Yes, I’m quoting Step Brothers. For those of you familiar with the movie you get the reference in the title. For those of you who don’t… what the hell is wrong with you?! How could have not seen this movie?? It might be the funniest movie ever. But I digress, in case you have not guessed I’m on Catalina Island for the 34th annual JazzTrax Festival! My family has an interesting history with jazz. My aunt who passed away a few years back loved jazz. My uncle (her brother) is a calypso-jazz musician. I never really cared for jazz music when I was younger I was into Prince, Michael Jackson, New Edition, pretty much all 80’s and 90’s music. Sue me, I’m a child of the Mid to late ’80s/’90s! This week I was supposed to attend the TBEX travel conference but it was canceled and pushed to April 2022. This sorta came into place at the last minute. I checked online for tickets to the Jazz festival and it was almost completely sold out and I got the very last ticket for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday so I put together a travel plan and itinerary at the last minute, and here I am. I think my aunt would have liked this.
So let me say from the jump I put this together in like 3 days. I normally take a month or more to research and prep and do my due diligence. So this was a rush. But I had a credit with Southwest airlines and I have been to Catalina island once before when I was younger so I’m familiar but this was a memory from when I was like ten and all I remember was being on the ferry, it was a day trip and we went on a Bison tour. But after some hiccups I got it done. So here we go….
Day 1: 10/13/2021- 5:43 a.m. Lyft ride to the airport. Taking the Southwest flight to Long Beach. I don’t want to drive, I have a credit with the airline that paid the ticket and I’m sorry to call me lazy but I’d rather save the wear and tear on my car, parking fees, and take a 50 min flight than a 4.5 hr drive into Long Beach. It was the right choice. The plane was half full so I had an entire row of seats to myself, no middle seat this flight! Flight left on time (6:55 a.m.) Got into LGB a little after 8:00 a.m. Took an Uber to the Catalina Express. Checked in and boarded the ferry at 9:20 a.m. and I’m off to Catalina at 9:50 a.m. While on the Ferry I noticed it was senior-laden. With a sprinkle of people around my age and families. Which makes sense Catalina seems to have a laid-back feel that the senior community would enjoy. This is perfect for me I need a relaxing few days of jazz and quiet.
The ferry ride to the island was quick. Got in a little after 10:50 a.m. Short walk to the hotel from there now my check-in isn’t until 3:00 p.m. But I’m hoping for early check-in. Staying at the La Paloma Las Flores. It is very quaint has a little Spanish villa feel to it. Which I sorta liked. Was not a modern hotel by any stretch but it is not meant to be, it kinda felt like I was staying in a room from the late 70’s/’80s which was right up my alley. The staff was friendly and accommodating any questions or concerns were addressed. I was able to check in early but my room would not be ready for an hour so I locked my carry-on left it at reception and went to grab a bite until I could go into my room.
11:56 a.m. had lunch at Antonio’s Pizzeria & Cabaret.it was pretty good but I don’t know if that was because I was starving. 12:40 p.m. allowed to check-in early. The room was clean and nicely put together. The only issue was there was no iron or ironing board. But the receptionist said she could give me an iron if I needed it. Took a much-needed nap around 1:30 p.m. After my nap, I freshened up and went you the local supermarket to grab supplies, snacks, and drinks. After a long day with a long weekend ahead of me I decided to call it a day. I have some actives planned and maybe check out the nightlife scene if I get a chance. Great start to the trip even though I’ve been going since early this morning so I’m gonna grab a good night’s rest and be ready to go tomorrow.
Day 2: 10/14.2021- Slept in until 11:00 a.m. I’m realizing that travel and getting settled in takes a lot out of me or I’m in horrible shape. At any rate, I skipped breakfast took a shower then went to grab a bite at Luau Larry’s before my Undersea Expedition tour at 2:00 p.m. Bought some souvenirs after that I took a nice stroll down to the pier (a very beautiful day out) saw a place that sold funnel cakes (put that in the memory bank for later) and went to the half submarine half boat. It was pretty cool, the group which consisted of about 15-20 people went below deck where there were seats with windows and for about 45 minutes the crew tours the harbor feeds the fish and we get a birds-eye view of aquatic life at Catalina. Then towards the end, we circled back towards the pier and were able to enjoy the view topside. Very relaxing. I enjoyed myself. Of course, after that, I grabbed a strawberry funnel cake and some chili cheese fries and then went back to the room to recoup before the game.4:30 p.m. I headed over to The Locker Room Sports Bar a local spot. But decent set up to watch sports and had some cool posters. The drinks were cheap so it was a good spot for me to settle in and watch the Thursday night football game most people were coming in to watch the Dodgers playoff game. I left at halftime and watched the rest of the game from my room I need to turn in early cause I had a big day tomorrow. Zipline!!!
