Falling in Love at the 2012 Auto Show

I've never cared much about cars. I've always viewed them more of a means to get from point A to B. I even have a kind of car blindness. I can be introduced to a friend's car and not remember any distinguishing details about it, other than maybe the color. It just doesn't stick.

This morning, Dan and i set out for the Los Angeles Auto Show at the Convention Center in downtown. We couldn't attended the show with our Socal Smarties Meet-Up group, who went en-mass on Saturday, but Dan wore his Smart Car gear and we set out to support our little cars.

We arrived at nine-thirty and braced ourselves for a day battling crowds. Parking was fifteen dollars, cash only, on the center's lot and we had a decent spot within ten minutes. The entrance was well organized with several ticket kiosks for credit card sales, twelve dollars a person. We were in the center in five minutes. My only gripe about the organization, is we never were given, nor did we see, a map of the layout and vendors. We wandered between the halls and think that we saw it all.

The Smart USA booth was decent. They had several cars, both fun and functional with great graphics that captured the spirit of the brand. One of the first cars that you see when entering the area is a modified Smart with wings. One of the great things about Smarts, is they really lend themselves to doing fun modifications. i love seeing all of the unique cars that members bring to our meetup group. i wish that ours were owned, rather than leased, so that we can do some crazy modifications. Our cars always seem dull in comparison.

My favorite new Smart, is the electric. I love that it has a bike rack on the back. I say this, like I am a big biker, when I have a fancy mountain bike that has been gathering dust in my garage for five years after being ridden twice. However, maybe if it fit so cute on my car, i would take it out for some adventures! Just seeing it, fills me with love of the idea.

i normally favor grey or green colored cars, but the newest limited edition Smart is a pretty pearl white color named Ice Shine.

A lot of the signage at the booth was well done, but we found this one to be a bit underwhelming. it's trying to convey all of the cool wraps and designs that you can have on your Smart. I've definitely seen more exciting designs when we went to Dam on the Jam in October. Also, my color car is on this chart, the black and silver...with all of the crazy color combinations, that is a pretty vanilla choice to me!

The booth had a nice lay out, but we were all disappointed by the lack of employee involvement. There were five staff members, firmly planted behind a desk area, looking bored and talking amongst themselves, when they should have been interacting with visitors. it was a very popular booth and with a lot of people who had an interest in the cars. If they had enthusiastic employees manning the booth, they would have made a better impression and maybe some sales.

I was sad to see the following sign, listing the Southern California Smart Car Centers. We currently have to haul our car out to Beverly Hills for maintenance. Several employees have mentioned that new centers would be coming, but so far, this map is all old news. I would love the Mercedes Benz on Brand Blvd to open a Smart Center. Hint, hint.

in addition to the Smart USA booth, we were very eager to check out Smart Madness. Smart Madness is a customization shop that many people in our car group have used for cool modifications to their cars. We hear their company mentioned at every meet up. They were even co-sponsers of the Jam on the Dam meetup, where we participated in trying to break the world record of most cars on the Hoover Dam. We were very excited to talk to the people at the booth and check out what they had to offer.

The Smart Madness booth was the biggest let down at the auto show. First, they didn't have any really interesting custom cars. Most of what they had on display was completely ordinary. They only car that really peaked our interest was the Smart Cross Blade, a limited edition that is no longer available and something that we had never seen.

i feel like they really missed the mark, by failing to highlighting the services that they offer. The booth had very little in the way of signage or pictures. if we had not come specifically to see their booth, we would have walked right past it. They people running the booth never once smiled or approached us and they were not at all busy. We felt unwelcome and left with a bad feeling about Smart Madness. Here are a few other pictures from their booth.

in addition to our two Smarts, Dan has a Limited Edition Mustang RTR. He had it heavily customized through Galpin Auto Sports. We had a great time talking to the nice people at Galpin, some of whom worked on Dan's car. They didn't have any of the RTR's at the show, but here is one mean looking car that we saw.

Before we decided to lease our Smarts, we spend a lot of time considering getting a truck or jeep. We probably will get a big car down the line, although we have managed to do a bit of off roading with the Smarts and they held their own!

Here's one for my "So You're Dating a Brit' blog post series. The phone booth was in the Mini Cooper section, another cool small car!

