Road Trippin' to the Oasis!

I'm seriously contemplating taking a couple of weeks off of work and driving down to the Oasis. I was planning on taking a road trip of some sort this summer anyway, and this is perfect -- a great destination, great people to meet there, and the weather will probably be sucking here in Seattle right about then.

I'm still figuring out the schedule, but I'll plan on hitting Portland, San Francisco, LA & OC, and I'm definitely going to work in a trip to Disneyland. Is anyone interested in hooking up with me along the way to show me their local sights? Also, is there a planned caravan of folks between LA/OC & Palm Springs I should fall in with?

Humu, I have family in Seattle and as such, visit the area every once in a while. I once drove there from So Cal (LA/OC) and it took me 2 days! I hope you're well rested - the drive might take it all out of you for your trip!

Regarding road-tripping to Tiki Oasis from LA/OC, its actually not that far (only about 1 1/2 hours) so I doubt that there's any kind of road-trip planned (unless some LA/OC TC'ers are carpooling). I for one, live only about 75 miles away from The Tropics so I'm simply making a day trip of it on Saturday.

Humu,

Definately let me know when you're in OC. I'll take you around Huntington Beach to see the sites - Sam's Seafood, Bamboo Ben's, Dukes etc.

And Doctor-Z, Z-Girl, Tikibelle, and Myself all have annual passes to Disneyland, so let us know when you'd like to go. We always love an excuse to visit.

Sabu

I'll make it out to Sam's and the others too if you're in our area.

I was thinking about possibly hitting OA on Friday morning, lunch at Bahooka, and then off to Palm Springs. Anyone else like that idea?

-martin

We're always up for Sam's. And anything else in OC. Just say the word.

If you find yourself in need of a driving break, or you just want to visit a city that is rich in raisin history (really!) then stop by beautiful (not really!) Fresno, CA. I'd be happy to show you the sight.

[email protected]
http://www.tikigardens.com

Well, it's probably about time for me to get more serious about planning my Great American Road Trip. Here's what I'm thinking so far:

Leaving after work Friday the 3rd, in time for the PDX Polka/Tiki Crawl event in Portland.

Meeting up with my mom somewhere in Oregon on Saturday.

Driving to the Bay Area on Sunday -- planning on visiting my Cousin Bill for sure, but I've got plenty of time to visit with the local tikiphiles -- anyone wanna take me to Vic's? I missed it at the Crawl. I'd also like to see some of the stops from the Crawl in less of a, well, drunken stupor than last time.

I want to hit some of the touristy places between the Bay Area & LA, like the Hearst Mansion and that wierd house that the crazy woman kept building & building -- open for suggestions here. traderfranks, thanks for the, um, compelling invitation to Fresno, but it looks like it's a ways out of the way. Maybe another time?

I'd like to be in OC by Thursday -- Bong & the rest of the Hoiti Toitis -- what you've suggested so far sounds fantastic! Maybe Sam's & Ben's and other places Thursday night, and then OA & Bahooka Friday before heading to Palm Springs? I don't know the layout down there, so I'm happy to leave the planning to you guys. Is the Tiki Ti convenient to these places at all?

So then, Friday, it's off to Palm Springs for Tiki Oasis. Ahhh... a nice solid day of not driving will be nice.

Sabu, I was thinking that Monday would be nice for Disneyland. I was thinking I'd drive from Palm Springs to Anaheim on Sunday, and then do a full day on Monday (I haven't been to DL in gulp 2.5 years!). It's possible I'll even do DCA for a few hours on Tuesday, but we'll see how much time I feel like wasting. Would you and the others be able to play hooky with me on Monday?

Then, Tuesday or Wednesday, I'll start my drive back to Seattle. My aunt coincidentally planned a road trip on her motorcycle through CA one week off of mine, so we're probably going to cross paths on Wednesday somewhere in the middle of CA. After that, I don't have any particular plans, I'll just be moseying north & sleeping if I need to -- if the dates don't work out for folks the first week, maybe I can meet with them the second week.

I'd like to be back in Seattle by Friday night to see my buddy's band, but I'm flexible. I don't really need to be anywhere until the morning of Monday the 19th.

So, there it is! Who's on board? I'll post an update when I've got more details nailed down, and I'll have my cell phone on hand during the trip in case there are changes.

Yeeehaw!

