It’s Saturday, the last full day of this trip, and I’m standing by the sea wall at the Best Wester Beach, which seems to be the only building on the beach in this part of Monterey. It’s an older building but well maintained ... and it’s the only place on the beach. From the sea wall, there is a light breeze wafting off the ocean, bringing the smell of salt and ocean. This is what vacations are all about. The rhythmic white noise sound of surf, breaking on the beach and the ion rich smell of sea air are cathartic, providing a sense of calm and serenity. I can see why people take the risk and move to live on the ocean.
As I write, the sun is just rising behind me (the hotel faces the ocean to the west). The southern coast started the session in shadow but was slowly illuminated with an orange sliver of morning sun. At this angle, you can see the sun rising and it’s like raising a magic curtain that changes colour from orange to yellow as it rises. The waves are surprisingly tall and the sun starts to hit the white tops as the waves curl and the view is quite amazing.
Today we are off to San Franciso via Cupertino so the kids can see Apple headquarters. Jon and I have an Alcatraz tour at 6:30 and Elizabeth and Julie will shop around. It will be a good last day.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Moro to Monterey
It was foggy when we woke up so there was nothing to see in Moro. We drove to the harbour but could barely see past the boats on the dock. This would make a nice vacation spot for a few days and, the restaurants have fresh fish every day by 12, when the fishing boats return.
The fog stayed with us most of the way to the Hearst Castle. The sun burned through the fog just as we were arriving to the castle location. As we would find out later in the drive, this section of the coast has a lot of fog banks, and I’m not sure what factors determine if the fog moves inland or stays at sea. Every time the fog moved in, temperatures dropped to 65F. When the sun was out, they rose to 85F. Perhaps the wind makes the difference ... but what factors cause the wind to blow on shore? Perhaps the shore profile. It seemed that canyons directed the wind better than sheer cliffs. One more thing to learn about.
The Hearst Castle is a sight to see. It deserves it’s reputation as one of the most popular California tourist visits. We were lucky to get a booking several weeks out and you could never get a spot via a drive up. The castle and it’s story are facinating and here you can see what a billionaire can build when money is no object. Having said that, the place is not as large as a European castle, but it is opulent and the attention to details is incredible. William Randal Hearst spent 29 years building his dream home, and it shows. I’ll so a section of pictures just on the castle and you’ll see what I mean.
From there, we drove up the coast and simply said, the coast is the focal point. This is the most spectacular coast line that I have seen. Rugged cliffs, pounding seas, fog banks drifting in and out, sand dunes, strange vegitation - we had to stop every few miles to explore and take pictures. We had a picnic lunch on the beach and I almost got stranded by the rising tide. The left side of the beach where we ate was boulder strewn, but after getting right to the ocean to explore the tidal pools (another fun activity), I notices that behind one of the cliffs that jutted out to the sea, there was a beautiful beach - and no one was on it. Making my way to the cliff that jutted out to sea, seperating the 2 beaches, one could see that when the waves ebbed, there was about 2 feet of beach open so if someone timed it right, they could run along the shore and make it to the sand beach before the next wave covered the point. Also, the wave pattern seemed to surge and ebb, so I waited for an ebb pattern and successfully made the mad dash. There was a beatiful cove on the other side and fishermen were storing their boats against the cliff. They had ropes and buckets stung up the cliff, likely to haul up their catch. While walking along the shore I noticed that at high tide, most of the beach is covered by water and that’s when the thought popped into my mind - which way is the tide going? A quick look back at the cliff told me that I picked the wrong time to cross. The gap at the cliff was now covered during the ebbs. While running back to the cliff, my mind was calculating plan B’s - I could ride it out by the boats and in worst case scenario, there were the ropes going up the cliff, so I knew worst case scenario wasn’t going to be that bad. When I got to the point on the cliff, the water was high enough that my concern was dealing with the current as the water swirled through the rocks and bounced off the cliff. I waited for the first big ebb (i was timing the ebbs while running) and ran through, this time knee deep. Whew made it, but 10 more minutes and we would have been forced to stay for 8 more hours. Liz had already wondered where i was since she hadn’t seem me for a while, so I broke another scouting rule - don’t go exploring unless people know where you are.
We continued up the road with several stops, with the best being at Julia Pfeiffer Burns park, where a small creek flows down the hills and creates a waterfall that cascades into a beautiful cove with turquoise sea.
Julie wanted to visit a resort that friends had spent some time at. She tried to book a room there earlier but they only accepted a minimum 2 nights stay. When we got to the gate, we were informed that tours were not possible to protect the privacy of guest, but we could have a drink in the bar, but, when they saw Jonathan, we were turned away - no children allowed. Our first impact with California snobbery. Jonathan can be rather interesting at times, but he can act like an adult when he needs to while his parents inspect a resort. I guess california children have a reputation of being uncontrollable.
When we got to our hotel, Jon took one look at the waves and, since they were bigger than Ventura beach, couldn’t wait ‘til he got into the water. I only saw severe undertow, and the absence of surfers suggested that my hunch was right. The warning signs at the entrance to the beach provided extra strength to the argument. I suggested that he check with the front desk before he jumps into the sea. They told him that the surf was indeed too dangerous and that there was a shark attack a few days ago, just up the beach. Jon went straight to the pool.
We ordered dinner (room service) for the children - pistachio encrusted halibut and clam chowder, while Julie and I headed out to do laundry - we ran out of clothing. One and a half hours later and Burger King deluxe, the laundry was done. What we do for our kids.
The fog stayed with us most of the way to the Hearst Castle. The sun burned through the fog just as we were arriving to the castle location. As we would find out later in the drive, this section of the coast has a lot of fog banks, and I’m not sure what factors determine if the fog moves inland or stays at sea. Every time the fog moved in, temperatures dropped to 65F. When the sun was out, they rose to 85F. Perhaps the wind makes the difference ... but what factors cause the wind to blow on shore? Perhaps the shore profile. It seemed that canyons directed the wind better than sheer cliffs. One more thing to learn about.
The Hearst Castle is a sight to see. It deserves it’s reputation as one of the most popular California tourist visits. We were lucky to get a booking several weeks out and you could never get a spot via a drive up. The castle and it’s story are facinating and here you can see what a billionaire can build when money is no object. Having said that, the place is not as large as a European castle, but it is opulent and the attention to details is incredible. William Randal Hearst spent 29 years building his dream home, and it shows. I’ll so a section of pictures just on the castle and you’ll see what I mean.
