🚀 go-pugleaf

On Wed, 25 Feb 2004, Mike Tamada wrote:

> "amalia" <amaliaxexfreedman@comcast.net> wrote in message news:<D5DVb.249529$I06.2755702@attbi_s01>...
> > "Simon Belmont" <123@abc.xyz> wrote in message
> > news:fMfUb.983$AI1.627@newssvr23.news.prodigy.com...
>
> [...]
>
> > > At the same time it might be cool see it for myself to dissect what all
> > > the fuss comes from. I suspect it is mostly a source of pride for CA.
> >
> > Your comment made me laugh (not snicker), it makes CA sound like a small
> > town. I don't think Hearst Castle ranks among the state's top destinations,
>
> Correct, it's not as if Californians puff themselves up because
> Hearst's Castle is here.
>
> But the question then occurs to me:  what *are* the "sources of pride
> for CA"?  I mean in terms of tourist-type destinations.
>
> Off the top of my head, I'd say:  Yosemite, "the coast" (I'll leave it
> up to coastal locals to argue over whether this should mean Mendocino
> or Big Sur or Huntington Beach or wherever), and the Sierra Nevada.
> Next, maybe the redwood forests, and though not destinations per se,
> the Golden Gate Bridge and the Hollywood sign are major California
> icons.
>
> Hearst's Castle would be wa-ay down the list, I don't know if even the
> residents of the local town would point to it as a source of pride.

The GG bridge is impressive, but there's not much to do with it except
look at it.  IMO, the top man-made attractions in CA are the Monterey Bay
Aquarium and the San Diego Wild Animal Park.  Of course, if you're
below the age of 10 or so, there's Sea World and Disneyland.  On a more
cultured note, the LA area in particular has a number of excellent museums
(Norton Simon, Getty, Huntington Library, ...).  I'd guess Hearst Castle
belongs somewhere on the list, but I've never managed to get there....
--
                                                                Al Eisner
                                                (eisner@slac.stanford.edu)