Rose Bowl, episode 3. In which we stop to smell the succulents.

Feeling slightly less itinerary-bound than during my own epic five-day LA 50th birthday weekend, Mari and I had some unusually unheard-of free time when it was her turn to celebrate being fifty. Here we are spending some of that free time enjoying a nice walk in the late summer sunshine along the Pacific Coast Highway pedestrian path in Santa Monica.

Once again, we cozied up to the comforts of the Channel Road Inn but managed to spend a little more than just a few "down" minutes each day enjoying our special room. Thanks, again, to the wonderful staff for your warm welcome (and cookies!) and indulgent birthday pampering. 

Here is the site again should you wish to pursue your own pampering. I'm hoping an annual visit makes its way onto our own travel calendar.

channelroadinn.com

At right, Mari is leading your gaze out to the famed Santa Monica pier that we strolled last time (after paying an inexplicably excessive $15 for parking).

The pedestrian-friendly path alongside the restlessly hectic PCH overlooks the beach below and is itself beautifully lined with flourishing flora and luscious succulents.

We explored a little more of our lush Santa Monica surroundings this time around and enjoyed the somewhat touristy but bountifully festive Santa Monica Place.

A combination of indoor and outdoor shopping mall with plenty of restaurants as well as a movie theater, Santa Monica Place was easily accessible, even walkable from the Pier, but there is also plenty of street parking and a (paid, of course) parking garage.

Be sure to visit the site to do a little pre-planning and to explore your dining options. As you know, Mari and I are fond of the Cheesecake Factory and found ourselves sampling birthday cheesecake on more than one occasion.

santamonicaplace.com

I am fortunate to be a man of few regrets and fortunately most of those regrets merely involve inconsequential longings associated with unpurchased fleamarket finds. Pictured atop the vintage sideboard above is a set of bone china I kind of wish hadn't gotten away that Saturday, but I'm not really sure where the mid-century Royal Vale tea set would have ended up in our home. Mari may be forever grateful that I did not introduce yet another set of dishes or tea set into our life, but at least I was able to snap a photo and walk away without too much trauma. Besides, we had just barely made our entrance into the vintage/antique section of the Rose Bowl flea and there was still plenty of appetizing acreage for my collector's gaze to patrol.

One of the things I like about the Rose Bowl flea is that vendors are allowed to pull up to their reserved spot and unload and display as they see fit. As a vendor, that is the ultimate in convenience. The Long Beach flea, on the other hand, proffers vendors' goods in uncomplicated and neatly ordered rows of tables and booth displays. If you have ever schlepped boxes and unwieldy packages of items for flea sale from a distant parking lot to your assigned 10' x 10' space, then you will appreciate the convenience of the Rose Bowl flea for vendors.

The arrangement also allows for colorfully eclectic shopping experiences like this...

And this retro-friendly favorite...

I caught Mari mid-beeline as her own collector's gaze eyed a charmingly beat-up metal toy truck she plans to turn into a charmingly beat-up planter (for a succulent, of course). Creative vendors like these lend an industrial-sized fleamarket like the Rose Bowl personal charm and give shoppers, browsers, and collectors a memorably charming (or charmingly memorable) experience.

Among my own purchases that Saturday were some additions to a favorite collection. My previously pictured and blogged typewriter ribbon tin collection (NYC Markets revisited, episode 6) received four new old additions.

Not to worry, I bundled the transaction from a single vendor who actually happened to be the only vendor among the hundreds we browsed with typewriter ribbon tins for sale.

Again, it is the font-fabulous graphics and striking colors that draw me to these miniature collectibles. I also appreciate their diminutivity (just trying it out, relax) which makes them fun to collect from faraway markets and likewise easy to drop into bubble-wrap pouches for safe travels.

The living room display is gill-packed now, but makes me happy.

More fleamarketing from the Rose Bowl (and beyond) next time.