Big Sky Resort has the largest skiable acreage in North America. With fresh powder and sunny skies, throngs of skiers could be expected, but this being Montana rather than a place within a two-hour drive of a megalopolous, it never feels crowded.
Despite sunny ski slopes, it doesn't take too many weeks of cold to trigger "California Dreamin' on such a winter's day."
Julie and I decided we need a warm weather break, and our first thought was returning to our former home state for a week or so, but with Omicron crushing cruise prices, we opted to combine our road trip with a Mexican Riviera cruise from LA.
The thought of the long drive over potentially icy roads seemed daunting, so when we saw the 10-day forecast for the day we intended to leave revealed clear skies in Bozeman, we decided to fly instead.
That's been one great side-effect of Covid-19 panic: airlines seem to have more last minute flights available at early-booking rates.
On the morning of our flight, we decided to earn bragging rights of skiing in the morning in Montana and having wine that evening in Southern California. We were careful to avoid any debilitating injury or driving mishap, arriving safely at the airport as planned. We even stopped at Great Clips in Bozeman, so I could get a much-needed haircut before our trip.
BZN Airport usually delivers an uncrowded, low-hassle experience --- as long as the weather hasn't delayed or cancelled flights --- and I had not trouble snagging secure long-term parking nearby in the economy lot. We have Global Entry with automatic TSA Pre-Check, but I have never seen security as empty as it was. Literally, Julie and I were the only passengers attended by dozens of workers, so we were at the gate in no time.
We had decided to have dinner before boarding and found a window table at Copper Horse Restaurant where we enjoyed a delicious Mushroom Swiss Burger, made with grass-fed Montana beef and sweet mushrooms sauteed in beer. Being able to enjoy a meal rather than masked and huddling in the waiting area makes a big difference, and soon we were boarding.
The flight went smoothly, and we almost immediately caught our hotel shuttle to Fairfield Suites in El Segundo.
We walked across the street to Ralph's where we picked up a four-pack of Sutter Home minis, and soon fulfilled our bragging vision by having wine by the illuminated swimming pool in the tropical inner courtyard of our hotel.
Admittedly, that pool area looked best illuminated by well-placed lights under the cover of darkness, but it served us well.
In the morning, we walked down toward the ocean and caught the Beach Cities Transit to Manhattan Beach, where we lived for many years.
We loved walking along the beach, taking in the views.
Few places in the world can rival the panoramic beauty along California's coastlines on a picture-perfect day!
Jay drove down to take us up to Santa Monica, where he and Sasha had recently entered escrow on a new townhome a block off the beach.
We walked along the cliffs near their new home to the world-famous Santa Monica Pier, where we enjoyed lunch at Maria Sol on the end of the pier.
Julie and I each order Boardwalk Enchiladas, which was really too much but I finished everything on my plate. Jay had the vegetable fajitas, which he said was also tasty.
We walked back through another of Santa Monica's renowned attractions, Third Street Promenade.
Back at their new place, we loaded up and drove to nearby Brentwood where they currently live. JoJo gave us her usual over-the-top, tail-wagging and joyful yelping super-greeting. She's always like a teen-aged Beatle-maniac in 1964 catching a glimpse of the Fab Four when she sees Julie and me, and we're told this is quite unique.
Sasha was just finishing up her work day when we arrived and she able to give Julie and I a bit of assistance sorting through the online-supervised Covid-19 test sign-in required for our cruise.
As with Princess Ocean Medallion, it turned out that the Covid-19 test app would not work with my phone, so we had to use Julie's iPhone for both of us. This meant it took twice as long as hoped. Jay, who manages to work on his phone throughout our walks, was able to dedicate that hour-plus to emails.
We drove back over to their new place to tour the interior with their whole family, including JoJo who definitely recognized her new home as we walked up.
It's easy to understand how the beautiful modern interior inside the quaint Tutor exterior, located close to Sasha's mother's home in Venice, their jobs and all that the West Side has to offer lured them in.
We worried that we might be too late for Happy Hour at Ye Olde King's Head in downtown Santa Monica, but it turned out we had plenty of time. An ideal choice for our family, there's a great assortment of vegan and gluten-free choices available as well as the pub food suitable for teenagers that Julie and I love.
As would be expected, the pub offered British ales for Jay and me, along with wines, ciders and other beverages that should please everyone.
By the time we walked back to their new condo, Julie's health app recorded that she and I had walked almost twelve miles that day, and we were more tired than we'd been after several successive days of skiing in Montana.
Jay and Sasha drove us back to our hotel to turn in for the evening, and we slept well.
The next morning, Jay kindly drove over to spend some time with us in the morning before dropping us off at the World Cruise Terminal in San Pedro.
It had been a quick stay in Southern California, but we loved it and couldn't help feeling more than a bit nostalgic of those long ago days when we lived on the beach....a year ago.
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