On a Dark Desert Highway

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Where do I even begin? I could bitch about LA traffic but who can even remember such a trivial nonevent when compared to handsdown, the best first day of vacation that I can remember? Palm Springs - definitely an oasis in the middle of the dry, hot desert. An oasis on so many more levels as well.

Is it possible that we have discovered such a gem of a place to stay that I hesitate to even share its name on this blog for fear that it will be over run and not available next time we visit? Hotel California is a boutique hotel on the far end of the strip. Beautifully manicured cactus and succulent landscape matched with lush, tropical banana plants. We were welcomed by name by the hotelier Lucy, daugher of the property's owner and clearly THE BEST welcome we've ever encountered. Let me put it in Jenson terms...the fact that we had ice cold beers in our hand before she checked us in elevated Lucy to rockstar status!

The property is beautiful and on our welcome tour we were shown a living room area chocked full of games, movies, sitting area and a chess table. The kitchen with two industrial sized gas barbeques was as well stocked as an episode of Top Chef! Our room, a suite, was kept cool with air conditioners and Spanish tile flooring overlooking a pool and sunbathing area. It too was stocked with drinks, snacks and every creature comfort imaginable. (I am a total sucker for high end bath products in hotels - and wasn't disappointed!)

We quickly unpacked with visions of touring downtown. At Lucy's recommendation and because it was BLAZING hot, our first stop on 'taste of Palm Springs' was El Marisol. Equiped with misting fans outside and air conditioning in, this was a welcome pit stop to our five block walk in 108 degree heat. We ordered margaritas and an enchilada to share. Great spicy salsa with fresh chips and a really nice waitress who called us a cab to continue our bar hop.

Our cabbie recommended a couple of other stops on our way to Las Casuelas . Hands down winner for sentimental attachment, this restaurant is forever connected to my first visit to Heidi's parent's house in the late 90s. I remember sneaking out to drink margaritas with Heidi and Ronnie on a visit to Teresa and Alfons and again visiting with Jim four years ago after a long, long drive from Sedona, Arizona. Both times, it was the outside bar patio and mango margaritas that elicit my memories. Here we shared a chili relleno, which the bartender was quick to tell us was not authentic as it used an ortega chili and not a pasilla. Who cares, it was delicious!

We crossed the parking lot from Las Casuelas and headed to the Fisherman’s Market with the adjacent bar Shanghai Red’s . Instantly transported to a New Orleans feel with a tiny bar with chefs cooking delicious seafood concoctions. We ordered drinks and a tiny bucket of peel and eat shrimp. Now here is my first criticism of our trip – if you are going have peel and eat shrimp on the menu and you cut them to ‘clean’ them…then really ‘clean’ them! ‘nuff said.

Final stop, Lulu California Bistro. A brightly rainbow themed establishment with Judy Garland and Bette Midler photos adorning the walls, it may or may not be a gay bar. But maybe not, but there sure were some hot dudes in there and some not so stylish women with very short haircuts and Birkenstock sandals – I’m just saying. We ordered a mojito and plotted our great pool extravaganza upon our return to the hotel.

The best part of the Hotel California is the pool/Jacuzzi/mister patio. We put on our suits and dove in. The water was likely well into the 90’s but in comparison to the head outside, it was cool and refreshing…perfect for floating and lounging with intermittent dips into the Jacuzzi tub. A perfect end to our first day and we both noted just how quickly we were able to relax and get into vacation-mode.

Next morning, we got up to make the most of our one full day in Palm Springs. Breakfast, cactus nurseries and a trip into Joshua Tree National Park on the schedule. It was brutally hot at 9am! We started with breakfast at Elmer’s and I had a German pancake that was the size of a basketball. Thin and reminiscent of a crepe, this house specialty was dusted with powdered sugar with giant slices of lemon. I had a little help from Jim but mostly, I just enjoyed this delicious breakfast treat. Only on vacation can you get away with ordering a pancake the size of a planet to start the day!

