Golden California

California

We saw many different places in California, so this article will be set up in a more orderly way.

Death Valley

We don’t know the exact point where we crossed into California, but once we entered Death Valley we understood that we already had. Death Valley is the hottest area we have entered yet at one hundred and fifteen degrees Fahrenheit. The valley is the lowest point in the United States, while the Dead Sea is the lowest in the world. The Dead Sea is around five times deeper than Death Valley. There are almost no animals, plants, or any kind of life in the valley because of its extreme heat and dryness.

Death Valley is extremely spacious, and it took us most the day to drive through it. We saw its beautiful viewpoints from the mountain tops and the salt beds on its valley floor.

The only problem with Death Valley is the fact that all the prices in the stores and gas stations within it are double if not triple the normal price everywhere else in the states. Tani was so angry at the gas station he started making comments loud enough so the clerk can hear about the outrages gas prices.

On the way out of Death Valley we passed through the town of Trona. It is probably the saddest place on Earth. The town is a modern ghost town. Eighty percent of Trona have moved down to the bigger town of Ridgecrest, and left behind everything. They couldn’t sell their homes, so they just boarded the houses up and left.

We spent the night in Ridgecrest. While we were in Ridgecrest Tani asked the local clerk how to get to Sequoia. He didn’t know how to explain the directions exactly, and the man behind Tani in line was inpatient about buying his rolling paper for his joint. At a certain point the man could not wait any longer, and told Tani that Sequoia was a few minutes up the street to get him to leave. We knew this was a lie because it was a several hour drive.  

Sequoia

Sequoia was a nice change to the deserts we had been spending time in for the previous weeks. The park has a beautiful river and an amazing forest filled with the biggest trees we have ever seen.

The Sequoia Tree is the world’s largest tree. It’s shorter than the Red Wood trees, but its trunk is so wide that in volume it’s much bigger and weighs a lot more. After seeing the Sequoia Trees I feel like all other trees are miniature in comparison.

Los Angeles

We spent the night of Sequoia in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles is a very modern and amazing city, and we spent four days there. On the first night we just went to sleep, but the rest of the time we toured. We decided to use public transportation after experiencing the “lovely” drive down the 405, which is in a perpetual standstill no matter what hour of the day.

On the second day we walked the Walk of Fame, and saw the stars of entertainers engraved into the ground. We passed by the Chinese Theater, and saw the hand prints of the same entertainers. At six-thirty we went on a tour of Hollywood, and of the stars’ homes in Beverly Hills. Our tour guide was hilarious, and extremely friendly. We probably took the worst and cheapest tour there, but it was still worth it.

On the way back to our hotel room at the Marriott Courtyard of Sherman Oaks, which we received as a gift from Danny Shimoff for two nights, we stopped at Universal City. The shopping center is filled with neon lights and is very nice.

On the third day Tani and I split up. Tani went to Venice Beach, and I went to visit my old sergeant Tal Shani in UCLA. My sergeant is living his American Pie dream in a fraternity house on campus, even though he doe not actually learn there. We ate lunch together, and caught up on current events in the unit.

At four o’clock Tani and I met up back at the hotel and relaxed for a bit before setting out again. That evening met up with Batel Pessach who was in Sheirut Leumi in Los Angeles and we went out for dinner.

On our last day in LA we went to Venice Beach. The beach is packed with Dr. Green shops where a real doctor finds a medical problem in order to issue you your medicinal marijuana permit. There are street performers, homeless people, singers, and artists all along the boardwalk.

We watched a show of street dancers which was hilarious, because the MC constantly made fun of white people. The performers brought up volunteers from the audience, and had them dancing in ridiculous ways. The MC constantly reminded us to tip them so they won’t end up either in the poorhouse or in our house.

 We then watched a man walk on glass shards, as he made fun of all the audience watching him. He was constantly making fun of the German and Asian in the audience. After he walked the glass there was blood on the ground see he obviously was hurt from the stunt. I felt sorry for the man that this was how he had to make a living.

Route 1

The Pacific Ocean is extremely cold which makes it a bit difficult to swim, but that does not mean that it doesn’t have amazing sights. Many areas of the road are cliffs overlooking the ocean. The Big Spur is probably one of the most beautiful areas in all of America, so far. You can look down to the ocean, and see the natural beaches with rocks and boulders.

The trip up to San Francisco is very long so we had to split the drive into two, so we slept in San Luis Obispo.

San Francisco

We stayed by my amazing Aunt Wynne in Atherton, right outside of San Francisco. She took us on tours of San Francisco everyday. As we arrived we went for a swim in her pool, watched a movie in my Uncle Mark’s personal home movie theater (which beats an actual movie theater in audio and image quality), and then prepared for the Sabbath. During the Sabbath we rested, but the second it ended we hit up Palo Alto. We were surprised, but it did actually have bars.

On Sunday we entered for the first time into San Fran, as we have come to call it. The city is extremely diverse, and has been so since it came to be. It is the result of a melting pot of many different people and cultures that came to seek their fortunes during the Californian Gold Rush. San Francisco accepted everyone, and discriminated against none.

We saw the wealthy areas of Pacific Heights, and had a beer in the homosexual section of Castro Street.  We saw bison at the Central Park of San Fran, and ate lunch at a Farmers’ Market by the bay. We drove across the Golden Gate Bridge, and even walked across part of it.

To end the perfect day we ate an amazing dinner prepared by my aunt, and watched an episode of Naked and Afraid with my Aunt Wynne and Uncle Mark. The show is about a couple, man and woman, that have never met, and they need to survive for twenty one days together naked in the wilderness (don’t worry it’s censored).

On Monday we toured Silicon Valley. We saw Google, Facebook, and Apple’s main facilities. Each place has a unique feel to it which you wouldn’t think a job would have. Google looks more like a resort than a workplace.

While at Facebook Tani really had to go to the bathroom, so he tried to enter the building. The guard at the entrance told Tani that there are no bathrooms in the building. It’s amazing in my opinion that Facebook surgically modifies their workers not to go to the bathroom.

We also went to an Apple store for the first time. We found it slightly funny that they use I-Pads in order to advertise their I-Pads. We also went to a computer history museum, but unfortunately it was closed so we only walked around the lobby which was still interesting.

 At the end of the day once again we had an amazing meal, and watched an episode of Married at First Sight. The show is about three couples that agree to a social experiment in which they are married without ever having met their spouses.

On Tuesday we went to Alcatraz Prison. The prison is on an island, so the only access is by boat. The prison looks a terrible place to have to spend your sentence, and it was home to some of the worst criminals of the twentieth century. We took the audio tour, which was surprisingly good. We learned of the different inmates, and of their escape attempts. We learned how the guards dealt with the inmates.

On Wednesday we went for a ride with my Uncle Mark in his Ferrari, which was one of the coolest things I have ever done. The acceleration could literally cause someone to pass out. The car is built so the driver has no reason to take his hand off of the steering wheel because at such high speeds it is too dangerous.

Afterwards we went with my Aunt Wynne to do some last minute shopping before we drove out the next day.

Yosemite

On Thursday we drove to Yosemite. We saw its half-dome, and drove through the valley. It has tons of forest, and its views beat any park we have been to so far.

We spent the night in a campground next to Lake Lundy right outside of Yosemite.

Lake Tahoe

We woke up early, and drove to Lake Tahoe. Lake Tahoe is extremely clear, and if it’s not too deep you can see right through it. We hiked down to the beach of Emerald Bay, and took some pictures. After around an hour we continued on our way to Salt Lake City Utah.