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It’s spring 2008. British singer Estelle has just released her hit single “American Boy.” In it, she sings, “Take me on a trip, I’d like to go someday.”
It’s spring 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has the world at a standstill. People are stuck at home. The very notion of taking a trip someday seems elusive.
If your wanderlust is strong, here are some custom Zoom backgrounds to tide you over.
Just click the “Download image” link beneath the background you like to open a full-size version in a new tab. Right click on the image to save it to your device, and it’s yours to upload to Zoom. By default, Zoom mirrors your image so our backgrounds will appear flipped to you but display properly to others. (Note: Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, the owner of The Times, is an investor in Zoom.)
You can practice social distancing without being socially distant.
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Carmel
Tourists come to the seaside village of Carmel, Calif., for the qauint restaurants and lodging, but they stay to see the Lone Cypress. The tree is located on a rocky ledge along a private 17-mile drive. Just south of Carmel, tourists also flock to see the ancient cypress grove among unique granite rock faces at Point Lobos.
(Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Merced River
The Merced River flows at a strong, steady pace, taking on the colors of the evening near the Valley View turnoff in the Yosemite Valley,
(Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Sequoia National Park
Anthony Ambrose climbs up a Sequoia tree after properly rigging it with a rope to conduct drought research in Sequoia National Park, Calif.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Wizard Island in Crater Lake National Park, Ore.
Wizard Island sits near the edge of famously blue Crater Lake in Oregon. The Cleetwood Trail, on the far caldera slope, hidden by mist, is the only way down to water’s edge, and it’s only open in warmer months.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
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Diamond Valley Lake reservoir
Low water level in Diamond Valley Lake reservoir shows a “bathtub ring.”
(Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
Photos edited by Calvin B. Alagot
