Dog parks and saying goodbye to SF

So I was feeling a little lost here in SF.  No new job lined up.  Had a rough time at the job - vague complaints about my work, but no one could give me any specifics - which is defeating, since there's no possible way you can improve without knowing what to improve on.  Didn't want to spend money on sight seeing, since I didn't have another job lined up yet.

And then my new friend, Malie, invited me to Ft. Funston on Sunday. Established in Dec 1900 and initially named Lake Merced Military Reservation in San Francisco County, California. Construction as a coastal fort did not begin until Feb 1917. The post was renamed Fort Funston for Maj. Gen. Frederick Funston, a Medal of Honor recipient, a legendary figure in the Philippine insurrection and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.   Today, Ft. Funston is known as one of the best dog parks!!  Being a little homesick and missing having dogs terribly, this was the perfect way to spend a sunday.  As I waited for my friend and her 10 yr old beagle, Barnabus, to arrive, I perused the sand dunes and named out the dog breeds I was seeing: Saluki, Dalmation, Labs, Rottweiler, Pitbull, Doberman, Labs, Golden Retrievers, Mixed breeds, Jack Russells, Labs, Keeshonds, Spitz, Poodles of all sizes, chihuahuas, collies, shelties, Labs, Bernese Mountain dogs, Great Dane, Pekingese, Dachsund, Labs.....


Every now and then from between the rows of cars, a tennis ball would come whizzing from the parking lot followed by a dog sprinting after it, and a few seconds later, a human owner following with leash, plastic bags and the ubiquitous plastic ball thrower!  It was hysterical!  The dogs were absolutely loving it!!  No way could you be at all sad watching all those canine smiles and goofy faces and tails wagging!  And you were surrounded by sand dunes, trees, ocean, paved paths and dirt paths - and occasionally, the water stations!!  These were great fun for most of the dogs - water fountains for human and canine with bowls sitting around for sharing.  Every now and then you'd see a dog coming back the other way, finishing the walk, wet and sandy - having obviously taken a plunge into the ocean - but content and happily tired out.  There were very, very few spats - and no serious fights at all.  All of the dogs seemed very well socialized.  Most of the owners had pretty good control.  I was impressed.  This has to be the greatest dog park ever!


It was great way to spend my last weekend day in SF.  To breathe the fresh air, let go of the stress, tune in with nature and be reminded of simple joy of life by the canines!  It's been both difficult and truly amazing to be here.  Learning to get my traveling feet under me.  And continuing my personal healing journey as well.  Just when I was feeling defeated and small, the dog park brought me fresh peace, renewal of spirit and courage.  And maybe a little faith too!  Hug your dog for me!

 8/23/11 Addendum:  I am very, very sad to report that Barnabus is no longer with us as of today.  My heart goes out to Malie and her husband.  I'm so honored that I got to spend a good day with him!

Indians and Rainforests

I heard someone at work mention an Indian powwow that was happening this weekend.  I've never been to one, so I thought I'd look it up.  This was the 7th Annual Indian Powwow for The Friendship House in San Francisco.  The Friendship House is actually a resource for rehabbing Native Americans who are alcoholic.  So the powwow is held within the city.  They block off a street for it.  I managed to find a place to park a few blocks away and walked in - drawn by the sounds of drums and chanting.

It wasn't very crowded.  There were booths lining both sides of about 1/3 of the street - selling jewelry, pottery, dream catchers, etc.  In the middle of the block to one side, a parking lot or maybe a basketball court had been turned into an exhibition area - complete with wooden bleachers.  Indoor/Outdoor green fake grass carpeting provided a place for the dancers.  It was a little disconcerting being in the middle of a city, smelling like a city, and yet seeing and hearing American Indians in full regalia dancing and chanting. Their costumes were beautiful combinations of blues and oranges and greens and browns.  Of course, there were feathered headbands, braids and moccasins.  I got to watch a group of women and girls do a pretty shawl dance, and a group from South Dakota.  The South Dakota group had a very hefty fellow dressed in feathered headdress and a feather bustle that he flipped up every now and then like turkey tail feathers.  I must say the way he moved his head and body and feet reminded me very much of a turkey strutting and dancing.  It was amazing!  If you concentrated on the dancers, the drums, the flute, the chanting... you could almost transport yourself back in time.  Almost.  I didn't take any pictures of the powwow - as some of the info I'd read said that it could be disrespectful at the wrong time - some of the ceremonies were sacred.  And I had no idea what was what - so I opted to leave the camera in the bag.

