for front-of-the-line positions and VIP tables. It may not sound like much, but in Vegas, such access passes for luxury.

Top hotels are also wooing travelers with other dream options. Istanbul’s Çiragan Palace Kempinski, for example, can legitimately boast of having rooms luxurious enough to suit a king. That’s because some of the hotel’s suites actually were part of a former sultan’s palace. Ditto, the cuisine. Today, gourmets with a yen for the rich flavors and exotic spices of Ottoman cooking can book a room at the Çiragan Palace and create traditional meals of their own in the hotel kitchen under the supervision of Olivier Chaleil, the hotel’s Michelin-star executive chef, and Turkish chef Ugur Alparslan. The cuisine can then be enjoyed at a table overlooking the Bosporus. And if you book at least 15 days in advance, you can also savor a 20 percent discount off room rates, which start around $576.

Still, people rich enough to have weathered the Wall Street crash with money to spare need not fret about having to share their playgrounds with the hoi polloi. Some destinations and adventures will simply never be confused with affordability. “There are still many travel experiences that are out of reach of most people … what constitutes luxury is the rare experience that not everyone can afford,” said Christine Gray, editor-in-chief of Luxury Travel Magazine.

“How about a 70-day luxury cruise around South America on Silversea for $35,000-plus per person; private jet trips around the world, with companies like TCS Expeditions, for $55,000 per person; or flying first or business class to Cambodia or Bhutan and staying in an Amanresort for $1,000-plus per night?

A private tour of a tomb in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings can be arranged for an entrance fee of $5,000 per person.

“Travel agents can design trips around these experiences, as well as arrange for upgrades at top hotels and meals in Michelin three-star restaurants in Paris.”

The recession notwithstanding though, it isn’t likely American travelers will ever again find it necessary to refrain from sharing the haunts of the wealthy. Anybody with an AAA or AARP card can afford trips to such onceexotic destinations as Machu Picchu, Tahiti, Nepal or the pyramids of Egypt and Mexico. Nor is it impossible to grab a front seat for the aurora borealis or march with the penguins in Antarctica. Your local travel professional will be happy to oblige.

“There is a big difference between ‘adventure travel’ and ‘luxury adventure travel,’” Gray adds. “Anyone can pitch a tent in the wilderness for next to nothing, but staying in a ‘tent suite’ in a luxury wilderness camp, such as Clayoquot Wilderness Resort in Canada, will cost you over $5,000 per person for three nights in high season. For that matter, staying in a ‘log cabin’ at Dunton Hot Springs, in Colorado, can cost over $1,000 per night.”

Somewhere, Abe Lincoln must be spinning in his grave. AM For information on the La Costa Resort and Spa, call (800) 854-5000 or visit lacosta.com; for deals in Las Vegas, go to visitlasvegas.com; for information on the Çiragan Palace Kempinski Istanbul, go to kempinski-istanbul.com.

PHOTOS: La Costa picture courtesy of KSL Resorts, Las Vegas image courtesy of Las Vegas News Bureau/LVCVA

Top: Hotel deals along Las Vegas’ Fremont Street are a sure bet.

Bottom: The La Costa Resort and Spa is courting families with activities and discounts.

SATURDAY June 13, 2009

SUNDAY June 28, 2009

BACK PAIN WORKSHOP IMPROVE YOUR PRACTICE presented by

Fred Miller ERYT-500

OR TEACHING TECHNIQUE WITH A MASTER presented by Scott Hobbs

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 11

GREAT ESCAPES

DESTINATION HOTELS

THE RECENT WAVE OF STAY-CATIONS OFFERS A TERRIFIC WAY TO INDULGE IN LUXURY AND STILL SCRIMP ON THE BILL. SKIP THE COSTS OF AIRFARE AND A LENGTHY STAY, AND YOU CAN SPEND ALL YOUR VACATION DOLLARS ON BLISS — HOWEVER YOU DEFINE IT. THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AREA OFFERS MYRIAD WAYS TO ACHIEVE A VACATIONER’S HIGH. PERHAPS YOUR IDEA OF HEAVEN IS A LUSH WATERFRONT ROOM IN ONE OF SOCAL’S HISTORIC RESORTS, THE VICTORIAN-FLAVORED HOTEL DEL CORONADO IN SAN DIEGO. OR A HORSEBACK RIDE THROUGH TIME AMONG THE UNTOUCHED VERDANT HILLS OF SANTA BARBARA WINE COUNTRY AT THE ALISAL GUEST RANCH AND RESORT. IN DESTINATION HOTELS LIKE THESE, ALL YOUR NEEDS CAN BE GRATIFIED UNDER ONE ROOF — OR SKY.

HOTEL DEL CORONADO

ALISAL RANCH

A DATE WITH THE GRANDE DAME

THE EAGLE’S NEST

BY IRENE LACHER

BY MICHAEL BURR

IF SAN DIEGO’S HOTEL DEL CORONADO — AFFECTIONATELY nicknamed “the grande dame by the sea” — were a woman, I’d ask for her plastic surgeon’s number.

Built in 1888 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1977, this Victorian beauty on Coronado Island certainly has an illustrious history. She has played host to 11 U.S. presidents, as well as such luminaries as Thomas Edison, “The Wizard of Oz” author L. Frank Baum, Rudolph Valentino and England’s King Edward VIII. The hotel even starred alongside Marilyn Monroe in the classic 1959 film “Some Like It Hot.” But despite her blue-chip heritage and 121 years spent aging rather gracefully, this working girl has found herself vying for the attention of savvy travelers in the increasingly competitive luxury hotel market of the 21st century. So she got some work done.

Last fall, the Del (as locals call it) completed a $150 million facelift that has not only restored the hotel at 1500 Orange Ave. to its original splendor but has also added many contemporary amenities, including a new worldclass spa; a state-of-the-art fitness center; a trendy wine, cheese and chocolate bar; upscale shops and restaurants; and a private enclave of cottages and villas known as Beach Village.

I fell in love with the Del a few years ago, when my mother and I — vacationing across the bay in San Diego — spent a breezy afternoon basking in the sun on the gold-flecked beaches of Coronado Island. Our stopover was regrettably brief; not so the memory of the fabled hotel’s white clapboard walls, red-tiled turrets and fairy-tale spires against an azure sky.

Naturally, I was more than a little curious during my recent visit to see how Homberger + Worstell — the San Francisco–based architecture firm that oversaw the restoration and expansion — had transformed the Del to meet the tastes of today’s travelers, while preserving its 19th-century charm.

Stepping into the lobby, I paused to marvel at the opulence of the original hand-carved oak pillars, vaulted ceilings and magnificent chandelier. It was easy to imagine Charlie Chaplin standing next to the vintage birdcage-style elevator or a Gatsbyesque crowd cheering on Charles Lindbergh — who was —CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

12 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

IN THE RED: The Del’s crimson turrets are iconic elements of San Diego’s landscape.

RIDING THE TRAILS: Wranglers lead small groups across Alisal’s vast countryside.

WHEN I GAZED ONTO ALISAL LAKE, IT MAY HAVE BEEN THE ONLY instance in recent memory when I truly felt as though I’d stepped back in time. All around me were things I remembered from my baby booming childhood at summer camp and nothing I didn’t — canoes, bows and arrows, air rifles, even horseshoes. There, the world of high technology was no closer than a Jetsons cartoon. As far as the eye could see, there was, well, nothing… nothing except oaks and sycamores, sky, shimmering lake and a symphony of birds, including a family of bald eagles. (“Alisal” means “grove of sycamores” in the Chumash Indian language.)

To appreciate how extraordinary that is, consider the lake’s location smack in the middle of Santa Barbara’s rich wine country. The lovely 100-acre lake lies wholly within Solvang’s Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort, which is itself part of a working ranch that’s been in the intensely private Jackson family for three generations. When the late Charles Pete Jackson Jr. originally converted the cattlemen’s quarters into an inn for dude ranch guests in 1946, the place had a maximum capacity of 30 guests. It’s not much larger now, with only 73 guest rooms and suites tricked out in ranch décor — Native American blankets, blown-up vintage photographs of the working ranch and wood-burning fireplaces tended every day by a chimney sweep.

“It’s an authentic working cattle slash guest ranch,” says Sherrie Fitzgerald, the Alisal’s marketing director. “Even before the Jacksons owned it, it was a working cattle ranch. Friends would help with the round-up, so they built seasonal accommodations. They keep it very simple. There are no TVs or telephones. [Die-hard fans can watch television in common rooms.] That tradition is what it is. It might not be for everybody.”

It does seem to be the thing for a lot of families, who come back year after year, lured in part by an extensive summer program of games, crafts and sports for kids. There’s still plenty to do during the cooler months — horseback riding, hiking, golf, fishing, tennis, archery, a swimming pool for aspiring polar bears and more — so it seemed the perfect place for a recent Lacher family reunion. My sister and her family live in New York, and I’ve found vacations to be the ideal time to reconnect with far-flung relatives — no one —CONTINUED ON PAGE 17 ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 13

GREAT ESCAPES

DESTINATION HOTELS

THE RECENT WAVE OF STAY-CATIONS OFFERS A TERRIFIC WAY TO INDULGE IN LUXURY AND STILL SCRIMP ON THE BILL. SKIP THE COSTS OF AIRFARE AND A LENGTHY STAY, AND YOU CAN SPEND ALL YOUR VACATION DOLLARS ON BLISS — HOWEVER YOU DEFINE IT. THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AREA OFFERS MYRIAD WAYS TO ACHIEVE A VACATIONER’S HIGH. PERHAPS YOUR IDEA OF HEAVEN IS A LUSH WATERFRONT ROOM IN ONE OF SOCAL’S HISTORIC RESORTS, THE VICTORIAN-FLAVORED HOTEL DEL CORONADO IN SAN DIEGO. OR A HORSEBACK RIDE THROUGH TIME AMONG THE UNTOUCHED VERDANT HILLS OF SANTA BARBARA WINE COUNTRY AT THE ALISAL GUEST RANCH AND RESORT. IN DESTINATION HOTELS LIKE THESE, ALL YOUR NEEDS CAN BE GRATIFIED UNDER ONE ROOF — OR SKY.

HOTEL DEL CORONADO

ALISAL RANCH

A DATE WITH THE GRANDE DAME

THE EAGLE’S NEST

BY IRENE LACHER

BY MICHAEL BURR

IF SAN DIEGO’S HOTEL DEL CORONADO — AFFECTIONATELY nicknamed “the grande dame by the sea” — were a woman, I’d ask for her plastic surgeon’s number.

Built in 1888 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1977, this Victorian beauty on Coronado Island certainly has an illustrious history. She has played host to 11 U.S. presidents, as well as such luminaries as Thomas Edison, “The Wizard of Oz” author L. Frank Baum, Rudolph Valentino and England’s King Edward VIII. The hotel even starred alongside Marilyn Monroe in the classic 1959 film “Some Like It Hot.” But despite her blue-chip heritage and 121 years spent aging rather gracefully, this working girl has found herself vying for the attention of savvy travelers in the increasingly competitive luxury hotel market of the 21st century. So she got some work done.

