Unsual questions.
I have now reached the mark of answering 28,140 questions asked me by the arriving visitors. Here are some of the more unusual ones:
"Does Avalon sell American newspapers and magazines?"
"I know that Islanders have a different boat schedule than the tourists, so how do I get on one of your boats?" "Where do I go to get to the Undersea Museum?"
"Where is the road to the ''Mainland?"
"What language do you natives speak?"
Unsual questions.
I have now reached the mark of answering 28,140 questions asked me by the arriving visitors. Here are some of the more unusual ones:
"Does Avalon sell American newspapers and magazines?"
"I know that Islanders have a different boat schedule than the tourists, so how do I get on one of your boats?" "Where do I go to get to the Undersea Museum?"
"Where is the road to the ''Mainland?"
"What language do you natives speak?"
What does Avalon need?
I continually hear locals sharing their thoughts on what Avalon needs. These suggestions have become quite long and divergent and so I decided to start making a list. Much to my surprise, virtually all of these Avalon “must haves,” we once had: youth center; senior center; public gym; public pool; 18-hole golf course; horse stables; regulation bowling alleys; roller rink; night clubs; dinner with comedy club; murder mysteries; jazz night; cabaret, etc., for adults; nightly outdoor concerts; strolling mariachis; aquarium; exercise bars and yoga classes on the beach; afternoon movie matinees; monthly classic movies; different movies every night (this could be accomplished by having on Friday/Saturday nights a second feature); street dancing; free youth dances in the Casino; and Valentine, Halloween, Memorial Day, and Sunday afternoon tea dances in the Casino Ballroom; the Avalon Community Theatre (Sean Brannock is working to keep this going); the Avalon Community Chorus; piano bars and buffet meals in restaurants; a child wading pool; shuffle board; ping pong; trampoline; and badminton in the parks; puppet shows for the youngsters; Motor Cycle Races; Classic Car Races; Shakespeare On The Beach; Community Fish Fries; dry cleaning; church choirs; diving bell; bird park; road to Ben Weston; golf cart drive-in movies; lacrosse; Blues Festival; Swing Camp; Chili Cook-Off; International Day; Square Dance And Country Festival; Dixieland Festival; luaus; beach tug-of-war; dance classes, etc. This is by no means an exhaustive list. It does prove, however, that at one time Avalon did satisfy substantially more needs of both the locals and visitors. I can envision a priority list being established by the city, utilizing local and visitor input, to see what the present needs are and what can be brought back. Considering the diminishing amount of land available, any new building proposals might want to take into considering these possible needs.
Trivia answer: Stairway To Nowhere at Descanso Beach. The Banning Brothers (William, Hancock, and Joseph) took over Catalina Island in 1892. Judge Joseph Banning set up residence in Descanso Beach in 1893. This location was cut off from the rest of Avalon by the Little Sugar Loaf. In order to find a way to have access to the main part of town, a road was built (this will be explained in next week's column) and this present stairway simply leads to a flattened area on the hillside where the Banning family and their guests could have a look out spot to enjoy the breath taking view of Avalon and the mainland. I have been told that small bands and other musical groups would perform from this platform to entertain those in Descanso Beach and even continued during the early days of the St. Catherine Hotel, which was at Descanso Beach from 1918-66.
I would greatly appreciate feedback on what I write and equally important would be to know what you want my column to specifically address as well as what trivia and questions that you would like to have answered. chuckliddell.catalina@gmail.com.
