Sonoma Coast

SONOMA COAST

So, what do you do after a wonderful family event in Los Gatos and you aren’t ready to head back to the grind of your everyday life in LA?  I suggested the Sonoma Coast…using Bodega Bay as our jumping off point.

Bodega Bay conjures up a lot of things for most people…and top on the list is FABULOUS FOOD!!! (Others vying for the top of the list are GREAT WINES, AMAZING OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES, SPECTACULAR SCENERY TO ENJOY and of course…the town of Bodega, itself, where Alfred Hitchcock filmed his famous movie…”The Birds”).

We drove up from Los Gatos, thru the fabulous redwood forests all along Highway 1 .  It is a gorgeous ride, and with each passing mile, another layer of stress sheds itself…leaving you open to take in the gorgeous sights and smells of the coast.

We stayed at the Bodega Bay Lodge, which is the “quintessential California coastal retreat”.  It is situated on a bluff, and has fantastic views of the rugged Sonoma coastline.  It is hard to believe that you are only one hour away from San Francisco…as you have entered a world of quiet and beauty of nature.  We couldn’t wait to explore.

Within 5 to 10 minutes of the hotel, there is a lovely beach….and the marsh adjacent to the hotel is a wildlife preserve filled with all kinds of birds.  Walking thru the tidelands is an amazing adventure, one that cannot be measured by “city experiences”.  We saw swans and pelicans and lots of other birds I cannot describe.  The trumpeter swans I was able to recognize, cause they woke us every morning…just like a trumpet!!!

We drove around a bit more, and came back to the hotel in time for a wine tasting event.  It was fun.  Then we had dinner in the hotel restaurant…the Duck Club.  It was a beautiful presentation and a wonderful menu. Then we collapsed after a wonderful day with treats for all our senses.

The next morning, we woke up to the sound of the swans…..and  headed out to go whale watching. We wanted to do that first, as it was the entrance to Bodega Harbour,  a 3-mile easy walk to the rocky “headland”. We thought we would be the only people there, but obviously others were doing the same thing.   We were lucky enough to experience a pod of 20 whales, cavorting in the ocean on their way down to Mexico.  What a thrill.  We thought we would only see one if we were lucky…but 20!!!! So we stayed for close to an hour just watching them play.

We were told that the kayaking, canoeing and surfing is spectacular in Bodega Bay…but since we were there in November…the only thing on the water was deep sea fishing.  AND, we were missing crab season by one week….There was no commercial crabbing yet…just a few private people who were lucky enough to get licenses. 

However, the kite flying was in full swing…and we were told that Bodega Bay is one of the greatest places to fly kites…as the wind “always blows”.

As I mentioned at the beginning, no trip to this coast would be complete without stopping in the small 19^th century town of Bodega (not to be confused with Bodega Bay), where Alfred Hitchcock filmed “The Birds”.  So we headed there next.

 The Church, which was featured in the movie, was dedicated in 1861, and still holds services every week.  The schoolhouse that was in the movie is also still there, but is now a private home.  There is a giftshop that has a replica of Hitch himself standing outside…quite creepy since it is very lifelike.  And there are still birds that swoop around the town!!!

We decided that even tho we couldn’t get crabs, we had to try the grilled  oysters in Bodega Bay….so we headed back  there for lunch.

Our host, Tyler, shucked the oysters, slathered garlic sauce on them, and threw them on the outside grill.  It was a bit chilly to eat outside…but the oysters were FANTASTIC!!! Can only imagine what it is like in season, with all the boats going in and out with their daily catches of oysters, crabs and whatever fish in available. 

For those people really into oysters, the agricultural town of Tomales, which was settled in the 1850’s and today has a population of 250 people, is about 20 minutes south of Bodega Bay.  There is sustainable oyster farming there, and you can buy “oysters-to-go” and have a picnic at the Tamales Bay Oyster Company.  Since I am not into shucking them myself..I prefer someone making them for me….and I am now a devotee of grilled oysters!!.

The next day we decided to explore a bit further afield. We knew there were other small towns to see…like Duncan Mills and Jenner. So we took our map, and set off.  We wound up at River’s End  having lunch.  It was lovely.  They also have a few private cabins along the end of the river for guests…and they were charming.  No TV’s or wi-fi, however…so you are really checking out.