Last fall, the Del (as locals call it) completed a $150 million facelift that has not only restored the hotel at 1500 Orange Ave. to its original splendor but has also added many contemporary amenities, including a new worldclass spa; a state-of-the-art fitness center; a trendy wine, cheese and chocolate bar; upscale shops and restaurants; and a private enclave of cottages and villas known as Beach Village.

I fell in love with the Del a few years ago, when my mother and I — vacationing across the bay in San Diego — spent a breezy afternoon basking in the sun on the gold-flecked beaches of Coronado Island. Our stopover was regrettably brief; not so the memory of the fabled hotel’s white clapboard walls, red-tiled turrets and fairy-tale spires against an azure sky.

Naturally, I was more than a little curious during my recent visit to see how Homberger + Worstell — the San Francisco–based architecture firm that oversaw the restoration and expansion — had transformed the Del to meet the tastes of today’s travelers, while preserving its 19th-century charm.

Stepping into the lobby, I paused to marvel at the opulence of the original hand-carved oak pillars, vaulted ceilings and magnificent chandelier. It was easy to imagine Charlie Chaplin standing next to the vintage birdcage-style elevator or a Gatsbyesque crowd cheering on Charles Lindbergh — who was —CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

12 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

IN THE RED: The Del’s crimson turrets are iconic elements of San Diego’s landscape.

RIDING THE TRAILS: Wranglers lead small groups across Alisal’s vast countryside.

WHEN I GAZED ONTO ALISAL LAKE, IT MAY HAVE BEEN THE ONLY instance in recent memory when I truly felt as though I’d stepped back in time. All around me were things I remembered from my baby booming childhood at summer camp and nothing I didn’t — canoes, bows and arrows, air rifles, even horseshoes. There, the world of high technology was no closer than a Jetsons cartoon. As far as the eye could see, there was, well, nothing… nothing except oaks and sycamores, sky, shimmering lake and a symphony of birds, including a family of bald eagles. (“Alisal” means “grove of sycamores” in the Chumash Indian language.)

To appreciate how extraordinary that is, consider the lake’s location smack in the middle of Santa Barbara’s rich wine country. The lovely 100-acre lake lies wholly within Solvang’s Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort, which is itself part of a working ranch that’s been in the intensely private Jackson family for three generations. When the late Charles Pete Jackson Jr. originally converted the cattlemen’s quarters into an inn for dude ranch guests in 1946, the place had a maximum capacity of 30 guests. It’s not much larger now, with only 73 guest rooms and suites tricked out in ranch décor — Native American blankets, blown-up vintage photographs of the working ranch and wood-burning fireplaces tended every day by a chimney sweep.

“It’s an authentic working cattle slash guest ranch,” says Sherrie Fitzgerald, the Alisal’s marketing director. “Even before the Jacksons owned it, it was a working cattle ranch. Friends would help with the round-up, so they built seasonal accommodations. They keep it very simple. There are no TVs or telephones. [Die-hard fans can watch television in common rooms.] That tradition is what it is. It might not be for everybody.”

It does seem to be the thing for a lot of families, who come back year after year, lured in part by an extensive summer program of games, crafts and sports for kids. There’s still plenty to do during the cooler months — horseback riding, hiking, golf, fishing, tennis, archery, a swimming pool for aspiring polar bears and more — so it seemed the perfect place for a recent Lacher family reunion. My sister and her family live in New York, and I’ve found vacations to be the ideal time to reconnect with far-flung relatives — no one —CONTINUED ON PAGE 17 ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 13

GREAT ESCAPES

—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 12

Middle: Victorian oceanfront junior suites combine timeless views with classic décor.

Below: Beach Village offers whole-ownership, limited-use condos near the water.

honored there in 1927 after his successful trans-Atlantic flight — from the balcony that ringed the grand room.

After a friendly and efficient check-in, my companion and I passed through the courtyard and rode an elegant if elderly elevator on the way to our junior ocean-view suite. In contrast to the dimly lit lobby, the spacious room was bright and airy — a casual yet sophisticated blend of contemporary décor with Victorian accents. Simple, clean-lined sofas and chairs in the sitting area were mixed with ornate Queen Anne–inspired furniture in the bed and dining rooms, all of it in warm autumn and neutral tones.

We were tempted to spend the rest of the day idling on the wooden rocking chairs on our balcony overlooking the beach, but with clouds looming in the distance, we decided to make the most of what was left of the afternoon. We headed to the hotel bike shop and picked up a couple of beach cruisers. Veering off from the bike path that runs along the sand, we pedaled through the quaint neighborhood of vintage cottages a stone’s throw from the hotel. For the next two hours, we perused the numerous bed and breakfasts, restaurants, shops and boutique hotels on the tree-lined main street, Orange Avenue, the quaint scene reminiscent of a Norman Rockwell painting.

With appetites in tow, we headed to Eno, the hotel’s wine bar. The sleek venue, which opened early last year, offers 500 varieties of wine (50 of them by the glass) as well as 35 artisanal cheeses from around the world and handcrafted chocolates from local confectioners, all available individually or as a flight of three. Short for “oenology” — the study of wine — Eno offers an experience designed to stimulate the brain as much as the palate, with sommeliers serving up commentary on the art, history and science of winemaking.

We sat at the white marble bar, where we were greeted by Ted Glennon, Eno’s wine director and sommelier. He served us two wine flights, the first — wittily dubbed “Pinot Envy” — including a Pinot Noir from the Santa Maria Valley, another from Napa and a Zinfandel from Paso Robles; the second consisted of a French Burgundy, a Tudor from Monterey and a Santa Barbara Pinot Noir. After Glennon brought out a selection of hard and soft cheeses and a charcuterie plate of prosciutto de Parma, soppressata and a countrystyle terrine, we were ready to begin. In between every sniff and swish and slurp, Glennon shared his extensive knowledge of wine history, elaborating on how differences in geography, weather and any number of variables affect the flavor. He also noted that the bar offers “Eno-Versity” classes, in which he and notable winemakers, cheesemakers and chocolatiers explore wine history, varieties, regions and pairings.

Since we had time to kill before our late-night dinner reservation, we decided to hunt for the hotel’s infamous resident ghost, Kate Morgan, who committed suicide there in 1892. Room 3327 — where Morgan died — is often reserved (as it was during our visit), but she has also been reportedly spotted roaming the hallways. Our journey took us downstairs, where we found upscale clothing and jewelry boutiques, gift shops and an old-fashioned candy store. The only thing hovering there, it turned out, was the sweet aroma wafting from an ice cream shop.

At 9 p.m., we headed to 1500 Ocean, the Del’s formal restaurant, to sample Chef Brian Sinnott’s “Southland coastal cuisine.” Formerly known as the Prince of Wales, the restaurant was transformed in 2006 into a chic, airy space with a honey-colored wood ceiling, dark-wood accents and cerulean-blue leather wingback chairs, adding visual pop. A row of indoor cabanas — de rigueur at upscale beachfront restaurants — offers private seating.

—CONTINUED ON PAGE 31

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can be distracted by the demands of life on home turf, and we’re all feeling pretty relaxed.

My sister, Didi, and 15-year-old nephew, Sammy, met me in Los Angeles, and we drove two-and-a-half hours up to the Santa Ynez Valley, arriving late in the evening. We checked into our two-room suite, which mercifully had two bathrooms, and conked out, Sammy and Didi nodding off to the crackling embers in the sitting room.

The next morning, Didi and Sammy hopped the shuttle bus for the ride to the lake, where the air rifle range was located. Sammy is apparently the only member of the family with any eye-hand coordination, and after knocking off multiple metal squirrels and cans, he fast became the instructor’s star student. I came down for an archery lesson next to the air rifle range but soon discovered that practice made imperfect. So I abandoned ship after four increasingly off-the-mark rounds and took my weak wrists back to the room.

An activity I was more experienced in was massage — being on the receiving end, that is — and I gratefully submitted to the ministrations of a

“THINGS ARE A LITTLE SPREAD OUT, BUT ONCE THEY GET UP TO THE LAKE, THEY WANT TO GO FISHING AND WAIT FOR THE EAGLE TO FLY OUT OF ITS NEST. IT’S A MAGICAL EXPERIENCE, ESPECIALLY FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE IN A CITY ALL THE TIME.” masseuse in the Alisal’s rare concession to the 21st century: the 5,500-squarefoot fitness center and spa, which opened last year. I selected the “Alisal Hot Stone Treatment,” 75 minutes of warm, smooth strokes alternating with manual, deep-tissue kneading the therapist employed to work out the kinks in my back. By the time she finished with an organic rosemary-salt foot scrub, I wasn’t so sure that being vertical was all it was cracked up to be.

Thus fortified, we dressed for dinner — another traditional touch at the Alisal is the requirement that men dine in jackets — and went to the dining room to sample the hearty American cooking and nice selection of California wines (including the ranch’s own label). We were assigned the same table for each meal — a great one next to the roaring fireplace — but my sociable nephew did a fair amount of table hopping, targeting every group with other kids, all of whom he knew by the end of the trip.

Much as I enjoyed our repasts, there’s one thing that’s even better than eating on vacation, and that’s riding a horse to a fabulous rural spot to eat on vacation. Indeed, all the guests at the Alisal seemed to converge on the corral for the three-hour pancake breakfast ride. After being asked to rate our horsemanship — in our case, minimal — we were assigned horses (mine was the Pig-Pen of the group, clearly preferring a roll in the mud to the hay) and set off in small groups, each led by a wrangler.

Ours led us over hills and streams, past moseying cattle and across temperate coastal valley land that seemed untouched since Spanish padres established the Mission Santa Inés in the Chumash village of Ahajalapu there in 1804. Our destination was a restored adobe house that used to house ranch hands and is now the setting for private dinners. We grabbed plates and lined up for a pancake breakfast — actually, an everything breakfast, with eggs, cereal, meats and hash browns — and found spots at picnic tables for our outdoor repast.

SPA-A-AH: Guests can destress in the lobby of the new spa and fitness center.

HYDRO THERAPY: Alisal Lake is an oasis of quiet and memories.

Although the surrounding area is full of temptations — including an extensive wine trail that boasts the Zaca Mesa, Curtis and Firestone wineries, among many others — the all-purpose Alisal tends to hold onto its guests until checkout. American-plan rates (including breakfast and dinner) start at $475 for two people in a studio, and most activities carry an additional charge. But the place also offers some intriguing packages, such as “MotherDaughter Cowgirl Bootcamp” with daily rides, and an Australian-themed retreat from Sept. 17 through 20: “Outback at the Alisal” includes a wine dinner with a celebrity chef from Down Under, an Australian wine-and-beer tasting, a screening under the stars of the film “Australia” and unlimited activities, starting at $2,495 per couple for studio lodging.

