We passed by Salinas High School on their Main Street. I read later that the school was founded in 1882 but has been in its present location since 1920 (and rebuilt since then as well).
The look of this "traditional" high school is so different from the ones we have down south...
I'm always interested in seeing local area high schools whenever we travel especially since I work at one myself...
Our snack stop would be a first for me, Fosters Freeze.
I was amused by the plastic ice cream replicas.
The decor and color scheme is straight out of the 80's. It doesn't look like this place has remodeled for at least 25 years. It was kind of tired and old. Their bathrooms were also gross. Bert took a photo of the sink. It had scratches and dark stains that wouldn't come off. The folks working here were bored teens and not very friendly.
The high school is literally just down the street.
Lovely sink this was. The urinal was even worse. I'll spare you Bert's photo...
Our snack - cheeseburger, fries and mango shake.
The onion rings were good. I can't speak for the cheeseburger, which I believe was eaten mainly by TC. The shake was okay but not too memorable.
On a more serious note, Salinas is home to many migrant workers, eking out meager existences working the fields and doing jobs that no white Americans would do. I know that this video is 25 minutes long and I don't expect you to watch the whole thing, but starting at 2:50 to 2:05, there are famous Depression photos taken by photo journalist Dorothea Lange (known for her images of Okies and Arkies who escaped the Dust Bowl and headed westward to California in search or work)...
Those workers bent down picking lettuce in those pix? Not Mexicans. FILIPINOS.
Filipinos in the 1930s up until the late 60's worked the fields along the West Coast, following the crops. The Bracero program (a "guest worker" initiative targeting Mexicans that lasted from 1924-1964) largely supplanted the Filipino laborers; this type of manual work is now associated mainly with Latinos. And the immigration debate goes on...
Salinas was the setting forthe movie adaptation of John Steinbeck's "East of Eden" starring James Dean:
Trivia time - James Dean's brother in the movie, Richard Davalos appeared on several Smiths album covers such as their swansong, "Strangeways Here We Come" (released Sept 1987); their fourth and last studio album:
and "Best 1":
For trivia's sake, here is the complete photo, which features James Dean:
The woman in the photo was Jo Van Fleet, who also starred in "East of Eden"; she played the Madam, who ended up being Dean and Davalos' mother in the movie. Richard Davalos is actually still alive and is 84 years old!
Fosters Freeze
815 S. Main St.
Salinas, CA 93901
(831) 758-6950
fostersfreeze.com + their menu (Salinas location)
Plus the reviews from yelp & tripadvisor
This was my first time visiting a Fosters Freeze. There's a few in San Diego but they're out of the way. If I am ever near one, I will have to actually try their soft serve cone/namesake.
One more stop in the Central Coast while heading home...
4 comments:
Pretty much the only thing I ever get at Foster's is a chocolate dipped vanilla cone. I remember it very well from my childhood! We always go to the one in Allied Gardens. Jake thinks the Spring Valley one sucks. I didn't think it was that bad, really. I think I've had food there only a few times - like when I want to eat french fries and ice cream (yes, I know this is weird, but I love the salty sweet combination).
Wait, what? There is a Fosters Freeze in Allied Gardens? I must go...soon!
Haha yes, you must!
I want to try that chocolate dipped cone. Deprived I am, haha.
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