It's been a crazy two weeks since we returned from Cal-ee-for-nee-ya, so
here is the report. A good time was had by both of us. Alas, I was
recovering from a nasty cold and I was off feed for most of the trip.
The SO will undoubtedly chime in for areas I can't remember.

We landed in Oakland, rented a car (humungous Chevy Impala, identical to
the one we rented in NY last fall), and drove to the Radisson near
Fishermans' Wharf. The first night we had dinner at a little Istrian
restaurant on the fringe of North Beach called Albona. Istria has
alternated between Italian and Croatian rule for centuries, so the food
is Italian with an Eastern European accent. The venison was excellent.

The next day we headed to the Ferry Building in the hopes of catching up
with Charlotte. Unfortunately, she'd come down with a bad cold and
couldn't meet us. We had breakfast tacos for lunch at the building,
then had dinner at the Slanted Door. The latter is overhyped. SO had
shaking beef, and he thought Saigon Cuisine in Greensboro made a better
version.

Sunday we had drinks at the Zoetrope Cafe, owned by Francis Ford
Coppola. His film editing facility is above the cafe. The building
housing the cafe is one of the few that survived the 1906 earthquake and
fire, and is near the Transamerica Building. That night we had dinner
at another Italian place near the Cable Car Museum. Monday we headed
across the Golden Gate Bridge to Muir Woods and Sausalito. Dinner was
at a seafood place in Sausalito.

Tuesday through Thursday was spent in Carmel at the Tickle Pink Inn (I'm
NOT making the name up), an upscale hotel with fantastic views of the
coast. On the way there we had lunch at a fine Brazilian place in Santa
Cruz. The feijoada (black beans and rice) was the real deal. We had
dinner at two places in Carmel that were somewhat underwhelming. Other
than the Tickle Pink, I was not impressed by Carmel the town. Way too
chichi for this duo. (For example, it took us hours to find a
laundromat.) However, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Pigeon Point
Lighthouse, and Point Lobos State Park were amazing. We saw more
wildlife at Point Lobos in one hour than we've seen in Washington
national parks.

The last 3 days was spent at Yosemite. The park was the attraction more
than the food. We had a good dinner at the Yosemite Park Lodge and
lunch the next day at the Ahwahnee; however, the rest of the time we ate
at the restaurant adjacent to our hotel just outside of the park.

For those who want to see pictures of our exploits (but not plates), you
can go to the SO's website: julianv.zenfolio.com.

Cindy

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

Cindy Fuller > wrote:

>It's been a crazy two weeks since we returned from Cal-ee-for-nee-ya, so
>here is the report. A good time was had by both of us. Alas, I was
>recovering from a nasty cold and I was off feed for most of the trip.
>The SO will undoubtedly chime in for areas I can't remember.
>
>We landed in Oakland, rented a car (humungous Chevy Impala, identical to
>the one we rented in NY last fall), and drove to the Radisson near
>Fishermans' Wharf. The first night we had dinner at a little Istrian
>restaurant on the fringe of North Beach called Albona. Istria has
>alternated between Italian and Croatian rule for centuries, so the food
>is Italian with an Eastern European accent. The venison was excellent.
>
>The next day we headed to the Ferry Building in the hopes of catching up
>with Charlotte. Unfortunately, she'd come down with a bad cold and
>couldn't meet us. We had breakfast tacos for lunch at the building,
>then had dinner at the Slanted Door. The latter is overhyped. SO had
>shaking beef, and he thought Saigon Cuisine in Greensboro made a better
>version.
>
>Sunday we had drinks at the Zoetrope Cafe, owned by Francis Ford
>Coppola. His film editing facility is above the cafe. The building
>housing the cafe is one of the few that survived the 1906 earthquake and
>fire, and is near the Transamerica Building. That night we had dinner
>at another Italian place near the Cable Car Museum. Monday we headed
>across the Golden Gate Bridge to Muir Woods and Sausalito. Dinner was
>at a seafood place in Sausalito.
>
>Tuesday through Thursday was spent in Carmel at the Tickle Pink Inn (I'm
>NOT making the name up), an upscale hotel with fantastic views of the
>coast. On the way there we had lunch at a fine Brazilian place in Santa
>Cruz. The feijoada (black beans and rice) was the real deal. We had
>dinner at two places in Carmel that were somewhat underwhelming. Other
>than the Tickle Pink, I was not impressed by Carmel the town. Way too
>chichi for this duo. (For example, it took us hours to find a
>laundromat.) However, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Pigeon Point
>Lighthouse, and Point Lobos State Park were amazing. We saw more
>wildlife at Point Lobos in one hour than we've seen in Washington
>national parks.
>
>The last 3 days was spent at Yosemite. The park was the attraction more
>than the food. We had a good dinner at the Yosemite Park Lodge and
>lunch the next day at the Ahwahnee; however, the rest of the time we ate
>at the restaurant adjacent to our hotel just outside of the park.
>
>For those who want to see pictures of our exploits (but not plates), you
>can go to the SO's website: julianv.zenfolio.com.

