THIS MORNING all eyes are on the television for any news of whether Interstate 5 has reopened during the night. The fire is still out of control and firefighters are still battling the flames. There is no word on whether we can get through, but we decide to proceed as if it will be open, and adjust our route if necessary later. A continental breakfast is served for guests in the motel lobby (and all the cats lurking around the door), and after eating we start out for Southern California. Picking up state highway 99 in Visalia, we drive south through miles of agricultural land on a freeway strewn with litter and debris. We will note this throughout California, that even with the same sort of Adopt-a-Highway programs found in Ohio and Pennsylvania, California has the dirtiest roadsides we've seen.

A stop for gas on the way brings the confirmation that I-5 was indeed reopened last night and traffic is flowing normally. While I get gasoline and information, Linda walks across the street to the postoffice in hopes of getting the ZIP codes she needs to mail some postcards. She is thwarted by the fact that no one in the postoffice speaks English. Even acting out her request fails to get through to them and she gives up the idea entirely. We head up into the Tehachape Mountains (rolling hills, really) and on through Frazier, Gorman, and the Tejon Pass. Approaching Castaic, we see two thick white plumes of smoke that reveal the location of the continuing fires. Not long after that, we begin to see the evidence of last night's conflagration, as we drive through several miles of blackened hillsides, many still smoldering. We pass a line of fire trucks parked in a row, the lettering on their sides identifying them as units from all over the Los Angeles area. We see road signs charred and melted from the intense heat that was here until only a few hours ago. Had this been a highway less vital for the survival of the entire southern California area, it would probably not have been opened yet. There are no homes here, but as we come down out of the hills into Castaic we can see where the blackened brush extends to within a few hundred feet of some of the buildings.

WE COULD ALSO have seen where Interstate 405, the San Diego Freeway (also called the Hollywood Freeway), connects with us. That is, we could if we'd been looking for it. That would be the freeway that takes us to Universal City. As we continue on down Interstate 5 (the Golden State Freeway) I begin to realize that I've missed a turnoff, but using my memory and sense of direction, I exit at Burbank Blvd. and we drive cross-town to find Universal Studios. Traffic is heavy (it's lunchtime) and markings are scarce and hard to spot. Quite accidentally, we find ourselves on Cahuenga Blvd. in just the left turn lane for turning to Universal. The traffic here is even worse, and only one or two cars are getting to turn each traffic light cycle. We are several cars back, so we have a bit of a wait.

Linda glances over at the car next to us and says, "Hey, isn't that Mary and Lou?!!" Sure enough, despite our divergent routes (and the fact that they, too, are not sure where they're going), we've managed to end up at the same intersection at the same time. We open a gap and let them into our lane, and eventually we all meet at the CityWalk section of Universal, just outside the main gate.

Several prizes are given, and Lizzy is one of the first winners. There is absolutely no doubt that she likes this place. (Oh, and by the way, the burgers may well be the World's Greatest).

Our first order of business is the studio tram tour, and it's just as good or better a tour than we remembered it from when we were last here thirteen years ago. Despite the fire that burned the California park's back lot down several years ago, the new Universal has rebuilt it entirely, to our complete enjoyment. Unlike the Florida facility, which is primarily an amusement theme park, the Hollywood Universal Studios is a working film studio. This results in a more interesting tour for those who want to see behind the scenes in the movie business. For example, we get to see the working sets for an upcoming television production, Mrs. Santa Claus, which Angela Lansbury is starring in.  On several occasions, the tour bus is required to wait while a scene was being filmed.

We all head next for some of the major thrill rides here, beginning with Back to the Future. When we visited Universal Studios in Florida, in 1992, Linda was suffering from Meinier's Disease, a chronic condition of sudden, disabling dizzy spells. Unable to go on any of the good thrill rides, and with no studio back lot tour to speak of, the day was boring and frustrating for her. She no longer has the dizzy spells (Meinier's runs it course in seven to ten years with the end just as abrupt as the onset). Now she wants to see and do everything the park has to offer and, map in hand, that's just what we set out to do. We separate from the Waters at this point, though, because they have an opportunity to participate in the taping of a real television game show and we have other delights in mind.

By the time we leave Universal at 9:30, we have gone on the Jurassic Park water ride and every other ride we wanted. We have seen the special effects displays of Backdraft and Cinemagic. We have seen the spectacular stunts and pyrotechnic special effects of the live Waterworld show, and the full-blown musical extravaganza of The Beetlejuice Rockin' Graveyard Revue

We have had a wonderful time, and as we drive down the Hollywood Freeway, Linda gets a chance to see the glittering skyline of Los Angeles at night. We arrive at our hotel, the Comfort Park Suites in Anaheim, again not long after Mary, Lou, and Lizzy.

We will be staying two nights here, which is a luxury on this trip. Mary has taken special care to ensure that it is an enjoyable room, a suite actually, with a separate living room. Had it not been for the suite we stayed in just last night, this one would have been more impressive. It has all the right stuff… televisions in both the bedroom and the separate living room, a refrigerator and microwave, and a large bathroom. It is a very narrow room, though, and the furniture shows a lot of wear (and age, too; the style and colors are from the sixties and early seventies).

We get our baggage moved in and walk down the street to Jack-In-The-Box to pick up a quick dinner. Life is good. Linda falls asleep right away.

I should have, too, but my attention has been confiscated by a movie on TV. It is Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers and I watch it to the end.

Oh well, how much sleep do I really need? We're not driving anywhere tomorrow, just going to spend a quiet day… at Disneyland.

We drove 252 miles today.

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Story and original photography copyright ©1996-1997 by John Lipman. All rights reserved.
Descriptions, observations, and characterizations expressed are solely those of the author.
"Fire" theme copyright © by Bruce Springsteen; "Macarena" copyright © 1993 by Antonio Romero and Rafael Ruiz