Anaheim

May 14-15

Thursday Mary 14:

We selected an RV park in Anaheim, trying to find something that would be easy for sons Andy and Eric to reach, from Los Angeles. It wouldn't be a long trip (Ken would drive the whole way), so we had a leisurely breakfast at our outdoor fireplace, washed the windshield (ourselves; first time) and headed off. I had been on I-10 around Palm Springs before, but Ken had never seen the windmill farms. They are staggering. Their sizes range from short to incredibly tall. I guess they want to take advantage of the wind at all possible altitudes. I understand that they don't run until the wind is at 7 mph, and shut off at 55.

If you want to see a short movie of them operating, click here (it's a quick time movie). MOVIE

When we got near Anaheim (aka Los Angeles area) the traffic was murderous. I emailed Andy and said: "We're 20 miles from Anaheim and going 5 mph. Typical?" and he said "Sadly, yes." Eric said to stay off route 5 if possible.

We arrived at the Anaheim camp and it was a huge way down from whence we came, although we're so close to Disneyland that we had a perfect view for the evening fireworks. Spectacular and we get to see them again tonight.

Another minor glitch with the Mouse. It did the same thing when we disconnected it: wouldn't start up. This time we didn't call AAA. We put it in neutral, pushed it around a little, and voila, back in business.

We spent the afternoon outside, while a cleaning service gave us a spiff up, including carpets. The dust in the desert had invaded every nook and cranny.

Anaheim was our least favorite park. The view was pretty grim, the wifi iffy, and there would be no refunds for leaving early. We spent the whole day on Friday the 15th looking at possible new places. The park's manager, Bill Hepburn, though was the saving grace. Nice man who spends his winters in Anaheim and summers back home in Michigan on an island that only houses two residences. He was a delight and because he had an iPhone, I learned a lot more about apps, even downloading a couple he recommended. I have three now — not three pages like most people — three apps. Wifi got a little better on Saturday. In any case, we did leave a day early. We located what looked to be a nice park in Escondido (you never know), and left early Sunday morning so that the sons could visit in the afternoon..

Chapter 13: Escondido