I’m back and browner than before! I gave you a peek at my California trip, but the details – and the pics on my fab camera – are too fun to keep to myself. So, let me give you a recap, city by city, starting with our first stop, San Francisco! (Oh, and these posts will not be lacking overused puns that I still find hilarious.)
After celebrating Tom’s little brother’s graduation from UD (our amazing alma mater), we headed to Philadelphia International bright and early last Sunday. We landed in San Francisco with enough time to explore the city by foot. I had heard talk about the hills of San Fran, but wow – when you’re actually walking them you feel like you’re on a hiking trip! Some of the sidewalks are actually stairs.
San Francisco city view … from atop one of many hills.
We hit up Lombard Street for some twisted pics. (As our tour guide the next day said: “Second crookedest street in the world. Do you know what the first is? Wall Street!” haha.)
Lombard Street
Then we continued north toward the water and Fisherman’s Wharf. We passed a great view of Alcatraz and a pretty obscure view of the Golden Gate Bridge (which was completely covered by clouds, so we almost missed it).
Fisherman’s Wharf, San Francisco
We walked through Girhardelli Square (yep, the chocolate square!) and then stopped in Buena Vista Cafe, the restaurant that brought Irish coffee to America! Obviously, you can guess what we ordered. 🙂
The original Irish coffee in America at Buena Vista Cafe
At night, we had dinner at Sanraku near our hotel in Nob Hill, a suggestion from our concierge. We had heard the Japanese food is extra fresh and extra amazing on the west coast and even though Tom is more of a sushi fan than me, the place didn’t disappoint.
The next day, we went on our first and only Cali guided tour to Muir Woods and Wine Country. Apparently the bus had broken down earlier that day so seven of us got picked up in a little van by our own personal (and entertaining) tour guide, Hugo. He gave us a mini city tour as we stopped at the other hotels and then headed across the Golden Gate to Muir Woods. This forest was astounding and it was worth checking out the breathtaking Redwoods of the West Coast.
Muir Woods, California
Our next stop was Sonoma. (You KNEW I’d be headed to some wineries on this trip.) We stopped first at Mayo, an expensive upscale family winery, where we tasted four delicious wines while hearing how the wine is made. (I didn’t want to brag about my winemaking skills, so I sipped my wine quietly.)
Then, despite the cloudy weather, we headed to Sonoma Square, an adorable little town center with lots of shops and restaurants. We grabbed some sandwiches at Sunflower Caffe (and ran into both tour guides there so I think we picked the best place to eat). I had a mimosa with a chicken grilled cheese sandwich (left). Tom had their specialty duck sandwich with caramelized onions and gruyere (right). Both, of course, were mouthwatering.
Sunflower Caffe, Sonoma Square, CA
Then we headed to Napa, drinking up at Madonna Estate (one of the oldest wineries, since it stayed open during prohibition), and then the gorgeous Cline, which was more like a wine park. Grapes really are the most noble fruit….
Napa Valley
Last but not least, we had a photo pitstop on the way back to the city. It may have been a cloudy day, but we got our touristy shot.
Golden Gate Bridge on a foggy day
The next morning we packed up and hopped in our rental car. Time for a road trip down the PCH!
To be continued tomorrow… 😉
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