I only had enough change to pay to park for 1/2 an hour.  So when that was up, I had to leave the Indians.  So I headed over the Golden Gate Park to explore the California Academy of Sciences.  They had a really great exhibit on climate change; an african safari exhibit; a small aquariaum; a planetarium (which I didn't go to see - the crowds were unbelievable!) -- but one of my favorites was the Rainforest exhibit.  You start at the bottom and walk a circular ramp up to the treetops.  They explain the different levels, what the climate is like, animals and creatures found there and how it benefits the areas around it. Butterflies were everywhere!  They had 2 blue and gold macaws - busy squawking and chewing through some modern wooden toys on their modern square wooden play set.  Other than that - no other birds were seen.  I kept seeing signs for other birds and lots of chirping (which I think was a soundtrack), but no luck sighting any.  The bottom of the rainforest (i.e. the flooded floor of the forest) was a pool with a bunch of great huge fish.  They had a really neat room you could walk through underneath the floor on your way out of the exhibit to look up at the fish - which brilliantly led you into the aquarium.  But before you left the exhibit you had to go through an exit room with lots of mirrors where they cautioned you to kindly check and brush off any butterflies that may have clung to you in the exhibit.  Our group was butterfly free - so they let us go.

Also got to see a rather dull and sleepy Albino Alligator.  I thought he was sleeping because it was cold in the museum.  I think it only made it to 60 degrees today, cloudy and chilly.  But someone said the rock he was sleeping on was heated.  That made more sense then.  By then, I could have used a warm rock to curl up on as well!  I'd eaten lunch outside - which was a mistake as I'd forgotten my coat again.  Honestly, it's August.  How can you remember a coat?  It's 100 degrees where I come from.

My other favorite at the museum was the living roof top.  They'd planted California native grasses and wildflowers all over the roof top -  among the solar panels.  It's sort of a research station as well.  The entire building was actually rebuilt in 2004 as a green building.  It's insulated with used blue jean insulation; has solar panels for heating with automatic vents that open if it gets too hot (that I'd like to see.  I've yet to really break a sweat here!); the structure underneath used recycled rebar and the concrete floors were mixed with recycled materials as well.

Traffic mysteries

While rush hour traffic jams in big cities and commuting woes are much the same everywhere, I've found that different states have their own unique patterns and behaviors  regarding rules of the road.  It's always interesting as an outsider to observe these differences, and challenging to figure them out.  Here's a little comparison of 3 different states - a listing of personal observations I have made from driving there.

In Connecticut (where I lived for almost 5 years):
-- Most everyone obeys the speed limits pretty closely.  Police will pull you over quickly here for speeding.
-- Be aware that when lanes merge on the highway due to construction, they only give you less than 50 yards notice.  When you see the merge sign, you better have already begun to merge!
-- Never let people merge into line in front of you, it's every man/woman for themselves.


In Atlanta (where I lived on and off for over 12 years):
-- Atlanta is like a RallyCross video game - go as fast as you can without crashing, dodge the slow cars or run them over!  Police usually don't stop you unless you're going close to 100 mph (seriously, there was a reader's digest article interviewing an officer who said that.  Look it up!)
-- Don't stop for pedestrians.  In fact, honk and berate them if they get in your way.
-- Road rage is the  name of the game.
-- And apparently, masturbating or flashing on the interstate is okay too.
-- However, it is the south, and we all have to merge sometimes despite the 8 lanes - so let the other cars in, as long as they don't slow you down!

In San Francisco (where I've been for almost 3 weeks):
-- Drive slow in the highways.  Especially in the fast lane.  That concept doesn't exist here.
-- Except in the city with all those narrow roads and incredible hills....then you should do at least 10 miles over the speed limit - which means lots of slamming on the brakes.
-- Because pedestrians rule the road here - even when the cross against the light, and they take their own sweet time crossing.
-- Honk your horn randomly here.  At the car in front of you turning left but having to await the leisurely stroll of the pedestrian; at anyone going too slow; at traffic in general if you're frustrated; or heck, just because.  There's no rhyme or reason.
--They may or may not let  you merge.
-- Other motorists will fly around you at an intersection or dart around you at a yellow light if it gets them ahead quicker.
-- And then there are the bicyclists who are mostly polite.
-- And the motorcyclists - second only to the pedestrians in ruling the road!  They can use whatever lane they like at any time - including riding between the rows of cars - which is especially disconcerting during rush hour when you're also dodging pedestrians, parked cars, buses, trolley cars and delivery vehicles.  Or trying to change lanes or merge and suddenly there's a motorcycle between  you and the other car!

