We went to California for Mike’s 45th High School Reunion and then to fulfill more items of Sidney’s ‘bucket list’, that of visiting Hearst Castle and Solvang, California. We took Mike’s mother with us and dropped her off at her daughter’s home in Sacramento.
Mike parking our car under the carport – a place it has rarely occupied.
Caroline is ready for the trip….
Our blowout, just as we were driving up Price Canyon. Needless to say, we were delayed.
We gave Janet Wilcox a ride to Tooele. She never expected such excitement. Janet was a good sport about the blowout! We arrived in Tooele about 10:00pm and dropped of Janet. We were going to stay in Tooele, but THERE WAS NOT ONE HOTEL ROOM AVAILABLE. What was all the excitement about in Tooele. We then drove to Wendover, Nevada and stayed in a nice room at the Peppermill. The only downside is that we did not get to participate in the buffet…
Our helper… after ONE HOUR OF WAITING.
Thursday afternoon we visited with Aunt Marj and Mike’s Cousin Doug in Reno, Nevada.
Mike and I now stay at Motel 6’s. We just need a place to sleep and no fufu. Our room in Sacramento, California on Thursday evening.
One of the hidden secrets of California is the River Road aka level road running from Sacramento to the East Bay Area along the Sacramento River. (Highway 160, by the way). It takes you back to the 1950’s and is delightful. We travelled this road at sunset five years ago, so I was anxious to see everything in the daylight. It is still beautiful and serene.
One of the bridges along the River Road.
We stopped in Locke, California for lunch. A little town along the River Road. One of our goals was to have Chinese food on our trip. We had Chinese twice!
We stopped in Del Rio at Foster’s Bighorn. This guy Foster was a game hunter in the early 1900’s. He came to Rio Vista and opened a restaurant and hung all of his trophy’s. Mike remembers visiting this place two or three days after moving to Antioch, California in 1959. The restaurant and all of the ‘trophies’ are still around.
On Sunday we drove to Solvang, California. Sidney always wanted to visit this place. Let’s just say it is a tourist trap and she wasn’t that impressed. They did have a good bakery and Sidney was also able to find a couple of good fabric stores. So, it wasn’t a lost cause.
(Notice the LANG sign. A picture was necessary as this is Sidney’s maiden name.)
Driving up to Hearst Castle, we found this town…
It has a glass blowing shop, and we both found it very fascinating to watch.
Hearst Castle, another dream of Sidney’s. But again, it was a little disappointing. From Sidney’s perspective, she feels like Hearst squandered his money building this ‘castle’ and buying 15th century furnishings from Europe. No one needs 69,000 square feet.
Dining area…
Outdoor swimming pool…
Indoor swimming pool… Okay, now if they would have let us swim in this pool, Sidney would have said that the trip was worth it. It was stunning!
Sunset at San Simeon, California…
Honestly, the highlight of our trip was finding the Elephant Seals just north of San Simeon. There were hundreds on the beach and a few out swimming. They were so fun to watch!!!
Suzanne in front of her home. All I can say about her home is “Cute, cute, cute!!!” Suzanne has done so much with her home. It is warm and homey. I loved it!
Mike, Suzanne, and Caroline
I should have a picture of my parents. We stopped at their home on our way back from California where my mom fed us a delicious, healthy lunch. The rest of the way home, we all kept commenting on how good lunch was. (I think we were all tired of restaurant food and ready for a home cooked meal!)
Thanks again mom for a delicious lunch!
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