“People do relax when they get here,” Fitzgerald says. “Things are a little spread out, but once they get up to the lake, they want to go fishing and wait for the eagle to fly out of its nest. It’s a magical experience, especially for people who are in a city all the time.” AM Call (800) 4-ALISAL or visit alisal.com.

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 17

ARROYO

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Cabanas are totally romantic and relaxing.

They have most of the amenities of family rooms and kitchens, such as fireplaces, bars, televisions, sound systems, curtains, ceiling fans, refrigerators, heaters, and lots of comfortable furniture. Typically overlooking a pool or view, they are exterior living rooms, perfect for California. Whether a small individual project or part of a larger private estate, we have always designed cabanas, but have lately received more requests. I love them.

For more information, please call James Coane & Associates at (626) 584-6922 or visit jamescoane.com.

Welcome to the 21st century: In order to maximize the returns on home improvement investment please consider the following trends that are now the norm. Master Suite: a walk-in closet with a minimum of 20 ft. of pole and shelf space, two sinks with a separate tub and shower. Kitchen: Window above sinks, open to family or great room with peninsula or island separation from family room. Walk-in pantry is a mega plus.

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“What is good design now?” is ultimately what clients are asking. With desires for sustainable, accessible, beautiful designs that respond to budget and life-cycle concerns, that is a tall order. “We love exceeding our clients’ expectations” Brad McDonald said in a recent interview. In response, designs trend to a modern look, respecting the historic. Reveal Studio, Inc. is in its sixth year as a full-service architectural firm, focusing on both commercial and residential designs. (818) 279-8236 or revealstudio.com

Southern California’s experiments with outdoor living and entertaining concepts are continually generating new combinations of outdoor environments for relaxing, entertaining, playing and exercising. A trend I have been seeing in my practice is the development of thoughtfully designed multi-sport courts architecturally integrated with home and surroundings. This sometimes includes a natural setting with lush plantings and multiple terraces for entertaining and relaxing before and after the sports event. Alex Varga, Architect. (626) 683-8484 or alexandervarga.com

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MacMar, Inc. finds that our clients’ trends are adding space to an existing single-story dwelling while protecting their yard for recreational use. A common solution has been adding a second story with a master suite to free up space on the first floor. We also assist them by keeping the improvements in the same historic style as the existing home, whether it is Ranch, Mission, Craftsman, even a Frank Wright house addition. (818) 566-8302 or macmarinc.com.

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DREAMMAKER BATH & KITCHEN At DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen, building green and using recyclable products is a priority. For example, in our showroom you can view our countertop display made of fresh glass from old liquor bottles, windows, stemware, dinnerware, traffic lights and many other unusual sources! With Vetrazzo glass surfaces, you are able to express both your style and your respect for the earth without compromise. These surfaces are stain-resistant and can be made in many different unique shapes, styles and colors. Dreammaker Kitchen & Bath is the exclusive dealer for Vetrazzo surfaces, located at 25 Flower St. in Arcadia or (626) 445-3100. dreammaker-SGV.com

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Hans Rosenberger MSEE-MBA | hans.rosenberger@altadenasolar.com

At present rate of infection AIDS will orphan 20 million African children by 2010 !!

The Shepherds Home Children’s Sanctuary in Nairobi Kenya provides education, food, housing and love to children whose parents have died in the HIV/AIDS crisis. www.theshepherdshome.org

28 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

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Please send your tax deductible donations to: Discover The World, Inc., Shepherd's Home, 3255 E. Orange Grove Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107

—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

OUTDOOR LIVING

GARROCCO POOLS The design trend for today’s modern pool is creating a unique environment with function and safety. Huge rock grottos, rockslides and even diving boards are becoming obsolete. Low-profile fountain swimming pools, with minimum hardscape that incorporates an automatic pool cover, is the new trend for today’s modern family.

Having peace of mind with a safe pool while still enjoying water features, surrounding outdoor environments and fireplaces, in a garden setting, is the new outdoor environment design trend. 695 E. Green St., Pasadena. (866) 427-6226 or garocco.com

MAMMA MOUNTAIN PRODUCTIONS A popular trend requested by our customers recently is the “California Garden”, which is a harmonious blend of California native plants, Mediterranean classics, cacti, succulents and drought-tolerant plants from around the world. All plants work together to take advantage of low water consumption while still displaying stunning shows of color and form. With specific knowledge of this large selection of plants, we can create various landscapes to meet and match your needs.

Call for a free consultation, (626) 676-7893 or visit us at mammamountain.com

—CONTINUED ON PAGE 30

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ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 29

—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 29

OUTDOOR LIVING

REAL ESTATE

MOTHER MAGNOLIA

LIN VLACICH-SOTHEBY’S

The World is changing. Whether you call it a trend, or a responsibility, it’s time to Go Green. Among other things, sustainability means solar-powered lighting, LEDs, edible gardens and water reclamation for irrigation. Plus you can save money in the process. We recently joined with ECOsmarteR, a company that makes ion purification systems, allowing us to build chemical-free pools. Resource-hungry landscapes are a thing of the past. Contact (626) 296-2617 or mothermagnolia.com.

A current trend and successful formula for selling a home quickly is making sure that you have it professionally staged, along with clean, sharp, uncluttered photos of the home. Make sure your agent has a dedicated website to showcase your home’s pictures. Today’s home-buyer wants to buy a home that makes sense, so close attention will be paid to structural authenticity, especially if the home is historic. Lin has over 25 years of experience in the San Gabriel Valley real estate market.

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My extensive market knowledge and effective negotiation skills will get you the price you want for your home when you are selling, and the price you want when making that important lifetime purchase.

Visit my website: Vlacich.com Lin Vlacich 626.396.3975 Mobile: 626.688.6464 • Fax: 626.229-0515 Email me: Vlacichs@aol.com

30 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

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GREAT ESCAPES

—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14

Left: an outdoor lounge at the Del’s spa

We were seated on the spacious outdoor terrace, where we savored a spectacular view of the moonlit beach. Our waiter, Armando (a 30-year veteran of the restaurant), brought out a creamy parmesan flan, sweet, crispy shrimp from the Sonora Coast and tender black-truffle pappardelle. For our entrées, we chose diver scallops and an herb-crusted Colorado lamb loin, which arrived tender and slightly pink, exactly as we’d ordered it. We couldn’t resist trying the restaurant’s signature chocolate chipotle cake with caramelized banana and caramel ice cream. The spicy finish was subtle, but it gave a delightful punch to the rich dark chocolate.

The next morning, I headed to the hotel spa for help in recovering from my overindulgence. The Del’s early visitors were drawn there by the therapeutic combination of saltwater bathing and fresh sea air, so it’s no surprise that the spa, opened in 2007, offers a variety of ocean-inspired treatments: a facial that uses a combination of heated and chilled shells to reduce puffiness and a sea-salt body scrub, to mention a couple.

I chose the 50-minute “Shell Coronado” full-body massage. Using warm tiger clam shells (“hand selected for smoothness,” according to the menu), my massage therapist applied pressure that seemed much lighter than I was used to, although her smooth, flowing strokes erased all awareness of the previous evening’s binge.

Thus fortified, I sought out Jim Hooper, who oversees Beach Village, to check out the Del’s new enclave of 28 cottages and 50 villas, the centerpiece of

Top right: Chef Brian Sinnott serves “Southland Coastal Cuisine” at the formal 1500 Ocean Restaurant and Bar. Bottom right: Guests can choose from a vast selection of wines, cheeses and chocolates at Eno.

the recent renovation. Designed with the hotel’s signature red-shingled roofs and white lap siding, the luxurious beachfront addition looks like an extension of the hotel, but it actually consists of whole-ownership, limited-use condominiums.

Such mixed-use developments are among the latest trends in luxury hotels. The Del’s furnished units, which range in price from $2.67 million to $5.8 million, can be occupied by owners up to 90 days per year, while the hotel rents them out the other 275 days, both splitting the revenue. The residences, styled by Santa Monica–based interior design firm Hirsch Bedner, sport walnut flooring, 42-inch flat-panel TVs with Bose surround sound, private hot tubs, full kitchens and personal concierge service.

After my tour, my companion and I spent our last few hours admiring the ocean from the hotel’s Windsor Lawn. I pondered my first visit to the Del, grateful that the winds of change had not ruffled the grande dame’s abiding charm. AM Rooms start at $249. Call (800) 468-3533 or visit hoteldel.com.

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 31

GREAT ESCAPES

TRAVEL DISPATCHES

A ROSY VIEW OF THE GRAND CANYON

Pink Jeep Tours has launched a Grand Canyon Classic Deluxe tour, departing from Las Vegas.

Using off-road vehicles to take riders across tough terrain, Pink Jeep is the only tour company currently granted access to Quartermaster Point, one of the national park’s most remote areas and a place of spiritual significance for Native Americans. The nine-hour tour also includes the Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and numerous Grand Canyon sightseeing points, including the glass-and-steel Skywalk, 4,000 feet above the canyon floor. The pick-up time is 7:30 a.m. seven days a week for the tour, which costs $224 per person. An additional $32.50 is required for Skywalk admission.

Call (888) 900-4480 or visit pinkjeep.com.

WHAT’S NEW THIS SUMMER AT VACATION SPOTS AROUND THE WORLD

BY CARL KOZLOWSKI

THE PROMISED LAND DELIVERS

HOME LUXURIES, FAR FROM HOME

WASHINGTON WONDERS

Oenophiles will celebrate the fruits of Washington State’s vine at the “Kirkland Uncorked” fest from July 17 through 19. More than 60 wineries will converge on Kirkland, Washington’s Marina Park, along with dozens of chefs who will compete in a cook-off. Also scheduled are an art show, musical performances and a boating showcase along the city’s waterfront.

Visit kirklanduncorked.com.

MEALS ON WHEELS

Rob Evans, recently named the Best Chef Northeast by the James Beard Foundation, is hitting the road. The chef and owner of Hugo’s in Portland, Maine, will join the Bike Riders tour of Andalucia, Spain, as guest chef from Oct. 18 through 25. The Boston-based travel company offers small luxury biking trips to the Americas, Europe and beyond. Rates begin at $4,250 per person.

Call (800) 473-7040 or visit bikeriderstours.com.

LUCKY NUMBER SEVEN

FIRST CLASS IN THE THIRD WORLD Åmanresorts recently added the six-acre Aman New Delhi in the heart of the city to its portfolio of luxury hotels. Located just south of the Delhi Golf Course and next to the medieval Nizamuddin complex, the sleek new resort spans nine stories and houses 28 deluxe suites with one, two or three bedrooms — half of which have private pools. Room rates start at $550 a night.

Call (94) 11 774-3500 or visit amanresorts.com.

32 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

Savor Irish five-star luxury and French two-star cuisine — all seven stars for the bargain price of just $170 per person per night (double occupancy) at the Merrion in Dublin.

