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California dreaming
  • Ceri Chaplin
February 2022

California dreaming

A trip down memory lane with mum Read more
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  • Trip start
    February 4, 2022
    Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    A trolley ride in San Francisco in 1988.

    Road trip

    February 4, 2022 in England ⋅ ⛅ 5 °C

    In March 1988 we travelled halfway across the world to spend 3 months living in America. During that time with me and my sister went to school. My dad worked at UCLA and my mum spent time enjoying life in LA.

    34 years later mum and I are on a road trip to revisit some of the places that we went all that time ago and reminisce.

    This is where I'll share our trip.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    CheersHudson bay

    Painswick to Los Angeles

    February 4, 2022 in England ⋅ 🌧 5 °C

    We started the day with an uneventful to Heathrow. After a bit of confusion about our tickets at check in resulted in a bit of a delay, we eventually made it through security. Our flight was leaving from the satellite terminal so we caught the train and headed up to the lounge. After a couple of drinks it was time to board and we settled in for the flight.

    A route is taking us north of a Scotland and then over the Arctic circle before heading down over Canada and the Western United States into Los Angeles.

    It wasn't long into the flight when I realised I might have my work cut out for me in the next 10 days. We were settling down to watch a film and I noticed that mum was tapping her headphones as if to try and make them work. When I looked over I could see the problem straight away. Sadly, she had failed to plug the headphones into the socket!

    The flight itself was pretty uneventful and we landed in Los Angeles on time. After negotiating immigration and collecting our bags, we headed to find where we were picking up our car. This was not the easiest experience as they seem to be a complete lack of signs as to how you got to the rental car places. Eventually found a bus that would take us there and were given the world's biggest car as a rental. Really far far too big for just two of us and so I'm hoping we can change that in the morning.

    We parked in the garage of the hotel, although the height of the car did make me wonder whether we might not leave a dent in the roof from the low underground car park.

    After checking in we headed for a drink in the hotel bar and by 10.30 we were both flagging so decided to get an early night.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    2Breakfast!
    Ridiculously massive car2146 Balsom avenue7-ElevenWine hour

    Memories

    February 5, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    We started the day trying to beat jet lag. I think I was awake from about 1:30 a.m. and eventually gave up trying to sleep just after 4:00 and made a coffee. One advantage of being awake so early was that we were up in time to watch the rugby and I managed to find a channel that was showing the Wales Ireland game. To be honest, I wish I hadn'! 😁🏉

    After the game it was still only 8:00 and I'd already called the car hire place to see if we could change the car to something a little smaller. So we found ourselves back at the Avis garage and managed to get a different car. We then headed up towards Westwood for some reminiscing.

    Our first stop was for breakfast at a little cafe with some seats and tables outside. The sun was already high and the day warming up.

    Next, we drove to find the house that we stayed in when we were living in Los Angeles at 2146 Balsam Avenue. We reminded that the area was full of houses and not one of them alike. Was the one that could probably do with the most modernising but it was nice to see anyway.

    From here we walked along the road to the school at Kirsty used to go to, Westwood school. The weather was glorious and we then retraced our steps back to the car.

    We drove a short distance along the route that I would have taken walking to school and parked this before Santa Monica boulevard. Here we walked along the road in front of the temple and found the 7-Eleven store that I used to stop at every day on my way home for a very large Coca-Cola.

    Next, we walked along the streets to the school. I went to Ralph Waldo Emerson middle school although when I went there it was called Emerson junior high. After a quick photo stop we went around the block and passed the Catholic church and along the other side of the temple back to the car.

    Our next stop was Century city for some retail therapy and I finally stop for the hotel with the supermarkets that we used to use when we were here in 1988. We arrived at the hotel at around 2:00 p.m. and we're able to check in.

    Both are really high floors and mum's view looks out towards the temple and can actually see Emerson junior high from there. We spent a couple of hours relaxing by the pool and enjoying the sun before having a shower and getting ready for 'wine hour' at the hotel at 5:00 p.m.!

    At 6:30 I ordered an Uber and we drove the short distance to Carmine's where we met Simon and Rebecca. We worked out that it'd be at least 20 years since we'd seen each other, but despite this we had a lovely evening; great food and catching up on some of the things that changed since we last met. It's only when writing this that I realised the one thing we didn't do was to get a photo!

