Friday, February 27, 2015

Dolphins/Delphine

Remember, the whales we saw last time when we went to the ocean?  Today, we went to the ocean again and saw dolphins! Lots of them and so close.  I even managed to catch one on camera.   But maybe I should start at the beginning.

Vielleicht erinnern sich meine Leser noch daran, daß wir bei unserem letzten Meerbesuch Wale gesehen haben.  Heute waren wir wieder am Meer, aber dieses Mal haben wir Delphine gesehen, und zwar viele und ganz nah.  Ich habe sogar einen "auf Film gebannt"!  Doch vielleicht sollte ich am Anfang anfangen.  

It took us an hour to get out of L.A. to go north and east.  There was not just the usual bad traffic, but also lots of construction going on.  Here are some pictures of our drive.

Es hat eine Stunde gedauert, nur aus Los Angeles herauszukommen, um Richtung Nordosten zu fahren.  Es gab nicht nur die üblichen Staus, sondern auch Baustellen.  Hier nun einige Fotos von unserer Fahrt.  

Going east
Nach Osten

And north
Und nach Norden





And West
Und nach Westen





First destination: Thomas Aquinas College
Erstes Ziel: Thomas Aquinas College









Built on a former ranch
Auf dem Gelände einer ehemaligen Ranch gebaut

Beautiful campus!
Ein wunderschönes College!





We had lunch here with a professor and somebody from admissions.
Wir haben hier mit einem Professor zu Mittag gegessen.

This is a mighty oak tree.
Eine sehr alte Eiche.

After letting Flora run up and down the stairs in the administrative building, we said good-by to Jonathan.  He will spend two days and nights here exploring the college.

Nachdem wir Flora die Treppen rauf und runter haben laufen lassen, haben wir uns von Jonathan verabschiedet.  Er wird hier zwei Tage und Nächte verbringen, um das College kennenzulernen.    

And then we reached the ocean again.  A very hazy day, but it got better later.
Und dann waren wir wieder am Meer.  Erst war es sehr dunstig, aber das ist schnell verflogen.




Our motel is in walking distance to the ocean.
Wir können zu Fuß vom Motel zum Meer gehen.


But first we need to buy some groceries for supper.
Aber erst muß noch fürs Abendbrot eingekauft werden.






And then it is time for the beach.
Und dann geht es zum Strand.





Santa Barbara







Seeweed!
Seetang!

More seeweed
Mehr Seetang

Here you can get a glimpse of a dolphin.
Hier kann man ein kleines Stück Delphin sehen.  



Burying Mama's feet
Mamas Füße werden eingebuddelt

Well, Peter missed this sunset because he was having dinner with the former president of Kenyon College (among other people, but she sat next to him).  He is attending a conference here while we just lounge around on the beach :).  
Der gute Peter hat diesen Sonnenuntergang verpaßt, weil er zu einem Abendessen eingeladen war.  Er nimmt hier an einer Tagung teil, während wir den Strand erkunden :).   


Who would have thought that I would walk in the Pacific in California around my 47th birthday with my four daughters and watch dolphins!  Life surely has many nice surprises.

Wer hätte je gedacht, daß ich um meinen 47. Geburtstag herum in Kalifornien mit meinen vier Töchtern am Pazifik spazierengehen würde und dabei Delphine beobachten würde!  Das Leben ist voller netter Überraschungen.  


19 comments:

  1. Wie aufregend!! Und so schöne Bilder, was für ein Erlebnis für dich, für euch.
    Ich bin auch gespannt, wie Jonathan das College gefällt.
    LG und schönes Wochenende,
    Sybille

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    1. Es ist hier wunderschön! Ich habe eben mit Jonathan telefoniert. Es scheint ihm ganz gut zu gefallen. Morgen werden wir ihn abholen.

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  2. I think California is bewitching!!!! Soon you will begin thinking that you cannot live anywhere else!!! Looking at these pictures of Santa Barbara I don't know how I managed to leave. Such beauty . . such wildlife! And Monterey is even more beautiful! No oil rigs in Monterey :) It took me awhile to get used to the oil rigs offshore in SB. My cousin had a funny story that she liked to tell of her friends in the late 60's during the Vietnam War. . they were young . . 18 . . 19 and had been driving along the Pacific Coast Highway in foggy weather. It was very late and they had been partying and were very tired. They pulled over to the side of the road . . the section along the water and the highway, and went to sleep on the sand. In the morning when they woke it was still very foggy and misty and eerie . . they saw the oil rigs in the distance in the water . . but didn't know they were oil rigs and thought they looked like huge ships. . they had a moment of panic . . they thought California was being invaded!! Funny :)

    Do you still get bits of tar on your feet at the beach? Maybe it's better now. It's so good that your hotel is within walking distance of the water. It makes for a very special experience to be able to just walk to the ocean . . doesn't it?

    Thomas Aquinas College looked really lovely! Can't wait to hear about Jonathan's impressions!