The package, available through the end of June, includes a seasonal tasting dinner, normally priced at $150 per person, at the historic hotel’s Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud, Ireland’s only eatery to earn two Michelin stars. The 10-year-old Merrion was created from four 1760s Georgian town houses built by Lord Monck opposite Parliament House.

Visit merrionhotel.com.

PHOTOS: Light Festival photo courtesy of Geoffrey Weill Associates, Williams, AZ, photo courtesy of the Grand Canyon Railway

The high-end retail mall Luxury Avenue Cancun has launched a concierge service for tourists in the Mexican resort destination with an itch for a make-over: The Luxury Avenue Personal Shopper performs a color analysis on guests, suggests fashion trends most flattering to their body type and guides them through Cartier, Louis Vuitton and other tony boutiques. Pricing begins at $88 for an hour.

Call (877) 477-5348, email contact@ultrafemme.com.mx or visit luxuryavenue.com.

Gateway to history: Ancient-ruin buffs have a new old wonder to investigate with the March reopening, after extensive restoration, of the 4,000-year-old Abraham’s Gate.

The 22-foot-tall structure, made of sundried mud brick and basalt stone, was discovered nearly 40 years ago at the Tel Dan Nature Reserve in northern Israel. The gate was built to link the world’s oldest complete arches.

Lighting up the holy city: Jerusalem’s Light Festival, which runs from June 10 through 16, transforms structures and holy sites throughout the Old City into a glowing array of light-inspired artworks. The event features art installations, performance art, architectural lighting and grandscale screenings, in addition to a light parade and sculpture fair.

Visit goisrael.com.

START SPREADING THE NEWS

The Frank Lloyd Wright Presentation Trust hosts the Wright Way tour of architectural treasures in the New York City area from June 6 through 10. Stops include Wright’s masterpiece, the Guggenheim Museum; a private reception at the John D. Rockefeller estate, Kykuit, an hour north of the city; and a tour of Philip Johnson’s Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut.

Prices, which include four nights at the Waldorf Astoria, start at $3,295 per person. First-time Wright Way travelers receive a $100 discount through December.

Call (708) 848-1976, ext. 257, or visit wrightwaytravel.org.

A TOAST TO OREGON’S WINE COUNTRY

The Allison, the first luxury inn and spa in Oregon’s wine country, opens in August in the Willamette Valley, a region known for its fine Pinot Noir and home to nearly 300 wineries. The Allison, located on 35 leafy acres in Newberg, 45 minutes southwest of Portland, is also the state’s first member of the Preferred Boutique collec-

tion of small high-end hotels. The contemporary auberge’s 85 guest rooms and suites all include a fireplace and terrace or balcony. The hotel’s signature restaurant is Jory, which showcases Oregon’s wines and produce. Room rates start at $295.

Call (877) 294-2525 or visit theallison.com.

A REAL MOUNTAIN HIGH

Yoga practitioners can reach new heights with Canadian Mountain Holidays’ heli-yoga trip to the remote Bugaboo Lodge in Alberta’s Rocky Mountains from July 24 through 26.

The retreat, open to 10 travelers, includes guided hikes as well as morning yoga, meditation and “Living with Joy” instruction by yoga master and holistic life coach Anne Douglas. The all-inclusive cost per person is $2,490 CAD, about $2,150 at current exchange rates.

Call (800) 661-0252 or visit canadianmountainholidays.com FIND YOUR ART IN SAN FRANCISCO

San Francisco is one of America’s most artistically inspired cities in even the foggiest of seasons, and summer brings a particularly bright array of global fine art and historic treasures to the city by the bay.

Egyptian extravagance: Perhaps the most dramatic spot on the arts calendar is National Geographic’s traveling blockbuster exhibition, “Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs,” which comes to the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park from June 27 through March 28, 2010. The show of more than 130 Egyptian artifacts from the pharoah’s tomb and other ancient sites includes the spectacular gold diadem found on the head of Tut’s mummy.

For more info on tickets and pricing, visit tutsanfrancisco.org/content/tickets or call (415) 750-3600.

Modernism and the American desert: Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams, who respectively created some of the most iconic paintings and photographs of the Southwest, are the subject of a new exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art — “Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams: Natural Affinities,” which runs through Sept. 7.

Call (415) 357-4000 or visit sfmoma.org.

The art of the samurai: “Lords of the Samurai” brings artworks, musical instruments and armaments created and owned by warrior-aristocrats of pre-industrial Japan to the Asian Art Museum from June 12 through Sept. 20.

Call (415) 581-3500 or visit asianart.org.

Cutting-edge creations: As part of its Push Play series, the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts presents “Nick Cave: Meet Me at the Center of the Earth” — featuring wildly imaginative “Soundsuits,” wearable mixed-media sculptures by the Chicago artist — which runs through July 5.

For ticket information and times, call (415) 978-2787 or visit ybca.org.

PATRIOTIC POSTERITY

Celebrate July 4 in a corner of small-town America. Williams, Arizona, is marking Independence Day by recreating a 1909 —CONTINUED ON PAGE 35 ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 33

GREAT ESCAPES

TRAVEL DISPATCHES

A ROSY VIEW OF THE GRAND CANYON

Pink Jeep Tours has launched a Grand Canyon Classic Deluxe tour, departing from Las Vegas.

Using off-road vehicles to take riders across tough terrain, Pink Jeep is the only tour company currently granted access to Quartermaster Point, one of the national park’s most remote areas and a place of spiritual significance for Native Americans. The nine-hour tour also includes the Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and numerous Grand Canyon sightseeing points, including the glass-and-steel Skywalk, 4,000 feet above the canyon floor. The pick-up time is 7:30 a.m. seven days a week for the tour, which costs $224 per person. An additional $32.50 is required for Skywalk admission.

Call (888) 900-4480 or visit pinkjeep.com.

WHAT’S NEW THIS SUMMER AT VACATION SPOTS AROUND THE WORLD

BY CARL KOZLOWSKI

THE PROMISED LAND DELIVERS

HOME LUXURIES, FAR FROM HOME

WASHINGTON WONDERS

Oenophiles will celebrate the fruits of Washington State’s vine at the “Kirkland Uncorked” fest from July 17 through 19. More than 60 wineries will converge on Kirkland, Washington’s Marina Park, along with dozens of chefs who will compete in a cook-off. Also scheduled are an art show, musical performances and a boating showcase along the city’s waterfront.

Visit kirklanduncorked.com.

MEALS ON WHEELS

Rob Evans, recently named the Best Chef Northeast by the James Beard Foundation, is hitting the road. The chef and owner of Hugo’s in Portland, Maine, will join the Bike Riders tour of Andalucia, Spain, as guest chef from Oct. 18 through 25. The Boston-based travel company offers small luxury biking trips to the Americas, Europe and beyond. Rates begin at $4,250 per person.

Call (800) 473-7040 or visit bikeriderstours.com.

LUCKY NUMBER SEVEN

FIRST CLASS IN THE THIRD WORLD Åmanresorts recently added the six-acre Aman New Delhi in the heart of the city to its portfolio of luxury hotels. Located just south of the Delhi Golf Course and next to the medieval Nizamuddin complex, the sleek new resort spans nine stories and houses 28 deluxe suites with one, two or three bedrooms — half of which have private pools. Room rates start at $550 a night.

Call (94) 11 774-3500 or visit amanresorts.com.

32 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

Savor Irish five-star luxury and French two-star cuisine — all seven stars for the bargain price of just $170 per person per night (double occupancy) at the Merrion in Dublin.

The package, available through the end of June, includes a seasonal tasting dinner, normally priced at $150 per person, at the historic hotel’s Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud, Ireland’s only eatery to earn two Michelin stars. The 10-year-old Merrion was created from four 1760s Georgian town houses built by Lord Monck opposite Parliament House.

Visit merrionhotel.com.

PHOTOS: Light Festival photo courtesy of Geoffrey Weill Associates, Williams, AZ, photo courtesy of the Grand Canyon Railway

The high-end retail mall Luxury Avenue Cancun has launched a concierge service for tourists in the Mexican resort destination with an itch for a make-over: The Luxury Avenue Personal Shopper performs a color analysis on guests, suggests fashion trends most flattering to their body type and guides them through Cartier, Louis Vuitton and other tony boutiques. Pricing begins at $88 for an hour.

Call (877) 477-5348, email contact@ultrafemme.com.mx or visit luxuryavenue.com.

Gateway to history: Ancient-ruin buffs have a new old wonder to investigate with the March reopening, after extensive restoration, of the 4,000-year-old Abraham’s Gate.

The 22-foot-tall structure, made of sundried mud brick and basalt stone, was discovered nearly 40 years ago at the Tel Dan Nature Reserve in northern Israel. The gate was built to link the world’s oldest complete arches.

Lighting up the holy city: Jerusalem’s Light Festival, which runs from June 10 through 16, transforms structures and holy sites throughout the Old City into a glowing array of light-inspired artworks. The event features art installations, performance art, architectural lighting and grandscale screenings, in addition to a light parade and sculpture fair.

Visit goisrael.com.

START SPREADING THE NEWS

The Frank Lloyd Wright Presentation Trust hosts the Wright Way tour of architectural treasures in the New York City area from June 6 through 10. Stops include Wright’s masterpiece, the Guggenheim Museum; a private reception at the John D. Rockefeller estate, Kykuit, an hour north of the city; and a tour of Philip Johnson’s Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut.

Prices, which include four nights at the Waldorf Astoria, start at $3,295 per person. First-time Wright Way travelers receive a $100 discount through December.

Call (708) 848-1976, ext. 257, or visit wrightwaytravel.org.

A TOAST TO OREGON’S WINE COUNTRY

The Allison, the first luxury inn and spa in Oregon’s wine country, opens in August in the Willamette Valley, a region known for its fine Pinot Noir and home to nearly 300 wineries. The Allison, located on 35 leafy acres in Newberg, 45 minutes southwest of Portland, is also the state’s first member of the Preferred Boutique collec-

tion of small high-end hotels. The contemporary auberge’s 85 guest rooms and suites all include a fireplace and terrace or balcony. The hotel’s signature restaurant is Jory, which showcases Oregon’s wines and produce. Room rates start at $295.

Call (877) 294-2525 or visit theallison.com.

A REAL MOUNTAIN HIGH

Yoga practitioners can reach new heights with Canadian Mountain Holidays’ heli-yoga trip to the remote Bugaboo Lodge in Alberta’s Rocky Mountains from July 24 through 26.

The retreat, open to 10 travelers, includes guided hikes as well as morning yoga, meditation and “Living with Joy” instruction by yoga master and holistic life coach Anne Douglas. The all-inclusive cost per person is $2,490 CAD, about $2,150 at current exchange rates.

Call (800) 661-0252 or visit canadianmountainholidays.com FIND YOUR ART IN SAN FRANCISCO

San Francisco is one of America’s most artistically inspired cities in even the foggiest of seasons, and summer brings a particularly bright array of global fine art and historic treasures to the city by the bay.

