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Hilltop Park is a 3.2 acre park at the top of Signal Hill. The local Indians used to use the hill for signal fires because of the great views.

The park has picnic tables, restrooms, telescopes, and a couple of barbecues. There is also artwork, including a mist tower.

The park is popular with geocache enthusiasts, so you might want to check with one of the internet geocache websites before you visit the park. You should also check with the local Sierra Club chapter if you are interested in their weekly conditioning hikes.

It is fairly unique for being a roundabout (or traffic circle) on a major highway (California State Route 1, aka “Pacific Coast Highway”) in the United States, but it is still something only a road geek or a traffic engineer would love.

The traffic circle is at the intersection of PCH, Lakewood Blvd. (aka California State Route 19) and Los Coyotes Diagonal in Long Beach, California.

There is a rumor that the engineer who designed the traffic circle died in an accident in the circle. As with many urban legends, it is false.

An update: The Long Beach Traffic Circle now has its own article on the Wikipedia here.

Every summer there is the Southern California Summer Pro League, which is a showcase for current and prospective NBA basketball players. The gym at CSULB is a unique, large blue pyramid named the Walter Pyramid.

The Walter Pyramid is also where CSULB’s top-ranked volleyball teams play, and is the site for many special events.

Scupture: In 1965, there was an International Sculpture Symposium on the CSULB campus, and there are now many large scuptures around the campus.

Art: The art department has a very good reputation, and the same goes for the University Art Museum on campus.

Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden: Beautiful and peaceful. The garden is closed on Saturdays (when it is often rented for weddings and receptions) and Mondays.

KKJZ 88.1 FM: The campus radio station plays jazz and blues, and every Labor Day Weekend it hosts the Long Beach Blues Festival on campus.

Sports: Every summer there is the Southern California Summer Pro League, which is a showcase for current and prospective NBA basketball players. The gym at CSULB is a unique, large blue pyramid named the Walter Pyramid.

CSULB also has top-ranked college baseball and volleyball teams.

Other events: the CSULB Wide Screen Film Festival, at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center, which also hosts musical performances, dance concerts, and theatrical presentations.

Unless you’re an Anglophile, or are deeply interested in World War II history or big oceanliners, it just a big, boring ship that goes nowhere. There is not that much to do on the Queen Mary so you’ll see everything worth seeing in a couple of hours.

I’ve been to a convention on the Queen Mary, and that was okay. It also might be nice to spend one night in the hotel on the Queen Mary, but remember that the most of the rooms are pretty small, so most people wouldn’t want to use the Queen Mary as their headquarters for a tourist visit to Southern California.

The best thing about the Queen Mary is the very good (but expensive) Sunday brunch. I’ve also heard good things about dining in the Sir Winston restaurant, but I’ve never done it.