Bella has been working weekends for the past few months due to her responsibilities as Chair of a local music organization.  As a result, she is LONG overdue for a golf and spa resort vacation.  I suggested she may like the La Quinta Resort & Club where I spent a weekend back in 1996.  As I recall, Arnold Schwarzenegger stayed at the resort the week before I arrived.  Back in the day, stars such as Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Ginger Rogers, Bette Davis, Robert Montgomery and Erroll Flynn were guests at the resort.  In fact, Frank Capra wrote the script “It’s a Wonderful Life” at the resort.

“Are you really listening…or are you just waiting for your turn to talk?”

— Robert Montgomery, Actor

Elfie in our Master Bedroom

Upon arrival we are fortunate enough that our “standard room” isn’t ready so they upgrade us to a 975 square foot “Spa Villa Suite”(casita).  It features 25 foot ceilings, a peek-a-boo fireplace from bedroom to bathroom, a full kitchen, a living room, a dining table, two patios and a second bathroom.  The promotional deal we bought online includes discount vouchers for spa, breakfast and golf.

Large Patio off Master Bedroom

Jacuzzi Tub: Master Bathroom

You can see the peek-a-boo fireplace on the LEFT in the photo.

Kitchen

This will come in handy for storing my Guinness Draught and blending fresh watermelon juice.

Living Room

Given the time of year, the fireplaces will “collect dust”.

Pool…Mere Steps Away

Our casita is pictured in the BOTTOM LEFT of the photo.

Our Casita

More space than we need, but “Livin La Vida Loca” is rarely a bad thing.

Patio off of the Kitchen

Driveway from Accommodations

These are the smallest mountains you’ll see here.

“Ironing Board Surfer”?

En route to dinner we observe a portly chap  in his late 20s’ or early 30s’ cautiously circumnavigating his way down this baby mountain (shown above).  Tucked underneath one of his arm’s “like a surfboard” is a 5-foot long ironing board (which I recognize from our casita).  My deduction is that this apparent guest of the resort may be “14 eggs shy of a carton”.  And this truly gives new meaning to — “Butthole Surfer”.

For dinner we dine at Mariachi Mexican Cuisine in La Quinta.  The food is very good and authentic.  The only thing I don’t love is the cilantro salad dressing and the chipotle salad dressing.  Both taste more of ranch dressing than cilantro or chipotle.

The marinated pork torta sandie with thin and airy bread is beyond good and the marinated steak in our salads is great tasting as well.  The fried ice cream is probably the best I’ve ever had.  I order a piece of flan to-go which is quite good but not on the amazing level.

Flan from Mariachi’s

The texture of the flan is a little firmer than I like (and less “eggy”) as you can tell from the sharp edges.

Twenty-Six (cafe)

Our voucher allows us to order whatever we want including the brunch buffet.

Fresh Melon Juice

I don’t recall having had cantaloupe juice in the past but it is nearly as nice tasting as the fruit itself.

Eggs Benedict

Bella says it’s one of the best she’s ever had.

“Everything Including the Kitchen Sink”

This dish has corned beef hash with peppers, onions, cheese and “eggs over easy” on top.  This is super delicious and serves as a reminder that I need to eat corned beef a little more often.

After breakfast we hit the on-site Spa La Quinta for deep tissue massages.  My therapist Alvaro is super knowledgeable in regards to stretches to help loosen the muscles in some of my trouble areas.  I say this because one of the exercises he recommends is the same one that my athletic trainer and chiropractor had recommended I do.

“BEEP!  BEEP!”

We are playing the “Pete Dye Dunes Course”  when this road runner motors past us so rapidly I was barely able to capture a photo via my point-and-shoot camera.  Bella has never seen one before and thought it was as cute as it was funny.

Bella Lines up in the Fairway

The greens on this course are seriously “Sid Vicious” with so many featuring lengthy extreme downward slopes, multilayered grade changes and more hazards than I’ve ever seen (i.e. water, vegetation, sand bunkers etc.) surrounding the greens.

A couple of holes have a few modestly sized “Grass Valleys” approximately 6-8 feet deep and located fairly close to the greens.  These are not deemed “hazards” but are an added “pain in the corn” as you do your best to “club” your way out of it, without ending up in another one of them located nearby.

Nice views on “The Dunes” course

On one hole with a water hazard I use the “big dog” (driver) and hammer a ball low and hard to the point where it skips 7-8 times across the top of the water before finally submerging.  Even funnier than that “skimmer” is that my Nike golf belt breaks on the swing and I nearly “droped trou” with my shorts ending up wrapped around my ankles.  Bella is video recording this drive and I may end up posting it here.  We’ll see if my vanity can endure.

Bella Searching for her Ball

A serious W.T. (a.k.a. “Whiskey Tango”, a.k.a. white trash) male who lives in a house on the course is having a full-blown one-sided shouting fest which echoes throughout the hole we are playing.  I try to relax while taking my swings but the noise is so loud and disturbing due to the intense rage.  At times there is a momentary pause before Whiskey Tango “tees off” again.

“Pete Dye’s Dunes Course”

The layers and layers of mountains are stunning.

“Elfie” Lines up for her Drive

And her Finish…

The Sun Will be Setting Soon…

On this hole I “smoke” a ball low and hard with my driver and due to the thinner than normal layer of sand in the bunker (see MIDDLE LEFT area of photo) my ball bounces seemingly forever running all the way to the end of this lengthy bunker.

Open Air Dining @ Birba

This Palm Springs restaurant would not disappoint.

Nonna’s Meatballs

The portion is small but the taste is delicious.  The sauce isn’t too sweet, acidic, tomatoey or salty.

Antipasto Salad:  “Daily Special”

Gnocchi in a Cream Sauce

Pizza Pie: “Daily Special”

The toppings include arugula, prosciutto, mozzarella, tomato sauce and artichoke.  It is as good as Mario Batali’s Pizzeria Mozza of Newport Beach.  The crust has some char, is crisp but still “poofy”.

Berry Lemon Panna Cotta

This mason jar is filled with raspberries, blackberries and strawberries and has a soft and creamy texture.  Simply amazing!

Courtyard Shops, Cafe’s and Restaurants

This is all on-site at our resort.

Brunch Buffet @ Twenty-Six

After breakfast we have scalp massages at Spa La Quinta.  Before hitting the road for home Bella blends us some fresh watermelon juice in our kitchen.  Today will be in the 90s’ so this will surely hit the spot on the drive home.

“I like my whiskey old and my women young.”

— Errol Flynn, Actor

THE END!!!