After 5 days at sea (that were remarkably smooth, and much cooler than we expected) we arrived at Los Angeles.

Big passenger turnover here, and for those disembarking it was minor chaos (for the boys, a clu…f…). The ship was (a bit) late. The solitary baggage conveyor wouldn’t work! Result … lots of angry people missing their flights … hmmmm! … some not happy, Jan!

Fortunately, being in transit, we escaped that melee, but moved to the next one. A car rental office under-prepared for the arrival of a cruise ship? (Given cruise ship schedules are published more than a year in advance, you have to wonder at that one!)

Eventually we’re off to challenge the legendary LA freeway system … Santa Monica bound …

Our target was the Getty Villa, then drift back the 40 miles down the coast to San Pedro and the ship.

The Getty Villa is magnificent. Once one of his homes, it now houses some of J Paul Getty’s collection of ancient Greek and Roman artifacts.

The building itself is modelled on a Pompeii villa. The main courtyard looks out to the Pacific Ocean …

The Getty’s nod to the drought is to turn off all but a couple of the water features … fair enough!

… the internal courtyard …

Inside the museum, all the exhibits are beautifully presented …

After this walk around Jan needed a little rest in the sunshine …

Then off to Santa Monica beach … nothing like we had imagined …

The beach is wide and sandy, but that’s the end of the upside. Dirty water, flat surf … and lots and lots of people (on a Monday).

Oh! and there’s a “fun” pier … people everywhere …

… one can only imagine what it must be like on a sunny Sunday!

The Santa Monica town behind the beach offered nothing for us, so we moved on down to Venice Beach. We saw a few of the legendary folk of this area that lead an “alternative” lifestyle of one sort or another. We avoided the Venice Beach pier: one a day is enough, but found the old canal area that gives Venice Beach it’s name …

What a contrast … so peaceful and beautiful as we strolled the canals …

Then around Marina del Ray … countless boats and waterfront condos here …

… and more beaches … they seem to go on forever …

… and on through the attractive, up-market, (horsey) neighbourhood of Rolling Hills to San Pedro. An interesting day …

The weather was superb: sunny, perfect temperature, no humidity. But that’s actually the bad news. Evidence of the desperate California drought was everywhere: no grass; dry and dirty underfoot; and worst of all, very stressed and dying trees. Another summer or two and the whole place will be a desert!