Santa Monica Pier

One of the places I missed most while living out of state was the Santa Monica Pier. Eclectic, interesting, and just plain fun! The first few times I drove to the beach after moving back home, I took the 10 freeway all the way to its end. That route is marked by a curve that takes you through a tunnel, and when you come out the other side you're looking at the ocean. I loved that transition, the way the water and sand of Santa Monica beach magically appear out of nowhere. It's a great experience, and you can get to the pier by making a U-turn on Pacific Coast Highway and backtracking, but it's missing one thing: a view of the Santa Monica Pier sign.

So next time out I got off the 10 at 4th Ave and headed toward the ocean on Colorado, and there it was, that famous, welcoming sign:



FINALLY, now I really felt like I was back at Santa Monica.

This is a shot of a smaller version of the sign; it's at the north entrance to the beach from the parking lot, right next to Bubba Gump restaurant.



The day I took this picture, "bubble man" was doing his thing on the sand--he uses a bubble-blowing machine to send thousands of bubbles soaring through the air, much to the delight of children and adults alike. See the bubbles in the photo?

(Click on either photo for a larger version, 1080x720, which you're free to download.)


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