Egyptian extravagance: Perhaps the most dramatic spot on the arts calendar is National Geographic’s traveling blockbuster exhibition, “Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs,” which comes to the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park from June 27 through March 28, 2010. The show of more than 130 Egyptian artifacts from the pharoah’s tomb and other ancient sites includes the spectacular gold diadem found on the head of Tut’s mummy.

For more info on tickets and pricing, visit tutsanfrancisco.org/content/tickets or call (415) 750-3600.

Modernism and the American desert: Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams, who respectively created some of the most iconic paintings and photographs of the Southwest, are the subject of a new exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art — “Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams: Natural Affinities,” which runs through Sept. 7.

Call (415) 357-4000 or visit sfmoma.org.

The art of the samurai: “Lords of the Samurai” brings artworks, musical instruments and armaments created and owned by warrior-aristocrats of pre-industrial Japan to the Asian Art Museum from June 12 through Sept. 20.

Call (415) 581-3500 or visit asianart.org.

Cutting-edge creations: As part of its Push Play series, the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts presents “Nick Cave: Meet Me at the Center of the Earth” — featuring wildly imaginative “Soundsuits,” wearable mixed-media sculptures by the Chicago artist — which runs through July 5.

For ticket information and times, call (415) 978-2787 or visit ybca.org.

PATRIOTIC POSTERITY

Celebrate July 4 in a corner of small-town America. Williams, Arizona, is marking Independence Day by recreating a 1909 —CONTINUED ON PAGE 35 ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 33

ART, ANTIQUES & JEWELRY John Moran Auctioneers Expertly serving clients since 1969, John Moran Auctioneers is a full-service auction house offering quality objects and complete personalized dedication. Monthly estate and fine furniture auctions are where collectors, dealers, decorators and others gather to buy the finest antiques, silver, American Indian, oil and watercolor paintings, jewelry, unusual accessories and much more. They also hold an auction (three times per year) for exceptional California and American paintings. Consignment and the purchasing of estates. 735 W. Woodbury Road, Altadena. Call (626) 793-1833 or visit www.johnmoran.com. ■

We carry a large selection of Swarovski crystals, vintage German glass, handmade artisan beads, semi precious gemstones, sterling silver and more! For the beginner or the advanced.

WE OFFER OVER 100 WORKSHOPS EACH QUARTER.

Give us a call for a current workshop schedule!

325 E. Live Oak Ave., Arcadia 626.447.7753 • www.beadcompany.com Tue – Thurs 12pm – 9pm, Fri 12pm – 6pm Sat 10-6pm, Sun 12-5pm

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838 Foothill Blvd.

La Cañada 818.952.1600 34 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

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GREAT ESCAPES

SHOOTING THE BREEZE

PHOTOS: Hot Shoe image by Joe McNally, art performer picture courtesy of Pageant of the Masters

Photojournalist Joe McNally teams up with Photoshop wizard Scott Kelby to teach a weeklong seminar at the Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain resorts on the island of St. Lucia from July 5 through 12. The Hot Shoe Lighting Workshop offers an intensive week of small flash education, with participants shooting the resorts’ lush grounds and working with models. The five-day seminar costs $1,500. Anse Chastanet offers an all-inclusive six-night package, starting at $1,475 per person for double occupancy.

For Hot Shoe Lighting Workshop information, call (203) 438-4750 or email lynn@joemcnally.com. For hotel and workshop reservations, call (800) 223-1108 or email ansechastanet@andw.lc.

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• Residential Fountains • Fountain Pumps • Algea Fighting Products • Pottery • Concrete Bird Baths, Statues, • Asian Lanterns, Pagodas and Statues Benches and Tables • Delivery and Installation Availbale • Concrete Pots and Planters • Glazed Black, White and Since 1946 colored Pottery • Tela Vera Pottery • Fountain, Pond and Swimming 5630 San Fernando Road, Glendale Pool Underwater Lighting with (818) 246-7579 Changeable Water Spray Patterns

LUIGI’S

—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 33

photograph of the holiday. Townspeople in period dress will host a Rotary Club barbeque, an ice cream social, one of the biggest parades in northern Arizona and a fly-over salute by antique war planes.

Call (800) 863-0546 or visit williamschamber.com.

LIFE IMITATES ART

The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, is offering a special package for visitors to the 2009 Pageant of the Masters, which runs from July 8 through Aug. 31. Rates starting at $645 per night include two fourth-row-center tickets to Laguna Beach’s legendary art show featuring actors recreating famous paintings in three dimensions.

Call (800) 241-3333 or visit ritzcarlton.com.

South h Pasadena’s Elegant Craftsman Bed & Breakfast

AND FINALLY, JUST FOR LAUGHS, EH?

“Just For Laughs: The Montreal International Comedy Festival” takes over the Canadian city from July 16 through 26.

More than 1,700 comedy artists will perform, with more than 1,250 plying their art in free family-friendly shows outdoors. This year’s lineup includes such masters of comedy as John Cleese, Whoopi Goldberg, Lewis Black, Bill Cosby and Canuck comedic titan Russell Peters.

Visit hahaha.com. AM

335 Monterey Road South Pasadena 323•478•7300 www.arroyovistainn.com

Stunning Views, Eco-friendly, Organic Garden and Hillside Orchard, 9 Suites with Private Baths ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 35

GREAT ESCAPES

THE VACATION OF CHAMPIONS

BRITISH COLUMBIA SHOWCASES ITS HISTORICAL TREASURES AS VISITORS CONVERGE ON THE HOST CITIES OF THE 2010 WINTER OLYMPICS.

BY IRENE LACHER

FOR CITIES HOSTING AN OLYMPICS, PREPARATIONS ARE MUCH LIKE CLEANING UP THE HOUSE FOR DINNER GUESTS — ONLY THEY’RE GOING TO NEED TO SET A TABLE FOR MILLIONS, IF YOU COUNT THE NUMBERS WATCHING ON TELEVISION. AND SO, VANCOUVER, HOST OF THE 21ST WINTER OLYMPICS, AND WHISTLER, BRITISH COLUMBIA’S GLOSSY SKI RESORT TOWN, HAVE BEEN BUSY SPIFFING UP THEIR FACILITIES IN ANTICIPATION OF THE GAMES, SLATED FOR FEB. 12 THROUGH 28, 2010.

Of course, British Columbia tourism officials are also banking on visitors exploring the province’s many wonders while they’re in the neighborhood — perhaps stopping in at its historic sites, wine country, mountain guest ranches and the Victorian City of Victoria on Vancouver Island.

With the 2010 Winter Olympics coming within navigable distance for Californians, the upcoming months are an ideal time for sports fans to consider a trip north. So here are some ideas for an itinerary fit for a champion. (All prices are in Canadian currency, currently running about 85 cents in Yankee dollars.)

WHISTLER The turn-of-the-20th-century logging and mining town — named by fur trappers for the shrill sound made by western hoary marmots — has boomed into a mecca for connoisseurs of powder. Dubbed the “No. 1 Ski Resort in North America” by Ski Magazine in 2003, Whistler features a cluster of vacation condos, casual hostels and fine hotels (such as the luxurious Four Seasons Resort Whistler), built around the town’s two ski mountains — the 7,160-foot-high Whistler and Blackcomb, which tops off at 7,494 feet.

Between the two mountains, there are 38 lifts and more than 200 runs. Until recently, skiers could access each mountain only from the bottom, but last December, Whistler unveiled its highly anticipated Peak 2 Peak Gondola, an engineering feat that links the two mountain peaks with a 2.73-mile-long tri-cable gondola, which traverses the world’s longest unsupported span — 1.88 miles — between two of the towers.

Also new are Whistler’s three competition venues completed last year. Athletes are training at the Whistler Sliding Centre on Blackcomb, where they’ll compete in the bobsleigh, luge and skeleton competitions. The new Whistler —CONTINUED ON PAGE 39

36 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

PHOTO: courtesy of Ziptrek Ecotours

A ZOOM OF ONE’S OWN: A Ziptrekker flies over Fitzsimmons Creek.

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 37

Some Things Are Too Toxic To Trash!

Dispose Of Household Hazardous Waste The Right Way

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For All Glendale, Montrose, La Canada Residents

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780 Flower St, Glendale 818.548.3862

Household Hazardous Waste Includes: Paints, Glues, Pesticides, Oils, Solvents, Cleansers, Old Medicine, And Car & Dry-cell Batteries.

Should You Visit Us Please Remember Limit Of 15 Gallons Or 125 Lbs. Per Vehicle Do Not Mix Household Chemicals Together.

No Explosives, Ammunition, Electronic Waste, Compressed Gas Cylinders, Or Radioactive Materials

For Free Motor Oil Curbside Pickup Only Please Call (818) 548-3227 For Appointment & Free Containers

Funded By A Grant From The California Integrated Waste Management Board

Zero Waste – You Make It Happen

231 1/2 N. Brand Blvd. Glendale, (Between Wilson & California) • 818.242.5672 AMDSGlendale@aol.com • www.GlendaleAMDS.com 38 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

GREAT ESCAPES

Climbing the heights of Whistler

PHOTOS: Four Seasons by John Sutton; Whistler by Leanna Rathkelly and Paul Morrison

—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 36

Olympic Park, 11 miles south of Whistler in the Callaghan Valley, will host 28 medal events in cross-country, ski-jumping and biathlon. Whistler Creekside is where downhill, slalom, giant slalom, Super G and Super Combined skiers will compete for 10 medals.

But you don’t have to strap The Fairmont Empress Hotel in Victoria on a pair of skis in order to enjoy Whistler’s crisp alpine air. During the summer months, the Whistler Mountain Bike Park offers 50 trails — three with lifts — for those blessed with killer quads.

And all year long, adventurers can fly through the forest canopy 200 feet above Fitzsimmons Creek (between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains) on a Ziptrek Ecotour. Zooming across steel ziplines over a white-water river may look challenging, but it’s more accessible than novices might think. Whistler is a capital for the sport, and the company boasts that its eldest customer was “a spry 93.”

Co-hosting the Olympics are British Columbia’s First Nations, and Whistler offers an intriguing view into the Aboriginal way of life of its two indigenous tribes with the new Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre. The museum, which features more than 30,000 square feet of windows onto the surrounding mountainscape, showcases Native art, performances and interactive crafts. You can also snack on a “mountain hoagie” with bison salami, arctic muskox and wild boar prosciutto in the center’s café.

For Whistler and Blackcomb tourism information, visit whistlerblackcomb.com.

Room rates at the Four Seasons Resort Whistler start at $255 through June 20, rise to $295 through Sept. 12 and drop back to $255 through Nov. 21; call (888) 935-2460 or visit fourseasons.com/whistler/. Ziptrekking ticket prices for adults start at $99; call (866) 935-0001 or visit ziptrek.com. Adult tickets for the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre cost $18; call (866) 441-7522 or visit slcc.ca.