    We caught an Uber back which was just as well cos a temperature really seemed to have dropped and after a quick night cap had a relatively early night at 10:30 p.m.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    The Corner House coffee shop
    Mum's pancakesWestwood Methodist churchA practical example of how thick the tar is.Skylight gardens

    A trip to the beach

    February 6, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Jet lag is still playing havoc with our sleep patterns and both of us were awake early. We headed into Westwood village and found a coffee shop to have some breakfast. I opted for the in use eggs with potatoes and mum had some pancakes with maple syrup. We both chuck in a shot of caffeine to help us get through the day. 😁☕

    Mum decided that she wanted to go to church and so I dropped off at Westwood Methodist church in time for the 9:30 service. This was the church that we've been to a couple of times back in '88. I went back into Westwood village and sat having another coffee soaking up the sun.

    Today we were to meet back up with Marcia, who used to work with dad when he was at UCLA. I'd managed to track Marcia down (with my amazing sleuth-like abilities 🤣 aka Google related searches). Marcia disappear at 11:45 and we drove to Venice beach to eat. Marcia had booked to send at the Rose having had recommendations from her daughters colleague. The sun was out and I really enjoyed my burger well. Mum and Marcia both had the breakfast burrito.

    After this we drove through Venice beach and Santa Monica and stopped to see what we thought was the California heritage museum. The museum was actually not quite what we'd expected and we realised we'd ended up in the wrong place, but there were a couple of houses built originally in the late 19th century which had been moved intact to the current location. It was a bit of a hodgepodge of original environment and a flea market upstairs.

    Marcia then drove us around along the coast a little bit before heading back towards where we were staying showing us some of the neighbourhoods on the way. Finally, we stopped at an area with a number of museums including the la Brea tar pits. This is an area which had been developed in the early 20th century for oil and had left behind tarpets which on close for inspection contained hundreds and hundreds of thousands of bones of animals that had roamed the area up to 40,000 years ago. We went through the museum and then had a wander round outside but by now it was getting a bit chilly and the museum was closing so got back in the car and Marcia drove us back to our hotel where we had a couple of glasses of wine in the wine hour.

    We eventually settled on a place to eat that was in walking distance from our hotel. After a quick change, we headed out to walk to the Skylight Gardens at 7:00 p.m. we walked along Santa Monica boulevard and then into Westwood village. The restaurant had a range of beers and ales on tap, including Old Speckled Hen!

    We shared a starter of coconut prawns which were delicious and then I had a rib of beef while mum had lasagna wash down with some red wine. However, by 9:00 p.m. I just couldn't keep my eyes open and so we paid the bill and walked back to the hotel for an early night.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    The Dukes of Hazard is just one show that was filmed hereCupboard under the stairsTrying out the wands!Yes, ok, these are wonder woman's but you get the effect!On the red carpet

    Movie magic

    February 7, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    So today we're on the move. We're both still awake early and so we were checking out of our hotel just before 8:00 ready for a trip to Warner Brothers studios. Another Day in Los Angeles with blue skies with not a cloud in sight.

    We left the hotel and headed for the freeway which took us through the hills to the other side and then along to Burbank where this film studios are. Nearby the studios. We stopped a little cafe to have breakfast with me opting for the corned beef hash and mum having an omelette.

    We arrived at the Warner Brothers studios at just after 9 and after parking the car we checked in for the tour. The tour started with a presentation about some of the history of Warner Brothers and then we got onto a electric golf buggy where our guide took us around some of the sets at the front and the back lots. The sets around the back lots are buildings that are repurposed by changing the front of the cladding or repainting them and so actually when you look at it the same area would have been used in a number of different films or they've never know it because the front changed so much.

    The front lot is full of sound stages which is where they build indoor sets and where they also film live audience shows. We couldn't go into any of them because being a Monday it was a working part of the week but our guide talks about lots of different scenes have been shot in the studios there. It also appears that for some of the scenes, other movie studios will rent the space from Warner Brothers.

    After about an hour we were dropped off at especially designed vista center where there were lots of interactive exhibits majoring on the Friends set author including Harry potter and some of the marvel comics. Those explanations about writers and casting and the sound engineers and all made for a really interesting tour.

    Once we had seen that area we hopped on another golf buggy for the final past the tour where there were other interactive exhibits including some scenes from Harry potter and props from a number of the batman sets.

