On Hwy-111, 12 miles South East of Palm Springs. The leading names of international haute couture have outlets in Palm Desert’s El Paseo, a high-class shopping mall with a Spanish architectural style. Even if you can’t afford a down payment on a Polo Ralph Lauren tiepin, there’s no charge for looking in the windows and seeing what the well-dressed, well-heeled Palm Springs socialite is wearing. For considerably less money, a different side of local life is on show at the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens (http://www.livingdesert.org), it used to be just a reserve at 47900 S. Portola Avenue, where 6 miles of pathways pass through re-creations of California’s diverse desert landscapes. But it now has enclosures for big cats, giraffes and the ever-popular meerkats.