Need I say more?

San Francisco Bay cruise

Continuing with the water theme of the weekend, I decided to go back to Fisherman's Wharf and take a cruise around the bay and Alcatraz.  My timing has been off, so the Alcatraz tours are booked up through next week.  I need to be a little more proactive and a little less spontaneous if I want to get on some of these tours.  I spent some more time wandering around the streets before the cruise.  Walked up to Giardelli Square (not much to see there actually but there was a beautiful little park a street down near the Maritime museum.  Lots of street vendors and a view of the bay with a swimming area roped off.  Amazing that people will swim in that frigid water!).

I then walked all the way back down the Embarcadero (probably several miles) and went to Tcho Chocolate Factory and store.  This is a local SF chocolatier.  The chocolate was amazingly good!  I bought several bars and some drinking chocolate mix as well.  I wanted to take a tour of the factory, but I had missed the first one and the second tour was the same time as my cruise.  Timing.

San Francisco Bay Cruises takes you out for a 90 minute cruise on a large boat, around the bay, under the Golden Gate Bridge, around Alcatraz and near the Bay Bridge.  It was windy, but a beautiful sunny day for San Francisco - a nice warm 65!  The water in the bay is a beautiful bluish green.  As we headed to the Golden Gate we spotted several pods of small dolphins leaping through the waters!  The views from underneath the Golden Gate Bridge were amazing!!

Alcatraz was amazing to see as well.  I'm trying to decide if I need to pay for the evening cruise that goes back to the island itself and includes several guided tours.  Alcatraz was originally named by the Spanish, Isla de los Alcatraces (Island of the Pelicans).  In 1854 the Army established a fortress and then a military prison during the Civil War.  In 1934, Alcatraz was turned into a maximum security prison, housing the likes of Al "Scarface" Capone and "Machine Gun" Kelly.  There are no documented successful escapes from Alcatraz.  At least four convicts disappeared from the island but were never heard from again.  It is believed that they perished.  There was no electricity or water on the island.  Water was shipped in from the mainland and electricity was generated by a small power plant at one end of the island.  Although life was very hard there for the prisoners, they were fed very well to keep them from rioting over the conditions.  On the menu was Ribeye steak, southern fried chicken, fish, and all the sides; as well as luscious desserts.  If a prisoner didn't clean their plate, they were not fed the next day.

In 963 the prison was officially closed.  In 1969, a group of Native Americans occupied Alcatraz for 19 months, claiming the abandoned island as "Indian Land".  You can still see that painted on the buildings there.  Eventually an agreement was made and today Alcatraz is managed by the Parks department.

The cruise headed back toward the Bay Bridge that leads from San Francisco to Oakland, CA.  It passes through a small island, Yerba Buena, and has 2 levels.  The bridge was damaged in 1989 in an earthquake and was rebuilt.  According to a friendly couple sitting next to me who had taken a tour of the Bay Bridge last week, parts of the bridge were actually built in Asia and shipped here to be put together.  Doesn't that figure?  America can't even build it's own monuments anymore.  But then, look at the Statue of Liberty - that wasn't made here either!  When are we going to learn?

The cruise ended back at Pier 39, past a dock of smelly, barking sea lions.  I'm sensing a theme here.  Fun day and a good weekend overall.  I'm headed back to the hotel to get some laundry done.  That's a whole 'nother post!  Pictures are below.  Can't wait to see what I decide to do for my last weekend here next week!  Two more weeks in San Francisco!  Then either I go somewhere else, or I fly back to SC for the moment.

Artichokes and watching whales

Today I signed up for a whale watch tour with Sanctuary Whale Watch - owned by a boat captain and a marine biologist.  They have the only boat for whale watching that runs on bio-diesel (ie environmentally friendly) and part of the proceeds from the ticket price go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium Marine Research Center.  We met at their dock in Moss Landing, California.  About 1 1/2 hours south of South San Francisco and about a 1/2 north of Monterey Bay by car.  Allowing for traffic, I got there a few hours early and decided to explore the area.

Moss Landing is near Castroville, which is the "Artichoke Capital of the World".  Norma Jean (Marilyn Monroe) was crowned in 1947 as the first Artichoke Queen!  It was really neat to see how artichokes grow.  I passed by field after field of Artichokes, strawberries, lettuce, etc.  Fields of sprinklers watering the plants, or tractors harvesting or numerous field hands walking in synchronized rows weeding and spraying the plants.  California is where a large part of the produce in your supermarket comes from.  It was both amazing and horrifying to see it produced on such a large scale.

