Even though we already went to Hawaii this year, Boone got sent to California for work and I had a free plane ticket, so we decide to make it a vacation. Boone’s coworker Todd and his wife Kathleen also came along, and we had a really great time.

We spend a day in San Francisco- taking the trolly, walking the wharf, visiting Height and Ashbury, and soaking it all in. It was a really great town to visit! We had the best Irish coffee ever, got to see the bookstore where the beatnik movements started, walked through China town, and had some good dinners. It is such a nice town- like the Madison of California.

The next day we drove up the coast, made a quick stop in Sonoma, and got ready for the next day- Napa. We drove through the beautiful Napa valley and toured several wineries. The buildings were fantastic (just like you’d expect them to be) and the wine was wonderful. The people were really nice, not snobby like you’d think, and answered all our questions about how the grapes are grown and how the wine is made.

On the way back to the airport, we hiked through a national park and show a red wood- just one. The forests were further north, but the one tree was amazing.

It was a really great vacation, and Todd and Kathleen were so much fun to travel with. There are some picture in the link on the right (and 6 bottles of wine on our wine shelves) to remind us of the great time we had.