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| Cachuma Lake |
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| Cachuma Lake banks |
We continued our journey passing through small towns which seemed very peaceful far away from noise and bustle of the overcrowded cities. On the way we happened to see a very big lake called Cachuma Lake (means "sign" spelled in Spanish as 'Aquitsum', the name of a Chumash village) located in the Santa Ynez Valley and is nearly twelve miles east of Solwang. It is an artificial lake built on the Santa Ynez river and covers an area of nearly 3,100 acres. This Lake Reservoir was created by the construction of Bradbury Dam by the U.S.Govt. in 1953. There are many camp sites here for enjoying boating trips, hiking and fishing. Los Padres National Forest came into our view with densely grown trees on huge slopes of Santa Ynez mountains. This forest covers 7890 sq. kms. in area and contains many mountains like Santa Lucia, La Panza Range and San Rafael Mountains etc. Many rivers in Southern and Central California originate from Los Padres National Forest such as Caramel,Salinas,Santa Ynez and Piru. In this forest many kinds of trees such as redwood, fir and pine trees are seen. This forest is adjacent to the Angeles National Forest which is in Los Angeles County in Southern California.
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| Santa Barbara |
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| Road leading to Santa Barbara |
We travelled through Santa Barbara situated between the steep mountains of Santa Ynez and the Pacific ocean giving us a beautiful view on either side.Santa Barbara is a thriving city with many financial,industrial and educational institutions with many downtown beaches and restaurants.There are many museums like Santa Barbara Museum of Art,Museum of Natural History,Maritime Museum and Santa Barbara Zoo.It has a mixed population of White,African,Mexican,Native American and Asian people.
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| Malibu |
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| Malibu Town View |
Malibu is a beachfront city in northwestern Los Angeles County. This town well-known for its scenic beaches is the home of many Hollywood movie stars. There are many beaches like Surf-rider Beach, Zuma Beach, Malibu State Beach, Dan Blocker Beach etc. The beaches are relatively clean with white sand dunes and pebbles. You will find many seaside restaurants on the road. But we did not find any sea-creatures or shells near the seashore.
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| Porto Marina Beach |
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| Porto Marina Sea shore |
The setting sun sinking on the western horizon reflected red and orange hues on the moving ripples of Pacific. The sky gradually turned purple and dark later. we stayed at Hampton Inn at Oxnard just twenty-eight miles from Malibu.Oxnard seems to be a big city with a big trade activity with many showrooms departmental stores and industries. Oxnard is also an agricultural center well-known for strawberry food products, cucumbers, beans and beet sugar.Next morning we proceeded to see the famous temple of Lord Venkateswara in the city of Calabasas at a distance of thirty five miles from Malibu.
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Lord Venkateswara's Temple, Calabasas
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This temple on the hills of Malibu was built in the traditional Hindu style on an elevated platform by the Hindu Temple Society of Southern California in 1981. In the temple precincts on the ground level, there are small temples for other Indian deities like Vinayaka, Murugan, Shiva, Hanuman, and Rama. The day, being Saturday(an auspicious day for the presiding Lord), there was a huge gathering. The elaborate rituals by the priests shielding the Lord with silk curtains made us wait for hours. There was a frantic rush of devotees as soon as the curtains were removed. We struggled hard to get a momentary glimpse of the Lord decked in shining jewels and ornaments.We came out a little bit frustrated and much exhausted. God, though merciful, is curtained off by man made barriers by elaborate rituals. In the dining hall, food consecrated by being offered to the Lord was given in plates for a nominal price of three dollars each. This is a good practice since devotees feel a sense of satisfaction for having Lord's sacred Prasadam,and the temple authorities will not incur much expenditure for preparing food and other items in such large quantities.In this temple many ceremonies, festive programs and cultural programs are organised throughout the year.
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Memorial Hall on the hill
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| Golden Archway |
In the afternoon we went to see the calm and peaceful retreat Lake Shrine Temple located in Pacific Palisades.On the way we watched the beautiful beaches of the Pacific bay like Malibu State Lagoon Beach, Sunset Beach, and Santa Monica Beach.This Ashram was founded by Paramhamsa Yogananda on 20th August,1950 on a ten acre land embellished with gardens and a lake.You can see pretty white marble statues of gods and goddesses and spiritual masters of all religions. Apt sayings and and quotations are given on the pedestals of those statues which are very meaningful and impressive.Perched on the top of the hill a memorial hall was built for practicing meditation and for listening to religious discourses.Many awareness and training programs are organised by the Self-Realization Fellowship Organization.The cool shade of trees, the colorful blooms and the floating spectacle of swans and storks on the placid waters of the lake with windmill Church nearby provide a very peaceful and congenial atmosphere for all visitors to sit and meditate at least for a few moments. Really a picturesque re-creation of a holy hermitage with natural ambiance and scenery.
Next morning we began our return trip.An enchanting drive again through wooded valleys flanked by hills and sea coast on either side.It was a cloudy morning with alternate spells of rain and sunshine.Throughout our ride we saw fields of strawberry,cherry and grapevine. The raw green grapes mingled with rosy clusters of ripe ones gave a checkered view of Nature's beauty.At some places fields of black soil with lush green vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage, and lettuce were seen.A large number of horses within enclosures were visible meant for ploughing fields or for sporting purpose.The Cachuma Lake with her vast expanse of water greeted us again. How we feel like staying there in such tranquil places fully suffused with beauties of Nature without any noisy disturbances! Yet routine life has to go on with practical responsibilities and obligations.We felt as if we were thrown out from the fantastic world of imagination into the dull world of reality when we entered the town.Yet the memories of our scenic drive will remain fresh like happy dreams in our hearts and as one of the most pleasant events in our lives.
(My hearty best wishes and blessings to my son Subash who drove us all along the way and provided all amenities during our long drive. His insistence to take us on this trip at any cost gave us this rare opportunity to enjoy and appreciate the charms of the American landscape. My daughter-in-law, Nikhila, urged us to travel in spite of her delicate health at that time. So once again I wish them all the best for their support and help.)
Somaseshu Gutala
May 25th 2013
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