BARKERVILLE American history buffs shouldn’t miss a visit to Barkerville, British Columbia’s restored Gold Rush town in the foothills of the Cariboo Mountains 500 miles north of Vancouver. Named after Billy Barker, the miner who first struck gold

there in 1861, Barkerville is a nonprofit living history museum that aims for authenticity, not the hokeyness it might suffer from in more avaricious hands.

By the mid-1860s, Barkerville’s population had ballooned to 5,000 fortune hunters and service providers, making it (briefly) the largest town north of San Francisco and west of Chicago. Today it’s the largest historic site in B.C. Barkerville’s past comes alive in its street of restored homes and businesses, its courthouse and jail, even its theater, where actors recreate the entertainment of the period (corny jokes and all). Of special note is Barkerville’s Chinatown, which housed the many miners drawn across the ocean by the siren call of gold.

Populating the place are a band of eccentric history aficionados, who like only one thing better than sporting the arm The Four Seasons Resort Whistler garters and rustling skirts of their great-great-grandparents, and that’s telling visitors in startling detail how the town’s residents actually lived 150 years ago.

Accommodations are available in Wells five miles away, but Barkerville has its own charming bed and breakfasts — the Kelly and King House and the St. George Hotel on the site of a former brothel, which is said to boast the ghost of a prostitute still pining for the miner who promised to take her away.

Adult admission tickets cost $13.50; call (888) 994-3332 or visit barkerville.ca.

Kelly and King House room rates start at $89; call (866) 994-0004 or visit kellyhouse.ca. St. George Hotel room rates start at $110 per night; call (888) 2467690 or visit stgeorgehotel.bc.ca.

VICTORIA The City of Victoria, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off the B.C. mainland, is another town that sprang up with the Gold Rush, serving as the port of entry for many fortune hunters. But this quaint burg 100 miles north of Seattle didn’t go on to bite the gold dust. Today, it’s the provincial capital and a major tourism draw, with beautifully maintained 19th- and turn-of-the-20th-century architecture and gardens, as well as great shopping and dining.

Victoria isn’t short on hotels, but visiting the city without staying at the historic Fairmont Empress would be a bit like going to London and skipping Buckingham Palace. Overlooking the Inner Harbour, the Edwardian, châteaustyle Empress opened in 1908; a decade later, Edward VII, then Prince of Wales, waltzed until dawn in its Crystal Ballroom. Afternoon tea is still huge at the Empress, drawing fans of fresh scones and Jersey cream. The 477-room hotel’s past dalliance with the British empire also inspired the Victorian-era Bengal Lounge, decorated in the colonial Indian style (saluting Queen Victoria’s reign as Empress of India).

For information about Victoria, visit tourismvictoria.com. For Fairmont Empress Hotel rates and reservations, call (800) 257-7544 or visit fairmont.com/en_fa/. AM ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 39

Client Proof

EDUCATION & SUMMER CAMPS Glendale Adventist Academy School Founded in 1907, Glendale Adventist Academy (GAA) is a college preparatory school providing quality Christian education that seeks to develop young people of character. GAA, including both its elementary and secondary divisions, is fully accredited by both WASC and the Seventh-day Adventist North American Division Commission on Accreditation.

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Japanese American National Museum Come and explore at the Japanese American National Museum! Join us for Target Free Family Saturdays and celebrate shared Asian-American traditions with fun, theme-filled activities for kids of all ages. Admission is FREE all day from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is a great way for families to learn, play, and grow together. Your visit will inspire you to discover your own cultural heritage. Located in historic downtown LA’s Little Tokyo, the National Museum is dedicated to promoting a better understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity. Visit janm.org for more information, or call (213) 625-0414.

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Los Angeles Children’s Riding Center Family-owned and operated since 1969, LACRC is a horseback riding facility in the beautiful La Tuna Canyon area of Sun Valley. LACRC offers English riding, equitation, vaulting, and jumping lessons for ages 5 through adult. In addition we have day camps, summer camps, and a show team that competes throughout the year. We are currently enrolling ages 5 to 15 in our summer camps, where campers learn good horsemanship, English riding, vaulting, horse-related games & more. Please call for more information, (818)768-5470. www.lachildrensridingcenter.com Mathnasium Mathnasium is a highly specialized learning center where kids go year-round to improve their math skills. Students as often as they like - for as long as they like. Their goal is to enhance your child?s math skills, understanding of math concepts and overall school performance.

At the same time, they build your child’s confidence and forge a positive attitude toward the subject, yielding overwhelming results. Independent studies by EyeCues Education Systems found that Mathnasium students’ performance increased over two letter grades in as little as three to six months. Enroll today to find out. (626) 510-6284 or www.mathnasium.com Summer Art Academy The Summer Art Academy invites your child to take an exciting hands-on culinary journey during one of our 10 one-week Cooking Camps this summer for ages 7 to 16! Using fresh ingredients and time-tested culinary techniques, our professionally trained chefs teach campers how to read a recipe, prepare and cook healthy delicious dishes, from blueberry muffins to cheese raviolis, quiche to double chocolate fudge. Cooking camps, running June 22 through August 28, are wonderful opportunities to experience the creativity of preparing your own meals! Call (866) 507-COOK, or enroll online at www.summerartacademy.com.

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—CONTINUED ON PAGE 42

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Village Christian Schools The only K-12 National Blue Ribbon School in Southern California, Village Christian Schools upholds high academic scores. Our secluded campus is framed by mountains and features a Fine Arts Academy, art studios, computer labs, classroom Internet access and three athletic fields. Students experience a cornucopia of academic choices plus personal attention. Extracurricular programs include football, soccer, T-ball, zoology, chess, strings and equestrians. Also available: bus transportation, extended day care (6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.), on-site hot meal preparation, financial aid, camps and full-day activities during vacations. Call (818) 767-8382 for our free DVD! Westminster Academy Christian Day School The overall purpose of our Christian school is to provide a means by which a child can grow and become inspired to live the Christian life. We provide an atmosphere and work that not only build academic skills but good character as well. New student testing will be conducted by appointment for grades K-8 on Saturday, May 16. Tours of the campus are available upon request. Call (626) 398-7576 or email us at westminsteracademy1953@juno.com. â–

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THEATER

Kelly McGillis’ Second Act THE STAR OF SUCH ’80S FILMS AS “WITNESS” AND “TOP GUN” RETURNS TO HER FIRST LOVE — THE STAGE — AS A SCHEMING SOUTHERN ARISTOCRAT IN THE PASADENA PLAYHOUSE PRODUCTION OF “THE LITTLE FOXES.”

BY M. JOHN SEELEY | PHOTOS BY MELISSA VALLADARES

ACTRESS KELLY MCGILLIS, WHO SHOT TO FAME IN SUCH ICONIC ’80S FILMS AS “WITNESS” AND “TOP GUN,” RETURNS TO CENTER STAGE — LITERALLY — IN THE PASADENA PLAYHOUSE PRODUCTION OF LILLIAN HELLMAN’S “THE LITTLE FOXES,” WHICH RUNS THROUGH JUNE 28. IN THE CLASSIC 1939 DRAMA, MCGILLIS PLAYS THE STEELY AND RUTHLESS SOUTHERNER REGINA GIDDENS, WHO STRUGGLES WITH HER FAMILY OVER WEALTH AND FREEDOM. In April, McGillis again made headlines after keeping a low profile in recent years, softpedaling her career to tend to her family. This time, it was for a reason other than her acting — her personal life. At 51, McGillis came out on the lesbian Web site shewired.com — declaring, “I’m done with the man thing … I need to move on in life. That’s another part of being true to yourself that’s been a challenge for me.”

McGillis’ current path brings her to Pasadena for the challenging stage role tackled by such leading ladies as Bette Davis on film and Tallulah Bankhead and Stockard Channing onstage. Why is this saga of money-hungry, Machiavellian manipulation, set in antebellum Alabama more than a century ago, being revived now? And why would McGillis fit into that milieu?

“How far one would go for money and power is a timeless question,” said Dámaso Rodriguez, who’s directing the Pasadena production. “The acquisition of generational wealth may be connected to some instinct to preserve one’s own children.” Corporate abuses making news, from the treachery of Bernie Madoff on down, make it even more timely, Rodriguez continued. As for casting McGillis, he said, “I never saw her as an ingenue; she’s got physical power and firepower … and she can play Regina, who is really, really smart.” Adds —CONTINUED ON PAGE 44

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 43

THEATER

—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 43

Sheldon Epps, artistic director of the Pasadena Playhouse, McGillis has “stage muscle, the kind you only develop from solid experience.”

Arroyo Monthly recently caught up with McGillis for a liquid experience over herbal tea at a Playhouse District coffee bar.

WHY THIS PLAY NOW? THE ACTION IN “THE LITTLE FOXES” IS SET MORE THAN 100 YEARS AGO — IS THERE ANY RESONANCE OR RELEVANCE TO RELATIONSHIPS TODAY?

The play as a whole and the topic of greed and doing whatever it takes to make money is a very timely issue in light of what’s going on with our economy. Also, on a personal level, the character of Regina, for her it’s about survival; that money represents validity and autonomy in a very patriarchal culture, and I think that continues, even though things are a lot better than 100 years ago.

SHE IS A MUCH DARKER ROLE THAN PEOPLE ARE USED TO SEEING YOU PLAY — THIS COLD, MANIPULATIVE, RATHER SINISTER WOMAN. WHAT IN YOUR PROFESSIONAL WORK PREPARED YOU FOR THIS ROLE?

I don’t think that she’s dark and sinister; I think she’s a survivor. And I think that when people are in survival mode, they will do whatever they need to do. I don’t think that there are these “evil” people in the world; I think people do things out of desperation.

YOU’VE BEEN DOING A LOT OF SHAKESPEARE LATELY.

I have been working with the Shakespeare Theater in Washington, D.C. I’ve done Lady MacBeth — and she’s not so nice [she laughs]. Also, Lavinia in “Mourning Becomes Electra” — not so nice, so I don’t know where you got the impression …

ARE YOU HAPPIER DOING STAGE WORK IN FRONT OF LIVE AUDIENCES?

“I WANTED TO BE A THEATER ACTOR, SO IT WAS KIND OF A SHOCK TO ME THAT I EVER MADE A MOVIE.” HOW WAS WORKING WITH HARRISON FORD [IN THE 1985 FILM “WITNESS”], DIFFERENT FROM WORKING WITH TOM CRUISE [AS THE ROMANTIC INTEREST OF CRUISE’S PILOT CHARACTER IN 1986’S “TOP GUN”]?

Harrison Ford, for me, was working with a huge icon and — this was my first job, out of school — incredibly intimidating. He was larger than life and I was this little kid from Juilliard who knew nothing about anything, but he was very nice. Working with Tom was a little different because we were all around the same age. He was very supportive, very kind. It was really fun.

YOU JUST CAME OUT PUBLICLY, SAYING YOU’RE “DONE WITH THE MAN THING.”