From there, we drove up the coast and simply said, the coast is the focal point. This is the most spectacular coast line that I have seen. Rugged cliffs, pounding seas, fog banks drifting in and out, sand dunes, strange vegitation - we had to stop every few miles to explore and take pictures. We had a picnic lunch on the beach and I almost got stranded by the rising tide. The left side of the beach where we ate was boulder strewn, but after getting right to the ocean to explore the tidal pools (another fun activity), I notices that behind one of the cliffs that jutted out to the sea, there was a beautiful beach - and no one was on it. Making my way to the cliff that jutted out to sea, seperating the 2 beaches, one could see that when the waves ebbed, there was about 2 feet of beach open so if someone timed it right, they could run along the shore and make it to the sand beach before the next wave covered the point. Also, the wave pattern seemed to surge and ebb, so I waited for an ebb pattern and successfully made the mad dash. There was a beatiful cove on the other side and fishermen were storing their boats against the cliff. They had ropes and buckets stung up the cliff, likely to haul up their catch. While walking along the shore I noticed that at high tide, most of the beach is covered by water and that’s when the thought popped into my mind - which way is the tide going? A quick look back at the cliff told me that I picked the wrong time to cross. The gap at the cliff was now covered during the ebbs. While running back to the cliff, my mind was calculating plan B’s - I could ride it out by the boats and in worst case scenario, there were the ropes going up the cliff, so I knew worst case scenario wasn’t going to be that bad. When I got to the point on the cliff, the water was high enough that my concern was dealing with the current as the water swirled through the rocks and bounced off the cliff. I waited for the first big ebb (i was timing the ebbs while running) and ran through, this time knee deep. Whew made it, but 10 more minutes and we would have been forced to stay for 8 more hours. Liz had already wondered where i was since she hadn’t seem me for a while, so I broke another scouting rule - don’t go exploring unless people know where you are.
We continued up the road with several stops, with the best being at Julia Pfeiffer Burns park, where a small creek flows down the hills and creates a waterfall that cascades into a beautiful cove with turquoise sea.
Julie wanted to visit a resort that friends had spent some time at. She tried to book a room there earlier but they only accepted a minimum 2 nights stay. When we got to the gate, we were informed that tours were not possible to protect the privacy of guest, but we could have a drink in the bar, but, when they saw Jonathan, we were turned away - no children allowed. Our first impact with California snobbery. Jonathan can be rather interesting at times, but he can act like an adult when he needs to while his parents inspect a resort. I guess california children have a reputation of being uncontrollable.
When we got to our hotel, Jon took one look at the waves and, since they were bigger than Ventura beach, couldn’t wait ‘til he got into the water. I only saw severe undertow, and the absence of surfers suggested that my hunch was right. The warning signs at the entrance to the beach provided extra strength to the argument. I suggested that he check with the front desk before he jumps into the sea. They told him that the surf was indeed too dangerous and that there was a shark attack a few days ago, just up the beach. Jon went straight to the pool.
We ordered dinner (room service) for the children - pistachio encrusted halibut and clam chowder, while Julie and I headed out to do laundry - we ran out of clothing. One and a half hours later and Burger King deluxe, the laundry was done. What we do for our kids.
LA to Moro
Time to leave the big city and head up the coast. UCLA is the first stop so that Elizabeth can look at the film grad school there and get a feel for the university. We are already preparing for graduate school. Given that this particular course only admits 42 students per year, to is a good time to start preparations. They are looking for a specific set of skills, experiences and references and E can make the choice of spending the next 3 years building a portfolio that will get her in.
Good thing for blackberry because Platform had a snap management meeting that I was able to call in while sitting in the shade of a tree on campus. Business should operate on a campus model because that is the right environment to exercise our brains.
Liz and Julie had to look at stores, so we stopped off in Santa Monica. While the girls shopped, Jonathan and I went to the beach and pier. At this point, the beach is extremely wide and, with the action on the pier, I can see why the area is so popular. Santa Monica is also far more Canadian city like - organized and structured, than LA. I would never want to live in LA, but Santa Monica would be OK.
Next stop, and LA legend - Ventura beach. Liz wanted to look at boys, and Jon wanted to swim. Vetura is also home to one of the most active busking locations in the world. We were not disappointed. The nut cakes were everywhere. One guy even had a full sized acoustic piano on the boardwalk. He played like a concert pianist but looked like a hobo. We even saw the alternative life style guys with leather and stud g strings, muscles and tatoos, but no chain saw jugglers. After a brief lunch, to fulfill Liz’s guy watching requirements (and to fill our stomachs), we hit the beach. The surf was up because of storm remnants and everyone was on their boards. Jon had a blast smashing through waves and body surfing. He is getting the hang of it and he had his first undertow experience. We had a tough time getting him out of the water but it was getting late and there was the 4 hour drive up the coast to Moro. 4 hours without rush hour. leaving at 5 pm from Ventura beach, we finally made it to Moro at 10:30. Moro has a beautiful harbour and a huge monolith in the sea, but there was a big storm the night before (with lightning - which is very rare in LA) and the place was socked in with fog.
Good thing for blackberry because Platform had a snap management meeting that I was able to call in while sitting in the shade of a tree on campus. Business should operate on a campus model because that is the right environment to exercise our brains.
Liz and Julie had to look at stores, so we stopped off in Santa Monica. While the girls shopped, Jonathan and I went to the beach and pier. At this point, the beach is extremely wide and, with the action on the pier, I can see why the area is so popular. Santa Monica is also far more Canadian city like - organized and structured, than LA. I would never want to live in LA, but Santa Monica would be OK.
Next stop, and LA legend - Ventura beach. Liz wanted to look at boys, and Jon wanted to swim. Vetura is also home to one of the most active busking locations in the world. We were not disappointed. The nut cakes were everywhere. One guy even had a full sized acoustic piano on the boardwalk. He played like a concert pianist but looked like a hobo. We even saw the alternative life style guys with leather and stud g strings, muscles and tatoos, but no chain saw jugglers. After a brief lunch, to fulfill Liz’s guy watching requirements (and to fill our stomachs), we hit the beach. The surf was up because of storm remnants and everyone was on their boards. Jon had a blast smashing through waves and body surfing. He is getting the hang of it and he had his first undertow experience. We had a tough time getting him out of the water but it was getting late and there was the 4 hour drive up the coast to Moro. 4 hours without rush hour. leaving at 5 pm from Ventura beach, we finally made it to Moro at 10:30. Moro has a beautiful harbour and a huge monolith in the sea, but there was a big storm the night before (with lightning - which is very rare in LA) and the place was socked in with fog.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
LA
We got up early to take a tour of the LA area and do the obligatory tour of the star’s homes. Rather than drive in the van (we have already spent too much time in the van), we took an organized tour. In LA, these are over priced, but that’s LA. We had to get up very early to get to the tour start because the trip from our hotel in Sherman Oaks, north of the downtown area, to Mann’s Chinese, where the tour starts, went through the hills during morning rush hour. Our driver certainly knew all of the side roads.
The tour has ho-hum for me because I have seen the sights many times before. It was interesting to see the homes of the stars and how some relatively unknown people have huge mansions and the very well known have smaller, more modest homes. It’s clear that these people own the homes, but pay others to run the homes. Not sure if that is a balanced life style. Elizabeth loved it and Jon had moderate interest. When we finished the tour, Julie and the kids jumped off the bus to tour the Paramount studio back lot and I went back to the hotel to catch up on emails. Perhaps a mistake because there were so many emails from the trades, and only a few “for action by Mike” emails. I caught up on what is happening in tech.
