Where in the World are the Wendells: November 2024

During our Old Route 66 drive from Chicago to Santa Monica (see prior post), we took a couple detours to explore Joshua Tree National Park, San Diego, and a visit to LA to see Penn Sate defeat USC.

Joshua Tree NP is beautiful, comprises two climatic zones: the low desert Sonoran meets the high desert Mojave. We entered the park at the north entrance, then descended about 3000 feet from the Mojave into the Pinto Basin of the Sonoran desert, with the temperature rising almost 15 degrees. The high desert Mojave has mountains, large rock formations and the iconic Joshua trees. The lower Sonoran desert is flat and barren, with few rock formations and clusters of Cholla plants.

Mojave desert

Mojave mountains

Mojave rock formation

Joshua tree

Sonoran desert

Pinto Basin

Chulla

Chulla garden

Mojave

Penn State wins in OT!

Attending the Penn State - USC game at the LA County Coliseum was a great experience. The Coliseum was built for the 1932 Olympics, used for the 1984 Olympics, and will be used again for the upcoming 2028 LA Olympics. Outside the stadium we saw the iconic flame, the human statues from the 1932 games, and structural blocks from the ancient Greek stadium in Olympia and the Roman Colosseum. The interior of the stadium was impressive, especially given it is nearly 100 years old. Of course, the game was pretty great too, with a Penn State win in overtime.

Coliseum statues and flame

Olympia block

Coliseum entrance

We ended our trip in San Diego, enjoying the perfect weather. Little Italy was a real surprise, I did not expect the dozens of great Italian restaurants along Kettner and India streets. Each major intersection was fashioned into a piazza, one with an ornate fountain. We enjoyed walking along the Marina area. There are some amazing architectural gems in the Gaslamp Quarter, many are beautifully restored. The Santa Fe Depot, built in 1915, is incredible, especially the tile in the interior.