December 2007 – Page 2 – content.whygo.com

In Pasadena, two worlds that make up LA blend together. Pasadena doesn’t have the pomp of Bel Air or the prestige of Beverly Hills, but it does have a fair share of mansions and Mazerati dealerships and Bentleys in driveways. It’s also got a fair amount of poverty, but none of the widespread destitution that characterizes the poorest parts of Los Angeles.

Pasadena borders east LA and Glendale and extends south to South Pasadena, although
“South Pas” as it’s known, is its own city, separate from Pasadena in every way except geography and name.

Pasadena Roses

Pasadena’s most famous event each year is the Rose Parade, which takes place January 1st and runs down Colorado Boulevard as part of the Tournament of Roses which includes the Rose Parade and the Rose Bowl. The Tournament of Roses takes over the city for the first week of the year and influences Pasadena all year round. Businesses are named “The Rose Bowl Hotel” or “Rose Bowl Flower Shop” and the city transforms its store windows and face to exude the spirit of the season.

Old-Town

Old-Town Pasadena is basically downtown Pasadena. This central shopping district is home to big retail chains and restaurants and finds itself packed with shoppers on weekends. Metered street parking is usually available on weekdays, on weekends or at night when the traffic picks up your best bet is to head to one of the city’s parking structures at Green St between Raymond and Fair Oaks, 45 S. Delacey Avenue between Colorado and Green St.

Old-Town embodies the mainstream commercial aspect of Pasadena and it is from this standard that the hipsters in surrounding areas of east Los Angeles rebel. Unlike Rodeo Drive or other expensive shopping areas, the feel of Old-Town is high class without being exclusive, accessible but not bohemian.

Tech/Culture

Pasadena is home to an increasing number of high tech businesses, none more so than the NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The JPL develops rockets and satellites as well as staffing missions guiding the Mars Rover and sending probes into deep space. JPL craft have visited every planet in our solar system except Pluto.

Cal Tech also contributes to Pasadena’s image as a hotbed of technological innovation. One of the best engineering schools on the east coast, Cal Tech competes only with MIT in Boston for the country’s finest math minds. Albert Einstein used to lecture here and some of NASA’s top scientists are professors.

It’s hard to do much sightseeing in Kornati National Park without a boat. The land mass of Kornati Park cover less than 25% of the total area, but that’s OK because the best sights are not on the land anyway.

Kornati is a park devoted to water and islands and the sightseeing on these islands takes place under the water when scuba divers take to the water to see the beautiful reefs and displays of natural aquatic life through the crystal clear water.

Kornati was declared a national monument in the 1980’s after an expansion of its borders led to the inclusion of 89 islands total. The park now contains 220 square kilometers, most of it open ocean. The most popular attraction in Kornati are the “Kornati Crowns” which are sheer white cliffs rising dramatically out of the ocean into the blue sky caused by Africa’s northern tectonic progress and its collision with Europe.

The most interesting part of the Kornati Crowns is the diverse wildlife and varieties of coral and plant life that live above and below the surface of the water. Peregrine falcons, hawks, and swifts patrol the cliffs above; SCUBA divers and fish patrol the water below. Because of the diverse species of wildlife that inhabit the cliffs and the water, rock climbing on the crowns is not allowed, no matter how tempting the rock walls look from the boat.

Kornati Park is located about 7 km from the mainland. The park itself is only 15 km from Zadar and about the same distance from other cities that provide tours. SCUBA diving is only allowed in Kornati Park as part of one of the registered and guided trips that depart from the cities surrounding Kornati.

Although SCUBA diving is by far the most popular activity in Croatia, the park has much to offer the geologically inclined as well. Beside the geomorphic formations that can be found on the sea floor, the Magazinova Skrila formation on the island of Kornat is an interesting place where limestone slid across the surface of other limestone on a massive scale. The cause of this phenomenon is thought to be an earthquake.

The last attraction in Kornati Park is the one least unique to the park itself. The Tureta Fortress is an ancient castle on Kornat island that probably used to serve as a look out and base for military ships that patrolled the approach to a nearby port in ancient times.

Getting to Kornati Park is a challenge if you’re not visiting on one of the registered tours. There are no ferries to the islands because no one lives on them anymore. There are some grass huts that allow boaters to stay overnight if they feel the need to camp without electricity or any of the modern comforts, but otherwise there is no accommodation on any of the islands. For those not interested or not able in renting a yacht to tour the islands, renting sea-kayaks and paddling through the islands is the best option.