Around The World To Castro Valley

Your Boulevardier spotted a flyer in the window of Eden Bicycles for a program that looks fascinating. On Saturday, April 10 a t 7:00 p.m., Castro Valley native Rick Gunn will present "Soulcycler" at the Center for the Arts. This multimedia program will feature words and images from Gunn's three-year, 25,811-mile bicycle journey around the world.

Tickets are $10 general, $5 for students. Check Rick Gunn's website, linked above, for more info about Soulcycler.

Motorcycles Converge at Shell Station

Your Boulevardier was driving down Redwood Road on Sunday morning around 11:30 a.m. when he noticed that several dozen motorcyclists and their bikes had converged at the Shell Station at the corner of Castro Valley Boulevard. One wonders if this was an organized ride. The gathering looked much too large to be a spontaneous thing.

Your Boulevardier Hits Southern California

This weekend Your Boulevardier visited friends in Southern California. Of course, he did some walking. As you may know -- he did not -- Angelenos are not enthusiastic walkers on their often scenic streets. They are car people, even in an era of $4 gasoline. Your Boulevardier's hosts were discouraging of his footborne forays, and often offered him rides, even for short distances. Very warm weather may have been part of their thinking, but regardless of motivation it struck an odd note. Anyway, the three areas walked were:

1. West LA to Westwood Village. Your Boulevardier walked from his hosts' home in West Los Angeles to UCLA to attend the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. The walk had everything -- huge open spaces (the VA and National cemetery), a busy freeway (the 405), crowded apartment houses (everywhere), and chic shopping (Westwood Village). Pedestrians did abound as the UCLA campus was neared.


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2. The Toluca Lake area of Burbank. Your Boulevardier shared breakfast with an old friend at the historic Bob's Big Boy on Riverside Drive, then explored the very lovely Toluca Lake neighborhood adjacent to Lakeside Golf Club and Universal City. The homes in this neighborhood are among the loveliest Your Boulevardier has ever seen.


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3. A wildflower hike near Calabasas. The open space between Mulholland Highway and North Topanga Canyon Boulevard -- the shaded area on the map below, if you click for the larger version -- is bursting with native and nonnative wildflowers right now, including various sages, mustard, chemise, some remaining lupines, and creamy orange sticky monkey flowers. That such wild territory is so close to suburban development is one of the delights of this area of Southern California.


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