San Francisco

(This is long.)

The first week of March Russ and I had another opportunity to spend some quality time together... Russ had a meeting in Napa, California and the spouses were invited for a weekend trip to tour the lovely San Francisco area and the wine country of Napa Valley.

Russ and I left our children with our loving and generous parents and drove to Memphis on Thursday night to catch our Friday 6 A.M. flight to Salt Lake City and finally to San Francisco.  We left Memphis with the Bradford Pear trees in bloom and landed in Salt Lake with 12+ inches of snow on the ground... it was crazy!

We landed around noon San Fran time, got our rental car and hit the ground running.  We'd done our homework and knew what we wanted to squeeze in during our time there. 

Here's how our trip unfolded!

And I would like to make the disclaimer that most of these pictures were taken from a moving vehicle amidst the spring California fog, and are not of great quality, but as we grow older and forget the little details these will be here as a reminder! : )

Here is the first sign that we saw when we turned onto the freeway from the airport...

We drove about 20 minutes before laying eyes on the lovely Golden Gate Bridge.  This was a moment of "I can't believe we are driving across the Golden Gate Bridge."  Slightly surreal.  It was a very pretty bridge, and you might be surprised to know that it is a toll road; we paid a $4 to cross.  We were surprised by this... thank goodness we had some cash.

We crossed the bridge, made a little curve and saw this sign!  For those of you who don't know, we are from Tennessee. : )

Here is the coast line of the Pacific Ocean... we were very high up and it was cold, windy, and foggy, but very peaceful and pretty.

There was a couple getting married on the point of the walkway.  It was sweet.

We drove a little farther along the coast and saw this sign... Fort BRAGG.  We didn't go there, however.

We did go here!  This was our destination... Point Reyes National Seashore. 

Russ and I have had the opportunity to visit many National Parks and we enjoy them very much!  When we found out we were going to be able to go on this trip, we scoped out the area parks. We decided on this one. It is a moutainess "point" along the coast line, and is the site of a large light house. It looks lovely in the pictures. We arrived to the park gate to head up towards the light house when the park ranger recommended us not going. He said that it was so foggy that we wouldn't be able to see it. He did, however, encourage us to take a hike... we turned that down as I had on sandals and Russ had on nice shoes... I am certain we didn't look dressed to hike, but I think he sensed our disappointment and was trying to give us a few options. He then told us about Point Reyes Station, a little town, and gave us a map with a different route back to the city... we were about an hour outside of SF.  So we were off...

They even have black Angus cattle grazing the hillsides of California! : )

Welcome to Point Reyes Station, CA.  A small town full of organically grown produce, bicycle riders, and cute little shops.  It was a quaint little town that made you smile.

*I will also add that we wanted a snack... an unhealthy snack... like peanut butter crackers, candy bar, coke, any of the sort.  We couldn't find a single store with these options - the lady at the grocery store said, "peanut butter is on aisle ___... and we have some crackers over here".  Finally, as we were headed out of the little town empty-handed, we saw a little shady quick stop where we found the fattening PB crackers, candy bar, chips, and cokes... all of which we shared.  The hour trip back to San Fran was even more fun! : )

Their post office

The community board.  It was full of information regarding their community, written or printed on regular paper, and believe it or not, they were in good shape.  The building was decorated in old bicycle rims... I'm tellin' ya... a bicycle community!

We were interested in seeing Red Wood trees while there, but were too far from the Red Wood National Park.  The park ranger sent us on this route due to our interest in these lovely trees.

Aren't they beautiful?

We stopped at this camp ground/picnic area for a few pics.  It was beautiful, and oh, so peaceful.

This moss blanketed many different things found there in the wooded area. We thought it was so pretty.

Pretty big, isn't it?

So we finally made it back to San Francisco and more specifically to our hotel.  We stayed at The Argonaut Hotel, which is located in the Fisherman's Wharf area.  It was a lovely area.

Here is the exterior of the hotel.

And pictures of our room...

The view from our room... Alcatraz Island.

Not long after checking into our room we met up with Russ' co-workers and their spouses for dinner.  We ate at McCormick & Kuletos for dinner which was located in the lower level of the Ghiradelli chocolate factory and shop. 

It was very good... I was not too adventurous and had a sirloin with potatoes and asparagus.  Russ was a little braver and had Chilean Sea Bass.  He said it was "pretty good", but I think he was wishing he had gotten a sirloin, too.

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The next morning we were to leave San Fran and head north to Napa, CA around 10:00.  Since we'd gone to Point Reyes on Friday afternoon we didn't get to see any of the Wharf area so we got up early, once again, and took in some of the bay area around our hotel.  It was so pretty.

This is the Hyde Street Pier.  It had several different ships that you could walk through and tour.  There was a cost and we didn't have time so we just walked and enjoyed the beautiful weather and view.