The best tiki bar is the one that's within stumbling distance of your bed
The Humuhumu Room

[ Edited by: Humuhumu on 2003-04-22 16:01 ]

Humu2-

Glad you'll be swinging back through CA. I'm always looking for an excuse to visit Vic's, though I'm not sure what my schedule will be like. And all of the other venues will of course be waiting for you as well.

You may wish to reconsider traderfranks offer to visit Fresno, if only to see the amazing Underground Gardens:

http://www.roadtripamerica.com/places/forest.htm

And most importantly, no exploration of California sites would be complete without a visit to (and ideally a stay at) The Madonna Inn.

http://www.madonnainn.com/

I CANNOT stress that strongly enough!

Post again as you get closer.

(I would like to go to the Tiki Ti on the Thursday before Palm Springs. I was thinking we'd get there early and have a TC invasion. Sound good? I know a lot of people are thinking about OC, and that would be good too. I've never been to the Royal Hawaiian, but man, do I love the Ti!)

-martin

The Winchester Mystery House is definitely an interesting tourist stop.

You might want to try to contact the folks at Munktiki, in the Monterey Bay area, to see if you can arrange a mini tour of their studio. They're really nice people, and its amazing to see the Tiki mugs in various stages of production.

There's Casa De Fruita along hwy 152, a popular connector route from the 101 to the 5 fwy, south of San Jose. Its gotta be the largest roadside fruit stand in the world! Known for garlic and garlic products, fruit, vegetables, 2.99/lb pistachios, sauces, salsas, jams, etc. They feature a train ride, cafe, camp ground, wine tasting, zoo, just about anything they could cram into a roadside stop. These roadside stops are an endangered species, so visit if you get a chance.

There's the Hanford Lemoore road sign along both the 5 fwy & the 99 fwy. It says Lemoore Hanford on the 5, I believe it says the opposite off the 99.

Those are some of my usual tacky tourist stops. I'm sure you'll find lots of interesting things to check out on your drive down. I'll definitely join you for the LA/OC events!

:tiki:

FRESNO is not that far out of the way if you take Highway 99 from (or to) Sacramento. That is assuming you are taking Highway 5 from Oregon (I don't have a map handy so I am assuming that this is the best Freeway from Oregon). If you do take Highway 99 you can visit the old Islander Building which is now a Fried chicken restaurant (it is in Pollardville -which is a roadside attraction in itself)just above Stockton, ca.
Also off 99 in Bakersfield (Home of Buck Owen's Crystal Palace) is the absolutely fantastic Lunch counter in and old Woolworths building
at the 5 and 10 Antique Mall (or something like that). The lunch counter closes around 3 pm most days--I would try to call for info.
Email me at in case I can arrange a showing of the Ugh House tiki bar---bruce

I was completely confused -- the PDX event is Saturday, so I'll be there that night, meeting with Mom in Oregon on Sunday, and then driving down to the Bay Area on Monday. Whew!

Fresno Rocks! I would also be willing to join in on showing you around good old Fresno. Thrifting, Tokyo Gardens, My backyard, The Luau........ don't knock it.
ha

Now that I understand there more -- much more -- to Fresno than just raisins, I'll probably be adding it to the home leg of the trip.

YOur confusion probably arose from the fact that the Frenchy Polynesia fete was this past Friday. We're glad you're going to make it. Look for roll call in Events soon!

Humu, that's a hell of a trip! I'd love to get a TC group together on the Thursday before Oasis as Martin suggested. That would definitely be fun!

**Poly-Pop ***

[ Edited by: PolynesianPop on 2003-04-23 07:59 ]

Mmmmm...Tiki Ti on Thursday! I had better be packed by then.

stop it, you guys are making me crazy. Im now gonna have to take off another day just so i dont miss out on anything. Im gonna try and come in late thursday night 10ish so i can meet up with everyone that night, tiki ti's sounds great but whatever everyone else is doing is fine with me.

Remember, it is Mother's Day weekend, and there will be plenty of other visitors to Palm Springs other than us! You don't want to spend extra time at a restaurant waiting for a table when you could make a reservation, eat, and get back to the fun with the rest of us at The Tropics!

Some of you will probably just make this your "liquid diet weekend", but here are some of my recommendations:
Breakfast: Sherman's Deli, Billy Reeds, IHOP-(it actually is a pretty good one).
Lunch: Sherman's Deli, Billy Reeds, Del Rios, Hamburger Hamlet, and, of course, the famous "only open for lunch" Tyler's Burgers (get the sliders!)
Dinner: Davey's Hideaway, My Way Restaurant, Kaiser Grill, The Palm Springs Chop House, or "The Deck" which is above the Chop House with a lighter menu (and easier on the wallet), Lord Fletcher Inn, The Falls Steakhouse & Martini Bar.

