Long Overdue Update...

Hello my Friends!

So sorry that it's been a while... lots of things happening here! I'll tell you all about that later... but for now, let's talk about our trip to San Francisco!

For starters, I must say that if I could ever bear to leave NY again, I would love to live in San Fran! I mean, isn't is such a great city?! So much charm but with all the hustle that I love about cities. The truth is that after 2 years in California, I know I could never stand being so far from my family again... I suppose I'll just have to keep visiting!

We did have a wonderful time though. My sister and her Husband arrived at about the same time as we did, so we got to spend our first day site seeing together, which was really nice! It was good quality time with them on a beautiful sunny fall day. We checked out Fisherman's Wharf, visited with the Sea Lions, took in the views of Alcatraz and then indulged in Ghirardelli ice cream sundaes. Yum! Followed by a ride back to the hotel on the Cable Car! Some fun pictures...

My beautiful sister Jen & her Hubby Mike on the cable car!

Now, I didn't mention the fabulous hotel that we stayed in, thanks to my Sister who got us a seriously great deal! We ended up staying at the Mark Hopkins Intercontinental on Nob Hill. The rooms was huge, with great city views and the comfiest beds ever! It was a great little getaway!

My Mom came into the City at about 7:00 that evening, so we met her back at the Hotel. Although, she called as we were waiting for the Cable Car to say "I'll be at the Top of the Mark having a drink. I do hope you'll meet me there." Hilarious. Now, the Top of the Mark is perhaps one of the best parts of our hotel. It is a restaurant/bar/lounge on the 19th floor of the hotel with 360 degree views of the City. It was really a great place to sit for a cocktail! I snapped the picture below of the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset from our table. Spectacular!

And as a side note, my Mom was already on her second glass of champagne when we arrived... she was ready to start her vacation! Now, if you know my Mother, you would know how infrequently she has a second glass of anything... it was a fun night!

My Dad arrived - straight from a business meeting - late Friday night. So I didn't get to see him until we were up - bright & early - for our tour Saturday morning. I was nervous that with a late flight, early morning and jet lag he'd be a bit grumpy, but to my delight I walked into the hotel lobby to see a big smile on his face! It seems that we were all so happy to be on vacation that there were endless smiles! Our tour on Saturday took up along the coastline South to Monterrey Bay and Carmel. What spectacular views! This is a stretch of road that I will visit again - although next time I envision myself in a red convertible, not a huge tour bus! I will admit that the spot in Monterrey where we stopped was not at all what I expected. It was very built up and touristy, so that was a bit of a disappointment, but the views made up for it 10 fold! Some snapshots taken from the moving bus - please don't judge the poor quality!

The first shot is looking straight down a steep cliff into the ocean. There was dense fog in the morning, but it burned off by the afternoon. It made for a more dramatic ride though! The second and third pictures are of Monterrey Bay. While the town disappointed a bit, the view of the Bay did not!

After Monterrey, we drove along the 17-mile coast and Pebble Beach. If I were driving, I would have stopped ever 5 feet to take a picture, but alas I was not driving. The views were awesome though, even from a moving bus! We did get to stop at the Lone Cypress Tree though, which was cool! We even got to snap a family photo.

The second stop was at the Pebble Beach lodge. Not the place I would have stopped, but it was beautiful! I'm not into golf at all, but this course must have phenomenal views! The first shot is of the lodge, which was quite fabulous inside - I didn't snap a picture in there - and the second is from the patio. It's a bit hard to see in the small picture, but if you make it bigger you will notice a lovely yacht in the background. Wow!

The last stop on Saturday was in Carmel, where we had a lovely dinner together. Unfortunately, I didn’t snap a single picture there, so I have none to share.

Sunday we were booked for another tour. This time we headed to Napa Valley for some wine tasting! Again, it was a really great day! If you’ve never been to Napa, I highly recommend a visit – even if you’re not a wine enthusiast, the landscape is really beautiful! And the vineyards are all unique and beautifully decorated. It was really fun to visit several wineries and have them all feel worlds apart. Our first stop was to Chandon where we tasted sparkling wines – if they don’t come from the Champagne region in France, they must not be called Champagnes! My Mother especially loved this visit! We had a tour there and got to see the wine making process and the huge barrels where the wine is fermented. Then we sat out in the grotto for our tasting, which made for great ambiance!

Our second stop was at V. Sattui where we had a lovely picnic lunch after tasting. This is the only winery in Napa with a deli attached, so it gets pretty busy. But the deli has a fantastic selection of cheeses, meats and sandwiches. We really had a great lunch! We also got a photo of the immediate family - my Dad, Sister, Mom & I after lunch.

Third stop was the Black Stallion Vineyard. Another beautiful vineyard with great stonework. The first picture is of the barrels where the red wines were aging and the second is the front of the vineyard, which looked like something out of Tuscany only with palm trees. Isn't is beautiful?

Last stop was at the Mario Andretti vineyard. Truth be told, I thought it was a little silly to stop there. I mean what do race car drivers know about wine, right? But I found out that they know how to hire fabulous winemakers! These wines were excellent and the grounds, again, were beautiful! Now the gift shop, which was full of race car gear, was a bit excessive. The grapes in the picture are Merlot grapes that hadn't been harvested yet. I got a tip to try the grape right off the vine. Wow, it was absolutely delicious! So sweet! I advise you to snag a grape if you visit!

After the wine tour, we took a ferry across the Bay back to San Francisco. While it was insanely windy on the deck, the views were worth bearing it! Here's a great shot of the Golden Gate Bridge taken by my sister from the boat.

I didn't mention that Sunday also happened to be the 2nd Anniversary of my marriage to my very Best Friend. I'd like to write a little something about that separately, but wanted to include a little something here. While we were visiting the Black Stallion winery, Nick & I stole away for a quick moment together where we read our vows. It was so incredibly romantic and beautiful. And to my surprise, my Sister took this fabulous picture of our moment. I wanted to share. More on our Anniversary soon.... but thanks, Jen, for capturing such a special moment!