    And all it was a good 3 hours spent and well worth the time and cost for the ticket.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    The Inn at Palm Springs
    SunsetHaving a cocktailMarilyn Monroe

    Palm springs

    February 7, 2022 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 18 °C

    We left Warner Brothers and started the trip to Palm Springs which took a couple of hours to do the hundredish miles between where we were and the town. We arrived just before 3:00 and after a quick drive around the downtown area we checked into our hotel for the night which is the Inn at Palm Springs. This hotel is more like a motel with a lovely little pool large rooms which are rustic and spotlessly clean.

    We decided to have a quick dip in the pool before the sun went behind the mountains. It was a short swim and then a beer seeing the send dip behind the hills.

    After refreshing up we caught an Uber to the downtown area and spent a little bit of time wondering up and down before settling on a bar to have a drink overlooking the main street. It was still warm or most places here have heaters as the temperature does dip quickly once the sun's gone down. Mum at a cocktail and I had a couple of different beers and we shared some coconut shrimp.

    We wandered further down the main street past a massive statue of Marilyn Monroe and settled on a place to eat called Kaiser. The food was lovely although somewhat expensive andy 9:00 it was both getting cold and we were starting to feel the effects of the early start and so we ordered another Uber to take us back to our hotel.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler

    Palm Springs aerial tramway

    February 8, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    We had a quick dip in the pool when we got up at around 7:30 before showering and then going a couple of minutes along the road to a place where we could use a voucher for some breakfast. The weather was glorious with crystal clear blue skies and even that early on the temperature was in the early 20s.

    So orange juice, coffee and eggs with hash browns later and we are back at the room to get ready before going to the Palm Springs aerial tramway in time for 10:00 a.m.. tramway itself was about 10 minute drive. Most of it uphill and we arrived just before our scheduled departure at 10:00 a.m.. the cabins were different to when we last road on them in 1988. As in the year 2000 they replaced the cabins with two large cabins which revolve as you go up and down.

    The tramway takes you from around 2,400 ft to 8,400 ft in about 10 minutes. We were on the first cabinet of the day and the views as we went up and revolved were amazing. Not that mum saw any of them but she spent time holding on to the edge of the cabin which was revolving and trying not to fall over. 😉

    Being so high there was snow at the top. Although in the warm spring sunshine it was still very pleasant. He walked down a sloping path to the start of some forest trails but neither of us was really very well equipped with our footwear even to do the shortest one because it was muddy and a bit icy. So instead we walked back at the slope and into the lift station area where there were some exhibits, compulsory gift shop and a restaurant. It was now 11:00 a.m. and so the restaurant was open and we sat overlooking the Palm Springs valley and had some soup. I also had a chicken roll with some fries. Last mum had a Caesar salad with prawns.

    Bunny it's time to head back down the tramway and again we were treated to some amazing views and thankfully mum found the return journey much less nerve-wracking.

    The bottom we locate to start car and started the 2-hour journey back to Los Angeles.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Olvera StreetRoom with a viewBar areaHotel bar

    Back to LA

    February 8, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    The journey back to Los Angeles was pretty straightforward, although the roads were quite busy and the temperature was over 25° C.

    Before going to our next hotel, we stopped at the pueblo in downtown LA where one of the oldest streets is situated. We'd been to Olvera Street when we came in 1988 and on that occasion it was a Sunday and it was a very vibrant and noisy place with bands playing and lots of people around. On a Tuesday afternoon in February it was a bit quieter but it was still lovely to see the brightly coloured stalls selling a range of things from shoes to wraps and toys.

    While we're in the downtown area, we also walked along to see the Catholic cathedral. En route, we passed justice department and county courts both in impressive buildings. Cathedral itself is relatively modern structure with big block work and nothing of the traditional cathedral you might think of when you consider how cathedrals tend to look.

    By now it's almost 4:00 p.m. and so we made our way back to the car and drove the short 15-minute drive to our next hotel, the Kimpton Everly. We checked in and found our rooms, both of which overlook the hill with the Hollywood sign on.

    After a quick dip in the pool we got ready for the social drinks hour until wait the arrival of Marcia who was joining us for a meal. After a couple of drinks and once Marcia had arrived we walked to the short distance to the restaurant that I booked and sat outside sharing plates of burgers, pasta and sea bass.

