My Journeys Behind The Orange Curtain - Orange County, 2007
Despite warnings of Orange County on television from "The
OC", "Laguna
Beach", and "The
Real Housewives of Orange County", I laughed in the face of it all, daring
to venture deep, deep behind The Orange Curtain. This is the first
in an ongoing series that dares to explore the indigenous people of The OC.
Page 1 of an ongoing series
 Fourth
of July fireworks, Ladera Ranch, deep deep within Orange County, 2007.~~ My friend Tom in South Orange County had told extraordinary tales of The OC - the business parks, the planned communities, the homeowner's associations, the large chain restaurants, the reality TV shows... ...but undeterred, I came. |
 We
gathered in a large grassy park to watch he fireworks of Ladera Ranch, a
master planned community nestled in the hills of South OC, Fourth of July,
2007.~~ Developers in Ladera Ranch broke ground in 1999 in an apparent effort to recreate the look and feel of the neighborhood featured in "Edward Scissorhands." I had ridden camels in Rajasthan, escaped from wild elephants in Ghana, and been chased by the Burmese military. But here, here I was in a land I had thought only existed in "The Stepford Wives". Filled with awe, I knew I had to return.
|
 Along
with Lisa, I ventured behind The Orange Curtain only ten days later to visit
Tom again. We gasped as he revealed that just one hill over, in
a land called Coto de Caza,
"The Real Desperate Housewives of Orange County" lived and ate.
From Ladera Ranch, Tom skillfully cut through large swathes of South OC to arrive at our destination, Laguna Beach. ~~ We attended the Festival of Arts in Laguna Beach. Because The OC is completely, utterly planned, Asians ordinarily are not allowed to leave the confines of a region called Irvine. Here, though, at this festival, they allowed Asians, including this Korean dancer, to perform during Asian Arts Day.
|
 Under
close supervision of The OC, Korean
drums are allowed to be wheeled out at the Asian Arts Day at the
Festival of
Arts in Laguna Beach. |
 Some
last-minute adjustments to the golden-tiered Cambodian headdress, worn to
pay homage to The HOA. What this HOA was, we weren't sure, as they
were talked about fearfully, in hushed tones. |
 Asians
came to The OC many years ago, back at a time before The HOA ruled.
The Asians, fearful of The HOA, walled themselves into a region in the
middle of The OC which eventually became known as "Irvine", which is
Indonesian for "Whew!" These intrepid survivors eventually built
their own schools, most notably UCI (University of Chinese Immigrants). |
 Minutes
before performing at the
Festival of
Arts in Laguna Beach. |
 Performing
a traditional Cambodian, or Khmer Classical Dance, accompanied by a pinpeat
orchestra, consisting of xylophones, drums, oboes, gongs, and other music
instruments. |
In 2004, MTV created a reality television show titled "Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County", which has aired on MTV for 3 seasons. The show dared to ask what insanely rich high school kids do with their time. The entire country remained glued to their TVs, viewing their first glimpses of this savage land bordering the U.S., so close, yet so different. |
 But
here...her was a life that the inhabitants could enjoy because it was
planned, completely planned to Perfection. The HOA, it was whispered,
knew all. This child on the beach enjoys the sweet life of The OC at Laguna Beach. |
Orange County 2007
Miscellaneous Photo Page
Eleven Shadows Travel Page
Contact photographer/musician Ken Lee
This
Laguna Beach resident believes that "OC" actually stands for "Only
Crustaceans".