Our next stop was at the Moorten’s botanical garden and nursery . A recommend by the gal at the hotel, it was a park-like atmosphere with cactus, succulents and native plants that have been there for over 57 years. Great growth and maturity and exciting to see how some of the same plants we have in our yard will grow over time. The experience was enhanced by the chirpy song of cicadas that fill the trees and must migrate in packs throughout Palm Springs. One moment it’s silent and suddenly there is a pack chirping and filling the air with sound. More a park than a nursery, the garden was also home to a cactarium – a greenhouse filled with rare and not-so-rare potted succulents and cacti. Some were so big that they reached all the way to the roof appearing to bust through to the sun. On the property, Mr. Moorten also keeps a cage of mourning doves (grays separated from white ones) and a pen filled with turtles all hiding in dug holes trying to keep cool.

Next was Mariscal Cactus and Succulent farm in Palm Desert. A long and dusty road leads you to this amazing multiple acre nursery with row upon row of beautiful plants. Totally captured our imaginations and we were kids in a candy store! But boy was it hot out there! Well over 104 degrees with sweat covering us, we carefully selected four different specimens to take home. Jim rigged up milk crates secured by bungee cord to allow us to shop for the yard and our pots along our journey – perfect souvenirs for two cactus-crazed travelers.

Now, according to Yelp, a famous treat in Palm Springs is a the date shake. Wars are battled over who has the best, who uses puree and who uses real fruit. All I knew was that we had to try one. So we stopped at the Windmill Market and Deli in Palm Desert and ordered two for the road. A cross between a vanilla milkshake with honey overtones, chewy bits of date and frosty cold, it was perfect following the hot visit to Mariscal. Definitely a must-do when in the area!

We took our treats and headed toward Joshua Tree National Park. Not at all remembering how far it was from Palm Springs, it took almost an hour to arrive at the West entrance. The park clearly requires much more than a half-day. Vast expanses of landscape dotted by these majestic yuccas and Cholla Cacti. We drove all the way to the top vista overlooking Palm Springs and the San Andreas fault. Quite a bit cooler given the 5,000+ altitude, it was a good taste of all the park has to offer. We drove past the campground that I remember camping at with Heidi on a very funny girl camping trip while in grad school. I remember a botched attempt to set up our tent in raucous wind and having to finally break down and ask the neighboring campers if they could please help us. We ended up having dinner with these two guys who, not factoring in the altitude, had brought potstickers to boil. The weirdest camp food imaginable, we luckily had plenty of our chicken to share. One of the guys worked at Purina and I remember he quickly became referenced as Meow Mix boy – crazy that I remember these details.

Heading out of Joshua Tree, it was nearing dinner time and we decided rather than going back to the hotel right away, we would have an early dinner. Upon the recommendation by a buddy at work, we went to Cactus Jack’s Café for prime rib. Clearly the youngest patrons in the joint, we sat at the bar and enjoyed all the local color. Filled with retirees from the neighboring condos and vacation homes, the place was packed with 70+ year olds enjoying fine spirits. Heavy pours and famous prime rib was what was promised and they did not disappoint! I had a martini and Jim a cape cod and we ordered the petite cut of prime rib. The meal started with soup (tomato bisque for Jim and cream of mushroom & asparagus for me), next arrived a silver tray with all the fixings for prime rib: horseradish, sour cream, butter & scallions for our baked potato. When dinner arrived, it was the largest ‘petite’ cut of prime rib I have ever seen. It was between 12-13 ounces of medium rare heaven – perfectly cooked and served with an amazing au jus. Conversation stood still as we devoured this amazing meal. Who had room for baked potato even? Great recommendation and great meal!

We headed back to the hotel with the hope that our ‘early bird special’ dinner meant that the pool would be all ours as other guest headed out for far more hipster times to dine. We were correct! The misters were on, the pool all ours save a few other guests who were cooking their dinner in the amazing onsite kitchen. We bobbed and floated for over three hours until our hands and feet were like raisins.

This morning we checked out and grabbed coffee and bagels before hitting the road to Ajo, Arizona. We clearly got the most out of Palm Springs – a special stop that set the tone for Summer vacation 2012!

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Photos

German Pancake at Elmer's
You know it's vacation when this is for breakfast!