Month: April 2023

Wildflowers bloom on hiking trails in Southern California

Wildflowers bloom on hiking trails in Southern California

Published by Sam Flores

What’s in bloom: Anacapa Island, the second smallest in Channel Islands National Park, is awash in a thick blanket of yellow as its signature giant coreopsis plants have come alive after spending most of the year dormant and bare. Efforts to eradicate the invasive ice plant are underway, allowing the giant coreopsis forest to thrive. These fragile succulents look like miniature trees with tall, woody stems and branches; bright yellow flowers; and feathery green leaves. Besides their brilliant aesthetic, the coreopsis also provide essential habitat for the world’s largest protected breeding colony of Western gulls, who descend onto Anacapa from April to June to fight over territory and build their nests under the canopy of flowers. (Unlike their mainland friends, these nesting seagulls tend to not be overly aggressive toward people. Just don’t leave your sandwich unattended.) The hike: With only two miles of trails, it’s easy to traverse the whole island in a day. Once you climb the 157 stairs from the ferry landing, the paths are easy and mostly flat. From the landing …

The most exhilarating places to go kayaking around L.A.

The most exhilarating places to go kayaking around L.A.

Published by Sam Flores

For a hands-on, guided experience, head to Terranea Resort. Located on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, the oceanfront property is a wellness escape for luxury travelers. It’s also an excellent place to go kayaking, as it’s surrounded by picturesque cliffsides, sea life — including migrating whales and sea lions — and less crowded waters than its neighboring city Redondo Beach. You can choose from a range of excursion times, but it can get windy here, so go in the morning if you want a smoother paddle. (I went at 10 a.m.) When you book through the hotel — don’t worry, you don’t need to be a guest — friendly and experienced instructors will take you on a 1.5-hour ride along the coastline, through kelp beds and to rocky shorelines where you’ll spot small fish and marine plants. You’ll get a glimpse of the Point Vicente Lighthouse, Catalina Island in the distance and leisurely hikers strolling along the coastal pathways. Make sure to keep your eyes peeled for dolphins and migrating whales: Gray whales migrate here from …

Best craft classes for adults in Los Angeles

Best craft classes for adults in Los Angeles

Published by Sam Flores

Classes it’s offered: Embroidery, rug tufting, ice dyeing, shoemaking 👡 These Hands Maker’s Collective feels more like someone’s well-equipped home studio than a storefront. Denise Ambrosi, who started the collective about five years ago, opened the current space — a sunny, open workshop on Washington Boulevard — last April. With craft supplies for sale, co-working stations for artists-in-residence and large tables for classes, These Hands draws neighbors and crafty friends from around the city. It’s also home to Moving Thread, which hosts sewing workshops for all different skill levels. “I want it to be a creative community,” Ambrosi said. “I want people to be able to come here and feel like it’s a place where they can come and relax, and just kind of get out of their heads and get off their phones.” Though many of the classes at These Hands are focused on fiber arts — weaving, embroidery, knitting, crocheting, punch needle and fabric dyeing are just a few of the options — you can also try courses like jewelry making, paper cutting …

The best value hotels for families at Disneyland

The best value hotels for families at Disneyland

Published by Sam Flores

When you wish upon a star, they say, it makes no difference who you are. When you book a Disneyland-adjacent hotel, however, it makes a big difference how much homework you do. So I’ve been nosing around Anaheim, dodging unenchanted castles, sidestepping minuscule swimming pools and sniffing out small-print resort fees and parking charges, in the search for lodgings that both make sense and save cents. These are my 12 favorites. Craft an epic visit to Disneyland and California Adventure with our comprehensive guide. It’s full of expert tips and fresh perspectives. In their ranks you’ll find a water park or two (looking at you, Howard Johnson) and a few renovated old favorites (that’s you, Candy Cane Inn). And there are enough bunk beds in lodgings along Harbor Boulevard and Katella Avenue to accommodate all of Steamboat Willie’s progeny. Before making my very subjective best-values list, I narrowed the field by using a few objective measures. I started by ruling out Disney’s three hotels, which cost a lot more than the rest. I further narrowed …

Best restaurants in Anaheim close to Disneyland

Best restaurants in Anaheim close to Disneyland

Published by Sam Flores

I do not like Disneyland. I do not like its rides. I do not like its lines. I do not like its crowds. I do not like how Disney has tried to influence politics in my hometown of Anaheim for decades. I might be the only person in my life who feels this way. My sister has an annual pass. My other sister was a regular at Dapper Days before the pandemic. Cousins and friends work for the Mouse; my wife always bugs me about when I’ll take her again. Craft an epic visit to Disneyland and California Adventure with our comprehensive guide. It’s full of expert tips and fresh perspectives. I try not to go, but I go enough to know that the resort’s food has improved dramatically from the days we’d sneak in burritos. And I also know there’s far better food within minutes of the Happiest Place on Earth. Disneyland’s location right off Harbor Boulevard and right next to the 5 Freeway means great eats are just a short drive to Little …