I had an early lunch at The Whole Enchilada in Moss Landing.  And of course, I had to order something artichoke from menu.  I went with the fresh artichoke with salsa and cilantro/lime mayo on the side.  It sounded and looked good (picture below).  But fresh artichoke is extremely fibrous and hard to chew.  I gave up about a 1/4 of the way through.  But the taste was absolutely delicious!  Next time I'll have to try the fried artichoke, which is advertised everywhere.  After lunch I drove around a bit, and browsed through a few antique stores and fresh vegetable markets.  I decided on one more stop before heading to the dock:  The Haute Enchilada, owned by the same people.  It was cold and foggy in Moss Landing, despite the gorgeous sun on the drive down.  So I opted for hot tea and dessert.  And given the theme of the morning, I decided on the Artichoke cake.  It was very good!  Actually more like a spice cake with small, virtually unnoticeable pieces of artichoke, cream cheese frosting and walnuts.

After my artichoke feast, I was feeling pretty darn full.  Too late remembering that the instructions for the whale watch said to be careful what you ate beforehand in case of sea sickness.  They really emphasized this in their advanced directions, on their web site and in the their pre-boarding talk.  Before you get too nervous, and while I DO get air sick, I do not and did not get sea sick.  I actually love the feel of the boat rocking underneath, and the feel of the salt spray in the air.  Layered up in the warmest clothes I brought, I stayed pretty warm until the trip back.  My feet had gotten wet from some waves coming in the back of the boat at the bottom while we were stationary to watch the whales.  And I was freezing on the way back, but unwilling to go inside because I didn't want to miss any minute of the setting sun on the ocean.

The boat was a 43 footer.  The tour has the license for a capacity of 39, but they only take out a maximum of 28 so that everyone gets a good view.  They stay out longer than any other tour and go farther to ensure that you get to see whales.  They even guarantee it!  Captain Mike was nice and very informative.  The first whale we saw just off the coast was a Humpback Whale.  Apparently he's been hanging out there for a while.  The captains have named him "Stinky" because when he opens his mouth to feed, if you're downwind......  We got to see an actual side roll and he waved a fin at us.  He was feeding in 12 ft deep water - shallow for him, so had to go on his side a bit to do so.  Stinky was a bit shy, and after the fin wave and few dorsal views, he dove and gave a last wave of his tale.  So we headed out to see to find more.  Of course, my camera died at this point.  But I don't really have the type of camera necessary to get really good, fast, long distance shots anyway.  So I didn't mind so much.  I was enjoying the ocean and being on the boat!

We also got to see a lot sea lions - who are curious about the boat and like to pop out of the water with a gust of breath to look at us and then swim away.  One did follow us for a bit.  There were lots of otters swimming on their backs and cracking open mussels.  We also saw seagulls, cormorants, Murres and pelicans.  The pelicans made great shows diving straight down into the water for fish.

Guide John Carlo was a cutie who made sure everyone was having a good time.  He passed around an actual baleen plate from a whale - made of keratin, it's what they filter through to feed.
John Carlo also got to climb on top of the boat to look for whales!  About an hour before we returned, we all heard his excited yell, "Orcas, everyone!" This was the best part of the trip.  We found a pod of migrant Orca whales - with a few babies.  They gave us a phenomenal show.  John Carlo and Capt. Mike both said they were even impressed by it!  They were leaping out of the water, diving, and leaping again.  We even got a suprise splash when one leaped out of the water about 20 feet off the side of the boat and made huge splash into the boat!  It was amazing!!!  They were waving dorsal fins and tails, and raising their heads, mouth open, out of the water!  Even if I had a camera that would have captured it, which I don't, I was so astounded I couldn't have taken one picture.  Everybody was all but high fiving each other and exclaiming every time one leaped. Capt. Mike explained that Migrant Orcas rarely come into the bay area - they are meat eaters and come hunting sea lions, etc.  But occasionally a pod will come in  - like this one.  There are other types of Orcas who live in the area, but don't eat meat.  When the pod had enough in that area, they dove under and didn't reappear.