    We walked back to the hotel and spent some time chatting to Marcia before she left and we headed to bed.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler

    The Kimpton Everly hotel

    February 8, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    The Kimpton Everly hotel is located just off Sunset Boulevard and very close to the Capitol Records building. It's a relatively modern hotel with a very very large bar area with high high ceilings. Our rooms had an amazing view overlooking the Hollywood sign.Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Retired numbers.. Usually because the player has been inducted to the hall of fameThe years that the Dodgers win the world series

    Take me out to the ball game!

    February 9, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Today started with another clear blue sky and temperatures are promised to be in the upper 20s, not bad for February!

    We had a breakfast in the Jane Q restaurant at the hotel and I had a bagel with smoked salmon cream cheese whilst mum had a pastry.

    We made our way the short distance to the Dodger baseball stadium ready for our tour at 11:00 a.m. after finding somewhere to park, we headed up to the start of the tour, which gave a great view overlooking the entire stadium. The tour lasted about 90 minutes and I really enthusiastic host explain to us all sorts of things about both the Dodger team and stadium itself.

    The Dodger team started in Brooklyn and was moved over to LA in the 50s after which the current stadium was built. It's one of the largest baseball stadiums in the country and has an obstructed views from every seat.

    It's clear that baseball has spawned a myriad of stats with most valued player and the person who has hit the most home runs in a season and the person who's caught the most balls and so on and so on. The talk us through the refurbished executive suites and also into the dugout and around the edge of the stadium. The stadium itself seems to look much smaller when you're in it at ground level compared to when you are overlooking from the top tier. We learnt that the seats of various colours representing elements of California, including the beach, the ocean and other things, which I can't now remember!

    On the tour we saw the entrance I must have walked through when I was here all those years ago at junior high school band night and it brought back some lovely memories. What I don't think either of us should realised was that the year that we were at a game the Dodgers won the world series. Maybe that bodes well for them for the 2022 season.

    The tour finished at about 12:30 and we left. Glad that we'd made the effort to do the tour on this occasion.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Griffith Observatory1Obligatory selfie with the Hollywood sign in the backgroundDowntown LAView from our seats1Looking back from the stage area

    Griffith Observatory & a theatre trip

    February 9, 2022 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 24 °C

    We left the Dodger stadium and drove a short distance for a quick pit stop at Walmart and also to get some fuel. From there we headed off to the Griffith Observatory which gives a great view of the whole of Los Angeles and the Hollywood sign.

    The weather was really warm and temperatures around 29° C and despite it being a Wednesday there were lots of people enjoying the grassy area around the observatory. The observatory itself was closed but we were still able to wander around and get some great shots of the area and have a look right over Los Angeles.

    From here we headed back to the hotel as it was now mid-afternoon and spent a couple of hours relaxing by the pool. We got us all ready for the 'wine hour' and after that walked out of the hotel and towards the place where we were going to eat this evening before our trip to the theatre.

    Carmine's is based in the W hotel and we had a lovely meal before needing to head across the road to the Pantages theatre where we had booked to see Hamilton.

    After showing our Covid passes we were letting in to the theatre and were impressed by the opulence of the decor. The Pantages theatre used to host the Oscars ceremony in the 1950s. The seats had a great view, but the air conditioning seemed to be an overdrive!

    It was an interesting experience seeing a live production in the USA. The audience were far more interactive than you might get in the UK and I for one. I'm not entirely sure that it enhanced the experience!

    The musical itself was well produced but by half time we decided that it wasn't really our thing and so we headed back to the hotel for a nightcap.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Rush hour traffic LA style
    This is one way to use an old buoy!Paradise cove cafeBreakfast!1Stop along the road to VenturaVentura

    On the road again - LA to Ventura

    February 10, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    We left the hotel just after 8:00 as we knew that we have a couple of long days of driving and sightseeing. Mum grabbed a couple of coffees to go and we got out on the road .The traffic predictably was quite heavy until we got beyond the main parts of the city after about half an hour. I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed my return trip to LA and it was with some sadness that I pointed the car north as I'm really not sure whether I'll ever manage to return and certainly not in the very near future.

    We headed along the freeway to hit the coast at Malibu where the plan was to stop some breakfast. We got to Malibu just before 9:30 and found an amazing spot on the beach where we could have some breakfast. Paradise cove cafe really did live up to its name. The setting was superb right on the beach in a cove and the food was amazing. I had a salmon omelette with potatoes and a breakfast smoothie. We both left the table feeling absolutely stuffed.

