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Saturday, February 26, 2011

Attractions that won't sink your wallet.

This is  one of the many replicas at the Maritime Museum in San Pedro, one of the many places you can visit with the children in L.A. that won't send you to the poor house.
The nice thing about this place, besides the wonderful replicas and brochures to explain what each item is and how it stands in  maritime history, are the prices. For this event, we paid $1 each, and free parking.

Now, parking alone, anyway in L.A. can cost as much as a lunch entree. Finding these resources is a stroke of sheer luck.  There are many historical places that cost little to get in.

On this particular day The Oceana had landed in a berth nearby, on its transatlantic voyage that started in Genova. Imagine my joy! I spoke with a few passengers, all nattily attired, all retired people, and asked about their adventures. One of them was the photographer, or one of them hired to take those portraits we all love, with the Captain, in the ballroom, etc. He told us that most people do not care to have such pictures anymore. They want privacy and solitude, and no photo will entice them to part with either. Interesting how times change.  I still have a photo of our first cruise to Ensenada, a three day event that worried me to no end, thinking I would be sea-sick the whole time.




15 comments:

NormalToEatPB said...

I wish I would have known you before I went to San Francisco - you have such good traveling tips!

PS, there's a tribute to you on my blog today - thank you so much for your caring and kindness :)

Terra said...

That looks like a charming place to visit, and the price is so reasonable! Odd to hear about the people not wanting photographs of the cruise. Maybe that job is going to disappear as times change, sorry to say.

#1Nana said...

The cruise to Ensenada was my first cruise also...now we're planning our third to Alaska this fall. It's become an annual event for us.

When I was a kid we always enjoyed the trains at Griffith Park and that must have been free or my parents wouldn't have taken us there. Have you visited there?

Sounds like you're having a great trip.

Rosaria Williams said...

So far, we've visited The Museum of Natural History, The Science Museum, the Huntington Gardens and Library, the San Pedro Maritime Museum, China Town and Rancho Los Cerritos. I'm not sure what pictures I do have,to post, to write about. We're both under the weather, with colds and long commutes. We might just hang out at Griffith Park and revisit the Observatory.

Thanks.

Brian Miller said...

nice. we love going to DC to the museums...so wish we lived closer to be able to enjoy these as well...

Karen Jones Gowen said...

This is good to know. We go to LA quite a bit since my daughter lives there, but usually it's just the beach for us. Free and incredibly relaxing, and then we eat and eat and eat. My son in law makes incredible carne asada.

Kate said...

San Pedro's Cabrillo Aquarium is also free, although if you park on the beach, you'll have to pay for parking. Tide pooling is excellent in nearby Point Fermin Marine Reserve.

amalia said...

ciao Rosaria bel posto e bella foto
Hallo Rosaria what a charming place and what a nice photo
have a good week end

yaya said...

We went cruising to Alaska a few years ago and we didn't buy any of the photos...we took so many of our own that I didn't need the photographer! It's always fun to find places that don't cost much and to find them to be fun is a bonus. I know in Chicago they used to have certain days that the museums were free and we would make sure we took the kiddos when visiting family there. Hope you feel better soon and continue to have a good vacation.

DowntroddenInDC said...

Never been to L.A. before, but you make it sound a lot different then the impressions I get from the news. (you know gang riots, and celebrities getting DUI's).

The maritime museum sounds very neat. Weird it would be in L.A. though, L.A. isn't that close to water, right?

Monkey Man said...

Museums are great. Thanks for sharing.

Joani said...

Thanks 4 sharing. Hope U R feeling much better soon. Luv the picture. Hugs.

Unknown said...

Good to know if we go back that way!

Rosaria Williams said...

L.A. is on the Pacific Ocean, with its own port (Port of San Pedro and Long Beach0 doing major commercial work. In the early part of the century, the port area was home to the first Star Kist Cannery.

L.A. has about four million people in its city limits, and the greater county has about eleven millions. Each section of the city has its own character and its own problems.

The Los Angeles City Schools traverse the entire city, with over 650 schools.

Through my job I traveled with teams of educators to provide auditing and evaluating services to many schools.

L.A. has the best and the worst conditions, from gang-ridden neighborhoods and graffiti all over the place, to multi-million dollars residences with private security where the PTA's finance field trips and performing arts programs.

Hilary said...

So nice to find places to explore which are inexpensive like that. It makes for an enjoyable but affordable day. Thanks for sharing yours with us.