On the way back, we stopped in the town of Occidental  at an amazing hotel called the Union, which I have heard a lot about.  It has been in the Gonnella family for generations, since 1925 in fact,  and the  grandchildren run it now.  It also is a compilation of cabins (2-4 bedrooms each), that are just wonderful.  There is a big dining room where the guests have assigned tables…and a charming patio outside (where wi-fi reigns).  And did I mention that the food is FANTASTIC???? Not just good,…but fantastic.  I know the people in the Sonoma area recognize how wonderful the chef is…and it is a real California treasure.  This hotel and restaurant is a MUST and well worth the trip.

We brought home bread and dessert that night from the Union because the  presidential elections were on and we wanted to watch.  So we stopped at the Spud Point Crab Company…home of the World Famous Clam Chowder…and got our Bodega Bay dinner to eat in our room.  That, along with some fantastic wine from the area and a magnificent dessert…what could be better?

And President Obama was declared the winner by 7:30!!!!

What an ending to a fabulous stay in Bodaga Bay.  We will be back…that is for sure.

Key West

This is our second trip to Key West, and even tho Dick doesn't know who Jimmy Buffet is....it is still a really FUN place to kick back for a couple of days. We are not fisher people...which is the biggest draw in all of the keys....but we do like the water, the beach and saying "good-bye" to the sunset every night with a margarita.!!! So we fit right in.

Key West is quite a contradiction in terms There is a sophistication level amongst yacht owners who pull into town to enjoy the fabulous restaurants that mixes with the rest of the people off mass market ships who want the best t-shirt they can find for $2.00. There are stores selling women's blouses for $650, right next to t-shirt shops. And there are restaurants where people who live and work here dress to the 9's and eat expensive gourmet dinners, as well as those that cater to the "flip-flop" crowd. And all of it works.
Old town Key West is where most tourists go. New town looks like any city in the US.
We were told that Key West is the oldest city in Fla..and it is closer to Cuba than to Miami.Hence, a lot of creole, Bahamian and Cuban influences.

Cruise ships stop here daily, discharging hundreds of people who have different wants and desires. Some start drinking at 9 am and like to buy t-shirts. Others want to deep sea fish..so they disappear into the fishing boats and look for big game fish. The leftovers visit President Truman's winter White House...Hemingway's home to check out his 5-toes cats, and a lovely Victorian home where James Audubon painted some famous birds and plants. And then there are those who want to eat fantastic food....like all of the above groups. And no one is disappointed.
I even found two stores that easily could be in Beverly Hills or new York . And the art galleries are abundant and diverse.

Once again we were lucky enough to be able to stay at the Ocean Key Resort. This property is just fabulous. It is staffed by the best people, who welcome you always with a big smile. You continuously have the sense that they are glad you are here.
The rooms are large, colorful, island-like in furniture , and overlook the bay where all the cruise ships come in. It is a spectacular view, and the Sunset Pier is an institution in Key West. It is where everyone comes at the end of the day to bid farewell and watch the sun set. And did I mention, toast the end of the day?
If you have small children and need a beach, I would suggest the Ocean side, where the Waldorf has two beachfront properties. There is less "Hub-bub" but there is still have access to the tour Trollies and Duval Street at the southernmost end.
For those people who want all the "tumult" and excitement of Mallory Square and the Yacht Basin, the Ocean Key is the best!!!

We spent our first day revisiting old places...kind of putting them back into our memory bank. We walked for at least 5 hours...and it was lots of fun. Music waifs out at you...not Jazz, like in New Orleans...but music, all the same. Lunch was at DJ's Clam Shack, which is an institution in Key West. You walk up to a small counter in front of the kitchen, and order your food. Then they bring it to you in the back patio. The Conch (fried or fritters) is a specialty....as is the lobster roll. We had the conch the first day...the the lobster the next. Both were amazing, and not to be missed. That night we ate at Louie's Backyard and it was simply fabulous. It was in a beautiful house, and we ate in the garden. The food was exquisite... LA prices, but well worth it.

