Frank's Christian Thoughts: October 2025

Saturday, 4 October 2025

Travel Biography Photo Extravaganza - Part 42.

A bicycle ride from Santa Monica Pier to Malibu, as I prepare to fly home.

This was the last-but-one full day in California before boarding the British Airways flight to London Heathrow. Therefore, throughout the day, I felt an underlying sense of sadness as I gazed out at the picturesque scenery on the southern California coast. This was, of course, more than 27 years before the Franklin Fires broke out over the area in December 2024, destroying many homes and reducing them to ashes.

Ten weeks of unlimited travel, away from the normal routine of daily window cleaning, a sabbatical break from having to deal with difficult clientele, along with enduring days of freezing cold, windy weather, and days of sunshine and showers. This mixed bag of weather could be antagonising, as my clientele in general never appreciated their window cleaned while it's raining. At least, with all-day rain, I knew where I stood and stayed at home. Yet, the reader may be surprised to know that here in the UK, all-day rain is quite uncommon. A mixed bag of weather in a day is more frequent.

But there was more. Since taking off in May 1997 for Singapore, each evening was spent with fellow backpackers, mostly in the hostel members' kitchen, the social hub of the hostel. In some venues, I made friends; in others, I cooked and ate alone, but in both mornings and evenings, the kitchen was never deserted.

This was a life devoid of responsibilities, except to eat, drink, clothe, and ensure that I had a bed for the night. The three "menial" tasks, other than watching my budget, were shopping, cooking, and laundry, but even while engaging in these tasks was enjoyable, as I was always in a different environment. And so, I spent such a precious time as a wanderer, travelling from one location to another, alone, and avoiding the risk of disagreements had I travelled with company.

Yet, where do I stand in all this? As a self-employed window cleaner, someone who spent his whole working life engaged in manual jobs, especially in the area of cleaning, long-haul travel was a wonderful privilege. Yet, I still envied the graduate or the undergrad who takes a gap year and can live like this, on the road, for a full year. I had met a few of these people while I was in Australia. Furthermore, they were all British.

Hence, my morose expression as I posed with my rented bike in Malibu.

Looking very morose, at Malibu, my final venue.

Two days before flying back to London (I took off on the evening of the next day, hence, I spent my last day in Santa Monica), I saw a bike hire shop near the pier. I rented a bike from them and rode west along the coast to Malibu, the market town over twelve miles, 20 km, west of Santa Monica Pier. It took about an hour to complete the one-way journey. The scenery was picturesque, and this intensified my feeling of sadness. The wide sandy beach was backed by the Santa Monica Mountains, similar to Santa Barbara.

The town itself, along with its pier, was to the east of the district. Further west, a strip of residences lined the coast, including Central Malibu. It was the home of celebrities and wealthy businessmen. Immediately east of the town centre, the Malibu Creek opens out into a lagoon, and the Pacific Highway crosses it before continuing on along the coast. I crossed that bridge on the bike before arriving in this small town.

To be honest, there was not a lot to see, rather like San Luis Obispo. Malibu, more famous for its name on a drinks bottle than for its character, was the home of the rich and of the celebrity, whose work was to perform in front of the camera at Hollywood Studios.

Very, very different to my daily mundane window cleaning job.

Until December 11th, 2024. It was in this area that a forest fire took hold of the Santa Monica Mountains and spread to the coast, destroying hundreds of properties that lined the coast. Homes owned by the wealthy and the celebrity were reduced to ashes. It goes to show how unpredictable the future can be, and the wisdom of taking heed of Biblical warnings not to take tomorrow for granted, for nobody knows what's around the corner, whether a vehicle collision, fire, or any other unexpected incident.

The moment arrived when I vacated my bed at AYH Santa Monica for a bus ride to the airport, the same airport where, a few weeks earlier, I flew in from Sydney and then boarded another airline to San Diego. From LAX, the overnight flight landed safely at Heathrow by mid-morning. From there, I took a bus back to my apartment. After passing through the front door, the silent stillness hit me. My spirit fell like a boulder that has rolled off a cliff edge. Post-holiday blues. In my case, severe. That was when I had to get to a friend's house nearby for counselling and setting my path straight.

This week's album contains 18 pics of Malibu. Following that, I have included 28 pics from the 1997 Round-the-World backpacking journey, starting with Singapore. Therefore, in this post, there are 46 pics to go through. These photos are all of which I took myself. The majority of these photos are of Australia.

Click here for the link to the Index to the main Biography covering Malibu; from there, it's Weeks 105-107.

Photos of Malibu.

The cycleway from Santa Monica to Malibu.

Housing estate, Malibu, destroyed in Dec 2024.

Malibu market town plaza.

Mr Hammer sculpture.

Malibu Lagoon is backed by the Santa Monica Mountains.

Looking towards town from the lagoon bridge.

Facing southeast across Malibu Bay.

Facing west towards Central Malibu.

Open shrubbery lines the coast. A fire hazard.

The lagoon sandspit and pier are at a distance.

Santa Monica Mountains back this garden and homes.

Looking across the lagoon mouth.

Lagoon sandspit.

The mountains back the creek.

View of the pier. It was closed for maintenance.

I begin to ride back to Santa Monica.

Evening, as I arrived back at Santa Monica.

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This brings the 1997 Round-the-World backpacking adventure to a close. 24 hours after this last photo was taken, I was heading for LAX Airport for the flight back to London. No photos were taken of that flight or its environs.

However, I have selected 28 of the best photos of the entire adventure, starting in Singapore. Most of these pics are of Australia. The selection wasn't easy. There are many memorable photos, all in this extravaganza, and permanently accessible on this blogger's page.

Yet, are my days of travel over? By no means! There will be more to come. Stay with us.

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Photos of Singapore.

The pavilion, Chinese Gardens, Singapore.