What happened was I was asked [by “Girl Rock” video logger Jennifer Corday] and I had to choose ... so I just decided on a truth moment. Earlier, part of [staying in the closet] is youth — we’re always trying to decide who we are, and we let other people define it.

DO YOU RISK LOSING ROLES BY COMING OUT NOW? OR HAS HOLLYWOOD REALLY CHANGED ON THAT SCORE?

That’s the greatest thing in the world. Growing up, I wanted to be a theater actor, so it was kind of a shock to me that I ever made a movie. What I love is you get to be in control of your own performance. Say I do a movie, and I do my tapes and whatever I do the best I can, and they take it away and the director and the editor sit in a room and put it together — they’re in control of my timing as an actor (when they cut away, for example), so my performance is under the control of somebody else. In the theater, I get to work with my timing (with the director and the other actors) and I get to play with that night after night with a new character — which is the audience. That group brings a different energy, different feel, and then you get to play with the nuances, the subtleties of your performance. That’s what I love.

I would hope people have a much easier time of it today.

WHAT DRAMATIC WORK ARE YOU MOST HAPPY WITH OR PROUD OF?

I’ve been studying at a seminary in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and I go to prisons and talk to young women about addiction and recovery. Most of them are there because of addiction — their own or their husbands’ or boyfriends’. If you can bring them some kind of spiritual help, or hope …

“Mourning Becomes Electra” was the hardest, most challenging work, the scariest. I was very intimidated by the whole idea of Electra and by O'Neill and the vastness of his concept — it’s a cycle, everything goes in circles.

YOU’VE BEEN LIVING IN A SMALL TOWN IN PENNSYLVANIA RECENTLY. WHY IS THAT?

I just moved to New Jersey, the Philadelphia suburbs. But yeah, we moved there in 2001, a small town near Amish country. After the divorce, I wanted to raise my kids in a different sort of environment; they were 8 and 12. I wanted to be a more full-time mother and that would have been hard close to New York or L.A., with the pull of acting jobs.

I READ THAT, ASIDE FROM WORK, YOU’VE BEEN INVOLVED WITH “ADDICTION STUDIES.”

ON TO FILMS: YOU PASSED ON THE ROLE THAT JODIE FOSTER GOT AN OSCAR FOR IN “THE ACCUSED,” BECAUSE THE RAPE VICTIM ROLE HIT TOO CLOSE TO HOME. [MCGILLIS WAS BRUTALLY RAPED IN NEW YORK IN 1982 BY TWO YOUNG MEN, ONE OF WHOM WENT ON TO BECOME A SERIAL OFFENDER.] HAVE YOU SPENT ANY TIME KICKING YOURSELF FOR MISSING THAT OPPORTUNITY?

SORT OF A PRISON MINISTRY. IS THERE SOMETHING THAT GIVES YOU SOME SPECIAL INSIGHT INTO THESE PROBLEMS?

Oh, God, no, everything in my life has gone exactly the way it was supposed to happen. Jodie was brilliant in that role and nobody could have done it the way she did.

I just hope I can go back to work — it’s what makes me joyous. I might also pursue some work at a seminary in the fall. It all depends; I don’t know what God’s plan is. AM

44 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

I’ve had issues. That’s in the past, but ... the issues are there all your life.

SO WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO AFTER “THE LITTLE FOXES?” ARE THERE FILM OR TV PROJECTS?

THE

LIST COMPILED BY JOHN SOLLENBERGER

A HIGHLY SELECTIVE PREVIEW OF UPCOMING EVENTS

GLENDALE YOUTH ORCHESTRA PERFORMS AT THE ALEX June 2 — The Glendale Youth Orchestra performs selections by Mozart, Bruch and Mendelssohn at the Alex Theatre. The 7:30 p.m. concert, conducted by Brad Keimach, features three violin soloists: middle-school student Ashlyn Kaneshiro and high schoolers Hector Gonzales and Aram Garibyan. The program includes the first movements of Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3 in G major, Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor and Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor.

The Alex Theatre is located at 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. For tickets, call (818) 243-2539 or visit alextheatre.org. For orchestra information, call (323) 839-8135 or visit glendaleyouthorchestra.com.

June 6 — Pasadena’s Folk Tree and its sister shop, the Marengo Collection, open new shows of Latino folk art.

The Folk Tree presents “Esau Andrade & Friends,” with compositions combining surrealism and naïve art. The exhibition includes works by Andrade, a native of Mexico, as well as his family and friends. The Marengo Collection presents “Latino Visions: A Photography Show,” with pictures shot in Cuba, Mexico and Los Angeles by Andrew Kitchen, Corey Kaplan, Eriberto Oriol, Manuel Martinez and Vicki Ragan. Both shows open with a reception from 2 to 6 p.m. and continue through July 3.

The Folk Tree is located at 217 S. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena. The Marengo Collection is at 494 S. Marengo Ave., Pasadena. Call (626) 795-8733 or visit folktree.com.

BALLET HISPANICO AT THE MUSIC CENTER June 5 through 7 — The 2008-09 season of Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at the Music Center continues with Ballet Hispanico. The 13-member company led by Artistic Director Tina Ramirez performs a fusion of ballet, modern and Latin dance. Programs include “Club Havana,” choreographed by Pedro Ruiz with music by Israel López, Rubén Gonzales, A.K. Salim, Perez Prado and Francisco Repilado; “Ritmo y Ruido,” choreographed by Ann Reinking with hip-hop and Afro-Cuban music by Philip Hamilton and Tobias Ralph; and two West Coast premieres — the abstract “Tres Bailes,” choreographed by Jean Emile with music by Astor Piazzolla, Gotan Project and Alberto Iglesias, and “Destino Incierto,” choreographed by Carlos Sierra Lopez with music by Rodion Shchedrin after Georges Bizet. Tickets, which range in price from $25 to $105, are available at ticketmaster.com. Performances at the Ahmanson Theatre begin at 7:30 p.m.

Friday and Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday.

The Ahmanson Theatre is located at 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. Call (213) 972-0711 or visit musiccenter.org/dance.html.

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PHOTO: Ballet Hispanico courtesy of epatinophoto.com

SEEDS AND SERPENTS AT DESCANSO Spring swings into summer at Descanso Gardens, with several events this month for children and adults.

June 6 — The SEEDS (Supporting Education and Excellence at Descanso) gala dinner starts at 6 p.m. “Enchantment, A Magical Evening Under the Stars” features dancing to live music and a silent auction with KNBC-TV weatherman Fritz Coleman returning as auctioneer. The gala is the garden’s main fundraising event. Tickets cost $200. Call (818) 952-4391.

June 14 — Descanso’s first car show, “Serpents in the Gardens,” features 14 classic Shelby Cobras and custom Cobra Roadsters, which will be on display from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Shelby Cobra, manufactured from 1963 to 1967, was designed by race car driver Carroll Shelby to compete with Ferraris. Kids can participate in a “snake hunt” and attend a show of actual snakes hosted by the Reptile Family at 1 p.m. Activities are free with admission.

June 19, 20 and 21 — Descanso, the Pasadena POPS and the Patina Group team up for a night of music and dining. POPS Music Director Rachael Worby heats up the evening with Latin rhythms and melodies. Gates open at 5:30 p.m.; the concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and at 7 p.m. Sunday. Guests can order dinner by calling (818) 790-3663 or visiting patinagroup.com/descanso. Orders must be in by 2 p.m. on June 17. For concert tickets, which range in price from $20 to $90, visit pasadenapops.org or call (626) 793-7172.

June 25 — The indie/alternative music duo the Bird and the Bee, with Greg Kurstin (“Bee”) and Inara George (“Bird”), performs at 7:30 p.m. Gates open at 5:30 p.m., and food, wine and beer are available for purchase onsite. Tickets cost $12. Visit ticketweb.com.

June 27 — The Beach Boys tribute band Surfin’ Safari recreates a 1961 concert at 1 p.m. Bring a blanket and a picnic.

Descanso Gardens is located at 1418 Descanso Dr., La Cañada Flintridge. Call (818) 9494200 or visit descansogardens.org.

PACIFIC SERENADES CLOSES SEASON June 7 — The Pacific Serenades chamber music ensemble presents its season finale at Pasadena’s Neighborhood Church. The program includes the world premiere of a new piano quintet by film and television composer Paul Chihara, performed by pianist Edith Orloff, violinists Miwako Watanabe and Connie Kupka, violist Roland Kato and cellist David Speltz. The ensemble also performs Dvorak’s Piano Quintet in A major, Op. 81, and Haydn’s Keyboard Trio in A major, H.15/9. The concert starts at 4 p.m. Tickets cost $32 ($5 for student rush). In addition, the adjacent Gamble House offers concert patrons a discounted fee of $8 for same-day tours.

The Neighborhood Church is located at 301 N. Orange Grove Blvd., Pasadena. Call (213) 534-3434 or visit pacser.org.

A FAMILY FEAST June 12 — “Dim Sum Funeral,” a film starring Ling Bai and Talia Shire, opens at Laemmle’s Playhouse 7. Directed by Anna Chi, who grew up in the People’s Republic of China, it examines the lives of an overseas Chinese family. Four estranged siblings are summoned to Seattle after their mother dies. While working together on fulfilling her dying wish for a traditional Chinese funeral, they learn about themselves, tradition and the idiosyncrasies of family life.

Laemmle’s Playhouse 7 is located at 673 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena. Call (626) 844-6500 or visit laemmle.com.

—CONTINUED ON PAGE 47 ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 45

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—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 45

TASTE OF OLD CALIFORNIA IN GLENDALE June 14 — The Glendale Historical Society presents “A Taste of Old California” from 5 to 8 p.m. at the private residence that once housed the Casa Verdugo Restaurant, which operated from 1910 to 1921. The event will recreate the food and ambience of the famous dining spot at the foot of the Verdugo Hills. Guests can tour the building’s interior; view historic photos, postcards and artifacts; and enjoy a four-course dinner recreated by food historian and scholar Charles Perry. Tickets, which cost $65 ($50 for society members), must be bought by June 1. The address will be provided with ticket purchase, which can be made online.

Call (818) 242-7447 or visit glendalehistorical.org.

DOING THE MATH AT SIERRA MADRE PLAYHOUSE June 19 — The Pulitzer- and Tony-award-winning play “Proof” opens at the Sierra Madre Playhouse and continues through Aug. 1. In David Auburn’s romantic mystery about love, madness and the limits of brilliance, a former student of a math genius discovers a historymaking mathematical proof among the professor’s papers, and the bonds of love, loyalty, faith and commitment are tested. The play starts at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and at 2:30 p.m. Sundays. (The house is dark on June 21.)

The Sierra Madre Playhouse is located at 87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre. Call (626) 256-3809 or visit sierramadreplayhouse.org.

