All posts tagged: california

Weekend Unexplored: Day Trip to Sonoma and Napa

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There is nothing more rewarding than hosting family and friends and seeing them experience California’s Wine Country for the first time. When one thinks of California’s Wine Country, they are likely referring to Napa Valley and Sonoma Wine Country. They lie parallel to each other, tucked away about an hour’s drive by car from San Francisco proper. 9:00 AM PST: With my tea in hand and a pastry from La Boulange, I’m ready to head off to wine country with some out of town friends. We’ve rented a driver for the day (Million Services Limousine) and like clockwork, they show up on time. I’ve been with Reese and his team of awesome drivers for 5 years now. No matter the group size, their service and hospitality are always grade A.  I like to typically start off in Sonoma and work my way to Napa. I find the flow of that route, especially for first timers, works out beautifully. We take the Golden Gate Bridge and are automatically rewarded with breathtaking views of the city behind …

Road Trip: Pacific Coast Highway 1 (Part Two)

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“But why think about that when all the golden lands ahead of you and all kinds of unforseen events wait lurking to surprise you and make you glad you’re alive to see?” ― Jack Kerouac, On the Road Part Two of our family road trip picks up where we left off last week, heading south of Big Sur and concluding in Santa Barbara. “The longer you stayed at Hearst Castle, the further you’d sit from William Hearst during a meal,” said our guide as we walked into the dining hall. He was most definitely a Hearst fan and was beginning to tell us yet another story about the newspaper/media mogul and his distinguished guests.  We had just arrived for the 3 pm tour of the Castle’s main rooms and garden grounds.  After parking in front of the visitor’s center, we joined the line of tourists waiting to catch the bus that would drive us up to “La Cuesta Encantada,” the Enchanted Hill. Located atop the hill overlooking San Simeon, the estate’s grandeur and architectural details …

Road trip: Pacific Coast Highway 1 (Part One)

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“What about a family road trip?” my dad asked.  He and my mom talked about driving down the Pacific Coast Highway after hearing some friends rave about their experience.  Both of them expected my sister and me to come along by starting in San Francisco where we picked them up from the airport.  Of course, we agreed.  With our parents living on the East Coast, their visits were already infrequent. We hoped that by showing them the beauty of California, we might convince them to move here. I also knew full well that once we assented, we would take over the planning of the itinerary and the scheduled stops along the way.  We had three days to cover the distance between San Francisco and Santa Barbara.  Part 1 of this road trip series will cover our favorite discoveries from Monterey to Big Sur. First stop was in Butterfly Town, Pacific Grove, for lunch at Red Cafe.  The red house in which the restaurant opened was built in the 1890’s and sits as a local landmark on …