Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/125316
the Canadian dollar riding high, and the California economy crawling low, stuff that used to cost a lot of money no longer does. During our time in "the desert" (to use the local shorthand for Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley), we also land for a night at the 1947-vintage Del Marcos Hotel, snagging our room, complete with stone feature wall and trapezoidal front door (seeing is believing), for less than $100. The San p46-53_Cali Golf.indd 47 Jacinto Mountains rise just beyond the swimming pool and Palm Springs' lively little pedestrian quarter is just a couple of blocks away. One of the watering holes we check out is the bar at the Parker Palm Springs Hotel, where designer Jonathan Adler – a New Yorker better known for his ceramics – was given free rein to decorate the flamboyant 1960s-era structure with strange bric-a-brac from around the world. Water surrounds the green on the 17th hole at the PGA West Stadium course in Palm Springs. Now I like a Hans Wegner chair juxtaposed against a Peruvian wall hanging as much as the next guy, but I appreciate the sound of a well-struck six-iron even more, so it doesn't escape my notice that the area is even better known for its golf. The desert claims 100-plus courses, ranging from GOING PL ACES >> s u m m e r 2 0 1 3 47 13-04-12 1:14 PM