We went back downtown to experience the night time action. Actually, Hollywood is dark at night and a lot of scary people walking around. People who go to high end clubs get dropped off by limo and get whisked right into the club. The lessers stand out front and wait for admittance. Dinner was at Mels Diner, which inspired the set of American Graffiti and Happy Days. Food was burgers and shakes and each table had it’s own juke box.
We went star hunting on the walk of fame. Johnny Depp, Mike Myers and that type were popular with the girls. Spent some time looking at the hand and foot prints at Manns. Now the kids can say that they did that and don’t need to do it again until they take friends or family for the next trip.
Hollywood is changing. The residential areas are stable and prices are escalating. Old houses get torn down and replaced with more opulent palaces. The home of the old stars have a distinct look of hollywood mansions, but they emphasized entertaining and not living. Many only have one bathroom. This is the primary reason why new buyers are tearing them down. Modern mansions need 10 bedrooms and 11 bathrooms (according to the tour guide). The new mansions are built like movie sets so clearly they are not designed to last a long time, just look good. Essentially, the owners are paying for the land and if you can afford 15 million for a lot, what’s 2 million to build a movie set to live in.
The studios are moving out. Land is to valuable to keep that much property tied up in large buildings. Problem is, the homes near the studios are tacky, cheezy and no one would want to live there. On Rodeo drive, they have a store that is closed. To get in, you need to make an appointment and have a credit check done. If you don’t earn more than one million/year, you don’t get an appointment. If you fail to show up, or buy something, you will be charged a $1,500 inconvenience fee. Why on earth would anyone want to shop there. The owners have accomplished the ultimate branding project.
The tour has ho-hum for me because I have seen the sights many times before. It was interesting to see the homes of the stars and how some relatively unknown people have huge mansions and the very well known have smaller, more modest homes. It’s clear that these people own the homes, but pay others to run the homes. Not sure if that is a balanced life style. Elizabeth loved it and Jon had moderate interest. When we finished the tour, Julie and the kids jumped off the bus to tour the Paramount studio back lot and I went back to the hotel to catch up on emails. Perhaps a mistake because there were so many emails from the trades, and only a few “for action by Mike” emails. I caught up on what is happening in tech.
We went back downtown to experience the night time action. Actually, Hollywood is dark at night and a lot of scary people walking around. People who go to high end clubs get dropped off by limo and get whisked right into the club. The lessers stand out front and wait for admittance. Dinner was at Mels Diner, which inspired the set of American Graffiti and Happy Days. Food was burgers and shakes and each table had it’s own juke box.
We went star hunting on the walk of fame. Johnny Depp, Mike Myers and that type were popular with the girls. Spent some time looking at the hand and foot prints at Manns. Now the kids can say that they did that and don’t need to do it again until they take friends or family for the next trip.
Hollywood is changing. The residential areas are stable and prices are escalating. Old houses get torn down and replaced with more opulent palaces. The home of the old stars have a distinct look of hollywood mansions, but they emphasized entertaining and not living. Many only have one bathroom. This is the primary reason why new buyers are tearing them down. Modern mansions need 10 bedrooms and 11 bathrooms (according to the tour guide). The new mansions are built like movie sets so clearly they are not designed to last a long time, just look good. Essentially, the owners are paying for the land and if you can afford 15 million for a lot, what’s 2 million to build a movie set to live in.
The studios are moving out. Land is to valuable to keep that much property tied up in large buildings. Problem is, the homes near the studios are tacky, cheezy and no one would want to live there. On Rodeo drive, they have a store that is closed. To get in, you need to make an appointment and have a credit check done. If you don’t earn more than one million/year, you don’t get an appointment. If you fail to show up, or buy something, you will be charged a $1,500 inconvenience fee. Why on earth would anyone want to shop there. The owners have accomplished the ultimate branding project.
Exploring LA
We spent the morning with Sandy exploring the Dana Point area, from the harbor, to the tidal pools and beach and ended up at an arts festival. Bill had to catch a flight to Dallas for business so he couldn’t join us. You can tell they love this area from their enthusiasm. The ocean and So Cal life style are so different than anywhere else that we have been and it’s almost like a fairy tale. There are a lot of people in this area. After lunch at the festival, it was time to move on. We really didn’t have much time with the Rinchiks so hopefully that can be fixed the next time we meet again.
Off the Newport beach. Apparently, there are some popular TV shows set in Newport so Elizabeth had to have photos of the area. We explored the pier and old downtown very briefly and while E cruised the beach in search of eye candy, Jon surfed and had a blast. Final drive was to LA, only 50 miles north. Problem is, with traffic, that took 2 and a bit hours. Did I say there are a lot of people in LA? I don’t know how someone can be productive spending so much time traveling to and from work.
We got to the hotel and were exhausted and hot so we simply had dinner and flopped to bed. I used the time to catalogue photos and update the photo page. That, and the blogging, actually takes much more time that I expected. I have a new respect for those who earn their living posting blogs.
tomorrow, explore LA
Off the Newport beach. Apparently, there are some popular TV shows set in Newport so Elizabeth had to have photos of the area. We explored the pier and old downtown very briefly and while E cruised the beach in search of eye candy, Jon surfed and had a blast. Final drive was to LA, only 50 miles north. Problem is, with traffic, that took 2 and a bit hours. Did I say there are a lot of people in LA? I don’t know how someone can be productive spending so much time traveling to and from work.
We got to the hotel and were exhausted and hot so we simply had dinner and flopped to bed. I used the time to catalogue photos and update the photo page. That, and the blogging, actually takes much more time that I expected. I have a new respect for those who earn their living posting blogs.
tomorrow, explore LA
Phoenix to So Cal
The day started hot and early. We had a lot of miles to drive and wanted to see our old friends who we haven’t seen in many years, since they moved to California from Albany New York. This is where we made our second major route change. The shortest route took us through Palm Springs and Joshua Tree park, but a traveller at the hotel advised us that traffic to the part of So Cal that we were traveling to, would add at least 1.5 hours of wait, or more. He recommended following a highway further south that takes us to San Diego. It’s 40 miles more, but less time.
We chose faster time. The highway south kept switching between 2 lanes and 4 split lanes, so it looks like politicians had a hard time committing to finishing the road, but it had speed limits from 65 to 75 mph so we got through that section quickly. We passed a HUGE prison on the way and were reminded that the US has a very large percent of it’s population behind bars. It looked like a medium security facility, but who would want to be incarcerated in such a hot place.
The south highway took us along the border of Mexico and large sand dune desert called the Imperial. While parts of this were scenic, it was a fall asleep drive. The many memorials at road side suggests that too many other travelers fell asleep and paid the price. With normal traffic flow at 80+ mph, leaving the road has a high risk of NOT a happy ending.