    You must have had a good heavy rain to make everything so green so fast :)

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    1. I think you are so right! Veronika told us exactly that today. She was going to stay right here and not even go back to L.A. because there she could only see the ocean on Sundays :).

      I thought the story about the oil rigs a very funny one. When we first saw them we also thought they were ships because it was so hazy driving up, but I soon realized that they were not because I have seen quite a few at the North Sea :). So I informed my family that those were not ships.

      No tar, just beautiful sand. This beach is really clean and right now completely empty. When we open our door in the morning we can see the ocean. This is very special.

      Last weekend was very rainy and it is supposed to rain again this weekend. It does make a difference fast.

      So far Jonathan has liked the college. He is going to a ballroom dance (outdoors) tonight. We will see him again tomorrow. Westmont is also really beautiful according to Peter.

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  3. Also diese herrlichen Sommerbilder zu sehen ist eine wahre Wohltat!
    Wird Jonathan verschiedene Colleges ansehen? Möchte er ev. in Kalifornien ans College? Das wäre sehr weit weg von euch.... bin ja mal gespannt, wie es ihm gefallen hat.
    Dir nachträglich noch alles Gute zum Geburtstag! Du bist - trotz viel Arbeit - so reich gesegnet mit euren herzigen Kindern :-).
    Ganz liebe Grüsse aus dem regnerischen, kalten, unfreundlichen Südwesten Rumäniens (grad das Gegenteil von Kalifornien)

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    1. Ja, nicht wahr? Besonders, da wir wissen, daß es zu Hause in New York -23 Grad sind.

      Ja, Jonathan wird sich verschiedene Colleges ansehen. Dieses hat einen sehr guten Ruf und lag am Weg. Da haben wir uns gedacht, er sollte sich dort mal umschauen. Es wäre sehr weit weg, aber wir sind noch nicht wo weit. daß wir uns eins aussuchen müssen. Im Moment gucken wir nur, was vielleicht zu seinen Interessen passen würde und einen guten Ruf hat.

      Ganz herzlichen Dank auch für die Geburtstagsgrüße. Wir bekommen hier viele nette Bemerkungen, wenn ich mit vier Mödchen spazieren gehe. Das erfreut alle Leute.

      Ich schicke Dir ein paar Sonnenstrahlen. Morgen soll es aber auch regnen.

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  4. P.S:
    Und ich wünsche dir im neuen Lebensjahr wieder einige nette Überraschungen :-)

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  5. Fantastic pictures and all that sunshine and blue skies, I could do with a dose of that :-) What a wonderful way to start your 47th year!

    I hope J's visit to Thomas Aquinas went well, eep does that mean he'll be leaving home come September? I still remember those pics of him on the blog when he was 11!!!!!!

    Much love and hugs to you

    San and co xxx

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    1. t has been one wonderful weekend so far, all due to Peter. What a wonderful treat.

      I think Jonathan is enjoying himself. No, he is not ready to go off to college. He is not done with high school, but this was too good an opportunity to let slip by. And I wanted him to experience a Great Books School once. He has taken classes at home at our small liberal arts college. I wanted him to see what the difference is.

      Returning love and hugs and sending sunshine.

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    2. It is getting up time over here and for you it is going to bed time :-)

      Xx

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    3. Yes, I need to go to bed now! I have not had a chance to look at your blog, because we have to pay for internet here and you always have log in, almost every five minutes. So I will catch up when we are back "home." I hope you day will be a good and fund filled one.

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  6. WOW! Und welch schöne Gelegenheit für Jonathan.
    Ich staune, die Farben, die Pflanzen, Delphine, der Zoo! Schön!

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    1. Ja, Santa Barbara hatte einen europäischen Flair. Sehr schön. Jonathan hat einen guten Eindruck von einem "Great Books College" bekommen. Das war eine neue Erfahrung für ihn.

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  7. "Dolphins!" Brigid, my five year old exclaimed when I showed her your post and we read it in German for our German part of circle time. Woohoo!

    Blessings on Jonathan's time at the College! I am really excited about Great Books colleges too. Although I'm grateful we have a wonderful Catholic college not too far away: Wyoming Catholic College. It looks so good!

    Enjoy,
    Barbara

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    1. I am so glad that you enjoyed my post. You even read it for circle time. I am impressed.

      Jonathan enjoyed his time at TAC. Yes, Wyoming College is one and then there is Thomas Moore in NH. All are Great Books, but they are all also different. We will take a look at more colleges, of course, and I also tell the girls that they should also take a good look because we will not make such a tour with each child. Some of them are hybrid colleges: they have a Great Books core, but also offer majors/minors. So much to find out. But there is still time for Jonathan, he will not leave yet.

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  8. Wir haben letztes Jahr in Frankreich in Ste Maxime einen Delphin im Hafen gesehen, unerwarteter Weise. Wir waren sehr erstaunt und die Kinder hatten einen riesigen Spass. Das College sieht wirklich sehr einladend aus

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    1. Das ist erstaunlich, ich habe sie noch nie im Mittelmeer gesehen! Das College war sehr schön und die Leute waren sehr nett.

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