travel palm springs
collard greens and chased it with the Chasing Venue Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand—a heavenly buttermilk crunch with a divine citrus snap from the wine—heavenly. Sundays at Rio Azul was my second stop on the drag-go-round and the ladies
didn’t disappoint. The attendance was a little light due to the International Bear Convergence—apparently bears don’t like glitter in their fur—but regardless, Miss Rusty Waters and the rest of the queens put on a great show. The Mexican fare served up by the restaurant was delish, but look out for those bottomless mimosas! Though, in the words of Hostess Waters, “The more you drink, the better we look!” For more information or to make a reservation, go to
rioazulpalmsprings.com.
TIME TO ESCAPE My third and fourth days were spent at the Escape Resort, also located on
San Lorenzo Road, number 641 to be exact. Directly across from the Santiago (now wasn’t that convenient), Escape has a very different vibe, though the staff is just as obliging. It’s a bit smaller, which for me makes it all the sweeter and it has an updated ‘50s motel sensibility; with fresh new furnishings and lush desert vegetation to shade your day’s lounging at the pool. I have a fond place in my heart for a “motel sensibility,” since I grew up living and working in the one my grandparents built on the balmy south shore of Lake Superior. No really, it was balmy... At least for a couple months during the summer! For more information or to book a reservation, go to
escapepalmsprings.com. Saturday, I tore myself out of my lounge chair for a quick trip to the Moorten Botanical Gardens, the internationally famous living museum with over 3,000 examples of desert cacti and other desert plants (
moortengarden.com). It’s been there since the ‘30s and is a fascinating way to know your local flora and fauna. Sunday was spent wandering the Palm Springs Vintage Market in downtown’s core (
palmspringsvintagemarket.com). A nice, wide range of vintage, retro and mid-century modern merchandise, though I resisted the urge to fill my trunk.
ON THE MOVE Day four brought me another quick move, this time right into the heart of Downtown at the Hyatt Palm Springs. I checked into a great upper suite overlooking the pool early Monday morning, because I needed to dash off for a 9:30 tour appointment. The Desert Adventure Eco-Tour Company has been around longer than any other tour group in the Coachella Valley and has several routes: City and Celebrity Home Tour, Windmills to Whitewater, Joshua Tree,
Indian Canyons, San Andreas Fault and Painted Canyons/Mecca Hills. Taking a ride in their distinctive Red Jeeps is the best ticket to understanding all that the Coachella Valley has to offer. I took the City and Celebrity Home Tour: a 90-minute ride through the manicured streets of Palm Springs, with more than a little information about Tinseltown’s many haciendas that populate the area. Bob Gross or “Rainbow Spirit” as his card says, “Offers a generous dose
of history and just a bit of gossip” about the famed desert getaways of people like Elizabeth Taylor, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Dinah Shore, Michael Jackson and of course, the king of sequins, Liberace. There’s a new breed in town too, many younger stars are taking up residence—Hello Leonardo DeCaprio—who recently purchased the beautiful Dinah Shore modernist masterpiece. Apparently, Malibu is so very passé! For more information or to make a reservation, go to
red-jeep.com.
FINAL DAYS My last two big meals for the weekend were at the Hyatt’s bar and their signa-
ture restaurant, Share. I kept it simple the first night and went with the Summer Vegetable Risotto and the recommended Albarino, thought I don’t’ remember the vintner (bad reporter, bad). Risotto is easily done badly, thankfully that was not the case here. The next evening’s meal took place during my last quiet eve- ning and included great conversation with a couple vacationing from Oregon. A tasty Ceasar Salad to start and a lovely Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc (tad too lemony for the dish, though it’s one of my favorites), followed with a Boneless Pork Loin Chop with pineapple-lime chutney, fingerling potatoes and a green bean salad. It was a perfect finale to a long and very busy six days.
What I have to offer about Palm Springs is this: It truly is the perfect “stayca-
tion” I learned more about the city and its surroundings on this last trip than in the last ten times I’ve visited the desert’s gay hotspot. The McCallum Theater and its amazing array of entertainment, the Palm Springs Art Museum, the Architecture and Design Center and the Desert Arts Center are easily worth an afternoon each and the myriad of other events that the city has to offer goes way, way beyond the White Party and The Dinah so famous in the LGBT world. I mean; Modernism Week and the Palm Springs Fine Art Fair alone are worth a trip. And seriously, the Aerial Tramway... How had I missed that?
For more information on all things in the Coachella Valley, check out the Palm Springs Visitors Center at 2901 North Palm Canyon Drive.You can call them at 800.347.7746 or by going to
visitpalmsprings.com.
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RAGE monthly | MARCH 2016
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