A lady took this picture for us.  If you click on the image, you can see the Golden Gate Bridge in the back ground.

We were able to get a closer view of Alcatraz from the pier.  Alcatraz tours are offered and a ferry takes you across to the island, however we didn't have time nor a strong desire to do so.  We talked to some people who said it was very interesting.

Looking back towards the city from the pier.

Something else that surprised us were the swimmers in the ocean.  If you click on the pic below and look real closely, you will see little orange swim caps in the water.  It was a competition of some sort.  There were a lot of them and they were doing some serious swimming.

Here is a little "go car" which could be rented to tour the city.

A roofless bus is another tourist option. 

Driving through the city on our way to Napa... it was a beautiful day!

Crossing the lower level of the Bay Bridge. And in case you don't know or if you have forgotten, this is the bridge that collapsed during the World Series in 1989.  This was going through my mind as we were crossing it, but I didn't have the courage to ask about it until after we'd gotten across.  Russ said the same thing. : ) It is a very long bridge by the way, 4.5 miles long to be exact. 

The view not long after we crossed the bay.  A typical residential area; houses built on the side of mountains.

And we finally arrived... The Meritage Resort & Spa.  It was a beautiful resort and for some reason, I took not even one picture.  Click here if you wish to know more information about the resort and/or area.

The view from the entrance of the resort... vineyards were everywhere.  Literally.

We arrived at The Meritage around 11:00 and were to leave for the group tour of the vineyards at 1:00.  We got settled in, ate lunch, and loaded the bus.  Our afternoon included three different tours ending with dinner. 

=ARTESA=

This was our first stop.  The Artesa Vineyard.  Their facility and grounds with fountains were beautiful!! It was obviously designed for "show".  It was built into the side of the earth with production facilities below ground.

These are their vineyards at the bottom of the hill, and if you click to enlarge the picture, you will notice a flock of sheep grazing.  The sheep eat down the weeds and grass that grow between the rows to prevent anyone from having to mow, weed eat, etc.  I thought that was pretty clever, not to mention how beautiful the sheep were as they grazed.

We finally went inside and were taken down stairs to their production area.  We didn't get a detailed tour or explanation about the process of wine production, but this is what it looked like.

We then entered the storage/aging room.  The wine is stored in the barrels as it ages.  I would try to explain the process, but to be honest, I just don't remember enough of the details that she so quickly explained.  Sorry.

The ends of the barrels had logos and images "branded" or printed on them.  Russ found the designs very interesting.

The Artesa Winery was a great start to our wine touring day! 

=Nicholson Ranch=

Our second tour was at Nicholson Ranch in Sonoma.  It was a very pretty winery with a great deal of "on-site" history.  Nicholson Ranch was also a winery designed for "show", however it was not as fancy as the Artesa Winery.

This was taken from the car, obviously...

And this arbor area overlooks the road that we were on in the picture above.

Nicholson's vines

A little chapel was built on the property by the initial developer, Sokrates Nicholson.  I am unsure of the time period, however he built this sweet church building and baptized his daughter there.  The tour guide mentioned a few other historical notes, but I, once again, don't remember the details.

His daughter was also married there on the vineyard grounds in the recent past, and it is now open for other weddings, as well.  The winery was filled with a great deal of natural beauty and had a very peaceful sense about it.

This was Nicholson's aging cellar.  It was dark, muggy, and stinky.  I didn't enjoy it at all.  : )  I am however thankful for the experience.

To learn more about the Nicholson Ranch winery click here.

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After leaving the Nicholson Ranch, we stopped briefly by another sparkling wine winery.  I didn't take any pictures.  We simply went in and visited their tasting area, looked around the gift shop and were on our way to dinner... thank goodness!  Not to sound ungrateful for the experiences, but once you've seen one winery, you've seen it all with the exception of the aesthetic elements of the facility.

And finally dinner!  I was so happy to be going to eat dinner!

We ate at the Eldorado Hotel & Kitchen.  It was located in a quaint little hotel in Sonoma with a welcoming ambiance.  It was a comforting close to the day.

For information on the El Dorado Hotel & Kitchen, click here.

=Our last day=

Sunday was the last day for spouses.  I flew home on Monday morning.  Once again, we had our day planned... we were going to drive 4 hours to Yosemite National Park.  We woke up (at 6 AM) to heavy rains and more fog.  After contemplating our decision on whether or not to drive down, we decided not to go.  We were slightly disappointed, but as the day went on we knew we'd done the right thing.

But we were already up so we went with it.  We were determined to squeeze something exciting into our last day together in California.  We drove into Napa for breakfast and ate at a little cafe that was very good. 

