USA

Saturday, May 25, 2002 - Friday, May 31, 2002:

We decided on California, in part because so soon after 9/11, we didn't want to travel overseas. Plus we hadn't been to California and it's a place we both really wanted to check out. It was so exciting to get away from all the stress of the wedding planning and travel as "husband and wife" for the first time. It was the morning after our wedding the night before.

We kissed Cleopatra goodbye and made our way to the airport. I am so grateful we got to experience this getaway.

So we get to the Warwick Regis Hotel in the theater district in San Francisco. It's a boutique hotel, so it was very European. We got our room at half price. When we entered we were amazed at how nice the hotel was for the price we secured. It was so pretty inside. I loved that hotel. It definitely spoiled us! This is a photo from the hotel's website, but it's exactly what our room looked like.

So we went to the Japanese Tea Gardens in Golden Gate State Park. We took the Metro. I was surprised by how many homeless people there were in San Francisco! Maybe because the weather is so temperate there. That was sad to see. We were dropped off near the park and we started to wander around. It was a beautiful place.

From sftravel.com "San Francisco's Japanese Tea Garden was originally developed for the 1894 World’s Fair in San Francisco. It was conceived and designed by Baron Makoto Hagiwara, a wealthy landscape designer. It was in the Japanese Tea Garden where Fortune Cookies originated, and soon became increasingly popular. The Garden has now grown into a landmark of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park."

Drum Bridge. From sftravel.com "It’s called the Drum Bridge because it looks like someone cut a large drum in half and used it as a bridge. The end result is something that looks beautiful, terribly impractical. The slope of the bridge is so steep that you have to literally climb it. Fortunately, it has footholds on it, otherwise you would need a pair of cleats. Still, once you get up to the top, be sure to have someone take your picture." Once I scrambled down the bridge, I took Steve's photo.

Of course we had to take a cable car and check out their famed Chinatown. So we hopped on the crowded Howell and Mason line and as you know, San Francisco is VERY hilly, so as we started our decline down the steep hills on the cables, the tourists on the car gasped a little.

Chinatown was cool. We walked around, soaked in all the street activity and then went to The Grand Palace restaurant for some dinner. We found out later that it was where the locals eat.

We briefly checked out Fisherman's Wharf, and Pier 39 where there are a ton of sea lions barking away and lolling about. We didn't spend too much time at the Wharf, but it was fun watching the sea lions.

On May 27, we went to Alcatraz Island. That was an interesting excursion. We departed from Pier 41. This is the view of San Francisco from the boat.

Actually, Alcatraz Island is quite beautiful and it's a national park. From the National Park Service's website: "Alcatraz Island offers a close-up look at the site of the first lighthouse and US fort on the West Coast, an infamous federal penitentiary long off-limits to the public (and despised by inmates), and the historic 18 month occupation by Indians of All Tribes. Rich in cultural history, there is also a natural side to the Rock - gardens, tide pools, bird colonies, and bay views beyond compare."

When we got off the boat, we got headsets and took a walking tour with sound around the penitentiary. That was eerie and interesting. We ambled past Al Capone's cell! The tour explained that the inmates liked New Year's Eve, because they could hear the sounds from the city, being so isolated there.

So after the prison tour, a national park guide started us on an island tour explaining the history of island, mentioning the Native American takeover of the island during the "Red Power" movement of the late 60s and early 70s.

We explored the rest of the isolated island ourselves. It was very peaceful and scenic. We saw lots of birds nesting at the time. From SFtravel.com "Out in the middle of the San Francisco Bay, the island of Alcatraz is a world unto itself. Isolation, one of the constants of island life for any inhabitant - soldier, guard, prisoner, bird or plant - is a recurrent theme in the unfolding history of Alcatraz. Visitors can explore the remnants of the prison, and learn about the Native American occupation, early military fortifications and the West Coast's first (and oldest operating) lighthouse. These structures and the island's many natural features - gardens, tide pools, bird colonies, and bay views beyond compare, are being preserved by the National Park Service. The views from Alcatraz are incredible. "

On the surface, it seems like a bizarre honeymoon excursion, but we thought it was really cool. (We tend to seek out the eerie and macabre as tourists)

On this night we went to a nice place called Fino's (in the Andrew's Hotel) that was around the corner from the Warwick, so it was convenient and it came highly recommended. So we enjoyed a romantic Italian dinner there.

The next day (the 28th), we hit the road. Here is Golden Gate bridge from a pull off of the main highway. We were headed to the Napa Valley.

Things got prettier as we wound through the Sonoma and Napa Valleys.

