January 16th, 2011

Sea Anemone
Aquarium of the Pacific
Long Beach, CA
January 16th, 2011

The talk went perfectly well. After checking out of the hotel, I spent a couple of hours at the Aquarium of the Pacific. It was a Sunday and therefore inundated with all of the children in CA. It was also painful to be in a dark aquarium when the sun was shining and there was a beach to visit.

Petting sea anemone was the best part of the aquarium visit. When you brush your fingers over their tentacles, the tentacles seem to cling and stick. While at other times, they quickly draw away from your hand. The sticking isn't actually sticking though. They are technically stinging/poison your fingertips, but our skin is too thick for us to feel it or its effect - so it just feels sticky. This is how they trap their food, by paralyzing it with toxins.

Petting sea anemone is far cooler than petting star fish (New England Aquarium, I'm talking to you.)

January 15th, 2011

Flamenco Dancers
Alegria Cocina Latina
Long Beach, CA
January 15th, 2011

Flamenco dancers walked a small stage at the latin restaurant we had dinner at on Saturday night. Fresh sangria with pre-marinated fruit in the glass made the boys squirm. I didn't stay out beyond the meal, and even then I left early. I had my talk in the morning and was in the verge of freaking out when I got back to the hotel room. You know how you wake up in the middle of the night in a panic? I totally did that, having not been able to properly give my talk in a practice run a couple of hours before.

There really should be a warning label on me that says I can't be trusted to have productive or rational behavior after 10pm. I'm far too vulnerable to exhaustion-induced mood swings.

January 14th, 2011

Pine Ave, Long Beach, CA
January 14th, 2011

There were so many great photographs from this day that it was hard to chose just one for the blog. I decided on this one for several reasons: It best reflects Long Beach with the funky rollar coaster bridge, palm trees and high rises. Street murals like this were all over the place, large boards propped up to hide construction sites. And this was also the start of a beautiful afternoon.

After meeting the boys for lunch, I headed off in the direction of the elusive Walmart. As a Boston resident, Walmart is this mythical place in which things are uncommonly cheap - both the products and the people. There is no Walmart in the metro area, however, so I personally get to visit one once every 2-3 years. The fact that there was one in the middle of a city only 5 blocks from my hotel was amazing. Who knew Walmart would be my #1 tourist destination in Long Beach? But it was because I didn't bring a bathing suit and the 85 degree weather demanded that I have one. That and some hairspray.

So I headed down Pine Ave, coming across humorous signs about curfews, more murals and art painted on the sides of brick buildings and construction sites. Walmart itself was centered by a square. A lot of homeless people were hanging out, but there was also a farmer's market and street fair in progress.

I picked up freshly picked blood oranges (sweet!!) for snacking. A man selling locally grown apples cut slivers from his three varietals and then carved/sliced a whole apple in this funky eared/winged design. I was going to buy an apple, but when he just gave one to me for free, I didn't have a need for much more. Very cool though. Have I mentioned how much I love farmer's markets?

Beyond the farm and produce booths was a street fair Vendors selling trinkets and food stretched another two blocks. Southern BBQ, churros, hot dogs and Italian ice. The trinkets were literally all trinkets and tacky t-shirts and just junk. I would have LOVED it as a kid. Bouncy balls, cheap jewelry, little plastic toys, silly hats.

Everyone seemed happy, laughing and talking with friends. I think that's what I loved the most about those two blocks. It was the sign of a real community - an element that its hard to find when you're a tourist and in a city on business. That was the highlight of my trip, honestly.