PHOTO: Sweet and Treat:Wayne Thiebaud, American, b. 1920 Layer Cakes (or ‘Half Cakes’), 1964, courtesy of Norton Simon Museum

SWEETS AND TREATS AT NORTON SIMON June 26 — The museum unveils “Sweets & Treats: Wayne Thiebaud in the Collection of the Norton Simon Museum,” which runs through Oct. 5. The artist is known mainly for his thickly textured paintings of angel-food cake topped with creamy frosting, but “Sweets & Treats” showcases 1960s prints that display a different side of his work, devoid of the textures seen in his oils. Thiebaud’s prints remove painting’s formal aspects to let viewers focus on the subject matter itself.

The Norton Simon Museum is located at 411 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena. Call (626) 4496840 or visit nortonsimon.org.

A TASTE FOR PHILANTHROPY June 27 — The 46th annual “Evening With Star Chefs,” benefiting Rosemary Children’s Services (RCS), returns to Santa Anita Park in Arcadia at 6 p.m. The evening honoring longtime RCS volunteer Reid Allen, hosted by Good News Foundation chair Wendy Burch, features fare from Pasadena Baking Company, Mi Piace, Castle Catering, El Cholo, Front Runner, Il Fornaio, Ruth's Chris Steakhouse and Celestino. Tickets cost $150.

Santa Anita Park is located at 285 W. Huntington Dr., Arcadia. Call (626) 844-3033, ext. 211, or visit rosemarychildren.org.

A DREAMGIRL JOINS THE CHORUS June 27 and 28 — Two-time Grammy Award–winning actress Jennifer Holliday joins the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles in a performance of show tunes at the Alex Theatre. The concert includes hits from “The Lion King,” “Young Frankenstein,” “Spring Awakening” and “Aida,” as well as music from such classics as “The King and I,” “Zorba,” “Milk and Honey,” “South Pacific,” “Follies,” “Steel Pier” and, of course, “Dreamgirls,” for which she won a Tony. Performances start at 3 and 8 p.m. Saturday and at 3 p.m. Sunday. (Holliday will perform only in the Saturday concerts and attend the VIP postreception that evening.) Tickets cost $30 for the concert and $100 for the VIP package.

The Alex Theatre is located at 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. Call (818) 243-ALEX or visit gmcla.org.

“GRANITE FRONTIERS” EXPLORES YOSEMITE CLIMBING AT THE AUTRY June 12 — “Granite Frontiers: A Century of Yosemite Climbing,” a look at the people who pioneered modern rock climbing and their successors taking the sport to new heights today, opens at the Autry National Center of the American West. Yosemite Valley’s sheer granite walls offer some of the West’s most beautiful and challenging mountaineering, first luring native Miwok and Paiute people and, later, climbers from around the world, including naturalist John Muir, Warren Harding and, later Yvon Chouinard. The exhibition features photography by Ansel Adams, Glen Denny, Tom Frost, Greg Epperson and Chris Falkenstein, plus artifacts and video from the 1870s to today. The exhibition continues through Oct. 3.

The Autry National Center of the American West is located at 4700 Western Heritage Way in Griffith Park. Call (323) 667-2000 or visit autrynationalcenter.org.

CAL PHIL OPENS SUMMER SEASON,

BY GEORGE! June 27 and 28 — The California Philharmonic summer season begins with performances at the L.A. County Arboretum and Botanic Garden on Saturday and the Walt Disney Concert Hall on Sunday. The concert — “By George!” — features works by George Gershwin, George Handel and George M. Cohan. The program, featuring soprano Henrietta Davis and bass baritone Cedric Berry, includes Handel’s “Music for the Royal Fireworks” and excerpts from Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess.” Gates open at 5:30 p.m. Guests are encouraged to picnic on the grounds prior to the 7:30 p.m. performance. Ticket prices range from $20 to $95; call (626) 300-8200 or visit calphil.org.

Sunday’s Disney Hall concert starts at 2 p.m. Tickets cost from $25 to $90; call (213) 365-3500 or visit calphil.org.

The Arboretum is located at 301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia. The Walt Disney Concert Hall is located at 111 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. AM

ARROYO ~ JUNE 2009 ~ 47

KITCHEN CONFESSIONS

Time to Vacate A TASTE FOR TRAVEL LEAVES THIS COLUMNIST WITH A YEN FOR THE GOOD OLD DAYS, WHEN PLANES WERE STILL EQUIPPED WITH STEWARDESSES AND SPORKS.

BY LESLIE BILDERBACK | PHOTOS BY TERI LYN FISHER

The summer travel season is quickly approaching.

Despite the state of the economy, folks are still deciding to get away from it all. We all know that a change of some of us, is work. Vacation is the time to let loose and enjoy the pleasures of the

scenery won’t magically inflate your sad little 401(k), or

palate with liberal abandon. Guilt-free gluttony is the order of the day.

Vacation in our family means completely shunning all normal behavior. You want

change the color of that pink slip. But sometimes get-

ice cream for the third time today? Absolutely! A falafel at midnight? Indeed! Another corn dog? Go for it! Pie for breakfast? You’d better believe it, baby! This is vacation,

ting out of town is just what the doctor ordered. (The

and if your pants aren’t tight by the end of the day, you’re just not trying hard enough.

When I visit new cities, I feel obliged to try the local specialty. Some part of me

doctor also said you might want to pack a face mask.)

I am a big believer in leaving everyday things behind for a while (to vacate, if you will), carving out time to clear the head and regroup. I usually start planning summer vacation as soon as school starts in the fall. I was first diagnosed with the Travel Bug as

fears Memphis may not welcome me back if I don’t try the barbeque. I will surely offend a Philadelphian if I decline a cheesesteak with wiz. And no one will believe I even went to Wisconsin if I can't vouch for the fried cheese curds.

When eating in a new city, one should never say, “What is that?” But it is perfectly

a child. Even back then, I imagined myself as a jet-setter and seriously considered a

polite to ask the natives about their famous dishes. That way, you'll be prepared for

career as a stewardess. (I realize that title is passé, and yet I cannot shake it. Why is

your first lick of Alaskan Eskimo ice cream — a creamy frozen treat made from reindeer

“flight attendant” so much better than steward or stewardess? Steward sounds much

fat and salmon eggs, sans sugar.

more refined. Flight attendant sounds like an assistant to a bird doctor.) As a culinary stu-

In fact, before you launch yourself into such a situation, it pays to do a little

dent, I briefly considered a career in airline catering but gave it up when I realized I would

research, especially when traveling overseas. Familiarity with the gastronomic vocabu-

not be flying from one exotic location to another, cooking interesting foods, but would

lary will serve you well. At the very least, it will keep you from ordering a stick of butter

instead be stuck in a steamy El Segundo warehouse assembling dry turkey sandwiches.

for lunch, as one member of my family once did. (“Oooh, this cheese is so buttery!”)

Granted, the current state of air travel, with minimal service and maximal fees, is

You should also use caution when eating foreign food in a different foreign country. For

disappointing. I, for one, really miss the free peanuts and pretzels (although the lack of

instance, an American eating Italian food in Honduras could easily mistake the bowl of

free peanuts probably saved me from a case of salmonella earlier this year). I actually

sugar on the table for parmesan cheese (“Sir, why is your son sugaring his ravioli?”).

miss mediocre airline food. Where else could you find an oddly geometric full-course

Even if your vacation food is fantastic, you always run the risk of getting sick of it.

meal, made to fit perfectly into tiny rectangular trays, like a culinary game of Tetris?

(Ho hum … another flaky, buttery croissant.) When I hit the road-food wall, I head for

Each tray is just for you, wrapped hygienically and equipped with a spork, a pat of

the local markets. There is no better place to get to know a culture. Even if you can’t

margarine and your very own small paper tubes of salt and pepper. Alas, the day of

read the labels, you will, at the very least, be able to find some edible fruits and vegeta-

cookie-cutter airplane meals has gone the way of in-flight smoking. (Can someone

bles to shock your system back into shape (although you’ll want to be on the alert for

explain why there are still ashtrays in armrests?) Now I am forced to either bring my

any travel advisories). You may even discover something new about the natives, such

own food or spend $9 on a $2 sandwich in the terminal.

as the French appreciation of horsemeat, the Northern European love affair with the eel

Still, these hardships are in no way a deterrent to me. Just plop me in a seat with a Sky Mall catalog and I’ll be fine. All true jet-setters know that it’s more about the destination than the transportation. Once we arrive, I hit the ground running. I am inclined

or the Central American affinity for corn fungus. Study the local markets enough and you may even qualify for a job with the State Department.

My favorite travel food of all time came from local markets. I backpacked through

to pack as much into every day as I can, which, of course, includes experiencing as

Europe with my boyfriend (now husband) when I was in college. We were totally

much of the local cuisine as possible. I do not concern myself with sensible eating. A

broke, but we had a Eurail Pass and a sense of adventure. We had the poor-traveling-

holiday is, by definition, a rest from work, and — let’s face it — eating sensibly, for

student thing down to a science. First, we were always careful to eat everything at

48 ~ JUNE 2009 ~ ARROYO

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Ingredients 41/2 cups rolled oats 1/4 cup sunflower seeds 1 cup whole wheat flour 1/4 cup golden raisins 1/4 cup dried apricots, chopped 1/4 cup banana chips 1/4 cup shredded coconut 1/2 cup walnuts 1/2 cup pecans

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—CONTINUED ON PAGE 50

1/3

cup brown sugar teaspoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 2/3 cup unsalted butter, melted 1/2 cup honey 1/2

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with pan spray. In a large bowl, stir together oats, sunflower seeds, flour, raisins, apricots, bananas, coconut, walnuts, pecans, brown sugar, salt and baking soda. Add butter, honey and vanilla, and mix well to moisten.

2. Press mixture into prepared pan, and bake 20 minutes, until golden brown. Cool for 10 minutes before slicing into bars.

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the youth hostel’s free continental breakfast to ensure maximum caloric intake. That included smearing as much jam as possible on toast, and dousing coffee with milk and sugar, even though I preferred it black. Our first task after breakfast was to find a local market where we would buy a loaf of bread, a piece of cheese and a hunk of salami. That served as our lunch and dinner. Sometimes we would splurge on a piece of fruit or a carton of milk, or indulge in the occasional ice cream or beer (usually after wiring home for more money from our parents). Since that trip, I have had the privilege of eating some of the finest food on earth, prepared by many great chefs, at home and abroad. But there is nothing more delicious to me than the taste of bread, cheese and salami, washed down with the memories of wonderful trips gone by. It tastes even better if I can carry it around in a backpack all day.

Now, where did I put my suitcase? AM Bilderback is a certified master chef and baker, a former executive chef of Pasadena’s California School of Culinary Arts and the author of “The Everything Family Nutrition Book” (Adams Media; May 2009). She has also written six volumes in Alpha Publishing’s “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to...” series. A South Pasadena resident, Bilderback teaches her techniques online at culinarymasterclass.com.

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—CONTINUED FROM PAGE 49

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