A Vacation from Our Vacation

was how Maddie put it, when we pulled into Rancho Las Palmas, our lush Rancho Mirage resort.  With the car thermometer reading 111 as we arrived, we were all too aware that the next couple of days would find us in the pool or in one air-conditioned retreat or another.

When Dana and I planned our California itinerary, I was initially skeptical about including Palm Springs.  The desert in June just didn't sound all that promising.  However, I agreed that we were unlikely to find ourselves more apt to visit the area in the future, and being passionate about the amber waves quest that I've embraced, I succumbed, as long as we could find a resort with a great pool area and a spa.  Voila!  Racho Las Palmas offered all we wanted.  The fact that it was in Rancho Mirage rather than Palm Springs was of little concern, as each of these desert communities (Palm Desert, Palm Springs, Indian Wells, Rancho Mirage) sits in a row along Highway 111, each just minutes away from the other.  Therefore, dining, shopping, museums, etc. are all easily accessible regardless of which resort you call home.

Before heading to the desert, we spent our last San Diego morning in the ultra swank La Jolla, a coastal neighborhood of San Diego that has wonderful little shops, surfing, dining, and amazing homes with breathtaking views of the Pacific.  With a beach that is home to swimmers, surfers and sea lions, La Jolla may be one of the most intriguing beaches we've ever visited

Maddie checks out the surfers, but prefers the warm Hawaiian waters.

After we left La Jolla, we put the top down and hit the road.  What I hadn't expected was the spectacular drive from San Diego to the desert communities to which we were headed.  Despite the fact that we had opted for a mountain view from our room, I somehow didn't put two and two together to realize that we would have to drive through those mountains.  What an amazing surprise.

There were about a dozen of these signs - and curves - as we made our way first up and then down the mountain into the desert below.

 

Dana takes a look at what he's just driven - and what awaits.

Daniel is awestruck.

The temperature went from 70 at the start of our drive to 111 two hours later.

 Luckily, when we arrived at the resort, and once we changed rooms (the first time we've had to do so on this vacation! ;) we were quite content with our view, our location (just steps from the pool) and our itinerary - reading, movies, swimming, and visiting the spa will be our major attractions for the next two days, thus the "vacation from our vacation" that Maddie has dubbed our desert stay.  Wish us luck keeping our cool!

The view from our balcony/patio

Rancho Las Palmas - a mirage in the middle of the desert!