CALIFORNIA - Aug 17-26, 2007
Nearly two years ago my family started throwing around the idea of having a reunion out in California. After much discussion, plans finally came together for an event to be held in San Francisco, home of my brother Brian and his wife Janet. McLean and I flew out in August for a 10 day whirlwind trip of the Left Coast.
Family Reunion - August 17-19
Upon arrival in San Francisco, McLean and I met with my resident brother Brian, and my Dad and brother Rich who flew out from Virginia. That evening in San Rafael we met with the other family members who had flown in from around the country. I won't bore you with family details but it was great seeing people I hadn't seen in years!
As I said . . . Point Reyes - the windiest place in California. Front to back: Brothers Kevin, Brian, Rich.The next day everyone met out at Drakes Beach on the Pacific coast for a day of cooking out on the sand. Unfortunately for me, the road out to Drakes Beach was a labyrinth, and - just as with my last trip to California - I spent a few minutes on my knees by the side of the road. One of these days I'll remember to pack the Dramamine! The ocean water was, well, cold . . . a good 25 degrees colder than our Atlantic waters here in the Carolinas. Halfway through the day excitement broke out when a baby sea lion crawled ashore. With a little park ranger intervention, sanity prevailed!
Upon departing the beach, we took a short ride to Point Loma. It was here - in the middle of August - where we about froze. I guess the sign along the path to the lighthouse was right: it's the windiest place on the California coast! But it was well worth the view!
The reunion wrapped up on Sunday morning with an enormous brunch back at Brian and Janet's. Yummy!
Toy Story - August 19
In college my roommate Edgar studied computer animation and soon after graduation began work at Pixar, the movie animation studio. The Pixar studios are just outside of Oakland and we were fortunate enough to hook up with Edgar for an awesome tour of the Pixar facilities. Thanks for the tour Edgar - you're #1 on the list of people I know that appear in movie credits! (Okay, you're the only one.)
Boys Night Out - August 20-21
One of my dad's wishes has always been to go camping with all "the boys", and we finally made that happen out in California. We packed up Brian's Jeep, hitched the boat to the back and headed up the 101 to Lake Sonoma, right in the middle of wine country. I'd love to tell you about all we did, but . . . what goes on at Lake Sonoma stays at Lake Sonoma. I'll give you a couple hints though. It's the first time I've actually "boated-in" to a campsite. Awesome. And flying off an innertube at 40 mph . . . even more awesome!
City by The Bay - August 22
Hanging out at Golden Gate Park. Our fifth full day in California was Official Tourism Day. McLean and I started out bright and early at Muir Woods, home to acres of California Redwood trees. We then met up with Brian and Janet and headed across the Golden Gate and into the city. On a whim we pulled into the Presidio district in search of George Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic special effects studio. With a little coaxing of a security guard, we soon found Yoda's statue. Mission accomplished!
The rest of the day we hit the typical tourist spots: Pier 39, Alcatraz, Golden Gate Park, Twin Peaks, Lombard Street, Ghiradelli Square . . . it was a whirlwind. And let's not forget the sourdough bowl of clam chowder soup. Awesome! Yep, we hit the city harder than Barry Bonds on steroids, but hey, we had places to be. That evening we headed over to AT&T Park to see my loveable Chicago Cubbies beat up on the Giants. The baseball scheduled couldn't have worked out any better!
Headed South - August 23
Sadly, we had to leave Brian, Janet and their wonderful hospitality behind on the 23rd. In yet another first for both McLean and me, we boarded an Amtrak train in Oakland en route to Los Angeles. It was a long 12 hour ride, but a great way to watch the scenery. And eating dinner in the dining car while cruising along the coast was REALLY cool! (Next time I want to train through the Grand Canyon!) We arrived in L.A. late and immediately hit the hotel. Exciting, huh?
San Diego - August 24-25
(If you're wondering why we didn't explore L.A, keep reading.) On the morning of the 24th, rental car ready, we headed down Interstate 5 to San Diego. Our first and only stop that day was the world renowned San Diego Zoo. The zoo definitely lived up to its reputation and we shut the place down after spending 7 hours there. Leaving the zoo, we headed over to our hotel on Shelter Island along the San Diego Bay. It was time to for much needed sleep!
McLean and Pan Pan (or Zing Zing? Wong Zu? Ching Chang?) The next morning we headed over to Old Town San Diego, the "original" location of the city before a fire destroyed most of what existed. It was fascinating learning about the history of California, the gold rush and Mexican culture. And of course in true southern California style, we hit a fantastic Mexican restaurant where McLean was serenated by roaming mariachi guitarists.
Later in the day we visited the Gaslamp Quarter, an awesome multiblock district in downtown San Diego, full of shops, bars, restaurants, restaurants, restaurants . . . you get the idea. Most definitely a fun place to hang out!
Getaway Day - Aug 26
On our final day in California, we took a quick trip to Point Loma, the first landing spot in San Diego. From here we could see the wonderful (ahem) city of Tijuana, Mexico. Not needing any drugs, we decided against Tijuana and drove from San Diego back north to Los Angeles. We made a decision not to hit any tourist stuff in L.A., mostly because we didn't have the time, but also because a lot of people had told us beforehand that our time was better spent in San Diego. So there you have it.
The grave of Kevin's great great grandfather, who emigrated from Spain in 1856.Our first 'errand' back near L.A. was actually pretty important to me. Just prior to leaving on vacation, I had discovered that my great great grandfather (the one who came to the U.S. from Spain) was buried in a cemetary near L.A. To make a long story short, it took a good hour to find the headstone in the cemetary, but finally, with much help from McLean, we found it. This was definitely a highlight of the whole trip for me.
After the cemetary, we headed out Santa Monica Boulevard for the beaches, taking drive-by pictures of the Hollywood sign, Beverly Hills and all the other TV towns. Upon arrival in Santa Monica, we parked the car and spent time walking around the Third Street Promenade and the Pier. It's a very vibrant city full of, well, interesting people. But it was still a fun place and we only wish we'd had more time to spend there.
From Santa Monica we headed back to LAX for our overnight flight back to Charlotte. At the end of 10 days, I'm not sure if this felt like a vacation or not given how much we packed in. We were exhausted! Nonetheless, we both had a great time. And if you're still reading, congratulations on being awake!
