The iconic Santa Monica Pier is a beauty no matter the time of day but sunset provides a great opportunity for some long exposure photography. The pier is home to Pacific Park, a small amusement park that includes, among other things, a roller coaster and ferris wheel. The ferris wheel is lit up with various light patterns that create beautiful designs during a long exposure photo.

Amtrak's Coast Starlight is a train adventure that runs the west coast of the United States, from Los Angeles to Seattle.  While train travel has lost a lot of its popularity due to the reduction in cost and increased convenience of air travel, it can still be a lot of fun to experience.  The Coast Starlight is one of the most scenic routes that Amtrak offers.  We decided to make the trip from Los Angeles to Oakland (San Francisco) over the Thanksgiving weekend aboard the Coast Starlight.