Secret California: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure

Where can you walk on a beach full of broken pottery? What smells might you discover at the country's only perfume museum? Is there any evidence that Big Foot is real? It's no surprise that these are some of the questions that you might ask about California. In fact, the very title of this book, Secret California: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure, may seem like an oxymoron to those who live here and already know about the quirky sides of California's cities, beaches, wine regions, and mountains. Learn the fascinating tales behind all the points of interest and discover some new places to look for adventure. Watch silent movies at the theater that made Charlie Chaplin famous, or see your own name in lights at the first Neon Museum. Whether it's an ancient society's crypt or the second city underneath the Capital, this guide leaves no stone unturned. During the more than forty-six years author Ruth Carlson has lived in California she's made it a point to seek out the oddity's locals love and try to keep just for themselves. She's sharing them here with locals and visitors alike so that you too can experience all that California's been keeping a secret.


About the Author
For more than four decades Ruth Carlson has been lucky to call California home. An award-winning international travel writer, she hasn't found a better place to live than the Golden State. Over the years she's lived in San Francisco, beach towns, mountain villages and wine regions. The author of Secret San Francisco: a guide to the weird, wonderful and obscure, her articles have appeared in various publications including airline magazines, Bon Appetit, the San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury news, and several anthologies.