Back from CA...thanks for the help!

14 years ago

We just returned home from 10 days in Northern CA and I wanted to say thank you to everyone who helped me with ideas last summer. (Hard to believe it was that long ago!) Your posts became the backbone of my itinerary and your advice was invaluable.

We sailed in SF Bay, ate at Chez Panisse, toured the Heath Ceramics factory, visited Alcatraz, ogled trees at Muir Woods and Skyline Drive, ate bread in Pescadero, stayed and ate in Carmel, wandered downtown and campuses in Santa Cruz and Berkeley, hiked in Big Sur, had tea in the Japanese Tea Garden, went mural hunting in the Mission, vintage shopping in the Haight, dim summing in Chinatown, toured The Beat Museum and City Lights, and saw a ton of extraordinary exterior color schemes. San Francisco is definitely a paint geek's dream come true!

One of the highlights for me was all the animals we encountered -- seals and whales, gophers and hummingbirds, otters and goats. The landscapes were mind-boggling, especially the way the mountains roll into verdant hillsides and on to the rocky sea coast. We just don't get that kind of convergence here in the East. My daughter fell in love with it all but promises me she does not want to go to college out there. Time will tell... :-)

We had a wave of illness break over our family and sadly had to let go of a few things here and there, but in a way, slowing the trip down some was fine. Overall, I think we got a great feel for what the area offers, my husband got to revisit his Berkeley-in-the-70's days and my daughter walked through the history of the back half of the last century. It is amazing to me how the feeling lingers on in the young people. In that sense, California has an unmistakable look to it and we had great fun taking it all in.

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Comments (6)

kitchendetective
14 years ago
EEEK. I graduated from Berkeley in the 70's, too.
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mahatmacat1
14 years ago
Sounds like it was a fabulous trip. Funny about your daughter--until DH got hit by that van and we started researching bike-friendly towns, there was *no way* in the world that this east-coast girl would ever have considered living out on the west coast--it didn't really even exist in my cosmology, kind of like Alvy Singer :). But when I needed to keep my dear one safe, all of a sudden the objections disappeared and the west became real and eminently worthy and the Only Reasonable Place. Would you be upset if she went to school out here?

The rest of the trip sounds great too. Re landscapes: you know those serigraphs where each layer of the landscape is less saturated, mistier and less defined going back and back through mountains to the sky? I always thought those were so incredibly tacky...but now that we drive around here, I know that they're actually more like landscape realism! And the endless Northern CA/OR coast landscapes--yes, they're numberless, but can you blame people?

And yes, I must ask: did you ship any Heath tiles or other goodies (tableware?) back to your house? :)
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parma42
14 years ago
Welcome home!

Sounds like you had a great time in spite of the illness. That's like deja vu from Paris.

Here's hoping your next trip is to a sick free zone. :)
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allison0704
14 years ago
Did you go see PassionForRugs at her rug shop in Berkeley? lol JaneF did a post in Heath Ceramics yesterday. I've got to get there next time.

We love SF and were mostly thrilled 6 years ago when DD1 decided to go to college downtown. She's been living in the North Bay for almost two years now and has no plans to leave the area. In 7th grade she started saying she was going to live in CA when she grew up. We just rolled our eyes. Little did we know! Even though she is over 2K miles from home/us, we're happy she's found the place for here and it's such a great place to visit!

Here is a link that might be useful: Heath Ceramics
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mahatmacat1
14 years ago
Oh dear...I don't think I love the new line...except for the shape of the pitcher, it looks like a million other things...
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amysrq
Original Author
14 years ago
KD, now that I think about it, he was actually in Berkeley in the 60's. (shudder) Do you feel younger now? ;-)

Fly, I have already done my never-gonna-move-there move to New England! Can I be done now? I do think I could love gardening in CA, but I am enjoying taking winters off, something I never got to do in FL.

Regarding school out there, I just don't feel like we could swing it financially -- the trips out to visit and the flights home for breaks. She has always said she wanted to be close enough that we could drive in (or over or down) to take her out for dinner. As much as she loves school, she needs to come home to recharge and I can see that remaining the case. I guess our years living hip-to-hip on the boat have left us appreciating physical proximity.

I kept my hands in my pockets at Heath. I did buy the smallest bud vase to tuck into my carry-on. But, the tax is high and they claim to have reasonable shipping rates, so I figured I should not impulse buy. I am consolidating two houses and have always had a dish habit. My cupboards runneth over already!

As you know, my heart belongs to Oceanside Glasstile, so I didn't spend much time in the overruns room. I did get to see those ovals tiles I believe Mahlgold was flirting with. And the white ones with the innie-outie thing going on. So yummy.

I also saw the yellow/orange/blue range that Allison linked in the back, not yet available for sale. You know, those are my colors! Trite or not, I may need to order some...

Allison, I missed the rug store. We got caught in a monster traffic jam heading up from Carmel to Berkeley. (another reason I luuuv where I live) It was getting dark and we needed to see the campus and have a walk around. Is that Jane T?

I am glad your DD found her place. My kiddo had been talking about New England like that ever since we landed in Florida when she was 8. I used to tell her she'd be sorry up there in the cold northern winters and she'd miss Florida. I'd never have guessed we'd all end up here year-round. She was enchanted by the surroundings and the people in CA but still feels her heart belongs to New England.

Parma, I don't know what it is about me and travel. I do seem to succumb to something or another on at least half of my trips. In light of these last two, I am starting to rethink my style. Honestly, since you got back from PV, I have been peeking at the net and pondering. The thought of going and staying in one place instead of all this schlepping is intriguing. We'll have to talk...
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Back from CA...thanks for the help!

Comments (6)

kitchendetective

mahatmacat1

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Back from CA...thanks for the help!

Comments (6)

kitchendetective

mahatmacat1

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parma42

allison0704

mahatmacat1

amysrqOriginal Author

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amysrq
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