The 101 southbound from Ventura directs you to the bedroom community of Calabasas, which is less than a mile south of the freeway, on Calabasas Road, and a few miles short of fabled Mulholland Drive, which runs north and south and serves as the gateway to the Los Angeles complex of cities. Look for Park Moderne, a nature lover's dream masquerading at a housing tract. Located just behind the sprawling campus of Calabasas High School, Park Moderne features what the locals call “the Bird Streets.” Turn east off Old Topanga Road onto Blue Bird Drive. Park, and then walk to the footpath running between Meadowlark Drive and Black Bird Way for a memorable stroll through rich varieties of trees, shrubs, gentle hills, patches of volunteer flowers, and a seemingly endless variety of birds and ground squirrels. Check out Old Town (on Calabasas Road) for restaurants, boutiques, and specialty shops that not only reflect Calabasas's early Spanish ranch days ("Calabasas" means "gourds" in Spanish) but the contemporary denizens' eclectic tastes in food, art, and antiques. Grape Arbor Park at the Corner of Canwood and Parkville is an excellent site for an impromptu picnic, a rest from the road, and a chance to see more of the chaparral and flowers that flood the area year-round with bright colors.