VagabondsUSA "TRAVEL IS FATAL TO PREJUDICE, BIGOTRY AND NARROW MINDEDNESS." MARK TWAIN

THE CRUISE IS OVER AND WE HAVE two days to spend in LA. The Super Bowl is out of the question—they’re getting $7000 for a ticket and even parking costs $300. We have reservations at the Dunes Inn for Sunday. It’s an old-style place near “Korea Town” on Wilshire Boulevard with free parking but check-in isn’t until three so we decided to spend the day at the Getty.

        Reflections on the Getty

                 Where Art and Architecture Intersect

Scott Fitzgerald was right when he said the rich are different from you and me. And there are differences among the rich, too. While the today’s gazillionaires are spending their loot launching themselves into space, the older generation endowed museums, libraries and charitable foundations. Witness John Paul Getty. The $1.3 billion Getty Center is known for its architecture, gardens, and views overlooking Los Angeles. And art! The collection includes European paintings, drawings, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts and more.

                                               Irises

                Vincent Always Draws a Crowd

The gem of the collection, IMHO, is Irises and judging by the gaggle of Van Gogh  groupies, I am not alone. Rembrandt’s smiling self-portrait is another that caught my attention but mostly I liked watching the other visitors enjoying the paintings.

      Pretty in Pink

                         Rembrandt and the White Hat

                                                             The Green Dress

On Monday in keeping with the art and gardens theme we passed on the La Brea Tar Pits. The Huntington was more to our liking. Offically, the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens, the Huntington was established by Henry E. and Arabella Huntington on 120 acres in San Marino. Influenced by Arabella, the collection focuses on 18^th and 19^th Century European and 17^th to mid-20^th Century American art.

                   "Breakfast In Bed" by Mary Cassatt

Gainsborough’s Blue Boy was on loan to the Royal Academy but Breakfast in Bed by one of John’s favorite artists, Mary Cassatt, was prominently displayed. And outside the gardens were alive with redbud and camellias. 

                      Red Camillia

              Redbud

Not surprisingly the thirty-mile drive back to the Westin at LAX took over two hours. Brought back many not-so-fond memories of commuting from NJ to NYC. Not to worry, we made it in time for the game and we have nothing else scheduled until our flight tomorrow.