As always, the jenniegreg galleries are among the most beautiful on the web. It looks like you all had a wonderful day. When I think of my afternoon sitting alone watching Bambi II, I realize how much we need to get down there for some serious swanking.

YAY!!:snap:
Thanks for the pics CP!

It was really painful to miss this trip. Haven't been to NS for about 5 years. I've only seen the Gamble House from the outside. And to top it off, I haven't had a mojito since Sac was in town.

Not to mention that I miss seeing all of you.

I love the fact that I'm very busy musically but I must say that it can also royally suck when opportunities like this are missed.

Glad you all had fun though and thanks for sharing the pics! :)

That place has some serious stones.

Mmm, dessert.

I want to put a curse on my landlady. Because of her, I missed this swanking; and I really REALLY wanted to go! I'm so bummed....

Great pics NA! Gotta love that boobie Moose! :evil:

What a cool place! Looks like a great time was had by all.:cheers:

Short recap of the day:

We met at the Gamble House is Pasadena. Our group pretty much needed it's own tour slot, so we were scheduled for 1:00. We had some time to kill, so I bought a copy of the self-guided neighborhood tour in the bookstore and we went off to see some other magnificient houses in the area. We discovered quite a few houses that would be just PERFECT to the LoT Commune!

We met our guide at the Gamble House at 1:00 for our tour. Our guide was incredibly informed, articulate and had a lovely English accent that enthralled all of us. I was not aware that the architects were involved in EVERY aspect of the house from overall layout to specific interior design including stained glass, furniture design and wood carving designs. The effect was one of incredible unity and we are very lucky to have most of the house preserved as it was originally intended.

Off to the Norton Simon Museum for a look at this fantastic collection. The Norton Simon has something for everyone. It is really an incredible collection of art from early Renaissance through the 20th Century including a wonderful collection of photography which was on exhibition on the lower level. I have been to the NS on many occasions but the photography was all new to me, and I loved seeing their growing collection.

We all reached a state of "doneness" at about the same time and decided to head over to La Maschera for cocktails before dinner. We discovered that Xiomara, a location of a past swanking and the home of the BEST mojitos, was around the corner from La Maschera, so we headed over there for our pre-dinner Mojitos. (8 mojitos and one Faux-hito please.)

We stumbled (well Gus Gus did) back to the restaurant for our 6"30 ressie. Our waiter was charmingly French (El-las-keen Al-e-bot) and we were the only party in the reataurant at that time, so we got to have some extended fun. The menu offers a lot of really unique and delicious combinations of food, wine, cheese, sausage, and appetizers all Italian in flavor with a Tunisian twist. I ordered the Wild Boar & Harissa Ravioli with Organic Lentils and Lima Bean Broth. WOW! It was an amazing combination of flavors and textures, beautifully presented and absoultely delicious.

After dinner, we shared Chocolate Mousse and Tiramisu and relaxed around our table satisfied and happy.