Not sure if you’re ready yet to hit the road because of COVID-19? Go on a virtual tour of California’s Highway 1 where it hugs the ocean from Santa Monica to Fort Bragg.

Through photos, video and stories, discover the wonders and history of places including Santa Barbara, Big Sur, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Monterey, and Mendocino. We virtually explore beaches, ride giant Clydesdale horses, and step into the past to behold the moss-covered stumps of redwood behemoths felled 150 years ago. We even stop at a historic resort or two to admire the cuisine and the view. Sharon Boorstin is a contributing writer for the Los Angeles Times, specializing in lifestyle, food and travel. In 2019 she won Visit California’s Eureka Award for Best Newspaper Travel Article. In the 1970s and ‘80s Sharon was the Restaurant Critic of the (late) Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, and in the ‘90s she edited the annual Gayot Guidebooks for Los Angeles and other cities. She also wrote for magazines including Bon Appetit, Smithsonian and Town & Country Travel. With her husband Paul, she wrote dozens of screenplays for feature films and television including Angel of Death (ABC) starring Jane Seymour. Her memoir/cookbook, Let Us Eat Cake: Adventures in Food and Friendship (Harper-Collins 2002), was a selection of the Pulpwood Queens Book Club. Raised in Seattle, Washington, Sharon moved to Los Angeles in 1966 after earning a California Lifetime Teaching credential at U.C. Berkeley. She taught high-school History, English and Social Studies in L.A. for 11 years. Fifty and Better was designed to offer university-level courses (no tests, no homework) taught by experts in the field, and to host social engagement activities for individuals age 50 and older. All are welcome to this one-time lecture.