Day 3: 10/15/2021- I skipped breakfast yet again cause I’m just not a breakfast kind of guy I’m more brunch. But I’ll get better at that. I left the hotel around 12:20 p.m. to walk down towards Descanso Beach Club cause that is where I was told to meet up with my Zipline group. I checked in around 12:50 p.m. and the activity was to start at 1:00 p.m. I was nervous cause A: I have never ziplined before and B: I had yet to use my GoPro camera and this was the first trial run at it so I just know I’m gonna screw it up! It was a group of about 7 or 8 of us they got us into the gear and we took a van up the mountain. Our instructors were great! Danny and Triana both were very helpful and nice and had given us a lot of knowledge about the island I was not aware of. Like how the Bison came to be on the island and what it was like growing up there. So basically, I was the only solo person and the last one to go on each line. There was a total of 5 jumps to zipline down the mountain and I just wanted to do the one! But I got over my fear and went for it. It was awesome! Had not felt anything like that before and as I zipped down the mountain I got better and more confident. Of course, I messed up using my GoPro (rookie) But I did capture my first and last zip (I will post those videos on Instagram) so you can see my confidence being different. Anyway, the group was fun and friendly most had done it before and were very encouraging towards me. Which I appreciated. After we zipped down to the final spot we all said our goodbyes and I did it! Whew! Now back to the room to freshen up and grab dinner before my first night at the JazzTrax festival!
Around 4:30 p.m. I grab a nice steak dinner and then at 6:15 p.m. I make my way towards the beach club and the Jazz festival. I was excited. Tonight was Nicholas Cole and then Tom Scott and “The LA Express”. Unfortunately, Nicholas got covid and couldn’t make it but the band that filled in for him was great and he called in and spoke to the crowd so that was nice of him. Tom and The LA Express were awesome. Very fun to see live and experience. The evening went about 3 hours and the drinks were overpriced but I’ve come to expect that sort of thing at venues then they try and justify these ridiculous price hikes as a way of saying “this is how we make our money”. I need to see the books on this. At any rate, I enjoyed the evening and bought a shirt as a souvenir to commemorate the association and by 10:45 pm the show ended and I was done for the day.
Day 4: 10/16/2021- Today was pretty pedestrian. I woke up and switched to another room (sounds pretty inconvenient right..wrong!) most hotels don’t offer a turn-down service due to covid the only way to circumvent this little technicality is to change rooms. After that, I took a walk and got some selfies for the website, and had lunch around noon. Watched some college football. Took a nap around 1:45 p.m. and then woke up got pizza then got ready for my 2nd night at the jazz festival. Tonight’s entertainment was Gregg Karukas. Again very much enjoyed it. Tonight I cut out early cause I wanted to wake up early for Sunday because that was my last full day on the island.
Day 5: 10/17/2021- Woke up around 9:00 a.m. to get ready for my day. I watched football and then went to the pier for lunch and grabbed a hot dog and churro (I know, not the healthiest of eating habits but I will get better). After the games were done I got ready for dinner and my last night for the Jazz festival. Went back to Steve’s Steak House too good not to be my last meal there. I came here on Friday evening and it was great! I also tried the creme brulee for dessert. Yum. Started chatting it up with the owner (Steve) he was nice and welcoming. By 6:40 p.m. I was off to check in and watch “Roman Street” and Rick Braun both great shows. Roman Street was amazing they have a Carlos Santana sound to their music but also a unique vibe all their own. I highly recommend checking them out if you ever get the chance. Then as a treat, Dave Coz showed up on sax during the Rick Braun show it was amazing. Stayed till the end and I was all jazzed out. What an amazing experience.
Day 6: 10/18/2021- Checked out of the hotel at 10:10 a.m. On the ferry at 11:20 a.m. to get back to Long Beach, I took the time to reflect on my trip to Catalina …the things I enjoyed, how I could be stuck at my old job at that exact moment wishing I was somewhere else, how perfect the day was, and so on. The experience would have been more meaningful if my aunt had been there. I miss her so much as she was a joy to be around, and I hope she was smiling down on me. My Uber took me to the airport and I was on my way back to Vegas by 3:40 p.m. It was a long day of travel and I was tired. Overall it was quite relaxing and fun. There was not much nightlife on Catalina from what I could tell, so that was a letdown. But that’s not what this island is all about. It’s more of a relaxing getaway, and if you want to mix in a few fun activities along the way, then great! Overall this trip is for people who want to relax and unwind, retirees, and couples/families looking to spend time together. So that was my trip. I hope you enjoyed the blog and found the information useful in case you want to visit the island someday for the Jazz Festival…I guess there is not much left to say except… “F@*%ing Catalina Jazz Festival” lol. Well until my next adventure…
In loving memory of Marylou Williams
