San Francisco

The purpose of our trip to San Francisco was to attend the wedding of friends Jim and Deb's daughter Kate, to Jason. The wedding was everything anyone could have hoped for but we managed to squeeze a few more activities in as well.

We stayed at the DaVinci Hotel on Van Ness, in the Russian Hill District, only a few blocks from the Bay. Day one saw the ladies go off shopping while the men strolled Fisherman's Wharf looking for the perfect loaf of sourdough bread filled with clam chowder to compliment a beer.  

That evening. We attended the first wedding event at Pauline's Pizza for the out of towners. The pizza arrived continuously and the wine and beer flowed. 

The next day Deborah and I were up early and took off on our bicycles to explore. We made our way down to the water and joined the throngs enjoying the beach and sunny weather on the first day of Spring. 

We biked the Golden Gate Bridge and took pictures at the vista point at the North end. After lolling in the sun for awhile we reversed the trip and headed down to Fisherman's Wharf and treated ourselves to an iconic IN/OUT BURGER. 

The wedding took place in the Mission District. It was a combination of a traditional Jewish wedding with a non-traditional, laid back, "we are here for a good time" approach. It was held in The Chapel, a nightclub on any other day. There were four bars pouring whatever it was you favoured and drinks were provided BEFORE the ceremony.  Of course the bride and groom looked stunning and after a short ceremony (including the breaking of the glass and a Rabbi that could moonlight as a comedian), the party started in earnest. A live band played the whole night and the dance floor was full. At one point the bride and groom appeared floating on chairs above the crowd supported by their friends and family. The evening ended for us just after midnight but we left the party going strong. 

The next day we joined in a wedding brunch and then made our way to Napa and Sonoma for a few days of Wine Tasting.

San Simemon

My computer has died. Blogging has become a challenge. Working on Deborah's IPad without a keyboard means less words and more pictures. 

Our drive to the coast at this time of year turned out to be a bonus. The California typical brown grass hills where the most picturesque green I have ever seen. On the down side was the temperature that tumbled from 30 Celsius to about 15. We arrived in Sam Simeon about 5 pm. And settled into the Sea Breeze Inn. After a dinner out it was off to bed readying ourselves for our four hour tour of the Hearst Ranch and Castle. This proved to be well worthwhile stop. 

After our Castle visit we meandered our way up Highway 1 to Carmel and a visit to the golf Mecca Pebble Beach. I had forgotten my 2 for 1 coupon so we didn't play at $500 US a round. We did wander the 18 fairway and green and took some pics from the clubhouse.

We left Carmel and headed north on the 101 for San Francisco, arriving about 9pm. 

Palm Springs

Leaving One Desert For Another

We can now say we have been to Palm Springs.  Or should I say Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage, Indian Wells, La Quinta, Desert Hot Springs or Indio.  All these separate communities make up the Palm Springs area and are nestled up to the San Jacinto Mountains and the Mountains and on the north and east by the Little San Bernardino Mountains. The San Andreas Fault crosses the valley is easily visible along its northern length as a strip of greenery against an otherwise bare mountain.

I don’t know what I expected but there were a lot less old people than I had envisioned.  Maybe that’s because I experienced a birthday when I was there and older folks are starting to look a lot younger to me.

We stayed in Palm Springs proper.  Our five-night stay was at on North Indian Canyon Drive at the 7 Springs Inn and Suites.  Our first night out was to Lulu’s on the main strip.  We were joined by old friends Barry and Jan and had a great evening catching up.

Day two was some pool time for the boys while Deborah and Kathy hit the consignment stores looking for the “high-end” fashion bargains they had heard so much about.  After a great day hunting they came up empty handed but thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

We joined Barry and Jan at their complex for some pool time in the afternoon.  Barry prepared a dinner of baked ham and scalloped potatoes.  Jan’s cousin Marvin and wife Ann joined us, as well as other Edmonton retires Lee and Sonia.  We ended the night with a game of Millionaire (and of course the men won).

Barry's Boat

Haven't Changed Much since High school????

Sunday was market day at the College of the Desert.  It wasn’t your normal flea market crowd and nor were the vendors, pretty high-end stuff.  After a quick stop at the driving range it was off to the Polo match in Indio.  

Polo is a tough sport to figure out.  We watched the two teams score six goals in two thirds of a game.  The confusing part was four of the goals were scored at the end we were sitting beside.  Each team scored twice through the same goal posts.  I never did figure it out but there is certain majesty to specially breed highly athletic horses and their riders able to hit a small ball with a nine-foot croquet stick.

Monday was a day for golf.  The ladies and men split into two threesomes and we played the short course at Cimarron in Cathedral City.  The golf wasn’t great but the company was good and we had a good time.  

We ended the day with dinner at Sammy G’s Tuscan Grill for my birthday dinner.  As usual we ate far too much.  I don’t know that it is about Palm Springs but all the restaurants conspire to over serve all patrons in the food volume department.  Some say we could have left some on the plate but that would be simply bad manners.

Tuesday was a day for a bicycle ride to burn off a few calories.  Palm Springs is not like Phoenix.  It is not set up well for biking.  There are wide shoulders on the road but no designated lanes.  Not everyone enjoyed the ride but I liked the 20 km of exercise before stopping for lunch at “A bit of Country”.  

More pool time and then joined Barry and Jan once again for dinner but this time it was for ribs in chipotle sauce at Trio.

