Up early and just lounging. After a late "free" breakfast, we drove further south. Following the coast line our destination was Long Beach and Naples. Taking Palos Verdes Drive led to some high cliffs and beautiful views of the ocean. More surfers were out in the now warmer California sun but they looked like ants from our high view point. It's neat how the coastline goes from sandy beaches to raging cliffs in such a short distance. Palos Verdes Estates had big, fancy, expensive homes with real yards. We looked for famous people but saw none. Saw lots of tent rental companies in the driveways. We assumed they were getting ready for New Years Eve parties.
We got turned around in San Pedro only because the end of our map was cut off. But we soon found ST RT 47 and crossed the highest and longest bridge Alice has ever seen. She was very nervous while we drove over. The bridge crossed over the Port of Los Angeles and we could see large ships and cranes removing shipping containers. I made a wrong turn and went towards a pier. Semi trucks were all around and we were the only car on the road. We saw the harbor police and I stopped and said that I was lost. His reply was "I figured so". After getting directions we were soon driving in downtown Long Beach.
We got a bite to eat and drinks at a B J's restaurant then found the suburb of Naples, because it was time. Time for our Gondola ride at "The Gondola Getaway". Since Alice knows we will never make it to the real Venice, she found this place for us to have a romantic gondola ride. Our gondolier informed us that kissing was required under all bridges. We believe there were five. Under one wider bridge our gondolier stopped the gondola and sang to us, in Italian. The acoustics were wonderful and the 68 degree, sunny day rounded out a great paddle.
The canals of Naples are all man made as are the islands themselves. The homes, which did not have lawns, ranged from 3.2 to 18 million dollars each. Taxes on one home were $80,000 per year. All along the canals were boat docks for the home owners and we were told that Duffy boats were the most popular. According to state law you can not operate a gasoline powered watercraft while drinking. The Duffy boats are electric boats, so a loop hole was found in the law.
On the way back to the hotel a side trip was made to the BBC. No not the British Broadcasting Company or Big Busted Chick, but the Belmont Brewing Company. I had their beer sampler while Alice drank a margarita. We sat on their deck watching the beautiful ocean while large ships were anchored off in the distance. The shipping yards with the large cranes where visible as miniature Lego toys from our vantage point.
Driving from our hotel along the coast took close to two hours to reach Long Beach. Heading back, we hopped on the freeway and were back in the general area in 20 minutes. We stopped off at the Red Car Brewing Company again for food since it was close to the room, and then returned for some relaxation and sleep.
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