Malibu Lagoon and State Beach

We spent a relaxing day here as we leave tomorrow. It’s only 13 miles up the Pacific Coast Highway from Santa Monica and the lagoon is home to Brown Pelicans, Egrets and several other waders. It is adjacent to a surfing beach and while we were watching the bids, children’s surf and kayaking schools were getting underway. Also nearby is the Adamson House and Garden. It was built in the 1920s and showcases Malibu pottery with numerous decorative tiles. Very Arts and Crafts. We did not go inside as it was a beautiful day, so pottered around the lagoon, sat on the beach and had a coffee on the pier. Now relaxing and packing before our last evening meal in Santa Monica.Malibu Lagoon 2 Malibu Lagoon 3 Malibu Lagoon 9 Malibu Lagoon 16

The End of the Road

Not quite – we don’t fly home until Saturday but we have made it to the end of Route 66. This morning we visited the pier to have the obligatory photo taken by a passerby. It was quite cool so we did a bit of shopping downtown and had a leisurely coffee watching the world go by. Santa Monica has lots of ‘Shop Local’ signs up and I did find a silver jewellery stall which had one of the biggest displays of charms that I have seen. I have a silver charm bracelet given to me by my grandmother when I was ten. It was made from my great grandmother’s silver watch chain and has some of the silver sixpences and threepences she had on her watch chain.  Other charms added over the years are very mixed and James suggested I should have the lighthouse one so that will be added when I get home. We then headed to the beach. I had to dip my toes into the Pacific but that was all as it was so cold – only two guys were brave enough to actually swim in it. Flocks of brown pelicans flew overhead and we had one brave gull who sat and watched us (even before we got the picnic out), ever hopeful that we might feed him. As I don’t feed wildlife other than the birds in my own garden, he was out of luck unless we left any crumbs afterwards. After lunch, the onshore winds increased and got much colder so we moved back into town. I popped into Barnes and Noble and had to limit myself to one book as I don’t want the embarrassment of having to turn out my case at check in again (I bought so many books on a previous trip to the Pacific NW my case was too heavy). We returned to the hotel to relax before dinner at a local Indian restaurant. This was a welcome change from American Diner and Mexican food.

End of the road Santa Monica PierEnd of the road 3 Santa Monica PierThe PacificOur friend the patient gull