    The next section of the journey was about 40 miles to the town of Ventura. Route took us along the coast and we were treated to some amazing views of the beautiful blue see and some of the small islands in the bay and of course not a cloud in the sky. Frontier was a curious little place which felt a bit like it could have come right out of a western, but we stopped for a quick coffee before getting back on the road.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Paddling!Madonna InnSeals in the lagoon

    Solvang to Morro Bay.

    February 10, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    It took about an hour to drive to Pismo beach. As its name suggests this is a beach town and our impression was very much of one being similar to a tourist resort in the UK.

    Just along the coast from here there are huge sand dunes that you can drive over and rent all-terrain vehicles. We didn't do this! However, we did get to the beach and were amazed to see that not only are vehicle's allowed on the beach but also the size of the vehicles that were being driven. It appears that people will take their motorhomes and drive along and spend the night on the beach and presumably messing around on the sand dunes. Once again the views were stunning and we both paddled in the Pacific Ocean.

    We grabbed an ice cream and drove the short distance to our next stop which was the Madonna Inn. This is a gaudily decorated roadside inn where you can stay or just have food or drink. Now it was after 5 and the sun was starting to go down and so we had a quick drink before our final section to Cambria, with a quick stop at Morro bay.

    The town of Morro bay was really pretty only let down by a large factory that is situated right on the waterfront. We had a quick wander around the wharf area and watched as the sun got low in the sky listening to the barking of the seals in the lagoon.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Down from San Marcos pass

    Ventura to Solvang

    February 10, 2022 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 17 °C

    From Ventura we headed north and pass through the town of Santa Barbara, although we didn't actually stop. Just after that we turned off the interstate and onto a road that took us way up into the hills and over San Marcos pass. The pass is over 700 m above sea level. So coming immediately from the coast we seem to be going up forever.

    The views were stunning and completely different to those of the coast with rolling mountains. The reason for leaving the main interstate was to visit the Danish town of Solvang. We pulled into the town and were amazed too see that the buildings were all built in a Danish style and there was even a windmill!

    We pop the car and had a wander around the town and a quick drink before getting back on the road knowing that we still had around 100 miles to go to our hotel.

    We continue to descend back towards the interstate and yet again the scenery changed and we found ourselves driving along a tree lined main road.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler

    Morro Bay to Cambria

    February 11, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 13 °C

    The final leg of our trip today was the short journey from Morro bay to Cambria where we were staying. The sun had now set and the light was just amazing. We arrived at our hotel just after 6:00 p.m. and found that it is a gorgeous lodge right on the front. On arrival the remnants of the sunset were still visible giving an amazing site.

    The Cambria beach lodge is a lovely motel style hotel and the rooms were perfect. All tastily decorated and with all of the amenities that you could possibly need. The town itself closes relatively early and so we were advised to head out for food pretty quickly. In the end we decided on a short walk along the seafront to the sister restaurant of the hotel that we were staying in. Having been used to the relatively high prices of Los Angeles, we were pleasantly surprised by how relatively cheap the restaurant was. To say that the food was of a poor quality and we had a lovely meal with more coconut shrimp to start and some sweet potato fries and then fish tacos for me and a crab sandwich for mum.

    We wandered back to the hotel and then had a night cap in the lounge area at the front of the hotel before calling it a night.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler

    Cambria beach hotel

    February 11, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    We were up early and had breakfast at 7:30 so that we could make sure we had enough time to do the whole of the trip and be in San Francisco ready for our evening boat trip at 5:30 p.m.. It's breakfast at the hotel. Was lovely continental breakfast with eggs, homemade cake, coffee and fruit. We have more great views of the coast and after having our food we grabbed another coffee, packed our bags and headed north.

    Elephant seal point    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler

    Elephant point seal sanctuary

    February 11, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    Not far at the coast. Our first scheduled stop was at the elephant points seal sanctuary. As is usual with these sorts of places, I didn't really expect to see anything and thought we would just get some good views of the coast.

    We pulled into the car park and started to walk along and were really excited to see a handful of seals just in small little coves relaxing in the sun. We spent ages looking at them and then carried on wandering. It turns out that the seals that we saw there were just an amuse-bouche for the main course which was a huge long stretch of beach. Absolutely packed with seals of various shapes and sizes; male, female juveniles and babies.

