November 29, 2015

Our good friends Bob and Anne (from West Kelowna) arrived on Wednesday (Nov 25th) by air to visit us for a couple of weeks.  We picked them up at the Palm Springs Airport, loaded the car and, after a quick lunch and a short shopping trip to Costco, brought them back to our place in Sky Valley (thank you again to Steve and Doreen for the use of their park model). Needless to say the first night was an early night for them. But, the next day we took them to "Villagefest" in downtown Palm Springs. Had dinner at Las Consuelos (Mexican) then shopped the vendors.




Saturday morning we headed up to Yucca Valley, 25 miles north of Palm Springs, where we visited Pappy and Harriet's Pioneertown Palace.  










This western-style town was built in 1946 by a group of filmmakers and used for more than 50 films and TV programs through the 40's and 50's.











It was purchased in 1972 by Francis Aleba and her husband. They developed the property into a cantina until it shut down 10 years later. In 1982 Aleba's daughter Harriet and her husband Claude "Pappy" Allen bought the place and renamed it "Pappy and Harriet's Pioneertown Palace". The food there is wonderful, we are told. That is why it is so busy.......










On our way home we stopped to visit Cabot's Pueblo Museum in Desert Hot Springs. This carving behind us is called "Waokiye" meaning "traditional helper" in the Lakota language and was carved in 1978 by Hungarian-born sculptor Peter Toth. 











Cabot Yerxa built this masterpiece between 1941 and 1950 using mostly found materials and it was his home and personal museum until he died in 1965.  









The museum displays artifacts from his travels, his paintings and his collection of Native American crafts.









Sunday morning was a trip to the Open Air Market at College of the Desert. A trip to Palm Springs is not complete unless you've visited COD!!