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Fly Away Home

Fact: One Horse Does Not Have One Horsepower – The number of “horsepower” advertised with cars is considered a basic unit of mechanical power of that particular vehicle that can be gauged in various ways.  Some manufacturers involve converting one horsepower to 745 watts, or 33,000 foot-pounds of torque per minute in a physical conversion.  According to these measurements, a real horse averages only about .7 horsepower.

Up and at ’em, we hit the road around 10:00 AM.  We changed our plans because we had a window to see Mary’s grandchildren later in the afternoon!  So, back on Highway 101.

Though US 101 remains a major coastal north–south link along the Pacific coast north of San Francisco, it has been replaced in overall importance for transport through the West Coast states by Interstate 5 (I-5), which is more modern in its physical design, goes through more major cities, and has more direct routing due to significantly easier geography over much of the route.  US 101 is a significant parallel route between Los Angeles and San Francisco, and is an alternative to the Interstate for most of its length.  In 1964, California truncated US 101’s southern terminus in Los Angeles, as I-5 replaced it.  The old road is known as County Route S21 (CR S21) or Historic Route 101 in northern San Diego County.

We called while traveling and negotiated a time to meet in Camarillo.  We needed to slow down by an hour, so we decided the Madonna Inn would have an alcohol dispensing facility and snacks.  We had a glass of wine and looked at the gift shops.

The place was busy, but we found a spot to park right up from!

Yes, it is the men’s room; Mary needed a picture of the urinal!  I asked Mary if we could put one in at home.  She responded, “I won’t stand for it!”

I mentioned to Mary that one time I walked into a bathroom and there were no urinals
I thought, “huh… that’s strange.”  Well, the girls that came in after me were apparently pretty freaked out by it too!

It is a fun place to be!

We found that the Inn has a big band dance on several days, so we are formulating a plan to bring the gang up and stay over a night to dance!

The band has a Facebook Website, and the ratings are five-star!

We parked next to the front door.  The dining area was loaded with long lines, but the lounge had several open tables.  We sat at the bar and visited the three gift shops.

The property is adorned with a pseudo-Swiss-Alps exterior and lavish common rooms accented by pink roses, Western murals, and hammered copper.  The predominant exterior color is pink, which extends to the lamp posts and trash cans.  Each of the 110 guest rooms and suites is uniquely designed and themed, though some tourists stop just to peek at the famous rock waterfall urinal located in the men’s restroom.

The grounds are beautiful!

We departed about 3:00 PM for the two-hour drive to Camarillo, and our timing was perfect!  We visited for a couple of hours before going back home.

The picture below was taken on October 10th, 2020.

Eighteen months ago!

Yesterday we could see the kids (and Dianne).  The visit was excellent, and we exchanged phone numbers again!

We asked Diane what she had been up to and she said, “I childproofed the house… but they still got in!”

Dang!  The kids are not kids anymore!

Steven is off to college soon, and Megan is a Junior in High School.

Mary and the grandkids!

At 7:00 PM, we were off again for the two-hour trip home via Highway 101.  We chose to move over to the 405 to hit the 22 and go home directly without going through downtown LA.

About Paul

Just an old retired guy trying to finish out my last years on this planet. I lost my best friend and wife in early 2020. I was blessed again by reconnecting with Dr. Mary Côté, a long-time friend. Mary and I got married July 28th, 2021, and are enjoying life together and plan to spend the rest of our lives being a blessing to our friends and family.
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