Day 13 Down the coast

Leaving San Francisco with mixed feelings, happy to travel on and see more of this country but also leaving a city that won my heart. But today we're going two places that are important to me ... GOOGLE and FACEBOOK!!! LOL It is fun to see where a huge part of our lives are being controlled. We also drove through the campus of Stanford University, I never knew these places were so big, like small town big. Very impressive and an eye opener for me. Also did some shopping at Kohls and Target and scored some nice shorts for both of us in sale!

From there on we worked our way to the coast. We stopped in Santa Cruz to walk the pier and see more of those funny sea lions bathing in the sun. I loved driving along the coast and seeing the sea and the mountains come together. Our final destination for this day was Monterey. We changed and hit the cute town of Monterey. We stopped at a nice Chinese restaurant somewhere the main street. Good food!!!
This town made me forget about leaving behind San Francisco right away. I loved the vibe, the main street/Cannery with all the shops and restaurants and walking across the bridges between the two sides of the street. One of those places you can't help but falling in love with. I can't believe I only just now made the connection between Monterey and the Del Monte fruit we buy in cans in The Netherlands (esp. peach, through salads).

A short story but not less of an eventful day.

Day 12 Some more San Fran

We had a good night's sleep and were ready for another day of sightseeing San Francisco. Today we wanted to visit the places that were too far to walk to, so we got in the car and started driving.

First stop of course was the Golden Gate Bridge, we would see more of that during the day from various different angles, but this was the first sighting. Big red and impressive. A great example of manmade structures.
After this we went to the scariest place in San Francisco ... San Quentin, California State Prison, department of corrections, I told them I wanted to leave Serge there for theft since he stole my heart but they said they were full, so I took him with me again. Good thing by the way because this trip wouldn't be any fun without him. The Richmond San Rafael bridge was next, less elegant than the Golden Gate but not less impressive. And on we went to the next view of the Golden Gate Bridge different angle, different view, isn't it amazing how they made smth like that?!

Battery Spencer was up next, an important site guarding the Golden Gate that was built in 1897 and in use till 1943. This place felt a bit eerie but climbing all the way up, you have an amazing view of the Golden Gate and we shot some great pics again.

Another famous place in San Francisco ... the Painted Ladies/Alamo Square, saw them so often in the tv show 'Full House' and now I saw them for real. Nice houses but I would hate living there and having people show up every day and take pictures. We spent some time laying in the grass on Alamo Square with the sun on our faces. Good times! From there we drove to a real Dutch windmill situated in Queen Wilhelmina Garden, yupz ... we travelled all the way to the USA to see a Dutch windmill LOL. According to the sign it was a 'tulip garden' but I'm pretty sure tulips don't look like begonias ... ;-) .

From here we drove to Twin Peaks where we had THE BEST outlook over the city, I am so blessed my love knows to find all those great spots!

Last, but certainly not least ... we had to drive the crooked road, in other words LOMBARD STREET! It was pretty busy and we followed the road down in a long row of cars, it's kinda fun, like a slow motion roller coaster in your own car. Even so much fun we did it again! HAHAHA

After this we brought the car back to the hotel and walked back to town for dinner. We ended up at Applebees and I had my first glass of wine in 2 weeks.

Yet another perfect day in the USA!

Day 11 I forgot the flowers in my hair ...

Having had a night with little sleep because of the heavy traffic, we were not sorry to leave Merced and did so early. We knew our next stop would be well worth it and we hit the road singing:"When you're goiiiiing to Saaan Fraaan Ciscooooo, be sure to weeeaaar some floweeers in your haaaiiir ...' DANG .. I forgot the flowers in my hair ... hope they'll still let me in!

Yupz, our next stop is San Francisco! We entered the city over the Oakland Bay Bridge and nobody asked about the flowers, so we were good. Serge drove up and down some streets, and past Fisherman's Wharf and I was impressed by the steep roads and got the impression of a nice open town that caught me right away. Our Motel was on Lombard street and even though we were too early, we could check in. We left our suitcases and left by foot right away, ready to see the city. We headed straight for Fisherman's Wharf and our 'friends' at Pier 39. We ate a nice hotdog (imagine me eating one without the bun but with all the toppings LOL), bought a fridge magnet and enjoyed the surrounding. It was crowded but when we got at the end of the pier and saw the sea, we forgot the crowds and just lost ourselves in the view.
You haven't been in San Francisco if you didn't ride a cable car, so that was our next destination. We walked all the way up to the starting point and got on board. I totally loved the sound of the cables, the shaking of the car, seeing how it moved through the streets. So happy we did that! When we arrived in the city centre we got off and set course to Chinatown.
Of course, as true TOTO fans, we stood by the gate singing:'Down in Chinatown oooeeeh oeh oeh oeh hoooe', and yes, did get some strange looks LOL. We walked around a bit, had some fun with a local shopowner where we bought a San Francisco sweater (we are such tourists hahaha) and loved breathing in the city.

