Some trips are a sure thing and even as they are they may not be. Isn’t that the way life is? The journey is never a straight line from point A to point B. Sometimes there are so many sidetracks that you almost feel your destination wasn’t meant to be. That is the way this trip was.
Baby Blue (aka: my Prius) is all ready to go. I and he are at our best and happiest heading out into the horizon. Our little family unit of Baby Blue, Daisy (the sexy GPS), and I head to the airport where we will pick up the fourth component of the family. Tutu stayed home due to a lack of planning on my part and having forgotten to put him in the car.
We are headed to a soak in the most mentally and physically healing waters close to Los Angeles. Desert Hot Springs is a 2 hour drive from Los Angeles Airport (LAX), where I pick up Dean, and a world away. Our destination is Two Bunch Palms 
and its hot mineral springs. I did a program on this resort almost 13 years ago and I am curious as to how it holds up to the amazingly Zen feeling it provided me even in the midst of production and scheduling woes.
Villa #17 Entrance
I have checked in the night before, not willing to hassle through check-in early in the morning. A full report/review can be found on my blog: Life Lived and Reviewed.
Our backyard: 
The resort is at capacity. Not exactly what I wanted or expected but it will do. It still gives me a good feeling to see a baby elephant (albeit in statue form) in the tranquil grounds. 
And frankly a late night immersion and float in the hot mineral springs grotto releases all my tense muscles and hesitations. This was for sure a good way to start our venture to Europe.
Breakfast 
(in our robes) with a beautiful view of the mountains 
makes us feel a bit more gelatinous than the solid mass of bones and muscles we actually are. We top it off with another long soak before we head back to Los Angeles and to packing for our London, Paris, Berlin and wherever-else-our-heart-points-us-to jaunt.
Lidia The Explorer 