Tip the world over on it’s side and everything loose will land in Los Angeles
2 things:
Today’s lunch time was once again a chance to discover some of the hidden places from Los Angeles, the ones that only locals and insiders know about… So, instead of going to one of our local cantinas, we simply hit the road and drove to downtown, somewhere around Union Station and the old local post office and stopped on the side of one of these dirty roads typical of this town, in a zone you wouldn’t expect to even find a piece of bread for lunch…
Once we hit the place, I was only able to wonder. This place has been frozen in time several decades ago. The menu is simple: French Dip Sandwich (shall I add that I don’t remember any dip sandwich in France) with a choice of Pork, Beef, Ham, Turkey or Lamb and a selection of sides… The queues are huge (massive counter, probably 4 to 6 lines, 15 minutes waiting in line). The attendance is surreal. Old couples, groups of people on Jury service, groups of school kids, suits, jeans, pierced goths and Emos… Well, everything under the sun!
This place is simply heaven for any wannabe photographer and you know what? For less than $10, the food is great and  the experience unforgettable. I think I’ll get the family over there sometimes soon!
Well, this is it… Thia is now a big girl and has started (pre-)school this morning.
The day started pretty well, early this morning, with both Sarah and I up around 6:00AM, probably more excited than our young monster. And for once, this young monster decided she wanted a lie-in…
The morning routine kicked in, with Jo Jo Circus on the sofa, sipping a bottle of milk, followed by a light (fruit based) breakfast and some vitamins. We then got her ready and prepared her school bag (little pink elephant we bought this weekend at the Grove, when we met with Jay & Nikki), not forgetting to pack her dodo (dummy - pacifier) and Pooh for the nap time.
We then took a couple of memorabilia pictures (see PrettyPix) and drove in convoy to the school…
Arrived there, we dropped Thia and as predicted, we were all slightly emotional and the monster refused at first to leave us behind… We finally left her on the playground, screaming and kicking… only to be seen a couple of minutes later already playing with other kids, having already forgotten that we even existed! 
So far, so good… The reports I received during the day seem to indicate that she has already perfectly acclimated to her new surroundings and that she seems to really enjoy school!
Another huge step for Thia and another couple of grey hair for us!
Tomorrow is a big day for us… Well, for all of us!
After a great day at the Zoo today, Thia will be starting school, TOMORROW!!
My little “Poupette” is going to school for the first time, and I, her “papa”, am already devastated!
Question is: How much time will it take for her to forget about us once she has  found her best friend Naomi in the school yard?Â
As you can guess, full report tomorrow nightÂ
Second set of guests visiting from the other side of the world, Sarah’s parents arrived a couple of weeks ago, straight from Newcastle, for a 2 weeks break in sunny California…
Passed the first couple of days, acclimating to the weather (which has been pretty poor at first) and the time difference (well, not jet lag here, am in shock), this trip turned into a 50% spent with Thia, 50% Â discovering our new surroundings and the small differences that come with it!
So first main visit: Santa Monica and the Pacific Ocean. After a copious lunch at the local English pub (smoothing adaptation to local customs), David and Agnes walked their grand daughter straight to the ocean and everybody enjoyed a little walk in the see… Well, Thia might have had done a bit more than just getting her toes wet.!
The following weeks were then spent between more visits (the Grove, Sunset, Malibu, etc) and time at home, relaxing and enjoying the garden and the pool, where Thia seems to love spending time and has now learned to swim (with arm bands on, obviously) between her grandfather (Dadad’) and grandmother (Mamam’)
All in all, these have been 2 very pleasant weeks filled with laughters and giggles from little Thia and her grandparents and several nights out for Sarah and I (see post)…
PS: Agnes and David have now returned to the UK and the house feels very empty now. No need to say that Thia has spent the last couple of days searching the house for Dadad’ and Mamam’…
