Travel Magazine

Indian Wells, CA., Or, of Course, Our Vacation Involved Tennis

By Marney @marmiscellany
Scoreboard at Indian Wells BNP Paribas Open

Scoreboard at Indian Wells BNP Paribas Open

I’ve written before about how tennis is often a part of our vacations, and spring break was no exception. We went to Indian Wells to see the final three days of the BNP Paribas Open and enjoy the sunshine.

For those of you keeping score, we saw 11 matches (Huey/Jankowicz-Peya/Soares; del Potro-Murray; Djokovic-Tsonga; Wozniacki-Kerber; Sharapova-Kirilenko; Nadal-Berdych; del Potro-Djokovic; Makarova/Vesnina-Petrova/Srebotnik; Huey/Jankowicz-Bryan bros.; Sharapova-Wozniacki; Nadal-del Potro).

One of my favorite things about the venue was the great seating in the stadium. We were in the upper level, but because of the way the stadium is designed, you can see well from most seats, which is not always the case at other major tournaments. I’ve been to the French Open, and from an equivalent seat, it’s hard to to see.

Between matches, we would go out and see which players were on the practice courts.

One thing I noted for future reference is where I’d like to sit if we ever go back. As I’ve mentioned before, I sunburn easily. As long as the sun was out, our seats were in direct sunlight. But, I noticed that the seats directly across from us got shade in the afternoon. I made note of the section numbers.

Of course, our trip was not all about tennis. I had picked our hotel because a) it had a nice pool; b) it had rooms available; and c) it had shuttle service to the tennis venue. So, we hung out at the pool and sat around the firepits in the evening.

We also spent some time bumming around Palm Springs. A long time ago, we lived in Southern California, not too far from Palm Springs, and we would often make day trips there. While there were things that were different, we noted that one of our all-time favorite coffee shops, Koffi, was still in business, as was the shop where we bought our daughter a pair of red, flowered Birkenstocks when she was only three.

Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Indian Wells Tennis Garden begins to fill up

" data-orig-size="4608,3456" title="stadiumIW" data-image-title="stadiumIW" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/stadiumiw.jpg" height="259" width="346" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/stadiumiw.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"9.9","credit":"","camera":"COOLPIX L810","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363475148","copyright":"","focal_length":"4","iso":"200","shutter_speed":"0.002","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/stadiumiw.jpg?w=529" />Indian Wells Tennis Garden begins to fill up
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Nadia Petrova on practice courts

" data-orig-size="1600,1200" title="Nadia Petrova " data-image-title="Nadia Petrova " align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/petrovaiw.jpg" height="127" width="170" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/petrovaiw.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"4.6","credit":"","camera":"COOLPIX L810","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363474494","copyright":"","focal_length":"17.2","iso":"200","shutter_speed":"0.002","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/petrovaiw.jpg?w=529" />Nadia Petrova on practice courts
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Novak Djokovic on practice court

" data-orig-size="1600,1200" title="djokovicIW" data-image-title="djokovicIW" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/djokoviciw.jpg" height="128" width="170" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/djokoviciw.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"4.4","credit":"","camera":"COOLPIX L810","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363478731","copyright":"","focal_length":"15.3","iso":"200","shutter_speed":"0.00125","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/djokoviciw.jpg?w=529" />Novak Djokovic on practice court
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

del Potro leaves practice court

" data-orig-size="3264,2448" title="delpotroIW" data-image-title="delpotroIW" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/delpotroiw.jpg" height="128" width="170" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/delpotroiw.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"2.4","credit":"","camera":"iPhone 4S","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363520327","copyright":"","focal_length":"4.28","iso":"50","shutter_speed":"0.00072411296162201","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/delpotroiw.jpg?w=529" />del Potro leaves practice court
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Sharapova wins women’s finals

" data-orig-size="1600,1200" title="sharapovaIW" data-image-title="sharapovaIW" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/sharapovaiw.jpg" height="128" width="171" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/sharapovaiw.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"4.3","credit":"","camera":"COOLPIX L810","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363657101","copyright":"","focal_length":"13.9","iso":"200","shutter_speed":"0.0008","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/sharapovaiw.jpg?w=529" />Sharapova wins women’s finals
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Nadal wins men’s final

" data-orig-size="1024,768" title="nadalIW" data-image-title="nadalIW" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/nadaliw.jpg" height="128" width="171" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/nadaliw.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"4.4","credit":"","camera":"COOLPIX L810","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363668659","copyright":"","focal_length":"15.3","iso":"200","shutter_speed":"0.0015625","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/nadaliw.jpg?w=529" />Nadal wins men’s final
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

View of mountains over hotel pool

" data-orig-size="3264,2448" title="hotelIW" data-image-title="hotelIW" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/hoteliw.jpg" height="152" width="203" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/hoteliw.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"2.4","credit":"","camera":"iPhone 4S","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363517047","copyright":"","focal_length":"4.28","iso":"50","shutter_speed":"0.000542888165038","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/hoteliw.jpg?w=529" />View of mountains over hotel pool
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Wallpaper patterned with mid-century architecture in hotel bathroom

" data-orig-size="640,480" title="Wallpaper" data-image-title="Wallpaper" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-98.jpg" height="153" width="203" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-98.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"2.4","credit":"","camera":"iPhone 4S","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363684439","copyright":"","focal_length":"4.28","iso":"200","shutter_speed":"0.05","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-98.jpg?w=529" />Wallpaper patterned with mid-century architecture in hotel bathroom
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis
Downtown Palm Springs
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis
Downtown Palm Springs
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis
Restaurant sign board
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis
Mid-century Fire Station No. 1 in Palm Springs
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Outdoor seating area at Plaza Racquet Club

" data-orig-size="1632,1216" title="photo-110" data-image-title="photo-110" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-110.jpg" height="127" width="170" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-110.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"2.4","credit":"","camera":"iPhone 4S","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363623099","copyright":"","focal_length":"4.28","iso":"64","shutter_speed":"0.0011778563015312","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-110.jpg?w=529" />Outdoor seating area at Plaza Racquet Club
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Desert plants in a gallery garden

" data-orig-size="3264,2448" title="Desert plants " data-image-title="Desert plants " align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/img_2846.jpg" height="127" width="170" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/img_2846.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"2.4","credit":"","camera":"iPhone 4S","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363605151","copyright":"","focal_length":"4.28","iso":"50","shutter_speed":"0.0027548209366391","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/img_2846.jpg?w=529" />Desert plants in a gallery garden in downtown Palm Springs
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Sonny Bono statue

" data-orig-size="1632,1216" title="Sonny Bono" data-image-title="Sonny Bono" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-102.jpg" height="254" width="341" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-102.jpg?w=300" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"2.4","credit":"","camera":"iPhone 4S","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363612935","copyright":"","focal_length":"4.28","iso":"64","shutter_speed":"0.00094161958568738","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/photo-102.jpg?w=529" />Sonny Bono statue
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis

Downtown Marilyn Monroe statue

" data-orig-size="1923,2799" title="" data-image-title="" align="left" data-orig-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/marilyniw-e1364227666270.jpg" height="254" width="175" data-medium-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/marilyniw-e1364227666270.jpg?w=206" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"9.9","credit":"","camera":"COOLPIX L810","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1363739796","copyright":"","focal_length":"4.3","iso":"200","shutter_speed":"0.0015625","title":""}" data-large-file="http://margaretsmiscellany.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/marilyniw-e1364227666270.jpg?w=529" />Marilyn Monroe statue
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis
Outdoor courtyard area behind Koffi
Indian Wells, CA., or, of course, our vacation involved tennis
Windmill farm outside Palm Springs

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