(Please read our Covid 19 Statement first - Ed) As we are trying to see every Major League Baseball stadium, I have a friend and former colleague that has the goal of visiting every presidential library and grave site. Thinking about this, we have started to include them in our travels. We started off with our closest one, the Richard Nixon library in Yorba Linda, then the Harry Truman library in Independence, Missouri, and now our latest addition, the Ronald Reagan library just over the Ventura County Line at the far edge of Simi Valley.
It's a lazy Saturday so I pop the idea to Letty and Tim to take the little-over-an-hour drive to get there. They are both game so off we go.
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It's a rare light traffic day and we make good time via the 118 across the top of the San Fernando Valley. I'm pointing out the rocks in Chatsworth to them where many westerns were filmed and Charles Manson based his cult when he went on his murderous spree.
On a happier note, we know we've arrived in Simi Valley when we see the happy face carved into the hill, welcoming motorists into this town.
Watch the Video!
The drive up the hill goes past 45 banners, one for each president from Washington to Trump, until you arrive. If you need handicapped parking, you want to continue past the main parking lot to a smaller lot set aside for placard and plate holders closer to the entrance.
Admission prices vary due to special exhibits that sometimes come to the library like the recently closed Titanic exhibit. When those are here, admission price can almost double. We avoided the special exhibit and were able to get in for the normal admission price of $16.
There is a way to flow through the museum, sort of like when you're at IKEA and they make sure you see every room. Starting off with this posable statue of Ronny and Nancy, you go into a theater to see a video setting you up for the rest of the tour.
It's a bit of a hagiography, not too much of the controversy of President Reagan's career is mentioned or, if it is, it is mostly to put a positive spin on his actions. Still, there is much to see and learn such as his negotiations with Mikhail Gorbachev, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the assassination attempt by John Hinkley.
The gun Hinkley used is on display and I was quite surprised at how small it was.
There are exhibits on the Reagans ranch up above Santa Barbara and a recreations of his oval office. The highlight of the tour comes halfway through, the Boeing 707 that served as Air Force One. If you're able bodied, you can go in the front, walk through...checking out the communications nook, the president's private office, the medical unit, and the press section...before exiting the rear.
If you're in a wheelchair, a lift will take you level to the front hatch. If your chair fits, you can roll in where you can get a good view of the flight deck, the com nook, and some of the galley before you have to roll back out.
Then, you can access the back hatch where you can see where the reporters sit but it is too small to go any further.
There is also a helicopter here, that is inaccessible to chairs, which served as Marine One during President Reagan's term in office.
It's a good place to take a break as there's a cafeteria and a faux Irish pub called the Ronald Reagan where you can have a snack and wash it down with a bottle of beer or a glass of wine.
We have a beer and some cookies under Air Force One with an expansive view of Simi Valley.
After our break, we finish the tour which exits through the gift shop where the cash registers pop up with the message "trust but verify" while they are processing your credit card.
Outside, there is a section of the Berlin Wall.
Beyond that, you can reflect on the beautiful view of Thousand Oaks and the Conejo Valley next to the graves of President Reagan and his wife Nancy.
Finished with our visit, we head down the hill looking for a place to eat. We find a shopping center where Yelp.com had told us was a steakhouse that looked good to try.
There's the steakhouse but there is a deliciously strong odor of garlic wafting about and it's not coming from here. Looking around, we see an Italian place across the parking lot called Viva La Pasta.
Why not?
Letty has this delicious seafood risotto...
...Tim goes with the bake mostaccioli...
...and I get this very tasty veal saltimboca.
It's all delicious and fortifies us well for the long drive home.
Darryl Musick
Copyright 2018
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