California Official Visitor's Guide 2024 - 35

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ULTIMATE
PLAYGROUND
6
Cosplay Is
Our Culture
Every July, 150,000-plus nerds converge
on San Diego to attend pop culture panels,
pose for photos with celebs, attend sneak
previews of upcoming fi lms and TV shows, and
haggle over that near-mint copy of Fantastic
Four #48. A shockingly high percentage
of these Comic-Con attendees arrive
decked out as superheroes, science fi ction
characters, and fantasy favorites. Barbie
and Indiana Jones were among the most
popular cosplay characters in 2023, but let's
give props to TikTok fave Andrea Seale, who
delivered a dead-on impersonation of Deirdre
Beaubeirdre-Jamie Lee Curtis' character from
Everything Everywhere All at Once.
3
4
THERE'S ALWAYS MONEY IN
THE BANANA STAND
Never-nudes, Motherboys, and all fans of Arrested
Development should head straight to Orange County for a
truly Bluth-y experience. Rival outlets on Balboa Island in
Newport Beach-Dad's Donut & Bakery Shop and Sugar 'n Spice-
claim to be the home of the " original " frozen banana showcased on
the TV show. This real-life banana stand feud was featured in season
three of the cult favorite when Gob decides to open his Banana Shack
right across from the Bluth Banana Stand on Balboa Island. Is one
real-world confection better than the other? Maeby.
Go to the Movies with
Quentin Tarantino
OK, there's no guarantee that the director of
Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, and Kill Bill will sit
next to you and off er to share his popcorn, but
Tarantino is the owner and head programmer
of the New Beverly Cinema in Los Angeles.
" I want the New Beverly to be a bastion for
35mm fi lms, " the celebrated cinephile says. " I
want it to stand for something. When you see
a fi lm on the New Beverly calendar, you don't
have to ask whether it's going to be shown in
DCP or in 35mm. You know it's playing in 35
because it's the New Beverly. "
5
Gravity Is Optional
You'll feel like you dropped into an
episode of The X-Files at The Mystery Spot
in Santa Cruz. Discovered in 1939, this
" gravitational anomaly " comprises an area
150 feet in diameter where certain laws of
physics are called into question. A variety of
theories have been bandied about to explain
this old-school (and extremely popular)
attraction, including a buried spaceship, a
hole in the ozone layer, and something called
" radiesethesia. " Will you want to believe, like
Mulder? Or will you get all Scully and try to
debunk the experience? The truth is in here.
7
Our Biggest Volcano
Is a Spiritual Vortex
The otherworldy beauty of 14,179-foot
Mt. Shasta has inspired countless trips to
Northern California and a fair share of legends
too. Our favorite centers on the Lemurians,
a tribe of advanced beings from a long-lost
sunken continent who carved tunnels beneath
the dormant volcano and occasionally appear
on the slopes dressed in white robes. Andrew
Oser, who leads spiritual tours of the mountain,
was noncommittal about the Lemurians but
did off er this: " My favorite way to describe Mt.
Shasta is that it's a 14,000-foot mirror that
refl ects back the deepest truth in your heart. "
8
We Think Our Burgers
Belong in a Museum
The cheeseburger was invented in
Pasadena in 1924 and arguably
4 and arguably
The chee ebur er was in ented in
asadena in 1
perfected two dozen years later when
In-N-Out opened its fi rst drive-thru
in Baldwin Park, attracting
legions of fans. Today you
can visit a replica of the
original In-N-Out-the
photogenic mini-museum
is just down the road
do en y ars later when
opened its fi rst drive-thru
, attracting
Today you
can visit a replica of the
photogenic mini-museum
original In-N-Out-the
from the original location
double-doubles as a
from the original location
and double-doubles as a
souvenir stand.
Dwyane Wade, NBA legend
" I have fallen in love with taking
long drives throughout the state,
especially exploring central and
southern California. My friends and
I will pack up our
clubs to golf at
Pebble Beach or
pile in the car
to taste wine in
Paso Robles. "
Francis Ford Coppola,
fi lmmaker
Bonnie Wright,
actor and author
" I love the drive from the Napa
Valley wine country to the Sonoma
wine country through the Alexander
Valley. This is
probably the
most beautiful
45-minute
trip existing
anywhere. "
" I love the subtle nuances of our
seasons. When you really stop
and pay attention, nature is
changing and
organizing
throughout the
year, bringing
us welcomed
transitions. "
Stephanie Izard, chef
" My favorite drive yet was up to
Santa Barbara. We stayed at a
gorgeous hotel on the beach, hung
out by the pool, and walked around
the most picturesque
little town
I've ever seen. We
felt like we were
on a movie set
the entire time. "
VISITCALIFORNIA.COM | 35

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California Official Visitor's Guide 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of California Official Visitor's Guide 2024