I am slightly overwhelmed by the gajillions and gajillions of images I shot this weekend during the Catalina Swing Dance Festival! For those of you who are unfamiliar with this place, it is an island off the coast of LA—it takes about an hour and a half by ferry to get out there. The population of Avalon, its main city, is about 3000. There’s something about it that’s very riviera. It’s a pretty magical little place, and the Casino Ballroom (not a casino as we know it, but derived from the original meaning of the Italian word casino, “meeting place”) is the world’s largest circular ballroom. We were dancing in the same magical place that the greats of big band jazz performed in. Pretty rad. Okay, super-duper-ultra-rad.
I just grabbed a handful of goodies to share with you all, but there is lots and lots and lots more to come (for all you festival attendees, check in on the Facebook Group page this evening for a best-of!). Delight, delight, delight. My feet hurt!
Oh these are lovely! it looks like Italy- and a whole weekend of swing-dancing in such a gorgeous ballroom…soooooo awesome!
i love the scenery! how gorgeous!
How fun! Gorgeous images. This beautiful place is only an hour or so from LA? I need to put this on my list of places to visit!
I agree. There is a sense of Europe, at least somewhere far away. Looks like you had a grand time.
What absolutely stunning images!!!! Its such a European looking place :)
Mary—Oh gosh, yes, it was a pretty fun-filled and packed weekend!
Rhiannon—I tell you, it was tough not to just sit staring out my window . It was pretty captivating. You can vaguely see a hint of the glinting lights of LA (I think?) far, far, far across the water at night.
Karleen—GO. STAT. :)
Mum and Kaylia—Yep… I suppose I am only guessing at the riviera thing. I will have to go to confirm or deny… :D
Amazing photos; your blog always makes me miss the West Coast!
Wow. Beautiful place, and beautiful pictures as usual!
Now, I love the fact that there’s a swing dance festival, period. But I doubly love that it’s in a place as gorgeous as Catalina — which I’ve never been to, by the way. Time for me to move back to CA, I guess. Your photos really capture the beauty of the place and how much fun that event was!
Oh my goodness, this makes me want to learn how to swing dance. These are magical. I was born and raised in SoCal and I STILL haven’t been to Catalina. I must remedy that soon.
i love these and catalina! the weather looks so nice, the last time i was there it was foggy and cold.
You’re sure this is California and not the coast of France? The buildings nestled in the hills are so Europe, and of course…the harbor(s?)! That photo of the colorful boats crowded around the end of the dock is my FAVORITE.
Thanks you guys!
Ravi—Come back!
Kimmy—It was pretty magical, I must admit!
Brandi & Shari—It’s funny how much I am hearing that. I find that people tend to not see the more touristy things in the places they are from.
Leila—Don’t give up on it! It rained us out on the Sunday, and our outdoor plans had to be ushered indoors, but it was still lovely. Extra-special with the fog in the hills, really.
Karly—I’m *pretty* sure… ;) That shot is my favourite, too!
Dude – Can I just say how much I love your pics? I want to buy #1 immediately please! My Dad had a condo in Avalon when we were kids and we used spend every summer there. It was quite magical being able to drive a gold cart all over the place at 13 years old.
that first one — FAB! i need to visit the ballroom next time i’m in catalina!!
Oh my goodness, this sounds like THE best thing ever! And it looks like the best thing too. What a gorgeous place, and what beautiful photos!
You might get sick of me saying this on your blog but I just LOVE your pictures! And it definitely does look like the Rivera.
Oh my gosh—thanks, you guys! I missed some comments from last week. But, yes, it was a fabulously scenic place!
Catalina Swing Festival, how fun!! What a uniquely beautiful thing to capture.
It was wild and so much fun! Many thanks!