The silver mirror car is very eye-catching, but I imagine that it would be a safety hazard on a sunny California day. Maybe it's only sold in Seattle?

We had a lot of fun watching the remote controlled cars go nuts on a course. Those cars really take a beating and are probably worth the five hundred dollar price tag. Dan got a great video of the cars in action. Keep a watch for the second jump!

i've saved the best for last. it was love at first sight when Dan and I locked eyes on our future vehicle at the Campagna Motors booth. We knew that we had to have it, although at first, it was one of several unique vehicles that we were deciding between. Our eye first went to the T-Rex 14 RR, a street legal race trike and in most states, you don't even need a motorcycle license to drive it. Here are a few pictures, the green is the RR and the red is a standard model, still fast though. The price difference is approximately five thousand.

We were sold on the T-Rex. I was already having dreams of epic road trips and I named our new toy, Frogger. However, we realized that it might not be a great idea, after Michel Paquette, the super nice Director of Sales and Marketing, let Dan climb into the driver's seat. He technically fit, but at nearly 6'4, it was a bit of a squeeze and just didn't seem safe.

Michel directed us over to the V13R Roadster and we were in love. it still has the speed and is sporty, but is a lot more roomy.

Campagna Motors is located in Montreal and the cars are sold in very limited quantities. it's fun, fast and completely unique. They will be opening a small boutique dealership in Los Angeles in early 2013. One of my favorite features on the roadster and trikes is that they both have two detachable suitcases. if i can learn to pack light, this would be great for traveling around the states. Besides loving the product, we really enjoyed talking to the warm, helpful staff at the Campagna Motors booth. Check out their website.

Campagna Motors

We had a fantastic time at the auto show. it runs through December 9th, check it out!

A note a few days later.. the nice people at Smart Madness responded to my complaint about their booth. The apologized for not greeting us, but also put out a good point about the exhaustion that takes place mid-event. Everyone is working long hours at the show and it's definitely felt more by smaller companies with less people to help man the booths. If you head out to the show this week and are not getting the info you need, approach the vendors. We will next time, lesson learned!

October in Canada - Scandinave Spa

Spending a cold, snowy day outside in a wet bathing suit might not sound ideal, but it's exactly how i spent my Saturday afternoon in Whistler. Being a Southern California native, i start complaining about cold weather the minute it dips down in the 70's. In fact, i have the heater blasting in my home right now, because we are having dreary overcast day outside. Thus proving the power of suggestion! i would never in a million years have thought that i would be okay wearing a bathing suit in the snow, but the lure of spending an afternoon in a day spa is a powerful motivator.

We decided that we had to experience the Scandinave Spa after seeing a brochure in our hotel lobby. The host at the Crystal lodge lit up with excitement as she described her favorite place in town. We were sold.

The Scandinave Spa is located just outside of the main village in Whistler and nestled in the woods. Just next to the parking lot is a beautiful path through the woods to the front entrance.

This picture was taken on the way out. i am all bundled up, but utterly relaxed.

it's also a bike trail! Seriously, it seems like everyone on the west coast of Canada is fit.

The main lobby to the spa is filled with comfy chairs, couches and warm fireplaces. Everyone is wearing robes and sipping little cups of lemon water. The Scandinave has a very strict quiet policy and the main lobby with adjacent cafe are the only places where you are allowed to chat. They actually have monitors walking the premises to enforce the quiet policy. i loved it, as you can actually hear nature as you are sitting in it! A luxury for this city girl.

We didn't plan ahead and get treatment appointments, we just showed up for the basic package, which includes use of the facilities for $58.00. We also added on a robe rental for $12.00. I only saw a few people with their own robes, pretty much everyone rents them. We were given two towels and a locker key.

The women's changing area was big, with large lockers to hold bulky winter jackets and bags. i kept one towel in the locker as recommended by the staff and used it at the end of the day for my shower. The locker room has several showers with shampoo, conditioner and soap and a vanity area with lotion and hairdryers.

We quickly changed into our swim suits with our robes as coverups. The first steps into the outdoor area, both of us barefoot, was piercingly cold. We skip/ran over to the Eucalyptus steam room to get inside fast.

i did not have my camera with me and i would imagine that taking pictures of people relaxing in their bathing suits would have been frowned upon. Here is the link to the spa's websites with some great pictures of the grounds.