We passed lots of vineyards and decided we'd stop in one of them to see if they had a tour. So we chose Mumm Napa Valley and they had tours! So we went on a tour with a couple other people around the winery and they explained how they make wine and we could see each step of the process. Then we sat outside and sampled their wines in the middle of the vineyard. That was cool.

From their website:"Complimentary public tours are conducted daily from 10am to 3pm, on the hour.

* Guides use simple to understand terminology and walk you through each step in the process of making sparkling wine in the traditional French methods.
* You begin your tour in a demonstration vineyard, and then enter the state-of-the-art winery.
* Enhancing the tour are short video loops of activities one might not see unless you visit at the appropriate time of the year, in which case you witness activity first hand! Guides use the brief videos to show the action of harvest, bottling, riddling, disgorging, and labeling.
* In just forty-five minutes you become an expert in champagne method sparkling wine production!"
* The Wine Enthusiast Magazine calls Mumm Napa "one of the best tasting experiences in America." Taste in the glass-enclosed tasting salon, or enjoy table service outside on the terrace - the views are spectacular and our staff can provide a wealth of information on our sparkling wines

On the way out, we bought 2 of their local bottles of wine that you evidently can't buy on the East Coast.

It was an interesting drive. You could see a lot of migrant workers in the vineyards. It felt so free and laid back there.

It was sunny when we rolled into the town of Napa. I loved Napa. I could live in the Napa Valley. It was sunny and temperate all the time. It was a beautiful little town. We had reservations to stay at the Napa River Inn, so we checked in.
This is a photo from the website

This is our room:

This place was really cool! We got his and hers robes in the room and the room was huge and we had a little balcony. The inn was very small. I understand that they've done a lot of work to the place since we were there. We got a notice telling us we were entitled to a free breakfast at Sweetie Pie's in the morning. Sweetie Pie's is the bakery next to the inn and is apparently where one of the old mill owners hung himself years ago......creeeeepy. We went in and got ourselves two mini cakes to enjoy later and put them in the mini fridge.

After settling in, we explored Napa. It's a cute little town. We came upon a bunch of outdoor shops and restaurants shaded under some trees. We decided to eat at Piccolino's. From their website: "The upbeat cafe offers a country Italian decor. The spacious dining room gives an open and inviting style to the restaurant."
This is a photo from their website:

Here we are (I guess they changed the tables!):

In the evening, we made our way back to the Inn. We got our cakes from Sweetie Pies out of the fridge!

In the morning, it was time to say goodbye to Napa and to make our way up to Redwood National Forest (a 6.5 hour drive!). We came upon "Old Faithful Geiser" in Calistoga, so we decided to check it out!

From their website," Visitors of Calistoga's Old Faithful Geyser are calling it "utterly amazing". The Geyser is one of only three Old Faithfuls in the world, designated as such because of its constant and predictable eruptions. The Geyser is an all-natural phenomenon which tosses a scalding curtain of water anywhere from 20 to upwards of 75 feet into the air. "

On our way up from Calistoga, we stopped off in some cool towns. Here is Steve in Trinidad (about an hour from Redwood)

Before we rolled into Crescent City, we came upon "Tour Thru Tree" in Klamath. It was another roadside attraction that we wanted to check out. we drove our car through an enormous tree! It was a bit of a thrill for us.

Finally we made it to the Crescent City Travelodge, where we'd stay the night. It was overcast and drizzly. The Travelodge was a bit of a dive, but it was cheap. I remember seeing a broken down sign out front that read "Truckers Welcome". We carried our bags over Astroturf covered stairs to our motel-style room.

After checking in, we made our way over to the park. It was amazing to see how incredibly large these giants were.
Here's me in one of them and Steve in one of them!



It was so serene there. We then trekked over to fern canyon. That was pretty.

On our way out of the park, we saw an elk!

The next day, we woke up very early, and quickly checked out of the motel and drove back to San Francisco. It took all day.

We took Pacific Coast Highway 1. It was a beautiful and exhilarating drive. All I could see from the passenger window was the Pacific Ocean. There were enormous drop offs and huge logging trucks barreling down the windy seaside road. We periodically pulled over to enjoy the seaside vistas. The sun miraculously returned!

When we rolled into the city with the car, we were anxious to unload it fearing they'd notice we did some rough driving. Even the roof was covered in mud! First, however, we wanted to drive down the famed Lombard street. You know, the "crookedest street in the world'? Well THAT was an experience!

We enjoyed one last dinner in San Francisco and the comfort of returning to Warwick (in a different room this time) and left the next morning.

We loved California! I am dying to go back. It was such a nice refreshing way to cap off our happy day. It was a stressful and hectic headache leading up to the wedding and then our day was a whirlwind and we left for our honeymoon. It was a sweet adventure. We'll have many more.....................