Day Twelve - Santa Monica, CA

Well the Mamas and Papas were California dreaming, and so were the Okies when they fled the Dust Bowl in the 30s. In fact it seems that everyone in America dreams of California...so what is it about the place that inspires all these dreams?

Well, one factor must be the body beautiful. I wandered down from Santa Monica pier towards Venice beach this afternoon. I passed the original spot of Muscle Beach where body building began and carried on down to Venice and the hippies and musicians who populate the street by the beach.

When God created woman he was thinking of California. As I walked along the beach I was assaulted visually by the local dress code which for women is measured in stitches rather than centimetres or inches.... It was at this point I made the decision not to actually venture on to the sand itself for fear of fainting...

The beach however was impressive - not only for the vast expanse of sand, but also for its cleanliness. They are very tough on littering round here and smoking (unfortunately and possibly unfairly) is banned on the beach - all helping to keep the place safe and clean.

So beautiful bodies and cleanliness are definitely plus points for California - but they alone do not a dream make....

Another stand out feature is the whole atmosphere here. Laid-back, friendly and warm. Three words - although there are surely others. There is a suspicion that Californians have the most fun in America - and it may be true.

I even saw the offices of a law firm - Bernstein, Fernstein, Craddock and Dooberry - right on Venice beach. I wonder how much work they actually get done!? (That is not the real name of the firm, but you get the picture).

[Aside - the restaurant where I am having a deluxe dinner in my hotel has so far played "Starman" from the Ziggy Stardust album and is now playing "Going to California" by Led Zeppelin. How cool is that?]

Climate must also play a part in California's dream specifications. While it is hot, it is very pleasant. The breeze from the Pacific Ocean keeps things cool and refreshed - unlike the arid and brutally hot deserts in Nevada and Arizona. Of course - inland California has the same heat as those states - but no-one moved to California to live inland - right?

I think the final two ingredients are confidence and duty. Confidence that comes from being the place that everyone wants to move to and dreams about. Confidence that comes from having such a booming and strong economy.

And duty that comes from epitomising the American Dream for so many inside and outside America. There is a duty to live up to that dream.

So California is fun and friendly. Warm and relaxed. Booming and dynamic. On the surface it is a dream place - but they still have a McDonald's on every corner and driving through north Hollywood this morning - it was anything but glamourous. Smoking is the equivalent to paedophilia in terms of public perception and the coffee is still crap. Pollution is brutal and while most people are friendly - they are hardly deep.

But then if you spent your time in the sunshine, having fun, watching babes in bikinis and earning a decent dollar, there wouldn't be much incentive to read Nietzsche and Wittgenstein in the evenings and worry over the meaning of life - would there?

So - California Dreaming is ok by me.

Let's just fix the rest of America - before it's too late. ( And relax the smoking laws in California too!)

And with that, here endeth Route 66.