With obstacles like parking bumpers, landscaping beds, light poles, storage sheds and a large event tent there was a lot to consider when choosing where to place everything. Luckily there have been forty previous events just like this one so they had a good idea with what works and what doesn't.
One thing they have learned from past events is you can't just have everyone show up at the same time and pick their own spot to park, it will never work doing it that way. Hence, the staging area idea at a larger college parking lot just two miles away. They sent the trailers over one at a time and the other half of the team would call when they were ready for the next trailer to be sent. It worked like a charm, except for a few that showed up at the wrong gate and drove through the parking lot in the wrong direction.
By mid-afternoon everyone was parked and settling in for all the fun festivities. Around 6:30PM we all enjoyed salad and pizza provided by a local artisan pizza restaurant. There was plenty for everyone, even with me eating five slices by myself.
Since I didn't want to miss an opportunity to get FREE repair labor for a few issues we are having, Tricia found a ride over to the event so that I could join them later after our repair work was completed.
Ever since we were in Alaska our propane water heater has worked only sporadically. The Alaska repair shop we were at ordered the parts for us, but of course while we were there it workied just fine. So I purchased the parts and took them with us.
For the last couple of months it has just about quit working at all on propane, but works just fine on electricity, so it hasn't been a big problem. The first few months of next year though we will be without electic so getting it fixed here is perfect timing.
Since I already had all the parts the repair was done at no charge. Thank You very much Los Angeles Airstream!
By the time it was my turn for the repair technician it was early afternoon, so when he finished us up I called Tricia and asked if it was worth me driving 15-miles over to the Equestrian Center and paying the $15 to park?
In the end I decided not to go, but I did drive over to the Airstream dealership and pick up the necessary parts to finally fix our steps leading into the trailer. It was a simple fix, but impossible to do without the right parts!
That's a special treat you don't get on this blog very often.
P.S. - She also picked out which photos and videos to share!
1880 Abbott Downing Hotel Coach full of Rose Parade royalty.
Rose President-Amy Wainscott and Rose Queen-Bella Ballard with her Rose Princesses.
So don't quote me, but I think they are the group that performs an outdoor play
in Hemet, CA every year since 1923.
is an official part of the Army that keeps the equestrian training alive.
After the horse refused the first attempt, this rider showed us how it's done.
"Iron Riders" who represent 1,900 experimental riders from Montana to Ohio on bicycles
instead of horses to test the feasibility of bicycles as military transport.
demonstrating how they apprehend criminals on horseback.
while all the other performers paraded around the arena and exit.
Once Tricia had returned from the Equestfest outing it was time to decide what to do about dinner. We (and about a dozen other Airstreamers) decided it was time to go and check out "The Hat", a local chain of 11 restaurants famous for their delicious pastrami sandwiches.
As you can see in the photo below they don't skimp on the meat when it comes to building their World Famous Pastrami Dip sandwiches. The Pink Lemonade ain't so bad either!
This was easily accomplished seeing as how the event hosts prepared us all a filling breakfast of Huevos Rancheros (Campground Style).
Your meal began with a warmed up tortilla shell, then you cover it with a ladle full of hash brown potatoes, red or green salsa, chili and shredded cheese, before you topped it with two perfectly fried eggs thanks to Chef Brian.
I definitely went back for seconds before heading out to Bandfest!
This was the only rainy day we had during our 4-day visit, but the poor kids had to put on the Bandfest Show anyway.
It sounds like they had lots of fun regardless with trips to all sorts of tourist spots, including a "band only" evening at Disneyland.
What an experience for the kids from the U.S. and all the other countries performing and marching in the 2023 Rose Bowl Parade.
NOTE: Once again the following videos and captions are courtesy of Tricia because, well, she has experience in this area having been a member of the color guard in her High School Marching Band, whereas I only briefly played the cornet in elementary and junior high school.
We met some of the band member's parents while waiting in the line to enter.
They were rightfully excited for their children to have the chance to perform,
plus the band choreographed a great story through their performance.
They told the great classic story of Sleeping Beauty with their performance.
This clip is during the sad portion while the castle sleeps.
Now that is the way to take the field!! I love the energy!!
After Bandfest we headed back to THE POD to grab a quick lunch before heading out to visit the Float Decorating Place inside the Rosemont Pavilion, which happens to be right cross the street from the Rose Bowl Stadium where the big game between #11 Penn State and #8 Utah will be played on Monday.
Once we arrived at the float decorating place and found a parking spot we started walking towards the entrance gate.