As we were getting in the car, we noticed the license plate on the car next to us.  There's something cool about seeing your name in an unexpected place and at an unexpected time, isn't there?  : )

As we ate breakfast, we studied our San Francisco map and planned our road trip for the day.

We headed back to the city and checked a few things off of our list.  Here is the upper level of the Bay Bridge.  It was raining very hard.

Riding a trolley in San Francisco was checked off our list.

The trolley driver and his girl friend, we think.

We also rode on the J Line.  I liked it better than the trolley.  It was fully enclosed and more spacious.

The interior of the J Line car.

We were so surprised at these "up-hill" streets just like you see in movies; they really do exist!

Another site checked off... Lombard Street, also known as the Crooked Street.  It was really cool!

The pictures do not do it justice.  You can google it in google images and see better pictures... actually, I just found this picture on Google.  I didn't take this first picture; mine are following, but this gives you a view so that you can better understand.  I had never seen anything like it.  Wikipedia says it is the most crooked or most winding street in the world. 

-Google's Image-

The houses were very pretty, but the flowers were not in full bloom as they are in the picture below.

-Our images of Lombard Street, also known as the Crooked Street in San Francisco-

The view from the base of the crooked street

Looking back up towards the street.  For more information on the crooked street, Lombard Street, click here.

=China Town=

Following Lombard Street, we headed to China Town.  Neither of us had seen an area within a larger area like this.

The entrance of China Town...

The Chinese Hospital

Most stores and establishments were closed as it was Sunday.  The bank however, was packed!

People were waiting in line in the lobby.

A random picture of housing there in San Fran... no yard work for these residents.

Once we'd completed our San Francisco check list, we said good-bye to the city and headed back to Napa.  We decided to drive up into the Northern area of Napa and then into Helena as we were told that a few larger, well-known wineries were located there.  They were right.  It was so pretty! 

=The Markham Winery=

We went into this winery to look around, and it was very pretty.  We were very familiar with this wine as it was a favorite of Russ' former boss in North Dakota. 

This was LOVELY.  This is the Beringer Winery.  I believe it is a pretty common wine... the grounds were beautiful! 

Our last stop was the Robert Mondavi Winery.  It was very pretty, too.

A picture of their vines.

The view from their visitor's center.  Isn't it beautiful... even with the fog?

This is an olive tree.  It was located in the parking lot where we parked.  I had never seen an olive tree.  If you look closely, you will see the olives.  They were laying on the ground like acorns.  We did see signs indicating the manufacturing of olive oil there in the area.

The remaining pictures are random shots from our time there.

Here is a picture of a dairy farm.  There were also grape vines on the property.  For those of you who don't know, I grew up on a dairy farm therefore I found this very interesting.

In this picture you will notice two fans. These fans are used to prevent the frost from settling on the vines.  They turn them on when frost is expected.

A picture showing the neatness of the rows of vines.  Every where you look, this is what you see.  If you have a square foot area on your property, there you will place a vine. : )  We saw very little property "sitting vacant".

With my maiden name being Bell, I couldn't resist this shot.

And lastly, this pretty road.  This was the last drive we made through Napa and it was so pretty.  Russ got out and took these pictures so that they wouldn't be crooked.  You shouldn't have to turn your head to one side or another to see this picture.  : )

That concludes our trip.  We returned to the hotel and inquired about a good restaurant for dinner.  The concierge made reservations for us at Allegria.  It was scrumptious.  A great way to end our trip!

The next morning, we got up early and prepared for me to fly back home.  Rebecca, one of the other wives, and now a friend, and I were being driven to the airport by a professional driver - a new experience for me - no taxi, rather a very nice Cadillac.  He drove us from the front door of the hotel to the front door of the airport.  It was so nice.

We got to our gate and Rebecca and I had lunch together.  We got on our flight and were on our way to Minneapolis where I would catch my flight to Memphis and then back to Martin to see my boys.  If only that had happened.

