1. Left RDU airport at around 5:00.

2. Our scheduled 30 minute layover in St. Louis stretched into 2 hours and 30 minutes giving Eric time to explore the airport and its moving sidewalks.

3. Arrived in Los Angeles around 11:00 PM.

4. Since we would not be returning the rental car, Hertz gave us a sleek Probe that didn't belong in LA anyway. Eric called it a racecar.

5. When we got to Tami Sandercock and Steve Holsten's apartment (1:00 AM), Tami was still up waiting for us. She had baked us a loaf of delicious vegan banana bread. They and their roomate Matt were most gracious hosts, putting us up (putting up with us?) for four days and five nights.

1. Our first tourist spot was Griffith park to visit the Los Angeles zoo. A well done zoo with more than the usual amount of space for the non-human animals. When we visit zoos and marine parks, as we often did on this vacation,

Making friends with the gorilla statue

we find them bittersweet experiences. We love seeing and being near the animals, but we are sad that they are effectively in prison.

We found getting to the zoo and around in Los Angeles difficult in general due to the lack of signs and the alternating use of names and numbers to refer to the same road. Zoo memories include Eric standing on one leg pretending he was sleeping like the flamingoes and a peacock displaying for us.

2. Also in Griffith Park is Travel Town; basically a large lot with a couple dozen old locomotives and railcars on it. Eric slept through much of Travel Town but when he woke up, we revisited the highlights.

3. We had planned on seeing Hollywood at night but we were too tired to do it.

4. Back at the apartment we walked to a nearby bookstore and bought books on Disneyland and Yosemite. The former was especially useful.

1. By mid-morning we were on the Santa Monica beach with Tami, Steve, and Steve's friend Steve. Missy rented rollerblades and skated with Tami and the Steves while Curt and Eric played in the

Tami Sandercock and Eric: Beach play

sand and at the water's edge. Eric did get a rollerblade ride from Steve Holsten. Eric especially liked running away from the waves as they came in. He played that game with each of Curt, Missy, and Tami. Things we noticed about this and other California beaches:

• The water seems much colder than east coast beaches (it circulates from the north whereas east coast water is warmed by the Gulf stream)
• There are many fewer seashells and other evidences of sea life on the California beaches
• People were surfing at every California beach we visited (wearing wet suits because of the cold water). We rarely see surfers on east coach beaches.

Eric, Missy, sun, surf, and sail

2. Very tasty lunch at The Rose Cafe

3. In the afternoon we toured the Simon Wiesenthal BEIT HASHOAH § MUSEUM OF TOLERANCE; a museum set up to explore and expose past and current instances of people's intolerance to fellow people. It especially emphasizes the Nazi executed Holocaust. This museum opened in February 1993 and we deduced that its designers shared exhibit ideas with the designers of the Holocaust Museum in Washington. There were several striking similarities. (One difference was the museum in DC is always full. This one wasn't crowded.) We got to hear two Holocaust survivors, as guest speakers, tell some of their stories. We would have liked to spend more time in the museum but it wasn't especially suited for Eric.

4. We returned to Griffith Park in the late afternoon to be at the Observatory before evening fell. High on a hill, it provides a wonderful view of Los Angeles and Hollywood. On our way there a fox crossed the road in front of our car. The museum at the observatory had a Telsa machine zapping five foot lightning bolts around. Eric enjoyed that.

5. We also got to look through one of the observatory's giant telescopes to see Venus.

6. On our way back to the apartment we stopped in Hollywood. We walked Hollywood boulevard with the names of stars in stars at our feet. We put our hands and feet in those of celebrities in Mann's Chinese Theater.

7. Returning to our car, which was parked in a dark alley, Curt sensed something was amiss and started to turn back to a busy street. He had seen two men in ratty army fatigues cross the street to our side after seeing us. (They and us were the only ones on the dark street). When we turned, we saw two policemen on the busy street behind us. With that insurance we again started towards our car. The two men, seeing us turn from them then turn back knowing police were nearby, again crossed the street (this time away from us). They yelled at us for "thinking all blacks were muggers." Their dress and their behavior is what made them suspicious. Crossing the street twice and yelling at us confirmed our suspicions.

1. We arrived in Disneyland, Anaheim by 9:30. We did nearly all of our favorite rides from DisneyWorld as well as those not found in Florida. Memories of Eric in Disneyland include:

About to board the raft for Tom Sawyer's Island

• Eric not liking the darkness in the Pirates of the Carribean ride (he did like the music and sang it throughout the vacation)
• The "It's a Small World" ride and song. Another song Eric has been singing since our vacation.
• Minnie Mouse dancing with and kissing Eric
• Eric flirting with a 2 or 3 year old girl at a restaurant (he kept after her to squeeze his ketchup container)
• Exploring the caves, treehouse, and hanging bridges on Tom Sawyer's Island (Eric thought they were "cool")
• Mickey Mouse giving Eric a pat on the head and a kiss.

Minnie and Mickey Mouse both fussed over Eric

Eric, a sleeping beauty!

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