Tuesday, July 10, 2012

The Coachella Valley

The high mountains are covered with snow with the palm trees in foreground.

One of our absolutely gorgeous sunsets taken in front of our house.

Taken in the street in front of our house. Those mountains are really covered
with snow.........more palm trees and of course our neighbors' garbage cans.
Aren't they lovely?

Another beautiful sunset taken from our front yard.

Today our temperature got to 116 degrees! Would any of you like to come for a visit? I have to say though that even in the heat, we did enjoy doing our exercises in the pool. At least the water was a bit cooler. It was only 90 degrees! It actually felt lots cooler than that because of the air temp being so warm.

I am really surprised how many of our desert visitors are still here. You would think in this weather that they would clear out fast. They seem to stay longer each year. There must be a few of them that enjoy our summer heat??? When I used to live in the desert fifty years ago, you could have shot a cannon down Palm Canyon Blvd. in Palm Springs. Of course it was just a nice little village then where lots of movie stars came to partake of our wonderful warm winter weather. So many of them had homes here. Some of the old timers still do and even a few new timers.

Of course this desert has a big draw in the winter. We have so many people come for the "season" from Canada and other cold places throughout the country. A lot goes on to bring folks here for special occasions too. There are two huge music festivals held each year at the polo grounds. One is Rock and the other is Country. They are held on consecutive weekends. So many big names perform in these concerts. Actually the Coachella Valley Music Festivals are the biggest in the country. It's amazing how the young people, particularly, flood this valley, and each year, these concerts just keep getting bigger and bigger. You can imagine how it helps our economy.

Indian Wells hosts one of the World Class Tennis Tournaments each year in their Tennis Gardens. I think the name of it is Paribus. We were fortunate to have friends that live in Indian Wells get us tickets, so we were able to experience that event, and I must say it was amazing. Unfortunately we didn't take any pictures. Crazy, huh?

Another popular thing here is the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. Everyone has to try it at least once. It goes from the valley floor up to the high mountains. I went when I lived here many years ago and was one of the very early ones to go up to the top of those mountains. I have a terrible fear of heights and eveyone was kidding me and trying to rock the tram, successfully, I might add, and I was half way crazy before we got to the top. Of course there is only a return trip down, unless you are a very good hiker, so I knew I had to get on that thing again, and believe me, I sucked it up, because I didn't want anyone rocking that thing again. I was so grateful when we finally got down. I can tell you. I would NEVER do that again, but many people love it. In the winter time, you can be in the deep snow at the top and in the summer, you can hike some of the trails or have a lovely dinner there. The view is quite spectacular from the top.

We also have many museums, huge destination hotels, more golf courses than you can count and along with that are many golf tournaments including the Bob Hope Classic, PGA and Dinah Shore, and I know there are probably more that I am forgetting. Needless to say, it is really a lovely place to spend winters. So many people have second homes here and there are so many beautiful country clubs with their own private golf courses. Oh, I almost forgot, the Living Desert, where there are many different animals too, almost a small zoo. Needless to say, one could be busy every day, truly, going from one fascinating place to another.

The shopping here is memorable too. We have our own version of Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. It is El Paseo drive, which has all the fancy stores, many art galleries, exclusive boutiques and so many great places to eat, lots of them right out on the sidewalk.

So yes, the desert does have it's charm. If any of you would like to visit, we do have a couple of guest rooms with really good beds. I think I've told you before how much we love company, and we hardly ever get any. So feel free everyone, just let us know and we will hang out the welcome sign.

Love you all, my great blogging friends..................
Darlene

10 comments:

  1. Palm Desert is one of our favorite getaways. But I'm with you - I don't like that tram AT ALL. I love to come and shop and eat at good little restaurants, and walk around at night when it's cooler. My family (mom, dad, siblings and our families) used to come out one weekend a year in the summer as a sort of annual get together. My dad paid for all of our rooms (that's why we came in the summer!), the kids would swim, and we all had a great time. Next time we come, LaMar and I will let you know. We're due for a little weekend away.

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  2. Of course my first thought was 116'....you've got to be kidding! It is suppose to be 108' here and it is horrible already just after noon time. I would think your pool would feel like bath water today. I admire your determination. But then reading more about the charm of your city it sounds so NICE. Such gorgeous blue sky, so you must not have the horrendous air quality we have here.

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  3. Wish I could, Darlene! We still have cold wet weather. But reading about your lovely desert climate cheers me up!

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  4. I really enjoy reading and learning about your area. It sounds lovely; except for right now with the high temperatures. We lived in Las Vegas for 7 years and I hated the hot weather. I am a mountain, trees, lake kind of person. We did enjoy our pool while we lived there. It was an interesting place to live. We didn't go down to the strip area very often and believe it or not it is a religious city. Lots of diverse and different faiths. The Mormon population is huge. We loved the church.
    I learned alot about your desert area today and I loved the pictures. You are the best and I always enjoy your posts and will look forward to meeting you soon.
    Blessings and hugs to you!

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  5. With all that to offer I can see why people opt to stay longer. The temps are probably not that big of a problem..isn't that why God invented AC? I don't really enjoy a super hot summer like the one we're having now but I know I'll be thinking of it in the winter when the snow flies. But our high 80's seems very cool compared to 116de.! I think every area has it's beauty and sometimes you just have to explore and find all the fun things to do. I hope we can show you some fun things to do if you get here this year. Have a great weekend Darlene my queen!

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  6. What a scenic view you have - even on bin days! Your post about the 116 degree heat prompted me to do some research on the hottest day on record - 136 degrees in Libya in 1922.
    Guess we came close here in my home state of South Australia, in the outback town of Oodnadatta, 123 degrees. Not my idea of fun. Hope the weather is settling down for you Darlene, and you and Dick are keeping well.

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  7. Of course, you know me. I don't like to be there in the summer. But it's GREAT the rest of the time...

    =)

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  8. OH my honey your sunsets and view are gorgeous. I honestly can not think of a better place to be right now even in the heat than visiting with you.
    I bet your winters are just absolutely beautiful otherwise you would not have so many celebrities owning winter homes there.
    It's amazing the temps you have and then look up and see snow on the mountain tops. God certainly knew what he was doing when he created your area.
    I would be in hog heaven if we ever met. lol How sweet of you to extend this invitation.
    Thanks honey for coming by and checking on me. I am okay just a little crazier than my normal self because for some reason my landlady has decided to camp out at my house for a while and she is a sweetheart but the kind you have to take in small doses. I am leaving this weekend to see my grand babies so against her wanting to she went back to her Texas home for the weekend but said she would be back Monday evening and did not know for how long. I in fear of loosing my job do not know how to handle this but I do know that Ms Pearl has come so close to loosing it this past week that I am afraid for my job and place to live. hahaha
    Sorry I have written you a chapter not a comment. Your just so easy to talk to.
    Sweet Darlene have a delightful weekend and I hope your feeling good.
    Love ya
    Maggie

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  9. How wonderful to run into someone from our area. I am in Riverside. We do have beautiful sunsets, don't we. It's nice to meet you. I am off to look at more of your blog.
    Hugs,
    Mona

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  10. p.s. I am the mother of seven, grandmother of 14 and great grandmother of 6! We have a lot in common. I am 76 in October and my husband is 78. Isn't it all so wonderful? WE also have neighbors trash cans out when they should be in...LOL

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