We stopped in Yuma for lunch and Elizabeth found a Surf clothing store that is popular with her age group, but not available in Canada. So, E and J shopped and Jon and I wandered around in the heat.
The flat desert road ended at the Chocolate mountains, which are the cause of the desert conditions that we just passed. They are not that tall, but very wide. the trip ended with a check for illegals.. As we descended the mountains into San Diego, we caught sight of the ocean, and it felt good. There is something comforting about being close to water, a feeling that is accentuated after so much time in the desert. I am comfortable in the wooded wilderness i.e. Tahoe, Ontario, BC etc, but I don’t think I’ll ever get off edge with desert wilderness. It’s just not in the comfort zone.
From wilderness to La Jolla. What a contrast. Julie and I have fond memories of La Jolla that we wanted to share with our children. They loved the cool breeze from the ocean, the lush grass in the sea side partk, the soft sandy beach and the wave carved caves by the shore. We had a fancy burger (there are no simple burgers in La Jolla) and spend some time on the beach and looking at parts of the downtown.
Since I drove all morning, Julie too over for the drive to Dana Point and I slept. I think traffic was OK because we got to Sandy and Bill’s house earlier than the expected.
Wow, was it ever great to see old friends. The family moved to Dana Point from Albany X years ago when Bill became a Divisional CFO in the corporate office. We hadn’t been able to spend time with them since. It was just as if time had stopped. Everyone looked a little older and greyer, but nothing had changed. The kids is where most of the visible change occurred. They are in high school or pre high and no longer “little”.
We went to the local beach for mexican dinner and to watch the sun go down. This area is all about beauty and the park was spectacular. Unfortunately, it was high tide so we couldn’t explore the sea caves and tidal pools. Live in Dana Point is very different than Toronto and I could see why South California is a popular place to live.
What a contrast to Phoenix. Bill explained that a lot of people from the So Cal area are moving to Phoenix because housing costs are so high. In phoenix, they are building in gulches, with few building restrictions and bylaws so someone with a So Cal home that they partially own, can sell and take the equity and buy a place in Phoenix without a mortgage. Apparently, if you have the income, in So Cal, you can buy a negative mortgage where the payments don’t cover the interest. Because housing prices are rising so quickly, the idea is to sell and take the equity to pay the difference. No wonder the sub prime mortgage bubble is bursting - that can’t be sustained in definitely. Only in California.
We chose faster time. The highway south kept switching between 2 lanes and 4 split lanes, so it looks like politicians had a hard time committing to finishing the road, but it had speed limits from 65 to 75 mph so we got through that section quickly. We passed a HUGE prison on the way and were reminded that the US has a very large percent of it’s population behind bars. It looked like a medium security facility, but who would want to be incarcerated in such a hot place.
The south highway took us along the border of Mexico and large sand dune desert called the Imperial. While parts of this were scenic, it was a fall asleep drive. The many memorials at road side suggests that too many other travelers fell asleep and paid the price. With normal traffic flow at 80+ mph, leaving the road has a high risk of NOT a happy ending.
We stopped in Yuma for lunch and Elizabeth found a Surf clothing store that is popular with her age group, but not available in Canada. So, E and J shopped and Jon and I wandered around in the heat.
The flat desert road ended at the Chocolate mountains, which are the cause of the desert conditions that we just passed. They are not that tall, but very wide. the trip ended with a check for illegals.. As we descended the mountains into San Diego, we caught sight of the ocean, and it felt good. There is something comforting about being close to water, a feeling that is accentuated after so much time in the desert. I am comfortable in the wooded wilderness i.e. Tahoe, Ontario, BC etc, but I don’t think I’ll ever get off edge with desert wilderness. It’s just not in the comfort zone.
From wilderness to La Jolla. What a contrast. Julie and I have fond memories of La Jolla that we wanted to share with our children. They loved the cool breeze from the ocean, the lush grass in the sea side partk, the soft sandy beach and the wave carved caves by the shore. We had a fancy burger (there are no simple burgers in La Jolla) and spend some time on the beach and looking at parts of the downtown.
Since I drove all morning, Julie too over for the drive to Dana Point and I slept. I think traffic was OK because we got to Sandy and Bill’s house earlier than the expected.
Wow, was it ever great to see old friends. The family moved to Dana Point from Albany X years ago when Bill became a Divisional CFO in the corporate office. We hadn’t been able to spend time with them since. It was just as if time had stopped. Everyone looked a little older and greyer, but nothing had changed. The kids is where most of the visible change occurred. They are in high school or pre high and no longer “little”.
We went to the local beach for mexican dinner and to watch the sun go down. This area is all about beauty and the park was spectacular. Unfortunately, it was high tide so we couldn’t explore the sea caves and tidal pools. Live in Dana Point is very different than Toronto and I could see why South California is a popular place to live.
What a contrast to Phoenix. Bill explained that a lot of people from the So Cal area are moving to Phoenix because housing costs are so high. In phoenix, they are building in gulches, with few building restrictions and bylaws so someone with a So Cal home that they partially own, can sell and take the equity and buy a place in Phoenix without a mortgage. Apparently, if you have the income, in So Cal, you can buy a negative mortgage where the payments don’t cover the interest. Because housing prices are rising so quickly, the idea is to sell and take the equity to pay the difference. No wonder the sub prime mortgage bubble is bursting - that can’t be sustained in definitely. Only in California.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
Vegas - Oops
I accidentally lost all of the Vegas pictures that Julie made. Since I don't find a lot of interesting things worth photographing, we don't have many vegas photos.
Grand Canyon
We took a helicopter tour of the grand canyon. Maverick was recommended by our friend Brian M because he says they have the safest equipment. Check their web site at maverickhelicopters.com
All we can say is WOW. We took a slow trip over the edge, accompanied to Wagners Voyage of the Valkries. The pilot accelerated over the tree tops (20 feet over the trees) and then took us into a sharp climb to put some G force just as we crested the edge of the chasm. What a sensation. We bought the video of the flight and can't wait to show it.
The angles and views of the canyon are beyond words. check the photo web site.
Later we went for a hike along the rim and watched a huge storm rush over the canyon. the storm gusts from the front rolling in drove all sensible people from the edge.
There is a hike that can't be missed called "Bright Angel". E is planning to do it at some time. It's one day to the river, camp overnight and then hike back next day.
Tomorrow we make the mad dash to Phoenix. If the weather holds up, we'll check the meteor crater, otherwise we'll go a bit farther down the road so the next day trip to OC isn't as long. I'm going to work on uploading the best of the pictures because we are a bit behind.
All we can say is WOW. We took a slow trip over the edge, accompanied to Wagners Voyage of the Valkries. The pilot accelerated over the tree tops (20 feet over the trees) and then took us into a sharp climb to put some G force just as we crested the edge of the chasm. What a sensation. We bought the video of the flight and can't wait to show it.
The angles and views of the canyon are beyond words. check the photo web site.
Later we went for a hike along the rim and watched a huge storm rush over the canyon. the storm gusts from the front rolling in drove all sensible people from the edge.