There was a long line of people waiting to get in with an estimated wait time of over an hour. We were in the midst of trying to decide whether it was worth the wait (we'd already spent $40 on tickets) when it started to rain, which made the decision easy.
We headed back to the truck and left. We have a party to get ready for!
One of the things I love about a rally is there are more people to share food with. All the things that are too big for the two of us or that Phil won't eat, I can make for the rally. It's a Win-win!
I happen to love making little bite size stuff – go figure!! So there was a happy hour every day at 4:30PM and I decided I would make an app for each happy hour and some for the requested "heavy apps" for dinner at the New Years Eve party.
I made Pesto Toast (twice since it went over so well the first night), charcuterie board, cheese puffs stuffed with linguica (tip – don't use whole wheat flour even if it's the only flour you have as it doesn't puff), and 3 warm dips with crackers – spinach/artichoke, crab, and blue cheese/green onion. So much fun!! - Tricia :-)
I on the other hand, have been doing research and development of a new cocktail that I've tentatively named the "Captain Delicious", you know, after the red apple variety, even though the label clearly shows a Granny Smith apple.
I'm open to renaming it if you have any better suggestions! Here is my latest recipe:
Next add 1½-ounces of Captain Morgan Sliced Apple Rum plus a ½-ounce of the Torani Salted Caramel Coffee Syrup.
For the "biggest kick in flavor" make sure you top it off with Canada Dry BOLD Ginger Ale, believe me, it makes a huge difference!
Most of these items can be found in your local grocery store supermarket, with the exception of the Captain Morgan Sliced Apple, you may need to visit a true liquor store to locate that item.
Seeing as how we are all "old folks" around here we celebrated New Years at 9:00PM, it was midnight in New York at Times Square after all!
Today is a free day and everyone had their own special plans for the day. Some drove over to gander at the HOLLYWOOD sign up on the hill, others visited the nearby museums or just went out to eat. We hung around the rally site where Tricia attended an impromptu "knit and talk" group and I began the task of preparing this blogpost.
One thing everyone agreed upon was to be back in time for the catered Taco Bar at 6:00PM.
The Taco Bar was amazing! To start with they offered four different proteins to choose from, shrimp, pork, beef and chicken.
Next were the sauces with four different levels of HEAT. You could add guacamole, pineapple, cabbage slaw, cilantro and onion. There were nacho chips and a delicious beverage called Horchata. Their version is made with almond milk, cinnamon, nutmeg and lots of ice.
This trio from Tacoholics Anonymous were fabulous! Their food was fresh and delicious and their name is too clever! - Tricia
Floats, bands, equestrian groups, and old cars. Since we've already posted about horses and bands (and Phil was crying when he saw how many videos I wanted to include) I've mostly only included floats in the parade pics.
As always, there are a few exceptions!! - Tricia ;-)
They get just as big a cheer as the performers.
Some of the pooper scoopers are quite the entertainers themselves!
Every time I look at it, I see something I missed before. The cats are ocelots.
Then to see their amazing float, so imaginative. Keep in mind these floats are all made up of flowers, seeds, grasses, leaves, bark, and other natural materials.
So it's no surprise they won the Wrigley Legacy Award for most outstanding display
of floral presentation, float design, and entertainment.
The surf shorts are made up of many nations flags, as they are an international organization.
by the Healthy Housing Foundation and AIDS Healthcare Foundation.
I can get on board with that!
even more so when you remember they have to be covered in natural materials.
Many of today's floats have hired an outside company to build them,
however this is a self built float. That's impressive!
If you zoom in you can see the wagon is filled with wooden cases of beer.
They came the closest to matching the Marine's precision and straight lines,
so I had to make an exception and include them with the floats!!
I love the bees on this one and look at the honey comb,
there are all sorts of stuff in each cell – flowers, citrus fruit, and I'm not sure what else.
Just try and count the number of animals on this float. It's crazy how many there are. I Love It!
All the riders are organ donors or recipients and the arch is made of florographs
of those who have given the gift of life. This was my favorite float.
Another band I made an exception for as their monarch butterfly skirts were amazing.
They are here to toss the football at the Rose Bowl Stadium to start the Rose Bowl festivities.
The locals look forward to it every year as all the tow trucks who are there to make sure the parade keeps rolling passes them by!
With over 86 parade entries, including 36 floats, 21 bands and 16 equestrian groups,
we couldn't even begin to share them all here on the blog.
THE END of THE END, to the parade and the rally. We now have to hoof it back to the trailer, hook up and go, so they can clear the lot and have it ready for school on Tuesday.
The hosts did a phenomenal job organizing every detail of this event.
We look forward to signing up again if our route brings us back to SoCal for the holidays.
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