Thanks for the report!

I've been wanting to eat at Albona for awhile.

I haven't been to Slanted Door a second time (it's way up there,
price-wise), but I remember really liking it. But it makes
sense that there's good Vietnamese food in Greensboro.

I agree with your description of Carmel. I prefer to stay in
Pacific Grove when I'm down there.

I hope you liked Muir Woods; it's one of our best remaining
redwood groves.

Steve

In article >,
Cindy Fuller > wrote:

> It's been a crazy two weeks since we returned from Cal-ee-for-nee-ya, so
> here is the report. A good time was had by both of us. Alas, I was
> recovering from a nasty cold and I was off feed for most of the trip.
> The SO will undoubtedly chime in for areas I can't remember.

Since I just entered the credit card charges in Quicken, I can fill in
the names of the joints that Cindy could not remember.

> We landed in Oakland, rented a car (humungous Chevy Impala, identical to
> the one we rented in NY last fall), and drove to the Radisson near
> Fishermans' Wharf. The first night we had dinner at a little Istrian
> restaurant on the fringe of North Beach called Albona. Istria has
> alternated between Italian and Croatian rule for centuries, so the food
> is Italian with an Eastern European accent. The venison was excellent.

I'll second the rave for Albona. I had their ravioli made with three
cheeses, pine nuts, and raisins, and it was really good.

> The next day we headed to the Ferry Building in the hopes of catching up
> with Charlotte. Unfortunately, she'd come down with a bad cold and
> couldn't meet us. We had breakfast tacos for lunch at the building,
> then had dinner at the Slanted Door. The latter is overhyped. SO had
> shaking beef, and he thought Saigon Cuisine in Greensboro made a better
> version.

Slanted Door gets a lot of good press, and we were there only once. But
based on first impressions, our fave Vietnamese places in Seattle
(Tamarind Tree and the sister establishment, Long) are better, and with
prices about half of SS.

> Sunday we had drinks at the Zoetrope Cafe, owned by Francis Ford
> Coppola. His film editing facility is above the cafe. The building
> housing the cafe is one of the few that survived the 1906 earthquake and
> fire, and is near the Transamerica Building.

Cafe Zoetrope is in the Sentinel Building, at Kearny and Columbus. It
also has a wine bar, featuring wines from Coppola's estate winery.

> That night we had dinner at another Italian place near the Cable Car Museum.

Trattoria Contadina, in North Beach. Nice cozy neighborhood restaurant.
I liked it.

> Monday we headed
> across the Golden Gate Bridge to Muir Woods and Sausalito. Dinner was
> at a seafood place in Sausalito.

Scoma's. Great location, on a pier in the bay, with gorgeous views of
San Francisco at sunset. Food was OK, nothing special.

> Tuesday through Thursday was spent in Carmel at the Tickle Pink Inn (I'm
> NOT making the name up), an upscale hotel with fantastic views of the
> coast. On the way there we had lunch at a fine Brazilian place in Santa
> Cruz. The feijoada (black beans and rice) was the real deal.

Cafe Brazil. Open for breakfast and lunch only. Recommended. Good
feijoada, and tasty smoothies made with tropical fruits (mangos,
papayas, etc.).

> We had
> dinner at two places in Carmel that were somewhat underwhelming.

Forge in the Forest, and Jack London's. The latter is a comfortable
upscale bar/pub. Everything in Carmel is upscale. I've never seen so
many private art galleries, stacked end to end, block after block, in
one town. Expensive stuff. Not exactly the tee shirts and velvet-Elvis
stuff you see in most tourist destinations.

--
Julian Vrieslander

Julian Vrieslander > wrote:

> Trattoria Contadina, in North Beach. Nice cozy neighborhood
> restaurant. I liked it.

Definitely. If you picked it at random, you made a very fortunate
choice.

Steve

In article >,
Cindy Fuller > wrote:

> The last 3 days was spent at Yosemite. The park was the attraction more
> than the food. We had a good dinner at the Yosemite Park Lodge and
> lunch the next day at the Ahwahnee; however, the rest of the time we ate
> at the restaurant adjacent to our hotel just outside of the park.
>
> For those who want to see pictures of our exploits (but not plates), you
> can go to the SO's website: julianv.zenfolio.com.
>
> Cindy

Nice report. :-) How did you like the Muir woods? Coastal redwood trees
are magnificent!
--
Peace! Om

Web Albums: <http://picasaweb.google.com/OMPOmelet>
*Only Irish *coffee provides in a single glass all four *essential food groups: alcohol, caffeine, sugar *and fat. --Alex Levine

"Cindy Fuller" > wrote in message
...
> [snipped]