There is a hike that can't be missed called "Bright Angel". E is planning to do it at some time. It's one day to the river, camp overnight and then hike back next day.
Tomorrow we make the mad dash to Phoenix. If the weather holds up, we'll check the meteor crater, otherwise we'll go a bit farther down the road so the next day trip to OC isn't as long. I'm going to work on uploading the best of the pictures because we are a bit behind.
Vegas to Grand Canyon
Vegas to Grand Canyon
The long drives are now fairly routine. Vegas is growing like crazy. the drive to Hoover dam used to be a trek along a 2 lane highway. Now, it's 4 lanes through suburbia most of the way. The area approaching the dam is also a thriving housing region.
Security approaching the dam is heavy, I guess because it would be a useful terrorist device, if they could blow it up. All vehicles with a trailer are searched. I don't know how much explosives would be required to damage a dam that weighs 6.6 million tons and has more concrete than 18 empire state buildings.
There is a new ultra modern visitor center built into the surrounding hills with concrete coloured to match the hills. It works to keep the focus on the white concrete dam. Also, to improve traffic flow, and protect the dam from terrorists, the state is building a 4 lane highway that will cross over the river gorge, several hundred feet away from the dam. The bridge will be named after Pat Tillman, the football player turned soldier who was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan.
One item that everyone in the region needs to worry about is the low water level in the reservoir. I would guess that the water level is 100 ft lower than my last trip (which was a while ago). When you consider the acreage of the lake, that's a lot of missing water.
The other lesson of note is how green Arizona is compared to the interior of California and Nevada. I'll need to do some research to find out where this water is coming from. By the time you get to Grand Canyon, the forests look almost as green as Algonquin Park. The other interesting point is that the temperature became much cooler. Where we were dealing with 110F in Vegas, Grand Canyon was in the low 90's and dropped to high 60's at night. After the desert, that felt cool/cold.
Driving went very well with long straight roads and a 75 mph speed limit.
We just got in to see sunset at the canyon. The view is as spectacular as everyone says it is. Sunset provides strong definition of the rock formations but it is after the sun dips well below the canyon, that the true colours show themselves. Ironically, most of the tourists are gone by then.
We are starting to suffer from travel fatigue - so many miles, changes in views, temperature etc actually wears one down. It's getting harder to get E and J out of bed in the morning. I'm feeling it a bit as well.
Today, we are taking a 1 hour helicopter flight into the canyon. It is supposed to be the best way to see a lot of the canyon. Then we'll like along the rim for a while. Tomorrow, we start the mad dash to the coast of California with a stop in Phoenix (cause the trip takes 2 days). It's hard to believe that one week is over, but it's also hard to believe how much territory we have covered in that same time.
The hotel has wifi connections in all rooms but no packets are getting through. My guess is that the entire town has limited bandwidth and all of the tourists are clogging the lines. I probably will not be able to post my photos until we get to Phoenix.
The long drives are now fairly routine. Vegas is growing like crazy. the drive to Hoover dam used to be a trek along a 2 lane highway. Now, it's 4 lanes through suburbia most of the way. The area approaching the dam is also a thriving housing region.
Security approaching the dam is heavy, I guess because it would be a useful terrorist device, if they could blow it up. All vehicles with a trailer are searched. I don't know how much explosives would be required to damage a dam that weighs 6.6 million tons and has more concrete than 18 empire state buildings.
There is a new ultra modern visitor center built into the surrounding hills with concrete coloured to match the hills. It works to keep the focus on the white concrete dam. Also, to improve traffic flow, and protect the dam from terrorists, the state is building a 4 lane highway that will cross over the river gorge, several hundred feet away from the dam. The bridge will be named after Pat Tillman, the football player turned soldier who was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan.
One item that everyone in the region needs to worry about is the low water level in the reservoir. I would guess that the water level is 100 ft lower than my last trip (which was a while ago). When you consider the acreage of the lake, that's a lot of missing water.
The other lesson of note is how green Arizona is compared to the interior of California and Nevada. I'll need to do some research to find out where this water is coming from. By the time you get to Grand Canyon, the forests look almost as green as Algonquin Park. The other interesting point is that the temperature became much cooler. Where we were dealing with 110F in Vegas, Grand Canyon was in the low 90's and dropped to high 60's at night. After the desert, that felt cool/cold.
Driving went very well with long straight roads and a 75 mph speed limit.
We just got in to see sunset at the canyon. The view is as spectacular as everyone says it is. Sunset provides strong definition of the rock formations but it is after the sun dips well below the canyon, that the true colours show themselves. Ironically, most of the tourists are gone by then.
We are starting to suffer from travel fatigue - so many miles, changes in views, temperature etc actually wears one down. It's getting harder to get E and J out of bed in the morning. I'm feeling it a bit as well.
Today, we are taking a 1 hour helicopter flight into the canyon. It is supposed to be the best way to see a lot of the canyon. Then we'll like along the rim for a while. Tomorrow, we start the mad dash to the coast of California with a stop in Phoenix (cause the trip takes 2 days). It's hard to believe that one week is over, but it's also hard to believe how much territory we have covered in that same time.
The hotel has wifi connections in all rooms but no packets are getting through. My guess is that the entire town has limited bandwidth and all of the tourists are clogging the lines. I probably will not be able to post my photos until we get to Phoenix.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Vegas
We arrived in vegas at sundown. The first impression was how much construction, housing, roads and hotels was under way. We got settled in and the kids had a roller coaster ride at New York New York. My impression: disney land north.
Next morning, mike tries to get an internet connection to get office emails and talk to Ahmed. There's no wireless on the strip in Wynn properties. They block all the third party wifi providers so guests are forced to pay too high fees for a wired connection. This made Mike very happy, especially when the service in the room did not work because someone unplugged the power to the signal converter. I guess that the hotel does not its guests to work.
The rest of the day was spent visiting all the big names on the strip. Wynns is number one and Bellagio number two. The other "aha" was realizing that gambling is no longer the primary reason for going to Vegas. It has become a theme destination (disney with vice), shopping, and vice. The escort services are everywhere, we were surprised how many guys were on the roller coaster with obvious escorts. Open beer and drinks were on the street.
The casinos used to offer drinks to gamblers and low cost good meals. All of that is gone. In order to fund the hotels, food and services are outsourced to the highest bidder and everything is very expensive.
I was finally able to relax and get into the holiday feeling when we got back to the hotel pools - the wave pool and river pool and cooled off from the 110F temp. A $15 football sized frozed beverage completed the transformation.
In the evening we saw the water show at the Bellagio - neat.
Now, it's off to Hoover dam and grand canyon. May get some rain in the next 3 days as well.
Next morning, mike tries to get an internet connection to get office emails and talk to Ahmed. There's no wireless on the strip in Wynn properties. They block all the third party wifi providers so guests are forced to pay too high fees for a wired connection. This made Mike very happy, especially when the service in the room did not work because someone unplugged the power to the signal converter. I guess that the hotel does not its guests to work.