Scandinave Spa

The spa has a suggested three step routine for maximum health benefits. The first step is warming up the body. This can be achieved by spending about fifteen minutes in the Eucalyptus steam room, the Finnish sauna or one of two hot tubs. The second step is a quick cool off in cold water. There was one ice cold pool and several outdoor showers. The last step is a break in an environment to bring your body back to it's normal temperature. in addition to sitting in the main lobby, the spa has two solariums lounges to bring the body back to regulation. Although it might be too cold in the winter, the grounds are filled with outdoor seating areas, such as hammocks and chairs around a fire pit.

One of the first things that we discovered, is that everything gets wet fast. Our towels and robe were wet within the first treatment. it's just something that you get used to quickly, as there is no way to stop it and everyone else is in the same boat. i would recommend bringing an extra robe and extra towels. The towels and robes from the spa are very thin and not very absorbent.

Even though it was snowing, the spa was packed. This meant that sometimes certain facilities were too crowded or that it was hard to find a hook to hang your robe and towels. i would suggest arriving when they first open, not in the middle of the afternoon.

The hot treatments warmed my body so much, that i found it was not a problem to be outside in a wet bathing suit. Once we went into our first steam room, i never felt cold. If anything, i felt too warm most of the time. The cold pools and showers didn't even feel freezing once my body was super heated.

We spent about three hours at the spa and midway through our experience, we went inside the cafe for a snack. They don't have a lot of variety, but the cheese and fruit plate that we got was absolutely awesome. We nibbled and had hot tea while watching the snow flurries fall into the steaming spas.

it is impossible to not feel relaxed while sitting in a spa in the middle of nature. One of my favorite things were the solariums, two rooms filled with lounge chairs, new age music and enormous windows facing the woods. i couldn't decide if i wanted to take a nap or watch the birds in the pine trees. Serene.

The Scandinave Spa is a must do when visiting Whistler.

Los Angeles Live Steamers

I'm a Los Angeles native and growing up, I have fond memories of the Griffith Park train, located next to the pony rides. Earlier this year, Dan introduced me to a much cooler train depot, also located in Griffith Park. The Los Angeles Live Steamers Railroad Museum is a club comprised of train enthusiast, who open their doors to the public for rides every Sunday (weather permitting) 10:45am-3pm.

This is the front of the newly remodeled train depot from our visit on November 25, 2012. They still had a lot of their decorations from their Halloween themed train rides, that they uses a fundraiser for this non-profit club.

The live steamers is the best deal in town. A train ride, lasting about fifteen minutes, is only three dollars a person. The child and adult prices are the same. The first time I visited the steamers was last February and I went in with fairly low expectations. The other Griffith Park train is dinky, completely geared towards kids. I was blown away by the elaborate set up at the Live Steamers. The club has quite a bit of land for the tracks in Griffith Park and the entire experience is far superior to the old Griffith Park trains. I feel like if people knew that this is down the road, that they wouldn't bother with the other train, as this one is really fun for both kids and adults.

On our February visit, we unwittingly visited on the third Sunday of the month and experience an extra surprise, Walt Disney's Carolwood Barn.

Here is my Dan in front of the Carolwood Barn.

The barn is located on the property of the Live Steamers and is only open for tours on the third Sunday of every month. I probably have to relinquish my Disney Fan Card, as I had no idea that this was even here.

Walt Disney was a train enthusiast and had his own live-steamer miniature in the backyard of his Holmby Hills estate located on Carolwood Drive. The Barn was originally located on the property and served as his workshop. It has been dubbed "The Birthplace of imagineering" as it was Walt's tinkering and thinking spot.

The barn was moved to Griffith park and is now filled with train and Disneyana memorabilia. There were plenty of enthusiastic volunteers on hand to answer all manner of Disney and train questions. The members of the club are one of the key components in making the visit to the Steamers special as they are so nice and welcoming. The suggested donation to visit the barn was five dollars and well-worth every penny.

We were given stickers for our donation!

Conductor Dan, standing in front of a car from the Disneyland Railroad.

I cannot say enough wonderful things about the Los Angeles Live Steamers. It's a great place for all ages and a bargain. It's definitely a hidden gem in Southern California.