LongBeach, CA 2005

I'm backdating this trip journal. It has been over two years since I went on this business trip, but I would say that Long Beach was a memorable experience even though I was working most of the time that I was there and with someone I didn't particularly get along with.

The most fascinating thing for me was the Long Beach Airport. We had a connecting flight in Phoenix, AZ and we boarded this plane. The photo was taken after we deboarded on the tarmac. I'd never done that before and I felt like I was stepping back in time. It's tiny little airport but looks just like it must have in the 1950s. If it's intentional or not, I loved it.

We had to take a 20 minute cab ride from the airport to our hotel. I remember going through the streets and thinking about how different it is from Florida. The homes were built in styles completely different from what I'm accustomed to seeing. They were built right on top of each other and decorated in very bright colors. There was a lot of character there and tons of nooks that I wanted to look into more. It looked safe and inviting.

The Renaissance Long Beach Hotel is directly across from the convention center where we'd be working for the next few days. I can't say anything bad about the hotel. It was modern, clean and elegant.

We arrived the day before the convention commenced so we took it easy and went across the street to the Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery. Other than Hops, I hadn't been to a brew house before so I thought it was pretty neat.

After dinner we strolled around nearby towards Pine Avenue Pier and saw this fair across the way.

The next day we worked a full 8 hours, went back to the hotel and changed for dinner. We went beyond the Pine Avenue Pier to the Shoreline Village. I snapped a few photos as we made our way around the harbor. I thought it was very picturesque.

We perused the various vendors on the dock and looked for souveniers. Finally at the end of the boardwalk was Parker's Lighthouse. There was a long wait and it was just the two of us so we found empty seats at the bar. I remember having to teach the bartender how to make a mojito. The food was good and the service at the bar was pretty good for how busy it was. He asked us out but my coworker declined so we called it a night.

The next evening I wanted to try Aladdin Grill & Cafe because I saw the menu somewhere at the hotel. On the way we walked by Alegria Cocina Latina. They had flamenco dancers on stage and it was very lively but we didn't think we could have a full meal there.  It was very enticing but we passed it up hoping to come back by after dinner.

At Aladdin Grill we ordered all the traditional fare, a Lebanese liquor called Arak, and a hookah with double apple tobacco. Loved it! It was all good. The service was good too. The only photo I have of the restaurant has my previous coworker in it so I can't post it.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to see much else of Long Beach but I'll always remember it as my first trip to California.