Apparently, I was tired.  I was asleep before we left the ground which is uncommon for me.  I mean, I slept the whole way from Memphis to Salt Lake City, but it had been so stressful leaving the boys with our parents the night before, arriving late to Memphis and getting up early to get to the airport, and I was e.x.h.a.u.s.t.e.d.  I enjoyed that sleep as I sat with my husband on the plane.  Back to being asleep before we left the ground... I remember us backing away from the terminal and the cabin pressurizing, etc.  I awoke about an hour later to us sitting on the ground at the airport.  I thought "oh, my goodness... we are in Minneapolis and I have slept through this entire flight even through the landing!"  I looked at my watch and because of the time change combined with my drowsiness I struggled with determining the exact time.  I looked around to see people moving up and down the aisle and overheard conversations of frustration.  I then asked the not-so-friendly guy next to me what was going on.  He, in a frustrated voice, told me that we'd been sitting in San Fran for an hour-in-a-half waiting to take off due to a problem with the intercom/radio system.  Lovely.  I became claustrophobic and uncomfortable almost immediately.  I said, "wow, I must have been really tired."  He said, "obviously".  How rude.  I wasn't sure if I was going to make it another three hours on the flight.  I needed Russ so badly.  After about 15 minutes I realized I was probably not going to make my connection to Memphis.  Anxiety level was increasing rapidly.  I finally got up and went to the bathroom just to get out of that seat.  I then realized I needed to let my family know what was going on as the last time I spoke to them we were getting ready for take-off.  I just couldn't believe what was going on.  I texted everyone and told them what was going on and that I would drop them an email shortly.  I had my computer and was going to work on the blog during the flight as there was a wireless capability.  So, I finally got the courage to ask the rude guy - who was younger than me, by the way - if I could please get my computer.  He said, "sure".  I had charged it over night and felt relieved about getting to email them.  Well, apparently I didn't turn the computer off and the battery was flashing when I opened it.  Lovely.  I began to panic a bit.  I went ahead and paid the $34.95 to use the wireless option and had about 15 minutes to get an email out only to await responses on my phone before having to turn it off.  Russ was in a meeting and I finally heard from him right before take-off (I'm pretty sure that my phone was supposed to be off at this point) .  Thinking back, it doesn't seem so bad, but I was so worried.

So, we got off of the ground and I couldn't sleep.  I sat and sat and sat.  The rude guy listened to his ipod and I was wishing I had one.  I was regretting my practicality, preventing me from getting an ipod at this point in time.  I waited and finally after about an hour I asked to get up again.  I wasn't so sure if asking him was the right thing, but I felt like it was a necessity.  Can you tell that my mind had kicked into survival mode?  Not the norm for me, but I knew I needed to make it to Minneapolis in a calm fashion.  And another thing - I know those seats are designed to lean back, but I have discovered that they shouldn't be.  I was so crowded and my anxiety level remained high because I was so cramped.  Ugh. 

We FINALLY landed in Minneapolis.  I landed at the exact time I was to be taking off to Memphis.  : (  I was ready to see my boys.  You see, a childhood friend, Julie Henry Arnold, kept our boys during the two days we were gone so that our moms could go to work.  I was so thankful for her, but had only scheduled her care for two days.  Our moms were so helpful and got everything lined up for her to keep them the next day if need be.  Aren't moms great?! 

I got off of the plane and Russ was helping me get through this.  It was kind of laughable at this point in time.  I was kind of demanding with the Delta lady.  I told her I HAD to be in Memphis tonight and that she needed to help me get there.  No such luck... the only place she could get me was to a hotel... along with many others.  So, I got myself together.  I had my computer, my purse, and the make-do overnight kit they give to people who are stranded.  I was to catch the shuttle to the assigned hotel and present my voucher for a free night's stay.  I decided to suck it up and kept reminding myself that things happen for a reason.

I then stopped at the famous airport restaurant, Chile's, had a tasty chicken wrap, fries, and a coke before heading down to the Minnesota-cold parking garage where I caught my shuttle.  My flight the next morning was at 6:00.  I downloaded my San Fran pics, brushed my teeth with the flimsy toothbrush (which I was grateful for) and went to bed... in my clothes.  Yuck.  Got up the next morning and was waiting in the lobby 20 minutes before I was supposed to be.  I was determined to not miss my ride.  Made it to the airport along with the others and made it to Memphis at 8:00 that morning wondering if I would be able to find my luggage.  It was there!  : )

Got in my van and headed to good ole' Weakley County, Tennessee.  I had never been so happy to be in Tennessee!  Got to Greenfield to get those sweet boys (who looked as if they had grown an inch or more) and was immediately thrown back to reality.  : )  Crying and fits before we ever got to Martin.

And then Thursday night, Lawson and I headed back to Memphis to pick up Russ.  It was a rough trip.  He landed at 10:00 P.M.  Lawson was adamant about going and I couldn't not take him.  We stopped at Chick-fil-a in Jackson and headed to the airport.  Bless his heart, he cried and cried to get out of his seat.  Once we were there, he was good and so sweetly waited for his dad.  His excitement brought tears to my eyes. 

We got to Martin around mid-night, got up the next morning, drove back to Columbia and were so happy to be back home... 10 days later. 

Whew!  What a trip... an awesome trip with a few bumps. 

I am extremely grateful for the trip.  To our families - thank YOU for taking care of our children. I am certain you all deserved a vacation by the time we left. :)

I am also thankful to Russ' company for inviting the spouses.  This was a trip that we could have never afforded if not for their generosity and consideration.

Thanks for a great time and great memories, Russ Bragg.  I love you.