Hanford is a small town here in the Central Valley that we'd long talked about visiting. Today, finally, your mom and I made the short trip with your grandpa Gene to the quaint town.
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| On the road we drove through many orchards we wished we could identify better but still thought were pretty. |
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| One highlight was this famous dairy, the home of a cute diner and some amazing local ice cream. |
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| It was a slow day and the young staff (probably a bunch of local high school kids) mostly meandered about. |
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| I got a big chocolate milk shake, which was incredibly rich. |
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| We also visited the famous Fox Theater, one of many such theaters in California, which has a cool history of hosting many of the classic Hollywood acts who'd make their way through the valley from Los Angeles to San Francisco. |
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| The inside had a delightfully vintage flair about it, and the current owner gave us a quick tour of the place while telling us more about its long history. He said that business was tough and it was difficult keeping the historical stage open, but he was finding some creative ways to make it work and survive in this dusty town. |
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| Your mom got a recommendation from a friend to visit this antique shop housed in an old "Odd Fellows" building (note the I.O.O.F. at the top of the building). The Independent Order of Odd Fellows is an old club that originally kept their meetings in this building around the time of the town's founding. |
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| Adding to the history of the building, they displayed an old picture of the current lobby, which was once the home of a finance company which made residence in the bottom of the I.O.O.F. building. |
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| After my own heart, one of the antique pieces was this display of a collection of beer cans. |
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| Before heading home we checked out China Alley, the oldest surviving China-town in the entire country. It's still in operation, and some small restaurants are behind these old doors and facades. |
