In a small, normal-looking town in California, there lies a wacky attraction: an alley full of used bubble gum.
Back in 2016, we were once again taken by the adventure bug, and did a week long trip driving from New Mexico to Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe and through California. Always on the lookout for weird and wacky sights along our way, we stumbled across something truly odd: Bubblegum Alley in San Luis Obispo.
From the outside, San Luis Obispo is a small, strikingly normal, town in California. At first glance around the place, the main attractions seem to be the town library, a clock in the center of town and an old mission. But, if you know where to look, there is a secret among these tranquil streets…and kind of a gross secret at that.
And that secret, of course, is Bubblegum Alley. In an alley near the center of this peaceful town, there is a display that is both odd and oddly magnificent. The alley is filled with thousands of pieces of chewed bubble gum. Like the Cadillac Ranch in Texas, there is something oddly beautiful about this gum graffiti. Just realizing how many people have contributed to this wall is something to contemplate. And, just like the Cadillac Ranch, they are still adding to this ever-changing used-to-be-edible memorial to chewing gum.
Of course, with the advent of COVID-19, it’s popularity has probably waned – and rightfully so. What was once a unique, if somewhat disgusting, mural that showcases even quaint little towns like San Luis Obispo can hide some very weird things, now it’s potentially a showcase of spreadable germs. And, with people doing odd challenges in the past on Tik Tok like eating detergent pods and licking public toilets, there’s probably a danger of some fools eating the gum off of this mural.
Let’s hope that’s not the case. Hopefully, if and when things get back to normal, this will once again be the odd curiosity that the folks of the quaint San Luis Obispo can secretly be proud of.
PS. That’s our beloved Stella staring curiously at one of the walls of the alley. We miss her every day.
