Let's Get Away From it All

The Chairman of the Board couldn't have sung it better, and if I could, I would in a heartbeat. Last week, my Thursday night class attempted to take a field trip up to Los Angeles' famed Griffith Park Observatory. Sadly, I have to confess that I've never made it to the observatory. I've been up on the hill, but somehow my every attempt is thwarted by some accidental happenstance. In this case, it was a turn in the weather for the worse, and after wandering around the opposite side of the hill with my carpool, we discovered that the observatory had been closed due to a mudslide. It's just one of those things that I've learned from traveling, it's prudent to expect the unexpected (as trite as that sounds), and always be open to an alternative. Hopefully I'll make it up to the observatory sometime in the future, and will actually get to see the downtown skyline from there.

In other news, I opened the paper Sunday morning to find an insert tucked away next to the Travel section advertising this weekend's upcoming Travel and Adventure Show at the Convention center in downtown. Looking through the schedule of speakers which included the Travel Channel's very own Samantha Brown (if Anthony Bourdain were speaking I'd camp out) and Rick Steves, piqued my curiosity, and now I'm considering squeezing it in this weekend.

Okay, I admit that I'm also tempted by the thought of door prizes, which I never win, and the thought of scoping out booths representing different countries. If you're in town this Valentine's weekend, check it out. The Travel and Adventure Show looks promising, and if you get the Sunday Times, there's a coupon for a discount on the entrance fee.