On Thursday we drove North out of Key West to mile marker 28. I need to explain something about the Keys. From the time you leave Miami, distances to all the Keys are measured by the mile markers lining Hwy 1. It is 128 miles to the end of Key West...mile marker 0. Today, we wanted to visit the sister property of our hotel...Little Palm Island...hence the drive to mile marker 28. There is a lovely little palm island center off the highway, where we registered for the ferry...the only way to get to the island. Non-guests can go over there for lunch or dinner...but they need a reservation and can only go into the restaurant. The rest of the island is for the exclusive use of the guests.
The resort has 30 casitas....very lovely, very private and very quiet. This is definitely the place to go to "re-charge your batteries". And speaking of batteries. I need to tell you that there are no tv's in the suites, and very little wi-fi ( only if you are close to the main office ). There is a public phone in a darling phone booth...but that is all. You really need to like the person you are with...and you need to relax.
Little Palm is one of the loveliest resorts in the US. It is like some of the Amans we have been to in Asia . It is designed for you to completely relax...and you either do that, or you leave the next morning. You can walk around the island very quickly...in fact, 4 times around is a mile. They have it designed so that you can eat anywhere you want....on the beach...in front of your suite...anywhere. And you can do anything you want..water sports, fishing, sleeping in a hammock. Put it this way, if you need to chill out, this is certainly the place to go. The food is exquisite....as are the accommodations
After our lovely visit to Little Palm, we came back to the Ocean Key, bid farewell to the sun, and rested before we headed out to another fabulous dinner. Dick got the name of the Blue Heaven from a friend who spends a lot of time in Key West...and it was just wonderful. Again, another garden setting...a little more casual than Louie's...and just fabulous. I could eat fish every day if it were prepared like this. What a treat!!

The next two days we looked at some B&B's (busman's holiday) and just walked. Once again, we had some fabulous meals...ending with Michael's our last night.They billed it as a "steakhouse"...which Dick thought he might enjoy after all the seafood...but when push came to shove, we had the crab cakes and fabulous fish. It was a perfect ending to a wonderful trip.

For people who think they need to leave the United States to enjoy something exotic and special...I say "There are places in the US that equal anything in the world". You just need to think "Outside the Box" and enjoy what there is here!!! We sure did!!!

Midwest to Florida

After vowing NEVER to travel to the Midwest in winter....we were missing the Chicago kids/grandkids so very much, we decided to gird our ugg-wrapped loins and venture forth, knowing that we were going against everything we ever believed in.
Actually, we were quite surprised, because Chicago was experiencing a really mild winter...and we were going to reap the benefits of said mildness...at least for one day!
In fact, it was kind of fun bundling up in warm clothes, if even for a short while. Getting cocky, we decided that it was too warm for February, so we headed North, into Wisconsin, to track down some snow. The grandchildren were off of school for President's holiday, so we headed to the Grand Geneva Resort for a couple of days.
For those of you who remember the old Playboy Club Resort in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.....this is it. It has been remodeled, and is really quite a wonderful place...especially for families of all ages. There is the darling town of Lake Geneva...and the lake itself is quite spectacular. The resort offers activities for all seasons....and since we were here in the winter....the kids really wanted to go skiing. Usually there is no shortage of natural snow, but this year has been quite shy of it....so the resort was making snow every night. The kids adored it.....and what a place for them to master the sport. They could ski down 5 different slopes...and there was never a long wait to get back up the hills. And the days we were there were just perfect ski weather. Blue skies, clear and 40-ish. We can equivocally say that we enjoyed the whole experience, but mainly because the kids were loving it. Albeit, after a while we went into the warming house and had a hot chocolate while we watched them go up and down, and up and down.
The next morning we work up to SNOW....and it looked like a Currier and Ives painting. The lake was covered, and the trees were laden with gorgeous, white marshmallow fluff!!! An amazing sight. And we didn't have to shovel it....and it never got dirty, cause by noon, it all melted! Got lots of pictures, tho.
The kids rock-climbed and then went to the water park, where they were able to swim indoors thru a maze of tunnels and small pools. As I said, this is a wonderful family resort, and it was a lovely way to spend time with everyone.

As I have always said, "Fish and relatives smell after 4 days"....so we bid our sad good-byes, and we headed to Orlando, Florida....to visit our other kids/grandkids.

