Starling Travel

Shabu shabu is a Japanese broth fondue. You dip thinly sliced beef into the hot broth and it cooks very quickly. Our visit to Kazumi Sushi Bar with friends was a perfect ending to our San Diego trip this year.

They started our night off with a salad and teriyaki chicken skewers.

The highlight of the meal, however, was the shabu shabu. We dipped the frozen meat slices into the hot water and with a swish, swish, we cooked our own dinner to whatever level of rareness we wanted.

Most importantly, the hot pot is a great way to enjoy an evening with friends. You have plenty of time to talk and laugh while you eat.

When we went to Swami’s Beach this year, we had an unpleasant surprise. The stairs that I had climbed so often were being refurbished.

We parked at a beach south of the tide pools and walked back up. It was worth the trek. Here’s a video of the most exciting highlights of our tide pool adventure:

Download this video for your iPod

For more information about tide pooling:

• Starling Travel » How-To Guide For Tide Pools

Wil Wheaton visited Disneyland recently and posted his photos on Flickr. You can see them all here:

• WilWheaton’s Disneyland slideshow on Flickr

He included the obligatory photo of himself in front of the Haunted Mansion. At this time of the year, it is all decked out in Nightmare Before Christmas goodness.

I have never gone to Disneyland in October, so I’ve never seen the Halloween decorations on the Haunted Mansion. I’m really wanting to jump in the car and take a road trip right now for a quick jaunt to CA. Stop me, okay?

Imagine my surprise to find that instead of the usual space trip around the galaxy when we rode Space Mountain at Disneyland this year, we were treated to Higher Ground by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

After I got off the ride, I looked at my folded and mangled guide to Disneyland. There it was, right on the cover, but I hadn’t noticed it. I had just opened it to the map and headed on my way.

Part of me was pissed. Space Mountain is about SPACE, man! It’s about science and space and NASA and all that stuff! It ain’t about the Red Hot Chili Peppers!

The other part of me was sick of all that space stuff. Honestly, how much science did I ever learn from Space Mountain? None, nothing, zip. It REALLY was about the new Disney movie The Black Hole, when I was a kid, but even that movie was light on the science.

I rode Space Mountain again (it was a rainy day and the lines were pretty short) and I totally LOVED it. They somehow mixed the song to match the ride perfectly. When the music speeds up and gets manic, the coaster speeds up and starts whipping you around in a circle.

Then another part of me felt so proud and happy for the Red Hot Chili Peppers. They are Orange County Boys. They probably went to Disneyland a hundred times in their childhood. They probably rode Space Mountain ever since the year it opened. They probably spit on the eye in Adventure Through Inner Space. I felt this huge surge of happiness. What better band than the Red Hot Chili Peppers to soundtrack rides at Disneyland?! WAY better than Michael Jackson’s 3D monstrosity.

I didn’t ride California Screamin’, the huge roller coaster in California Adventure, but I heard that ride was Rockin’ the Peppers as well. Everybody else who rode it weren’t able to tell me which song was playing. I think it was because that ride is just so intense that they didn’t have a chance to even think about the music.

Just based on the look on their faces, I think that’s the case…

Have you ridden any of the Rockin’ rides at Disneyland? What did you think about the changes?

Right now, the Orange County Fair is going on in California. Lan Bui and Bonny Pierzina attend every year. This year, Bonny was in search of all that is free at the Orange County Fair.

Click Here To Play

Lan and Bonny always do such a great job covering the Orange County Fair. Here is last year’s video of the event:

• Starling Travel » Orange County, California: The Orange International Street Fair 2006

The Orange County Fair just started, so if you happen to be in Southern California, it might be an enjoyable way to spend a day.

Halfway between San Jose and Salinas is Mount Madonna County Park. It is a great place for camping and hiking. If you are planning a trip to California, you can find so much more than the Disneylands and the Sea Worlds. There is an entire state of experiences waiting for you. You can find out more here:

• Two-Heel Drive: Mount Madonna County Park

• Bay Nature: On the Trail: At Home off the Range: A Cattle Baron’s Refuge at Mount Madonna, July-September 2007

This park belonged to a Cattle Baron during the Gold Rush Era. All that is left of his mansion are moss-covered stones. It’s a surprising reminder of how quickly our most cherished possessions can deteriorate into nothing. It also serves as a warning that everything that we do to the planet is merely a scratch and Mother Earth can recover and overgrow your mark within years.

For a different sort of vacation, try camping at Mount Madonna County Park.

Where: Approximately 38 miles north of Salinas off Highway 101 – Google Map

Ted Rheingold is visiting Benson Hut just five miles south of Donner Summit in California.

• Spidey Senses -> Tingling :: Ted Rheingold’s Web Journal » Blog Archive » Next Weekend: Benson Hut!

I had never heard of it, probably because it’s the kind of place where you need to hike in all your supplies. It looks like an affordable spot to stay if you are willing to hike in and there are pristine ski areas that few run every year.

For more information:

• Lodges and Huts – Outings – Sierra Club

If the snow is getting you down, watch this lovely video from Tango Diva. She took this video back in September in Half Moon Bay, California. If you are wishing you could escape on the back of a horse to a beautiful retreat, this video is for you:

Click To Play

Here is the corresponding blog entry:

• Tango Diva – Tango Diva Travel Blog » Blog Archive » Video blogs!

She talks about traveling to Europe and other destinations. You can keep up with the Tango Diva Travel Blog here:

• Tango Diva – Tango Diva Travel Blog

All the snow is Salt Lake City is getting me down, so it was nice to see this beautiful vista and imagine that it was me riding that horse!

Tom Negrino is one of those lucky guys who has good friends. His buddies, Marc and Stormy, know of a good bunch of eating and wine places and they took Tom with them when they hit them. He gives us the wrap-up here:

• Backup Brain – Our tough life in the wine country

His favorites were as follows:

• Iron Horse Vineyards

• Wild Flour Bread Bakery – Wood Fired Brick Oven Baked Bread – Wildflour Freestone

I wish he had recorded all the spots that Marc and Stormy took him too. I bet it’s an amazing road trip!

Lan Bui made an excellent video of the Orange International Street Fair in Orange County, California. You can see it here:

• Video of the Moment: Street Fair 2006

I linked to a group of pictures from the street fair earlier in the year:

• Starling Travel » The Orange County Fair

The video makes it seems far more interesting and exciting! Check it out!