The rest of the day was spent visiting all the big names on the strip. Wynns is number one and Bellagio number two. The other "aha" was realizing that gambling is no longer the primary reason for going to Vegas. It has become a theme destination (disney with vice), shopping, and vice. The escort services are everywhere, we were surprised how many guys were on the roller coaster with obvious escorts. Open beer and drinks were on the street.
The casinos used to offer drinks to gamblers and low cost good meals. All of that is gone. In order to fund the hotels, food and services are outsourced to the highest bidder and everything is very expensive.
I was finally able to relax and get into the holiday feeling when we got back to the hotel pools - the wave pool and river pool and cooled off from the 110F temp. A $15 football sized frozed beverage completed the transformation.
In the evening we saw the water show at the Bellagio - neat.
Now, it's off to Hoover dam and grand canyon. May get some rain in the next 3 days as well.
Bishop to Vegas
The drive today takes us from Bishop to Vegas with stops on Mount Whitney, death valley and furnace creek.
Mount Whitney is the tallest peak in continental US at 14,000+ feet and Death Valley is the lowest at -300 feet. A lot of downhill to travel.
We only had a few hours at Whitney so we climbed the first section to the Whitney Portal. What a spectacular climb. It's recommended that hikers spend 2 days in the base camp acclimatizing before they take the final 2 day hike to the top and back. Jon really got into the climb and was disappointed that we had to cut it short. (note to self, plan a mountain hike with Jon - and let him carry the heavy pack)
The drive to death valley is very different from the tahoe region. the peaks are not as high and the passes are more gradual. I guess these are older mountains and the roads spend more time in the alluvial plains.
We followed a pattern: climb up and down a range with a few zig zag roads and then race down an 8% down hill straight road into a valley with a straight line dash across and climb up the mirror image to the next side. On the way down, the car is accelerating with heavy braking to make the hairpin turns. In the 8% straights, the car acceerates quickly to 70 plus mph. Hit the brakes hard to slow down to 50 and then coast up to 70. no gas, just coast. The car doesn't use a lot of gas, but the brakes get a real work out. Our car has partially melted plastic wheel covers.
The climb up is the opposite. the car kicks down to a low gear and revs up at 4000 rpm constant climb speed. any gas saved in the down hill gets burned during the uphill.
Shortly after Whitney, it started to get over 100F. As we desended into the valleys, the heat started to riste into the 107 - 110 range. In the hills the temperature dropped 5.5 degrees every 1,000 feet increase in temperature.
Death Valley was 118. At the Furnace Creek museum, it was 120. It's a dry heat that feels very different than Toronto, but with 1.5% moisture, it sucks the water out of you. The windows in the car almost burn your hand if you touch them. The museum has a display that shows why it gets so hot. The valley behaves like a convection oven.
We did a mad dash to vegas and got there earlier than expected. The high speed straight highways makes a big difference.
Mount Whitney is the tallest peak in continental US at 14,000+ feet and Death Valley is the lowest at -300 feet. A lot of downhill to travel.
We only had a few hours at Whitney so we climbed the first section to the Whitney Portal. What a spectacular climb. It's recommended that hikers spend 2 days in the base camp acclimatizing before they take the final 2 day hike to the top and back. Jon really got into the climb and was disappointed that we had to cut it short. (note to self, plan a mountain hike with Jon - and let him carry the heavy pack)
The drive to death valley is very different from the tahoe region. the peaks are not as high and the passes are more gradual. I guess these are older mountains and the roads spend more time in the alluvial plains.
We followed a pattern: climb up and down a range with a few zig zag roads and then race down an 8% down hill straight road into a valley with a straight line dash across and climb up the mirror image to the next side. On the way down, the car is accelerating with heavy braking to make the hairpin turns. In the 8% straights, the car acceerates quickly to 70 plus mph. Hit the brakes hard to slow down to 50 and then coast up to 70. no gas, just coast. The car doesn't use a lot of gas, but the brakes get a real work out. Our car has partially melted plastic wheel covers.
The climb up is the opposite. the car kicks down to a low gear and revs up at 4000 rpm constant climb speed. any gas saved in the down hill gets burned during the uphill.
Shortly after Whitney, it started to get over 100F. As we desended into the valleys, the heat started to riste into the 107 - 110 range. In the hills the temperature dropped 5.5 degrees every 1,000 feet increase in temperature.
Death Valley was 118. At the Furnace Creek museum, it was 120. It's a dry heat that feels very different than Toronto, but with 1.5% moisture, it sucks the water out of you. The windows in the car almost burn your hand if you touch them. The museum has a display that shows why it gets so hot. The valley behaves like a convection oven.
We did a mad dash to vegas and got there earlier than expected. The high speed straight highways makes a big difference.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Tahoe to Bishop
The roads did not disapoint us. We drove through monitor pass which is a steep hike over the mountain via a narrow 2 lane road that is closed fall, winter and spring. There is still snow at the top of the peaks. The eastern slope dropped from 8300 ft to 5000 feet in 3 miles. The brakes smelled a little funny after that
We visited the ghost town of Bodie, a state run heritage that reminds us of the gold rush area and it's impact on settling the west.
From there to Mono lake, which could be the oldest lake in North America. It looks refreshing in the desert, but it's alkaloid and more saline than the dead sea.
The swim and cold beer in Bishop refreshed to the nth degree from this point on it's gong to be hot.
We visited the ghost town of Bodie, a state run heritage that reminds us of the gold rush area and it's impact on settling the west.
From there to Mono lake, which could be the oldest lake in North America. It looks refreshing in the desert, but it's alkaloid and more saline than the dead sea.
The swim and cold beer in Bishop refreshed to the nth degree from this point on it's gong to be hot.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Lake Tahoe
When you look at a map, a line is a line and an inch is 10 miles, except when you are from Ontario and driving through the Sierras. The drive to Lake Tahoe gets serious around Camino. Got google maps and zoom into the roads. See all those zigs and zags and curves? Those are winding up the sides of sheer cliffs that limit top speeds to 45 mph and where one mistake spells disaster.
There are few rails so if you sneeze, it's a one way trip to your maker. So throw our scedule out the window. Got into Tahoe just before 6PM, hoping that the people in the burned out motor home that snagged up traffic for an hour, got out OK without injury.
Our camp site was only a few miles out of town and we thought we would set up and then head back into town for a bite to eat. Well, it was a couple of miles ... straight up. No one wanted to risk the drive in darkness, so we had chicken sandwiches and pringles (good thing we had some snack supplies)
Tahoe is spectacular. We quickly realized that you need at least a week here. Hiked down to the beach and watched a spectacular sun set. The fire risk was very high, so we sat on the picnic bench and gazed at the moon and stars. Good way to wind down.
It didn't get too cold at night (48F) but you needed to have a good bag. Got some great sun up shots of the lake and surrounding mountains.