The ride back was cold.  But we were all exhilarated and tired after the 5 hour trip!  The sun was setting just as we reached the dock area; and Capt. Mike circled to give us a view of the "Sea Lion dock".  They gave over one whole dock to the sea lions to sleep on.  There were probably over a hundred male sea lions piled up, smelling horribly fishy, and bawling at us and each other.  Although there were a few who carried scars and some who just lazily watched us float by!  I did see a sign as we loaded on the boat that afternoon that cautioned you to stay away from them - as they do sometimes come onto the other docks.  And as we passed the rows of boats to find our own slip, I saw a pair of sea lions on the edge of a dock - one of them kept knocking the other one off into the water like a game of king of the hill!  And the other kept jumping back on and bawling at the first one!

Walking back up the dock after disembarking felt weird as I got my "land legs" somewhat back.  And I was happy to crank up the heat in the car on the way home.  A full moon was shining over the tops of the hills as I drove back to San Francisco.  All in all, it was a great day!

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Another early morning start to meet my sister, Laura, and her husband at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, Californina.  Got my first good look at the Pacific ocean today!  It felt pretty cool to have seen the ocean on both sides of the U.S..  The aquarium had a pretty big buildup from a lot people.  And unfortunately I have to say that we all agreed that it did not live up to the hype.  Don't get me wrong, it's not bad.  They are really doing well at promoting environmentally friendly practices, and doing important research and conservation.  My favorite exhibit was the gigantic octopus.  Unfortunately, it was so incredibly crowded that you couldn't get a good look at it up close.    There was a really neat video about feeding the octopus.  Apparently, their suckers are extremely sensitive and they can differentiate between people by touch!  Some of them are quite social and like human interaction.  They change their skin color and texture to show emotion.  I would have loved to learn much more about them.

The otters were all sleeping most of the day.  The African penguins were cute, but the exhibit was small. I was disappointed in the other exhibits.  I think the Boston aquarium was better.  It seemed as if 1/2 to 3/4 of the building was made up of 4-5 gift shops and non-live animal exhibits.  At any rate, I took a few pictures.  But most of the exhibits were too dark to get a good picture, and if you used the flash where allowed you got a bright spot in the middle of the shot.

Apparently loading the pictures tonight is a fail.  Will try to publish the photos tomorrow.

Wine Country!

7:45 AM, August 6, 2011, chilly and foggy.  I'm catching the shuttle bus into SF for the Napa and Sonoma Wine tour.  Watching the fog/clouds roll over the top of the hills reminds me of Scotland.  Gordon, our tour guide and driver, gives us a running commentary on wine, the scenery and vineyards.  I've tried to capture some of the highlights here.

As we drive out of SF on Hwy 101 and over the Golden Gate Bridge, Gordon points out a few things:  Mel's Drive In (where American Grafitti was filmed - I'm eating there before I leave!), ILM (didn't realize that was here!  Looks like just a bunch of yellow warehouses from the outside, but OH what they create inside!); Catherine and Michael Douglas live just above Sausalito (couldn't actually see the house); and we passed Lucas Valley Rd (several miles down this road, of course, is where Skywalker Ranch is located! OMG!).   He also filled us in on some more history of the area:  Wine was created 8000 years ago.  There were 180 wineries in Napa in 1880.  Napa means courageous, brave.  Sonoma means big nose.  They were originally American Indian names - they being the first inhabitants of the area, followed by the Russians and the Spaniards.

As we arrived in Sonoma, we passed the vineyards of Red Truck and Gloria Ferrerro (well known vintner in CA) among others.  We stopped in at our first destination, Nicholson Ranch.    It's a micro-winery known for Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio due to the cool climate.  The winery tasting room is housed in a Spanish mission style villa surrounded by gorgeous views of the surrounding golden hills, fields of green vineyards and gorgeous flowers.  And of course - Roses!  My favorite!  Actually, vineyards plant the roses at the ends of the fields in some places.  They work similar to a canary in a coal mine for the grape vines.  If the roses are not healthy, the vines are not!  I picked up a few bottles of very nice Chardonnay.  Our official greeter at the winery was Pepper, an australian cattle dog.  She made the rounds to be petted by everyone.

Next stop was Madonna Estate in Napa Valley - the Carneros region.  I picked up a book here about wine labeling - it's really complex with all the laws on naming wines.  For instance, if the wine contains 75% or more of a grape, it must be called by the name of that grape.  Madonna Estate is owned by the Bartolucci family - the second oldest wine making family in Napa.  This vineyard is certified organic.  I picked up 6 bottles of their 2010 Estate Gewuztraminer.  It's described as spicy and crisp with floral aromas and grapefruit character.  Slightly sweet.  But what sold me the most is that when you swirl it in the glass to release the aromas (known as volutizing the esters), you can smell roses!!

