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Published: June 25th 2008
Palm Springs: a seducing oasis between deserts, the pretty Mount St Jacinto and the strong wind belt that blows towards Salton Sea in Coachella Valley, southern California.
After driving for hours on end on roads cutting through dry land I was delighted to get to Palm Springs and find lush green gardens, hanging flowers, springs and waterfalls. This is definitely a great place to get to. I can't estimate how much is spent on gardening and electricity-operated irrigation systems on every green area in town but my eyes were quite pleased with the spectacle!
It gets incredibly hot in the valley. By far the most intense heat I've ever experienced, not forgetting the high summer in the sertao nordestino in Pernambuco countryside, northeast Brazil. Or it might be that you feel the heat stronger when you're in and out of refrigerated places and have no time to adjust yourself to the heat. Air conditioning is God in Palm Springs! Hot air is all you get from open windows.
Very warm was also the customer service I received everywhere around town: smiling faces and politeness. The beer tasted so refreshing, live music was really good and fish tacos were
the best flavour my taste buds experienced in a while! They might even beat fish and chips (until I get back to England, that is)!
Most importantly, I was lucky to meet David and Pamela, who made my time very pleasant in town. I spent days around the pool in David's beautiful house: an island of coolness in this trip of mine, and great company to be around if only for a few days...
I had a fantastic time getting to know the town's cool places including a few resorts, Indian Canyon and Mount San Jacinto. Pam took me to the Canyon with Joan and Mike. We refreshed ourselves under the beautiful palm trees and in the cool waters of the stream. Pam lead up the way climbing the rocks at the back of the fall, and we agreed we should do some climbing together at Joshua Tree.
David and I took the tram all the way up to Mount San Jacinto, a cool retreat from the heat down in the valley. We spent a couple of hours hiking, chatting, breathing the pure air and admiring the views. It's amazing how people sometime 'click', feeling at ease
and enjoying the company of each other. It's truly a gift when that happens, and it's hard to leave those places where friendships flourish... But I've learnt to enjoy places and people's company when they are around, knowing that nothing really belong to us apart from the wish to live, to explore, to experiment feelings, to see and touch happiness in the different ways it crosses our paths.
The Mojave Desert awaits!
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John
non-member comment
Hello!
I thought you were supposed to be roughing it! That pool looks so refreshing!