Orlando, as you know, is home to Mickey, Universal, and Shamu. And now, my son's newest VA hospital...which will be completed next year. When I say "my son's hospital", I merely mean that he was appointed Chief of Staff of this newest VA hospital, and that appointment is what brought the entire family to Orlando from Raleigh/Durham. And it is what is keeping them very busy in this town. This new hospital will be an amazing medical center, and is quite a fantastic undertaking. We can all be proud that our soldiers will have such a fantastic facility when and if they need it.

Dick and I stayed at the Ritz Carlton, Grande Lakes, as the kids had school, and we didn't want to impose (the "fish thing", again.) This is a magnificent property, and a real jewel in the Ritz organization. It is connected by walkways to the JW Marriott, and they share facilities. Having experienced a lot of Ritz Carltons, I can say with great knowledge, that this one is just perfect. The service...the food and the ambience cannot be surpassed. I have never been in a hotel where I received a thank you note from the bellman! Amazing attention to detail. As you can tell....we enjoyed it enough to drive 1/2 hour to get to the kids!!!

We planned the trip to be able to see Jacob in his track meet....as well as Sam break his personal best in the 1600. The only one who lost out was Nat...cause we could't see his Quiz Bowl event. There is never enough time to do it all...which is the worst thing about being "airplane Grandparents". But we were able to see how well the VA is coming from the last time we were here...and it is quite impressive. Ken and Sarah have made some lovely friends here..and it is feeling a lot more like home. Just in time for the twins to leave for college in the fall!!

We had a lovely four days here, doing lots of family things, and then it was time to move on (Fish thing, again) Dick had a meeting in Miami, so we headed to South Beach.

This is a really fun part of Florida. The art deco buildings are just amazing, and you could spend days just wandering around looking at them. What fun. And the cacophany of languages in this city is just amazing. I think we might have been the only people we came in contact with who spoke English as their native language!! How cosmopolitan, and how exciting.

We stayed at the Setai Hotel, right on Collins Avenue....right on the beach. The hotel is very Asian in feel...and very service-driven. Everyone was welcoming and accommodating. The hotel sits behind the Tower...which is all condos. They command an amazing view of the ocean...so try to request the tower, if possible. The rooms are lovely.....and had everything we love. Double sinks in the bathroom, a separate shower...a very private commode.... and a bathtub in the bedroom!!!!! We are too old for that...so it made a great place to put our carry-ons. However, it is very sexy in theory.
We ate dinner the first night at Joe's Stone Crab. At 5:30, there was already a line!!! This is an amazing place...and it brought back so many memories for me. I used to take the boys there every year when we had grandparents living in Key Biscayne, and NO ONE has ever made better cream spinach or Key Lime Pie. Joe's is an institution in Florida....and even if we had to wait 1 hour, I would have done that. As it was, we didn't have to wait too long. By the time we left at 7...the line was out the door, and the wait was 2 hours!!!!!. This is what all stone crab is measured against, and I can still taste the special mustard sauce that NO ONE can equal.
The next night we ate at Barton G's....which has to be experienced to be appreciated. You know how people talk about food versus presentation? Well, this restaurant is about food.....AND PRESENTATION. You sit down at the table, and the menu comes in a lucite I_Pad. The martinis are all either flaming or in CO2....so they have fog-like appearrances. They are also VERY expensive...$28 a drink. But fun. Ours had a frozen gin lollipop that just kept on giving!!
The best part of this restaurant was watching the food come out of the kitchen. They have a selection of potatoes, that comes in a metal stand with 4 cone-dishes...looks like a tree. We had the popcorn shrimp which came in a popcorn box overturned onto the plate, with popcorn spread as a base!!!

Dick ordered the short ribs for his entree, and it came in a metal dog dish!!!! Hysterical. And I had lobster Pop-Tarts...which came in a toaster and they really did look like Pop-tarts!!! They were fabulous, by the way. Rich...but wonderful.

We passed on dessert, cause they were really meant to serve at least 4-8 people, and we neither had the inclination to take any home, or pay $50 for dessert. But, they were spectacular to look at...and had we been with a large group, and could amortize the price, we would have ordered one.

We rolled back to the hotel, and got ready to leave the next day for Key West.