We took a joy ride on Martin Luther King weekend. The freeway was backed up for miles with a wreck so we exited and took the city streets. Then we came across the Martin Luther King Parade on Martin Luther King Blvd. intersection of PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) not knowing that was going on. The lesson: if you feel there's anything ordinary about driving in Southern California, you'll probably be wrong. The only thing you CAN say for sure is to expect the unexpected.

Our plans were to head for Venice Beach and check out "the pit" where the muscle bound hunks & chicks work out at Muscle Beach. We didn't quite get that far, however. Our journey took us to a Railroad Museum in Lomita, and ended in a drive through Rolling Hills Estates where people were riding horses on trails next to the road. They looked like they were having a great time and moving nearly as fast as the cars.

With only so many hours in the day, the weekend drive didn't get us very far before the sun went down. That's how it sometimes goes in Southern California when close to 15 million people all get in their cars and take a drive at the same time.

But what we discovered were things we would not have known if not for the massive traffic that led us to those less traveled roads.

Among the points of interest: Rolling Hills Estates City Hall is surrounded by horse trails and rows of tall, white wooden fences-and there's a hitching post where you can tie up your horses. When you go to pay your bills at the front desk (I peaked in the glass windows) you can pay your utilities and stable fees at the same time. And when the city workers sit out on the patio, they hear roosters crowing all day long.

From the vistas in this small city you can see downtown Los Angeles framed by the Santa Monica mountains. You can also see those mountains run their course to the sea north of Venice where we'd hoped to complete our trip.

My journey wasn't at all what I'd expected, but it was filled with surprises. Who can believe that in the heart of one of the biggest, busiest metropolitan areas in America people actually listen to roosters crow and watch horses pass by City Hall?