....just to name a few I've frequented.

For more, you can check out The Desert Dining Guide, and while your at it, you can check out the local publication, Palm Springs Life Magazine, especially if you're going to get in a round of golf. Sorry, no tiki golf there, unless Chiki & CrazyAl want to lug some carvings onto the course! Maybe Weird Uncle can stroll & strum on his uke for entertainment!

PalmSpringin'CaddyDaddy

For ease of reference, I've started keeping an intinerary on my website (lots of details still need to get worked out, and days are likely to change, especially for the Bay Area stuff):

http://www.flipnik.com/

I'll try to keep it updated with my plans as the develop. Maybe in a few days we can start some roll calls.

Thanks so much to everyone who's posted here or emailed me so far -- your suggestions & invitations have been great, and I'm starting to get really excited for this trip. It's going to be a blast!

Really- seriously consider the Madonna Inn if you haven't been there before.

And let me know if you want raisins in Fresno- I got the hookup. :)

And Fresno guys- don't forget to show her the Leilani sign and the Days Inn pool tikis, both on Blackstone.

-martin

We are right up the road from T-Vic's, so just say when and we'll be there.

I second the Madonna Inn visit. Amazing theme rooms. I almost wish we were driving to the Oasis so we could stop there for a night.

We'll be coming out I-215 to I-10. Gotta stop off and see those two big stone dinosaurs (a T rex & a brontosaurus) you know...the place that was in "Pee Wee's Big Adventure". Don't rmember the name of the spot or exactly where along the route it is but you can't miss it. One even has stairs that lead up to the top to a museum of local artifacts & a dinosuar gift shop for the kiddies (natch). Check it out if you're comin' that way. I think there's even a truck stop diner where you can get a cold beer & a slider if you're so inclined.

On 2003-04-26 14:46, Shipwreckjoey wrote:
...Gotta stop off and see those two big stone dinosaurs (a T rex & a brontosaurus) you know...the place that was in "Pee Wee's Big Adventure"...

ShipWreck~

If you haven't been out there for some time, there is evidence of corporations f'ing up those dinosaurs nostalgic presence. You'll see that (I believe) Del Taco is now blocking the view of the dinosaurs from the highway. There are a few other new buildings that are blocking the view too, but it's the Del Taco that is the worst culprit. If it wasn't for the long neck on the dinosaurs you could very well pass it up.

I'll take a picture on the way to show the rest of you what I mean.

DinoCaddyDaddy

Damn their eyes! Is nothing sacred anymore? To add insult to injury, I HATE Del Taco. Couldn't they have at least put up an In N Out burger? I say we all boycot Del Taco until they capitulate and remove this blight from our land.

On 2003-04-26 16:52, Shipwreckjoey wrote:
Damn their eyes! Is nothing sacred anymore? To add insult to injury, I HATE Del Taco. Couldn't they have at least put up an In N Out burger? I say we all boycot Del Taco until they capitulate and remove this blight from our land.

Mmmmmm Del Taco. Now I'm hungry for chili fries :D

Aloha Mr.Shipwreck...the Dinos are at the Eat Wheel Inn off of I-10 in Cabazon between Banning and Palm Springs turn off. Do you have an ETA that your going to be there so I could join up with your caravan?

Tikimama, and others going to the Bahooka--don't forget to check out their website and search around and print the $5 coupon.
by the way--tikimama, what day are you having lunch there?

TR 5-0
The only ETA I have so far is our check in time at the Playa Resort (I call it the Last Resort because it's at the far end of the strip) is 2:00. We're planning on leaving home at noon. As far as a trip itinerary goes...imagine the chase scene from "It's a Mad,Mad,Mad,Mad World" and that's us on a road trip. I'd like to say we'll drop in there at about 1:30 but I won't swear to it.

On 2003-05-07 11:10, mrsmiley wrote:
Tikimama, and others going to the Bahooka--don't forget to check out their website and search around and print the $5 coupon.
by the way--tikimama, what day are you having lunch there?

Only today do I realize that I printed the coupon, brought it down to LA, and then completely forgot I had it when I ate at the Bahooka. sigh.

-martin