Trip to California Travelogue - Sept 2013
Wednesday, Sept 25 - Day 1: Flight to California -Took an evening light on Delta from JFK to SFO. The new Delta Terminal isn't incredibly beautiful, but it's not wretched, either (which is fairly high praise for a New York area airport). There's also a Shake Shack at the end of the terminal, which was definitely the highlight of my time there.
-The flight was fine. I watched 'Admission' because I love Tina Fey and Paul Rudd, and the movie turned out to be more serious rather than a light-hearted comedy. Tina Fey has also greatly improved as an actress.
-I also watched 'Identity Thief' which was just as funny as I thought it would be, with Jason Bateman as the classic straight man and Melissa McCarthy bringing her hilarious mixture of slapstick and heart. I enjoyed it.
-After I arrived, I picked up my rental car from Hertz and set off to stay with my brother in Benicia.
Thursday, Sept 26 - Day 2: Benicia, Vacaville
-Pretty mellow day with my brother spent at the Vacaville Outlets (which were huge), the Mare Island Museum (some interesting history about how the peninsula was used as a Naval manufacturing base), and the Benicia Farmer's Market, which had some delicious fruit. I got to eat some good Mexican, also relaxed by watching most of "Orange is the New Black" on Netflix.
Friday, Sept 27 - Day 3: Oakland
-Met up with friend J and spent the day checking out Oakland. We went through Berkeley, which was pretty, and also the Mountain View Cemetery, which had some spectacular views of Oakland and San Francisco in the distance.
-Ate at BayWolf restaurant, which was tasty, and then got ice cream at Fenton's down the street. It was good seeing J, and getting to see a bit of Oakland.
-In the evening, I bid adieu to my brother and headed down to my hotel in Morgan Hill, which is a sprawling suburb type place with some pretty wine country. The Hampton Inn was quite nice--modern furnishings, which I liked, and also came with a mini fridge, microwave, and free breakfast. Overall, good stay.
Saturday, Sept 28 - Day 4: L's wedding
-Got free breakfast in the morning and then relaxed before heading over to L's wedding, which was quite charming. The food was spectacular, which was great, and both L & her now husband seemed quite happy. Overall, I had a good time at the wedding.
Sunday, Sept 29 - Day 5: Santa Cruz & red-eye back
-Got some breakfast and then checked out of my hotel, heading with L, her husband, and some other friends down to the boardwalk at Santa Cruz. The drive was quite pretty, as I passed through some rather tall forests and past 'Redwood Estates'. I wanted to check out some Redwood forests in earnest but didn't have time--next time I visit.
-Santa Cruz was nice--it reminded me of the Jersey Shore but bigger, and with more palm trees and Mexican food. I had a delicious burrito and walked around the boardwalk, spending some time with L, which was nice. It was a beautiful day (the weather was beautiful the whole trip) and before I left I drove along the coast to take a look at the water in the twilight. Lovely stuff--my pictures do it no justice whatsoever, but I'll have the memories.
-Headed to SFO to eat dinner (at Cat Cora's Restaurant, i got a grilled cheese that was not great and a decent tomato soup). I also picked up a BLT to eat during or after my flight. During the flight, thankfully, I slept for most of the way.
-It was a short trip, but I got to see quite a bit of the area around San Francisco in CA, as well as my brother and some friends. I had a good time and I definitely needed the vacation to recharge my batteries.
Now--back to my regular life in NYC!
-The flight was fine. I watched 'Admission' because I love Tina Fey and Paul Rudd, and the movie turned out to be more serious rather than a light-hearted comedy. Tina Fey has also greatly improved as an actress.
-I also watched 'Identity Thief' which was just as funny as I thought it would be, with Jason Bateman as the classic straight man and Melissa McCarthy bringing her hilarious mixture of slapstick and heart. I enjoyed it.
-After I arrived, I picked up my rental car from Hertz and set off to stay with my brother in Benicia.
Thursday, Sept 26 - Day 2: Benicia, Vacaville
-Pretty mellow day with my brother spent at the Vacaville Outlets (which were huge), the Mare Island Museum (some interesting history about how the peninsula was used as a Naval manufacturing base), and the Benicia Farmer's Market, which had some delicious fruit. I got to eat some good Mexican, also relaxed by watching most of "Orange is the New Black" on Netflix.
Friday, Sept 27 - Day 3: Oakland
-Met up with friend J and spent the day checking out Oakland. We went through Berkeley, which was pretty, and also the Mountain View Cemetery, which had some spectacular views of Oakland and San Francisco in the distance.
-Ate at BayWolf restaurant, which was tasty, and then got ice cream at Fenton's down the street. It was good seeing J, and getting to see a bit of Oakland.
-In the evening, I bid adieu to my brother and headed down to my hotel in Morgan Hill, which is a sprawling suburb type place with some pretty wine country. The Hampton Inn was quite nice--modern furnishings, which I liked, and also came with a mini fridge, microwave, and free breakfast. Overall, good stay.
Saturday, Sept 28 - Day 4: L's wedding
-Got free breakfast in the morning and then relaxed before heading over to L's wedding, which was quite charming. The food was spectacular, which was great, and both L & her now husband seemed quite happy. Overall, I had a good time at the wedding.
Sunday, Sept 29 - Day 5: Santa Cruz & red-eye back
-Got some breakfast and then checked out of my hotel, heading with L, her husband, and some other friends down to the boardwalk at Santa Cruz. The drive was quite pretty, as I passed through some rather tall forests and past 'Redwood Estates'. I wanted to check out some Redwood forests in earnest but didn't have time--next time I visit.
-Santa Cruz was nice--it reminded me of the Jersey Shore but bigger, and with more palm trees and Mexican food. I had a delicious burrito and walked around the boardwalk, spending some time with L, which was nice. It was a beautiful day (the weather was beautiful the whole trip) and before I left I drove along the coast to take a look at the water in the twilight. Lovely stuff--my pictures do it no justice whatsoever, but I'll have the memories.
-Headed to SFO to eat dinner (at Cat Cora's Restaurant, i got a grilled cheese that was not great and a decent tomato soup). I also picked up a BLT to eat during or after my flight. During the flight, thankfully, I slept for most of the way.
-It was a short trip, but I got to see quite a bit of the area around San Francisco in CA, as well as my brother and some friends. I had a good time and I definitely needed the vacation to recharge my batteries.
Now--back to my regular life in NYC!