Wednesday was a travel day.  We left the air, hot air of the Sonoran Desert for the days drive to the Pacific at San Simeon.  The last hour’s drive was fantastic.  The region is chalk a block full of vineyards and wineries.  We stopped at the Niner, tasted the wares and made purchases to enjoy in the future.

The Niner Winery

Tomorrow calls for a visit to the Hearst Castle here in Sam Simeon and then a leisurely drive up Big Sur to San Francisco.

Our Time in Phoenix

The sneezing and coughing started before we even took off.  On the fight from Mexico to Phoenix we experienced the dreaded sick person seated directly behind us.  You know, the one where you try to hold your breath every time they cough until you’re blue in the face, hoping not to catch the bug.  Well … we were not successful.

Our nearly two weeks in Phoenix is drawing to an end.  While it has been a good stay, it could have been much better if the Mexican bug had not run its course through our condo residents.  Deborah had it the first few days but managed to sleep it off in a hurry.  Kathy only had it for only a few hours and willed herself not to be sick.  When it came to the men folk of course the results were different.  Men are affected much greater than women when it comes to colds.  I was first up with long bouts of coughing and hacking from postnasal drips.  Mike soon followed.  While all the symptoms were not enough to keep anyone in bed or even from doing things, they did take the edge off the activities themselves.  Most importantly, the colds seem to reduce our wine and beer intake and have left us with an excessive budgetary surplus of condo booze.

We have managed to accomplish many of our recreational goals.  We have golfed and ridden our bikes but reading books and lying by the pool replaced hiking and tennis.  Most of our meals were taken in but we enjoyed some good Italian meals in our neighbourhood and a great feast of Barbeque at Bobby Q’s in nearby Glendale.  We also managed a Canucks hockey game to witness a shootout loss to the lowly Coyotes.

BBQ Meat Fest at Bobby Q's.

Lets start with the hockey game.  The rink was about an hours drive from the condo in rush hour traffic.  The Gila River Arena (naming rights held by Gila River Indian Community) is located in Glendale.  Things have changed greatly since our last visit about 10 years ago.  What were then open fields are now hotels, casinos, restaurants and shopping centers.  And of course, next door is the University of Phoenix Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinal NFL football team.

The 50/50 Draw Generated a $15,000+ Win for Somebody Else

The game itself was a dull affair for the most part.  Canuck star and captain, Sedin was quoted after as being the worst game he had played in the last ten years.  For us, the experience had value in itself and for the Canucks to tie the game in the last minute and provided us with overtime and a shootout made the evening worthwhile.  An added bonus was reconnecting with an old friend.  Deborah and I were walking the concourse when I heard a familiar voice in the crowd.  I turned to Deborah and said I think I had just heard Bill Cousineau’s voice (a rugby teammate I played with 30 years ago in Kamloops).  We walked through the crowd and sure enough there was Bill and his wife Linda.  They live in Mesa four months of the year and we agreed to get in touch when we find ourselves back in Canada).  Small World.

We have enjoyed two golf outings.  As usual with golf the game giveth and taketh away.  For me the first game at Paradise Valley was fabulous.  I had enough shots to believe I had it all figured out.  Many booming straight drives over two hundred yards and some soft touches around the green.  I started to believe all my imaginary practice rounds played all winter in my head were having a very positive effect.  Our second game at Augusta Ranch crushed any such thoughts.  I couldn’t drive a ball very far and it went anywhere but where I aimed.  Mike scored the best and the ladies had some very good shots.  Maybe another day.

I Had My Best Shot with this Rotweiler Screaming at Me From a Few Feet Away

Despite the cold symptoms, we managed some great bicycle rides.   Phoenix is a great bicycle-riding city.  Paved cycle paths are pervasive along the many canals and through the “washes” providing seemingly endless choices of rides without the hassle of city traffic.

My first ride was solo and was a quick 90-minute ride out parallel to highway 51 to the north end of the city.  It was paved all the way with bridges taking you across all the busy intersections.  I started slow but managed about 29 km an hour for the rest of the ride.  Best of all, no flats!

Our second ride was from the condo, through Dreamy Draw (separating the Phoenix Mountain Preserve) and on to the Scottsdale Canal system.  We packed a lunch and stopped half way on a golf course lake and enjoyed our sandwiches watching duffers’ pound their second shots into the lake protecting the green.  A nearby condo owner added to our lunch by providing us with fresh oranges from his backyard tree.  We arrived home with tender ends but 46 + km in the bank.

The Cycling Cafe Along the Way.

Downtown Scottsdale

Our third ride was epic (by our standards).  We headed south from the condo toward Tempe.  This area has large, designated “washes”.  The washes act as runoff drainage for those times the desert is inundated with rain.  While there are signs not to enter the “wash” when flooding occurs, for the most part these are great recreational areas.  Sports fields, golf courses, tennis courts, and of course concrete cycle paths complete with water and restrooms stations are strategically placed through out.  We rode 30 km on the Indian Band Wash to Tempe and the grounds of Arizona State University (home of the Sun Devils).  We enjoyed our lunch on the shores of Tempe Town Lake.  It is more a widening of a canal than a lake but we enjoyed watching the various paddleboards and kayakers enjoying their afternoons on the water.  With our butts guiding our choice of route home we cut off a few km on the return but still ended our day with a satisfying 55 km ride.

Riding the Wash

Never Lost - Just Checking

Diamond Back in Bike Lane - Has Seen Better Days!

Peaked Between Fence at SF Giants Training

Lunch on the Lake

With our colds are in their final innings, we look forward to our next stop in Palm Springs to reunite with old friends and enjoy some more golf and possibly a ride or two.