    They were absolutely mesmerising and we spent a long time. Just standing and watching them laying around barking. Annoying each other and fighting. There was some huge, great big male seals and the time that we're visiting is right at the end of the breeding season.

    Colony of seals apparently only started coming to this beach and stretch of coastline in 1990, but they're now regular visitors and spend 3 months at this time of the year breeding and the females giving birth and then 3 months around may time for the molting season and the rest of the time they spend a solitary existence in the water.

    Eventually we are realised that we just had to move on And so we reluctantly got back in the car and restart start journey.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler

    Monterey to San Francisco

    February 11, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Beyond Monterey, the roads became less windy and therefore faster, and we bypassed Santa Cruz with our next stop at Pigeon Point lighthouse. Test itself is now not accessible because it's in a poor state of repair, but the views were incredible and this part of the coast seems to have changed compared to the last part where the hills rose deeply from the coast.

    We had one more brief stop before heading to San Francisco as a point where the waves are crashing against the rocks.

    We successfully negotiated the roads into San Francisco and found our hotel with little problem thanks to Google. We left our car to be parked and checked in good time to allow us to get to the sunset cruise.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler

    Sunset cruise & evening in San Francisco

    February 11, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    We caught an Uber down to pier 43 where our sunset cruise was setting off at 5:30. The timing of the cruise at this time of year is perfect because you leaving the lights and the sun sets whilst you're on the cruise, meaning that you arrive back in the dark.

    No Sunset cruise would be complete without a drink and thankfully there was a bar on board. First stop on the cruise was out to the golden gate bridge where the boat slowed and then stopped just beyond the bridge to allow plenty of time for photographs.

    The boat then headed around the east side of the island of Alcatraz before continuing on to do the same under the Oakland bay bridge.

    It was difficult to believe that we were actually there when we were under the golden gate bridge and whilst the light didn't lie to see the colour on the way through, once you the other side the red rust coloured metal was clear to see.

    The journey back from the Oakland bay bridge gave lovely views of downtown San Francisco the boat arrived back on time at 7:00 p.m..

    We gained another Uber to get back to the hotel, we're after a quick shower. We headed to the restaurant at the top of our hotel called the Top of the Mark had cocktails and appetizers as our meal for this evening. The restaurant is on the 19th floor and so gives spectacular views out across the city.

    We decided it wasn't quite time for bed and so I headed out to an off-licence to pick up a bottle of wine. When I got on Google it didn't look very far. What I hadn't counted for was the very very steep hill that I had to go down and then back up in order to get to the shop. However, mission accomplished and we had a final drink of the evening before retiring to bed.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Dining room

    Intercontinental Mark Hopkins

    February 11, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    The hotel that we're staying in San Francisco is the intercontinental Mark Hopkins which is a grand old hotel situated on Nob Hill.

    The rooms aren't as modern as some of the ones we've stayed in and are much more classically furnished. My room was upgraded but both were on the 10th floor and had great views over the city.

    On the 19th floor there is a restaurant and bar that they call Top of the Mark. With the current restrictions because of the pandemic, this meant that drinks and canapes were served here each evening.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Steep San Francisco street

    Sausalito and the Golden Gate Bridge

    February 12, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    We had a relatively leisurely start to the day with breakfast at the hotel and then retrieved our car and the car park and drove to Sausalito. The journey took us along some steep roads that make up the Central part of San Francisco and then eventually out onto the freeway which takes you North out over the Golden Gate Bridge. I really had to pinch myself to believe that we were actually here. The bridge is such an iconic structure and nothing I can say in this summary will do it anymore justice than those have written before.

    Sorcalito small ex fishing village located just beyond the Golden Gate Bridge. There are lots of yachts and motor boats and also a significant number of houseboats that people live on. It was quite early and I'm not sure that the village had quite woken up but we had a look round and then needed to head back to San Francisco in order to be back in time to meet for our afternoon tour of the Napa valley.

    Golden gate bridge    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Amazing viaducts built as part of the road construction
    Purple sand

    The Big Sur

    February 12, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    We need to cover about 250 miles today to get San Francisco and after I stop at the seal beach we continue driving north. The road became extremely windy and very up and down, but the views themselves were amazing.