Via the Transamerica Pyramid on Montgomery street, we walked back to Fisherman's Wharf and found a place for dinner. Had a nice meal in a very quiet Denny's.

Almost 30,000 steps later we were back at the hotel. We were only planning to stay one night but while browsing the city we decided to stay another night and somehow the owner liked us a lot and gave us a really good deal on the 2nd night.

Nightynight San Francisco, see you again tomorrow!

Day 10 Can it get even more beautiful?

Today we left Bridgeport early and headed for Yosemite. I kinda had my expectations based on the things I heard and read. I expected some beautiful sceneries and a couple of hours of fun. Little did I know it would take us all day and even then we didn't see everything there is to see. We did see A LOT though. And everything exceeded my expectations. OH MY GOSH. I know yesterday I said about Lake Tahoe: "Nothing can beat this place.", guess I was wrong, Yosemite is really breathtaking.

Mr. Serge, my personal tourguide really knew how to find all the hot spots and the most beautiful views. Lake view, mountain view, waterfalls ... not one little thing was skipped. Usually I have my way with words but Yosemite is hard to capture in words. The gorgeous lakes surrounded by trees and bushes, suggesting the exsistence of wildlife, the majestic mountains, solid and protecting the surroundings, woods with trees, bushes and rocks where you expect a bear or a deer jump out of any time ... one even more amazing than the other.
One thing I would suggest for everyone visiting Yosemite is ...: "don't skip the dam!". Impressive to see the front, how it's build, the landscape underneath, the size, but definitely also the backside, by the lake. SO quiet, beautiful and with a little bit of imagination you can feel the presence and history of the Native Americans who lived, and still are living there. It sure got me quiet and the butterflies fluttering around added to the magic.
But of course all the other sceneries are just as worthwhile seeing. El Capitan, Half Dome, Bridal veil waterfall, each and every one will make you go ... WOOOWWW ... at least it did me.

We ended the visit to Yosemite at Glacier Point, Ranger Dave held an educational lecture about the sky, how the different colors at sunset appear and the history of Yosemite. While listening to him we experienced that sunset ourselves, the colors changing, nature becoming quiet and the sun setting behind the mountains. Couldn't have been a better ending to a perfect day.

In complete darkness we left the mountains, the road would be closed an hour after because of a storm coming and we headed to our motel. Tired but happy we arrived at the Roadway in Merced ... well, we're gonna skip that one next time. Our room was right besides the highway but it seemed we were ON it and when we left the room the next morning, we had to make sure we didn't step on the maggots that were on the floor outside. But that didn't spoil the fun ... tomorrow more about the next adventure!

Good night!

Day 9 About water, mountains and scenery

Trading Reno for Bridgeport (CA).

Some places you have heard about on tv, seen it in movies or tv shows and from that you have a picture in your head. And no, I'm not talking about Bridgeport but on our way from Reno to Bridgeport we visited Lake Tahoe. I think it is safe to say the picture in my head was not at all matching with the reality. This place had me in awe from every corner. To begin with it was WAAAAAY bigger than I thought.

The water ... so amazingly clear.
The mountains surrounding it ... majestic and protecting.
The houses ... oh my gosh, the houses!!!

Of course I couldn't resist dipping my feet in the water, VERY cold but also very refreshing. We had a little lunch by the water side while listening to the soft rippling of the water, the birds chirping and the insects humming. PERFECT!!! NOTHING can beat this place!
When we got to Lake Tahoe town I of course HAD to visit the local rock store ... that was kinda disappointing. Sure they had nice stuff but the pricing was way off. They also had smokey quarts that is found in the highest mountain at Lake Tahoe and I liked that idea but even the smallest point had a big price tag so I walked away.

On our way to our final destination that day we came through some cute little towns, like the almost just 1 street kind of towns. I could never live there but sure enjoy passing through!!!

