1st August 2016

Again, not too much of note today.

Another healthy breakfast today. The hotel is excellent at breakfasts - loads of fresh fruit.

Then Andrew and Oliver played in the pool, while I decided to see if I could manage a 5k run along the promenade. California is very much a place of extremes - the super fit and slim and the super fat. I saw both types on my run. Mums jogging with their babies in special prams, power walkers, runners, cyclists, roller bladers ... and the then other type, walking slowly staring at their phones playing Pokemon Go.

Spent some time in the pool playing volleyball with Oliver - he beat me 30 points to 10. Oliver spent a lot of time brushing up on his front flips.

Yesterday, we had seen a really nice rooftop bar in town, The Watermark, and they were advertising Sunday Brunch, so we walked into town and made it into the most fantastic building. In its former life it had been an insurance building, but was now converted into a super cool restaurant/bar. It still had its safe, and old lift shafts in place. Really cool.

On the walk back we spotted even more 50s cars.

At the hotel, we hired bikes to follow one of the trails that are in the area. Rickety old bikes, that you have to back peddle to brake, which takes a little getting used to. We followed the river trail, and didn't see any evidence of a river! We did pass an industrial area and saw lots of vehicles advertising 'rain for rent' ... only in America.

The surfers were out in force today. I guess when you live somewhere that has such long summers, you learn to spend more time outdoors. They are so equipped for it. The back of their vans open up to reveal in-built compartments for storing their surfing gear - out come the chairs, the music, a canopy. I even saw one girl showering off her surfing shoes from a special water pump in her van. I know if we even think about camping for a night we take so much stuff, and we never seem to have the right things.

Two hours later and we made it back to the hotel with very sore bottoms. We had a little chill in the bar and then drove to Ventura Harbour for a Mexican dinner.

We walked along the pier tonight. Lots of people fishing, and one guy even caught a small lobster (he put it back). The ocean is very eerie at night. It's so powerful, and tonight the waves are crashing to the shore in a very dramatic way.

Night, night..x