Today we are heading south to brodie. We'll visit Mono lake and the brodie ghost town. It will als be the last time we have cool nights for a while. We are heading into the dessert.
M
There are few rails so if you sneeze, it's a one way trip to your maker. So throw our scedule out the window. Got into Tahoe just before 6PM, hoping that the people in the burned out motor home that snagged up traffic for an hour, got out OK without injury.
Our camp site was only a few miles out of town and we thought we would set up and then head back into town for a bite to eat. Well, it was a couple of miles ... straight up. No one wanted to risk the drive in darkness, so we had chicken sandwiches and pringles (good thing we had some snack supplies)
Tahoe is spectacular. We quickly realized that you need at least a week here. Hiked down to the beach and watched a spectacular sun set. The fire risk was very high, so we sat on the picnic bench and gazed at the moon and stars. Good way to wind down.
It didn't get too cold at night (48F) but you needed to have a good bag. Got some great sun up shots of the lake and surrounding mountains.
Today we are heading south to brodie. We'll visit Mono lake and the brodie ghost town. It will als be the last time we have cool nights for a while. We are heading into the dessert.
M
Monday, August 20, 2007
Moped touring
On our way to Highway 1, we stopped in xx for a nature call. There, in the Subway parking lot, 2 mopeds with German license plates caught my eye. The mopeds had sleeping bags tied to the handlebars, saddle bags and a suit case bungie tied to the back fender. Two older gentlemen came out of the subway and put on old fashioned dome helmets with leather sides, fired up the trusty steeds an puttered off in the direction of Sanfrancisco.
In this day and age of modern bike touring where a nostalic drive means taking a Harley hardtail, or modern touring means a BMW touring bike, all costing $20K or more, here were two old guys, on ancient 200cc mopeds taking back roads at 80km/hr. I don't know how they got parts or kept the bikes in repair, but that is a trip that novels are made of.
In this day and age of modern bike touring where a nostalic drive means taking a Harley hardtail, or modern touring means a BMW touring bike, all costing $20K or more, here were two old guys, on ancient 200cc mopeds taking back roads at 80km/hr. I don't know how they got parts or kept the bikes in repair, but that is a trip that novels are made of.
Day2 - first full day in California
The day started early due to jet lag, but after a busy day of sightseeing and travel, we all slept through to 6:00am (PDT)
We started the day with breakfeast at Bodin, a famous sour dough bakery and fueled up real good with one 2 breakfasts shared by all 4 of us. American breakfast dishes are real big. Octane was supplied by Peets coffee. San Francisco takes it's coffee seriously (Tim Horton would never survive) and Starbucks has competition.
Our goal was to drive up highway 1 to Jenner and then head over to Napa valley and wind our way back to Frisco via the wine region. Then we would hit the wax museum for Jonathan and have dinner. I hope that the way that it actually went is not an indicator of the rest of the trip. Oh yes, everyone agreed it was a fantastic day, but our route...
First stop: Golden Gate bridge. As we approached the bridge, it was shrouded in fog and you couldn't see 20 feet in front of you. The fog is caused when the cold air mass, cooled by cold water from arctic currents (darn Canadians export a lot of cold), meets the warm California air, heated by the sun baking the hills. The hot air rises and sucks the cold air from the ocean, and when it mixes, instant air conditioning. We drove up the coast and this cooling effect is maximized right over San Francisco. I don't know why.
Anyway, the far side had some sun, so we walked across the bridge and took some pictures. Jonathan was amazed at the height of the bridge and several spit balls were dispatched to count how log something would fall from the bridge.
Some how between driver and navigator, the objective of driving highway 1 and getting to Jenner got mixed. We drove up 101 looking for a store to buy a cooler and some food. Did yoy know that there are NO Walmarts in Marin county! We can't have riff raff shopping in our area. We finally found a Target in Novato. While driving north after that, I commented that when Erwin Ho and I did this trip last, I did not remember going this far to get to the start of Highway 1. That touched of a fire storm.
Sidebar: I wanted to take my family on a trip of highway1, that runs along the coast north of Frisco. I had done the trip during a conference in Frisco, when working at Teknion. Erwin was our programming manager and we had worked our ss's off with a dealer and had one day to see sights. We drove this route with a rag top mustang ... and it was good.
So now we find out that the start of highway 1 is all the way back at the golden gate bridge. Not only that, a car had flipped on the south bound lanes a few miles back and traffic was stop and go for ever. You know how I react to stop and go traffic. So, Mike has a tantrum but get's over it and at 1:30, we're on our way up Number 1 to the coast. Elizabeth notes that she would not like to drive this road without more driving experience. Julie comments that the road is just like Positano, in the Amalfi coast (Italy). Long story short, if/when you get to the San Francisco area, and have time, you must drive this road.
Once we get to the coast, the fog is still billowing over the coast, only this time, we are right on the edge of the cliffs. Muir beach was invisible and chilly. We found a lookout point further north that was just a touch higher than the fog and a little up wind so it was sunny there. From that vantage point, we could see the top of the fog and it was a classic image that one would see just as a plane breaks the cloud top and the sun makes the clouds look like a field of rolling white. In the distance, the peaks of San Franciso buildings, and the tops of the Golden Gate towers punctured the blanket of white. Nice. The camera did not capture the image a well as the mind.
We had lunch in Stinson beach and the sun was so hot, we burned our feet in the sand. Cooling them off in the ocean only took 2 seconds because it was so cold. It was 3:30, so we already knew the late afternoon an Frisco were not going to happen.
Continue along the coast and made our way to Napa. The traffic jams heading to town were already miles long so we already planned alternative routes. toured Napa (after eerything had closed) and Julie did wine tasting (I was driving) and had dinner (salads with steak topping). Had to look for a restaurant made for tourists and not wealthy wine connoisseurs on a pilgrimage to Napa.
Hit the road home just as the sun was setting and crossed over the bay at Bay bridge. Long but satisfyng day.
Next day, Sacramento and Lake Tahoe. We may not have internet in the campground so there may not be a lot of posting.
Photos, may take a sort time to post. I set the camera to bracketing and need to fix the exposure on some of the photos.
M
We started the day with breakfeast at Bodin, a famous sour dough bakery and fueled up real good with one 2 breakfasts shared by all 4 of us. American breakfast dishes are real big. Octane was supplied by Peets coffee. San Francisco takes it's coffee seriously (Tim Horton would never survive) and Starbucks has competition.
Our goal was to drive up highway 1 to Jenner and then head over to Napa valley and wind our way back to Frisco via the wine region. Then we would hit the wax museum for Jonathan and have dinner. I hope that the way that it actually went is not an indicator of the rest of the trip. Oh yes, everyone agreed it was a fantastic day, but our route...
First stop: Golden Gate bridge. As we approached the bridge, it was shrouded in fog and you couldn't see 20 feet in front of you. The fog is caused when the cold air mass, cooled by cold water from arctic currents (darn Canadians export a lot of cold), meets the warm California air, heated by the sun baking the hills. The hot air rises and sucks the cold air from the ocean, and when it mixes, instant air conditioning. We drove up the coast and this cooling effect is maximized right over San Francisco. I don't know why.