Every ride at Disneyland, ranked

Every ride at Disneyland, ranked

Published by Sam Flores

Disneyland since 1955 has stood as a beacon of optimism, a Southern California institution and rite of passage that has shifted with and reflected back our myths and pop culture sensibilities. It is also the theme park I return to multiple times per month. Unlike any other park I’ve visited, Disneyland has a sense of history; it’s a park that has grown and evolved with American pop culture. In this sense every attraction, I believe, is special in some way, even the ones I rarely visit. But my editor had a challenge for me: Rank them. It wasn’t easy. Globally, Disneyland, the great American theme park, has become one of the mightiest exports of the United States. Craft an epic visit to Disneyland and California Adventure with our comprehensive guide. It’s full of expert tips and fresh perspectives. That makes any ranking of its top attractions a deeply personal challenge. How, for instance, does one weigh nostalgia, an individualistic trait, versus public popularity? And what takes greater precedence, historic value or the bleeding edge? How …

Where to find the best vegan and vegetarian food at Disneyland

Where to find the best vegan and vegetarian food at Disneyland

Published by Sam Flores

Once upon a time, the lack of plant-based options at Disneyland would have had herbivore diners ready to walk the plank at Pirates of the Caribbean. Today, in keeping with widespread updates to the parks, finding an above-average meat-free meal is easier than ever. Craft an epic visit to Disneyland and California Adventure with our comprehensive guide. It’s full of expert tips and fresh perspectives. We recently ate our way through Disneyland Anaheim resort. To our surprise, we continually found the vegetarian options more impressive than their meaty counterparts, using surprising, fresh ingredients while still remaining substantial and filling. Most restaurants are even equipped with allergy-friendly menus for those who require gluten-, nut-, or soy-free options — just ask. From towering burgers to cheesy enchiladas, bread bowl stews and fruity soft serve, you’ll find at least one vegetarian option at just about every food spot at Disneyland and California Adventure. Here are 16 of our favorites. Note that menus at Disneyland food establishments change frequently. Ask about additional vegetarian or vegan options if one isn’t …

Scientists film deepest ever fish on seabed off Japan

Scientists film deepest ever fish on seabed off Japan

Published by Sam Flores

Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. CNN  —  Cruising at a depth of 8,336 meters (over 27,000 feet) just above the seabed, a young snailfish has become the deepest fish ever filmed by scientists during a probe into the abyss of the northern Pacific Ocean. Scientists from University of Western Australia and Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology released footage of the snailfish on Sunday filmed last September by sea robots in deep trenches off Japan. Along with the filming the deepest snailfish, the scientists physically caught two other specimens at 8,022 meters and set another record for the deepest catch. Previously, the deepest snailfish ever spotted was at 7,703 meters in 2008, while scientists had never been able to collect fish from anywhere below 8,000 meters. “What is significant is that it shows how far a particular type of fish will descend in the ocean,” said marine biologist Alan Jamieson, founder of the Minderoo-UWA Deep Sea Research Centre, who …

If “Succession” is a competition that ends with a winner, we’d be foolish to count out Marcia

If “Succession” is a competition that ends with a winner, we’d be foolish to count out Marcia

Published by Sam Flores

Everything in Logan Roy’s life is transactional. There are costs and rewards, dues and dividends, victors and the dead. This is why so much of the discourse related to the fourth season of “Succession” has to do with who is winning and who can win. Taking stock of Logan’s three kids at the start of “Honeymoon States,” set a day after his death, nobody seems to be winning. Kendall (Jeremy Strong) is wrecked on the floor of his luxury condo. Kendall (Kieran Culkin)  stalks his place with cold purposeful emotional denial, brushing his teeth and not betraying a single emotion in the mirror. Shiv (Sarah Snook) is slumped in her bed and fields a call from her doctor, who drops the episode’s biggest surprise (that most people saw coming a season ago): she’s pregnant, and thanks to Dad’s manipulations, estranged from her husband Tom (Matthew Macfadyen). Only one Roy is in a position to pull a win out of this grave situation: Marcia. To the end Logan’s third wife, played by Hiam Abbass, remains something …

Best lunch restaurants to try right now in Los Angeles

Best lunch restaurants to try right now in Los Angeles

Published by Sam Flores

I’ve never really understood the Hillstone Restaurant Group marketing strategy, which seems to be … whatever the opposite of building brand recognition is. Houston’s, Hillstone, R+D Kitchen, Honor Bar, South Beverly Grill — these are all Hillstone-owned restaurants with very similar menus but, obviously, very different names. I guess they don’t want to be grouped in with the other chain restaurants? Regardless, the strategy seems to be working, and I still love Houston’s. Houston’s is fun because it feels clubby. It feels like a classy Cheesecake Factory. Dark wood, drawn shades, martinis at the bar, capacious booths. It still has its funny “no hats” policy but I’m not sure how strictly it’s enforced. Burgers and a fried chicken sandwich are solid, the spinach and artichoke dip is the gooey mess you need it to be, and salads — the emerald kale salad in particular — are better than you’d think. But sushi might be the real power move at Houston’s. The Thai tuna roll, which is, let’s just say, nontraditional, is stuffed with fish, avocado, …