> For those who want to see pictures of our exploits (but not plates), you
> can go to the SO's website: julianv.zenfolio.com.
>
> Cindy
>
> --
> C.J. Fuller
>
> Delete the obvious to email me


The Yosemite photos were very nice indeed. Pleasure to look at.
Thanks for sharing.
Hoges in WA

"Hoges in WA" > wrote in news:B01Kn.26583
:

>
> "Cindy Fuller" > wrote in message
> ...
>> [snipped]
>
>
>
>> For those who want to see pictures of our exploits (but not plates),
you
>> can go to the SO's website: julianv.zenfolio.com.
>>
>> Cindy
>>
>> --
>> C.J. Fuller
>>
>> Delete the obvious to email me
>
>
> The Yosemite photos were very nice indeed. Pleasure to look at.
> Thanks for sharing.



Haven't looked at Yosemite pics yet..... that Monterey Bay
Aquarium....WOW!!!


--
Peter Lucas
Brisbane
Australia

I was having dinner with my boss and his wife and she said to me, "How

many potatoes would you like Peter?". I said "Ooh, I'll just have one

please". She said "It's OK, you don't have to be polite" "Alright" I

said "I'll just have one then, you stupid cow".

On May 22, 6:38*pm, (Steve Pope) wrote:

>
> I hope you liked Muir Woods; it's one of our best remaining
> redwood groves.
>

WHAT? You don't get north much do you?

You want to talk that way about salmon, be my guest, but redwoods?
Please.

Not that they don't deserve protections, but "one of our (unspoken:
last) remaining groves" is so over the top it's ridiculous.

And there's plenty of beauties off Summit Rd south of 17 too. Santa
Cruz Mountains are full of them you mope.

In article >,
"." > wrote:

> "Hoges in WA" > wrote in news:B01Kn.26583
> :
>
> >
> > "Cindy Fuller" > wrote in message
> > ...
> >> [snipped]
> >
> >
> >
> >> For those who want to see pictures of our exploits (but not plates),
> you
> >> can go to the SO's website: julianv.zenfolio.com.
> >>
> >> Cindy
> >>
> >> --
> >> C.J. Fuller
> >>
> >> Delete the obvious to email me
> >
> >
> > The Yosemite photos were very nice indeed. Pleasure to look at.
> > Thanks for sharing.
>
>
>
> Haven't looked at Yosemite pics yet..... that Monterey Bay
> Aquarium....WOW!!!

Her Yosemite photos are amazing. :-) You have a treat coming!
--
Peace! Om

Web Albums: <http://picasaweb.google.com/OMPOmelet>
*Only Irish *coffee provides in a single glass all four *essential food groups: alcohol, caffeine, sugar *and fat. --Alex Levine

tutall > wrote:

>On May 22, 6:38*pm, (Steve Pope) wrote:

>> I hope you liked Muir Woods; it's one of our best remaining
>> redwood groves.

>WHAT? You don't get north much do you?

I've been to Mendocino and Humboldt and all the famous and
some less famous redwood groves. I still really like Muir Woods,
and consider it one of the best.

>Not that they don't deserve protections, but "one of our (unspoken:
>last) remaining groves" is so over the top it's ridiculous.

Okay, which groves do you like better?

Steve

On Sat, 22 May 2010 19:07:25 -0700, Julian Vrieslander
> wrote:

> I've never seen so
> many private art galleries, stacked end to end, block after block, in
> one town.

You think Carmel has a lot of art galleries? The place is practically
bare now that the economy has bitten the dust.

> Expensive stuff.

The art prices aren't *that* bad! It's decent art, not junk.
Sausalito should have prepared you for the experience.

> Not exactly the tee shirts and velvet-Elvis stuff you see in most tourist destinations.

True dat.

--
Forget the health food. I need all the preservatives I can get.

In article >,
(Steve Pope) wrote:

> Okay, which groves do you like better?

OK, you two can go outside and settle this argument like men.

I grew up in Florida, and the only groves I saw were orange groves. Now
when I go back to Miami, I see forests of condos. So Muir Woods was
pretty damn impressive.

--
Julian Vrieslander

Julian Vrieslander > wrote:

>In article >,

> (Steve Pope) wrote:

>> Okay, which groves do you like better?

>OK, you two can go outside and settle this argument like men.
>
>I grew up in Florida, and the only groves I saw were orange groves.

Talkin' bout redwoods. Talkin' bout redwoods... REDWOODS!

(To the tune of "My Babe".)

S.

On 2010-05-22 18:31:58 -0700, Cindy Fuller said:

> It's been a crazy two weeks since we returned from Cal-ee-for-nee-ya

Negative 10 points. If you had mentioned Grapes of Wrath in the same
sentence--only five. On the other hand you never said "La-La Land"
which is the most severe at -20 point penalty.