Napa and Sonoma have had colder than normal temperatures in 2010 and 2011.  Colder weather means more acidity in the grapes; and it's against the law to add sugar to wine in California.  Hotter weather means more sugar content in the grapes and sweeter wines - which is easier to fix.  So note to the wine lovers:  2010 Napa and Sonoma wines, may be iffy.  2011 is not shaping up well at all.  They are behind schedule this year due to the colder temperatures.  (How bizarre is that?  Given the extreme heat in the rest of the country!)  The vineyards are removing the leaves near the bottom of the vines to expose the grapes to the sun and hasten ripening.

It's hard to describe the feeling of being in California wine country!  This is something I have always wanted to do!  And here I am... breathing in the scents (juniper, cypress, a fragrant rosemary bush by the winery door, dust from the rows between the grapes).  I'm working hard to store it all away in memory so that the next time I drink a California wine, I can bring back the smells and sounds and sights.  Just as every time I have a single malt scotch, it takes me right back to Scotland - the heather, the peat, the mist and the mountains!

I'll skip over the last winery we stopped at  - there were only three!  It was Sutter Home.  The $5 wine in the grocery store.  My apologies to those of you who like it.  I was horrified that we stopped there with all the amazing wineries around us!  We passed by Robert Mondavi and Francis Ford Coppola vineyards!  I may have to drive back up there!  But could be dangerous to my finances!  Francis Ford Coppola's winery charges $50 for a self guided tour of the winery and a taste of 3 wines.   All in all, I truly enjoyed the tour.  It was a dream come true to be there.  Enjoy the pictures.

Muir Woods & Sausalito

Despite the foggy, chilly start to the day, I decided to forge ahead with more sightseeing on Sunday, July 31, 2011.  I checked out Muir Woods on the internet to see what I could expect to do there.  They indicated that the parking was limited, and included a link to a Park & Ride in Mill Valley that included a shuttle bus to the monument for a $3 round trip fee.  I was feeling pretty smart that I found this out.  So I figured out the address of the Park & Ride, fed it to Major Tom and he guided me straight there.  I found the bus and waited my turn to board only to find out that it was exact change only!

So I drove to Muir Woods.  The road leading into the monument was about 3 miles of hairpin turns and bends - tons of fun to drive! And the web site was right, the parking was limited to 2 small gravel parking lots and miles of parking on the side of the twisty road.  So I ended up parking about a mile from the entrance.  But it was soooo worth it!  I felt like a hobbit, dwarfed by the giant redwoods.  Yes, I expected to see fairies and tree ents!  But the only wildlife I sighted was a friendly chipmunk at the entrance, a few dragon flies and a spotted owl.  The Northern Spotted Owl is on the endangered species list.  The one I saw was perched on a tree stump with his back turned to the crowds.

The forest was hushed and reverent.  It was chilly - no wind, but limited sunlight.  Occasionally there were areas where a tree had fallen and the sun streamed through.  Part of the circle of life as it nurtured more growth.  The fallen tree served as wildlife habitat and eventually fertilizer.  And baby redwoods were sprouting from the root system of the fallen tree.  The seed pods of the Redwoods in some areas are spurred into opening by extremely high temperatures - a mechanism that allows them to propagate after the fires that sweep California.  The different shades and patterns of light in the forest were mesmerising. Another interesting fact about the redwoods is that even if the trunk of the tree hollows out, it can still live on - since most of the nutrients and water system of the trees live in the outer layers.

It was humbling and awe-inspiring to lay hands on the striated bark of these old giants.  I am so grateful that they have been preserved and protected.  (On that note, I did purchase a book at the gift store, The Legacy of Luna, by Julia Butterfly Hill. About an activist woman who lived in one of these trees for two years. You can purchase it at amazon.com)  I wandered along the landscaped path for about a mile and a half.  Then hiked the mile back to my car, ready for something to eat.

This led me to Sausalito, CA - a small, seaside town across the bay from San Francisco.  It has a mediterranean look and feel, according to the brochures.  Lots of docked sailboats; cute shops; artists on the boardwalk; galleries; restaurants and tourists.  I wandered the streets for a while, stopped for a "Sausalito Burger" on huge roll, petted a handsome Newfoundland (that's a dog not a Canadian man - although that would have been fun too! LOL!), scored some ice cream and snapped a few pictures of the bay.  By then, I was exhausted from my jaunts, and ready to head back to the hotel.  Think I'll save the next round of sightseeing until next weekend. Check out the pictures below.