Then finally we arrived at Bridgeport. Our motel was a charming white quiet place and most other guests seemed to be fishermen/hunters. After writing yesterday's blog we went into town for dinner. Not much choice of restaurants so the Bridgeport Inn it was. A trip back to the early 1900's, the dining room felt like a local diner with neat white linen tablecloths, pictures on the wall of ages ago and when I went to the bathroom there was this nice wallpaper with roses. The food was SOOO good though. I love it! We walked a bit through town and went back to the motel for a good night sleep.

Day 8 Goodbye Salt Lake City, hello Reno!

If you've been to Las Vegas, you have to see Reno too, right? So on our way we are. If you ever travelled from Salt Lake City to Reno you know that on the way you pass by the great Salt Lake desert, again one of those miracles that makes you go oooooh and aaaaah. Needless to say we OF COURSE stopped and did the great 'taste the salt and spit it out disgusted' thing and had some fun on the salt. Amazing how from a distance it looks just like snow.

When we got to Reno late afternoon it was really busy. Turned out there was a biker event in town and there was a market with biker stuff. We got a room at the 20th floor and the view was wonderful and we could clearly see the Reno sign. We went out for dinner and since I saw the iHop has gluten free pancakes, I really wanted to go there, was already afraid I'd have to miss the famous American pancakes ... well turns out I still did because what we didn't think of is that pancakes are made with ... right ... milk ... So off we went and made the Olive Garden happy with our presence. After dinner we decided we felt lucky and hit the slots again ... guess we fooled ourselves cause we weren't lucky at all hahaha. Oh well, at least we had fun!

Again ... pictures follow later. ;-)

Day 7 From Vegas to Salt Lake City

Today it's time to say goodbye to the city that ever sleeps (Yeah I know that's New York but it goes for Las Vegas too ;-) ).
From Vegas to Salt Lake City, a long drive with a nice reward on the end ... the second time we see TOTO during our trip. Sad one too because it is the last time we'll see them, maybe even the last time ever. We don't know what the future will bring but at least it will be a long break for them.

But getting back to our trip, thanks to Ulla who posted a picture of the Y trail on my birthday, we looked it up, it turned out to be on our route and we decided to go see it. And boy, did that turn out WAAAAAY better than expected. We were expecting just a sign somewhere on a mountain and that's it. Well, there was a sign and there was a mountain but when we parked we were struck by the INCREDIBLE view over Provo, which by the way is a very nice town itself. Lovely houses, nice clean streets and of course ... the views ... I can't stop talking about the views. We didn't hike the trail because it was a really steep one plus we had to be in Salt Lake City on time to see our guys.

When we arrived in Salt Lake City we went straight to the hotel, changed, had some dinner and off to the concert it was. Of course our guys gave their best again and we ran into some of Serge's friends whom he met on previous visits.

Another eventful day!

Pictures following later ... :-)

Day 6, 2nd day in Vegas

Today is our 2nd day in Vegas, we already know that 2 days won't be enough but we're going to see as much as we can. After getting some groceries and filling up the tank we are heading to the Jewelry & Minerals store that my friend Lynn recommended. I was expecting 'just another rock store', even though I know she would probably recommend something special. Little was I prepared for this experience ... honestly, I think this is what heaven must be like. So many gorgeous pieces, small, big and enormous. WOW!!! And still I missed their best piece which was outside on the back of the shop, but with what I saw I already have plenty to dream about.

Serge knows all the good places and he took me to the Premium Outlet North. It was huge and so many great stores. Of course we had to enter the Michael Kors shop too, HUGE mistake LOL ... oh well, not really, VERY happy with my new bag!

Shopping makes you hot and by now we were in need of a nice dip in the pool so we headed back to the hotel. After swimming a few lanes we ended up in the hot tub and it wasn't long before we looked at each other in disbelieve ... "did you feel it too?", "yes, I think I did" ... nooooo ... it can't be ... but true RAIN IN VEGAS ... we've never seen so many people leave a pool and the area so fast! But since we are Dutch and used to a bit of rain, we stayed and a couple others joined us in the hot tub. It didn't last long and it was still nice to be outside. When it was over Serge swam a couple of lanes again and by then we got hungry so we got dressed and hit The Strip again. We had dinner at Chilli's and there were a few hotels we hadn't seen yet so we walked around a bit and I watched my eyes out. Especially the Paris and the Venetian ... SO beautiful!
When you're in Vegas you have to gamble so we went to the slotmachines, my first time and 400% profit! WOOOHOOO!

I think you all can guess what came after that ... yes ... a nice night sleep. ;-)