Anyway, the far side had some sun, so we walked across the bridge and took some pictures. Jonathan was amazed at the height of the bridge and several spit balls were dispatched to count how log something would fall from the bridge.
Some how between driver and navigator, the objective of driving highway 1 and getting to Jenner got mixed. We drove up 101 looking for a store to buy a cooler and some food. Did yoy know that there are NO Walmarts in Marin county! We can't have riff raff shopping in our area. We finally found a Target in Novato. While driving north after that, I commented that when Erwin Ho and I did this trip last, I did not remember going this far to get to the start of Highway 1. That touched of a fire storm.
Sidebar: I wanted to take my family on a trip of highway1, that runs along the coast north of Frisco. I had done the trip during a conference in Frisco, when working at Teknion. Erwin was our programming manager and we had worked our ss's off with a dealer and had one day to see sights. We drove this route with a rag top mustang ... and it was good.
So now we find out that the start of highway 1 is all the way back at the golden gate bridge. Not only that, a car had flipped on the south bound lanes a few miles back and traffic was stop and go for ever. You know how I react to stop and go traffic. So, Mike has a tantrum but get's over it and at 1:30, we're on our way up Number 1 to the coast. Elizabeth notes that she would not like to drive this road without more driving experience. Julie comments that the road is just like Positano, in the Amalfi coast (Italy). Long story short, if/when you get to the San Francisco area, and have time, you must drive this road.
Once we get to the coast, the fog is still billowing over the coast, only this time, we are right on the edge of the cliffs. Muir beach was invisible and chilly. We found a lookout point further north that was just a touch higher than the fog and a little up wind so it was sunny there. From that vantage point, we could see the top of the fog and it was a classic image that one would see just as a plane breaks the cloud top and the sun makes the clouds look like a field of rolling white. In the distance, the peaks of San Franciso buildings, and the tops of the Golden Gate towers punctured the blanket of white. Nice. The camera did not capture the image a well as the mind.
We had lunch in Stinson beach and the sun was so hot, we burned our feet in the sand. Cooling them off in the ocean only took 2 seconds because it was so cold. It was 3:30, so we already knew the late afternoon an Frisco were not going to happen.
Continue along the coast and made our way to Napa. The traffic jams heading to town were already miles long so we already planned alternative routes. toured Napa (after eerything had closed) and Julie did wine tasting (I was driving) and had dinner (salads with steak topping). Had to look for a restaurant made for tourists and not wealthy wine connoisseurs on a pilgrimage to Napa.
Hit the road home just as the sun was setting and crossed over the bay at Bay bridge. Long but satisfyng day.
Next day, Sacramento and Lake Tahoe. We may not have internet in the campground so there may not be a lot of posting.
Photos, may take a sort time to post. I set the camera to bracketing and need to fix the exposure on some of the photos.
M
Sunday, August 19, 2007
First day - downtown San Francisco
The day went fast. First impressions - Jonathan and Elizabeth LOVE San Francisco. We arrived early afternoon, checked in and went for a walking tour of the Pier district. It was sunny and windy, but cool. People were walking around with winter jackets. The ocean really is cool in this area.
The pier is just behind our hotel so it was easy to get to. It's very popular with the tourists as you'll see at the photo web site. I will try to post the best photos to the apple web site (http://gallery.mac.com/mikemaycga. We went on a greyline tour of the city to get a feel for the layout. Interesting, San Francisco is a small city of only 800,000 and much like Japan, every square inch is housing with no yards. All of the houses are on hill property and of course we say the famous homes.
Dinner was at an OK jazz club. The area feels kinda tourist trappy, but hey ... we are tourists. At least the food was great. Tomorrow, it will be sourdough breakfast.
We went to bed early but now it's 3:30 am, (6:30 Toronto time) Mike is up and the others are stirring. We'll need a few days to get over the jet lag. I'll finish posting the pictures and see if I can take a nap. Today we'll drive up Hwy 1 and cross over to Napa. That means golden gate bridge as well. We could not get a tour of Alcatraz since they are all booked up for weeks. Julie booked us for the last day when we return because Jonathan really wants to see it.
M
The pier is just behind our hotel so it was easy to get to. It's very popular with the tourists as you'll see at the photo web site. I will try to post the best photos to the apple web site (http://gallery.mac.com/mikemaycga. We went on a greyline tour of the city to get a feel for the layout. Interesting, San Francisco is a small city of only 800,000 and much like Japan, every square inch is housing with no yards. All of the houses are on hill property and of course we say the famous homes.
Dinner was at an OK jazz club. The area feels kinda tourist trappy, but hey ... we are tourists. At least the food was great. Tomorrow, it will be sourdough breakfast.
We went to bed early but now it's 3:30 am, (6:30 Toronto time) Mike is up and the others are stirring. We'll need a few days to get over the jet lag. I'll finish posting the pictures and see if I can take a nap. Today we'll drive up Hwy 1 and cross over to Napa. That means golden gate bridge as well. We could not get a tour of Alcatraz since they are all booked up for weeks. Julie booked us for the last day when we return because Jonathan really wants to see it.
M
Saturday, August 18, 2007
At the airport
We are at the airport departure lounge. Whew, survived packing, getting up at 4:30AM, customs etc. Actually, the customs agent was very nice. Yesterday he worked 'til 7:30 and because of the high winds, many late flights were cancelled, with the predictable backlog this morning.
We are having our wakeup Starbuck and will wander over to the gate for 8:30 boarding. A quick nap on a 5 1/2 hour flight and the adventure begins.
The new terminal at Pearson is well laid out. Check in worked smoothly without any major hassles. One couple delayed us because they forgot to fill their customs form. There were only 5 major signs, attendants reminding "all passengers need to fill a 402 form", and these people forgot. Don't you hate that.
We are having our wakeup Starbuck and will wander over to the gate for 8:30 boarding. A quick nap on a 5 1/2 hour flight and the adventure begins.
The new terminal at Pearson is well laid out. Check in worked smoothly without any major hassles. One couple delayed us because they forgot to fill their customs form. There were only 5 major signs, attendants reminding "all passengers need to fill a 402 form", and these people forgot. Don't you hate that.
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Getting ready
It's a week and a bit away from starting the trip. We are planning agendas, updating map lists, making sure the GPS has all the maps loaded, packing, and making last minute travel arrangements.
We'll be traveling through some hostile locations and want to make sure that we have all risk points covered. The memory of James Kim's family road trip urges us to be careful.
Between now and when we depart, Saturday August 18th, we'll update our plans (so later, as we make the trip, we can see how well we stick to the plan)
We'll be traveling through some hostile locations and want to make sure that we have all risk points covered. The memory of James Kim's family road trip urges us to be careful.
Between now and when we depart, Saturday August 18th, we'll update our plans (so later, as we make the trip, we can see how well we stick to the plan)
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