    The sea was sparkling blue and the sky without clouds.

    We stop briefly to admire the view and to see one of the viaduct structures that have been built as part of the road construction before continuing on to our next stop which was Pfeiffer beach.

    A couple of miles off the main road and down a very windy bumpy road we came to a car park and a short walk later. Found ourselves on a really pretty beach with a couple of coves and a large rock with a cave that goes right through to the ocean. The beach is also famous for some of the purple sand that is being eroded down from the rocks above the beach. Mum had a quick paddle and then when we're back to the car to continue our drive.

    After another hour or so we passed through Big Sur after which this part of the journey is named, although actually appeared to be just a handful of houses and visitor shops. We continued on to Monterey.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    1

    Napa valley

    February 12, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    A half day excursion to the Napa valley started with a 10 minute walk downhill to the meeting point. Here we got onto somewhere between the size of a minibus and a coach. After one more stop downtown we start studying with the driver/ tour guide, Marco, giving us lots of interesting information about San Francisco as we went along. We had two more parties to pick up one somewhere else in the city and the other in Sausalito.

    Once again the drive took us north from the city and over the Golden Gate Bridge and then the journey to the wine areas was about an hour.

    Our driver gave us lots of information about the Napa and Sonoma Valleys and explain that California produces 90% of all USA wine, which makes it the fourth largest wine producer in the world. However, the napper and Sonoma valleys only produce around 4% of California's wine and as such they are generally the more premium products.

    Our first stop was at the Madonna estates which was formed in 1922 and here we tried four wines. We heard that the climate in this particular part of the region is often some 15° Fahrenheit cooler in the summer than the rest of the region and so they tend concentrate on white wines and pinot noir. Here we tried:

    Sonoma valley - 90% of USA wine. 4th largest wine producer in UK

    2019 pinot grigiot
    2018 pinot noir
    Cab sav
    Gerwutzstreminer

    We stayed about an hour and then moved on to the second winery which was of Sutter. This is a much larger producer, although the wines that we tasted were their reserve wines that aren't for general sale in supermarkets and other shops.

    We tried a bubbly moscato, a reserved white Zinfandel, a cabernet servignon another red wine and a port.

    Again, we stayed for about an hour before getting back on the bus for the return trip to San Francisco where we arrived at around 6:30 p.m..

    For our evening meal, after we'd got changed, we walked across the road to the Fairmont hotel and to their bar in their basement which is a Tonga bar complete with a floating stage and pool and rain that comes down periodically into the pool. There was a live band and we had cocktails as an aperitif! We return back to the hotel for a night cap.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler

    Muir Woods and the Golden Gate Bridge

    February 13, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    For this morning's trip we were up for breakfast at 9 and then we retrieved the car and we're planning to go and see the redwoods at Muir Woods. This evolved retracing our steps from the previous day and crossing the Golden Gate Bridge once again and a trip into the mountains with some amazing views and some very windy roads. Needless to say mum didn't send much of the views because she was too busy worrying about the drop on the side of the road.

    On our way back we stopped at two points to overlook the Golden Gate Bridge and take the obligatory touristy shots. Your back tire hotel just in time for a quick comfort break before walking. Three blocks downhill to meet Andrew Parker and his wife Jamie for a lovely Italian lunch. It was lovely to catch up with them and to renew old friendships. Sadly, once again we were very remiss in relation to photographs of the event.    Read more

  • Ceri ChaplinCalifornia dreamingTraveler
    Our hotel, the. Mark Hopkins intercontinental in view

    Union Square and Pier 39

    February 13, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    We spent the rest of the afternoon. Wondering around firstly Union Square where you could see some great views around the city but also off where our hotel was and then we headed to pier 39. The last time we were in pier 39 was 34 years ago when I was younger and some of the activities were far more fascinating. As it's time for drink, we stopped off at a restaurant to have a cocktail. We did have to send the first one back because rather than a long island iced tea I actually ended up with iced tea which was something very different!

    As the sunset, we saw another of San Francisco's phenomenons with the fog slowly rolling in from the bay and starting to develop the city. We caught an Uber back to the hotel and had a couple of cocktails in the Top of the Mark which is the bar on the top floor of our hotel and after a quick freshen up we went back there for snappetizers and a couple more drinks before taking our last drink back down to my room and then heading to bed.    Read more

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