> On the way there we had lunch at a fine Brazilian place in Santa
> Cruz. The feijoada (black beans and rice) was the real deal.

Do you remember then name of restaurant?

> The last 3 days was spent at Yosemite. The park was the attraction more
> than the food. We had a good dinner at the Yosemite Park Lodge and
> lunch the next day at the Ahwahnee; however, the rest of the time we ate
> at the restaurant adjacent to our hotel just outside of the park.

The three greatest picnics I've had in life were all from one trip to Yosemite.

On 2010-05-22 22:19:17 -0700, Steve Pope said:

> tutall > wrote:
>
>> On May 22, 6:38*pm, (Steve Pope) wrote:
>
>>> I hope you liked Muir Woods; it's one of our best remaining
>>> redwood groves.
>
>> WHAT? You don't get north much do you?
>
> I've been to Mendocino and Humboldt and all the famous and
> some less famous redwood groves. I still really like Muir Woods,
> and consider it one of the best.
>
>> Not that they don't deserve protections, but "one of our (unspoken:
>> last) remaining groves" is so over the top it's ridiculous.
>
> Okay, which groves do you like better?

Perhaps you're thinking of Giant Sequoias in Mariposa. As of this
writing (5/10) there are plenty of redwoods remaining. Giant
Sequoia--not so much.

gtr > wrote:

>On 2010-05-22 22:19:17 -0700, Steve Pope said:

>> tutall > wrote:

>>> On May 22, 6:38*pm, (Steve Pope) wrote:

>>>> I hope you liked Muir Woods; it's one of our best remaining
>>>> redwood groves.

>>> WHAT? You don't get north much do you?

>> I've been to Mendocino and Humboldt and all the famous and
>> some less famous redwood groves. I still really like Muir Woods,
>> and consider it one of the best.

>>> Not that they don't deserve protections, but "one of our (unspoken:
>>> last) remaining groves" is so over the top it's ridiculous.

>> Okay, which groves do you like better?

>Perhaps you're thinking of Giant Sequoias in Mariposa. As of this
>writing (5/10) there are plenty of redwoods remaining. Giant
>Sequoia--not so much.

I was speaking of Muir Woods, a redwood grove. It does not have
the expanse of the redwood forests further north, but as a grove
it is still a very good one, and worth going to if one does not
have time to head north to the forests on one's trip to California.

Also, you National Parks Pass gets you in.

That's all I'm sayin'.

Steve

On Sun, 23 May 2010 09:08:39 -0700, gtr wrote:

> On 2010-05-22 22:19:17 -0700, Steve Pope said:
>
>> tutall > wrote:
>>
>>> On May 22, 6:38*pm, (Steve Pope) wrote:
>>
>>>> I hope you liked Muir Woods; it's one of our best remaining
>>>> redwood groves.
>>
>>> WHAT? You don't get north much do you?
>>
>> I've been to Mendocino and Humboldt and all the famous and
>> some less famous redwood groves. I still really like Muir Woods,
>> and consider it one of the best.
>>
>>> Not that they don't deserve protections, but "one of our (unspoken:
>>> last) remaining groves" is so over the top it's ridiculous.
>>
>> Okay, which groves do you like better?
>
> Perhaps you're thinking of Giant Sequoias in Mariposa. As of this
> writing (5/10) there are plenty of redwoods remaining. Giant
> Sequoia--not so much.

besides, if the trees don't like it they can move.

your pal,
blake

On 2010-05-23, gtr > wrote:

> writing (5/10) there are plenty of redwoods remaining. Giant
> Sequoia--not so much.

Brain cells --not too many.

nb

notbob > wrote:

>On 2010-05-23, gtr > wrote:

>> writing (5/10) there are plenty of redwoods remaining. Giant
>> Sequoia--not so much.

>Brain cells --not too many.

Yep, I didn't see a single Giant Sequoia in Muir Woods!



S.

In article >,
sf > wrote:

> On Sat, 22 May 2010 19:07:25 -0700, Julian Vrieslander
> > wrote:
>
> > I've never seen so
> > many private art galleries, stacked end to end, block after block, in
> > one town.
>
> You think Carmel has a lot of art galleries? The place is practically
> bare now that the economy has bitten the dust.
>

We did see some "fire sale" prices in some of the galleries. The
platinum (had to have been an alloy given the price of platinum) ballet
sculptures in one gallery were way over the top, particularly the
larger-then-life sculpture of Rudolf Nureyev holding down the top of his
unitard and looking at his nipples.

OB tonight's dinner: A friend gave us some eggs from her backyard
flock, so I am going to do them justice by making a quiche.

Cindy

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

On May 23, 12:08*pm, (Steve Pope) wrote:
> notbob > wrote:
> >On 2010-05-23, gtr > wrote:
> >> writing (5/10) there are plenty of redwoods remaining. Giant
> >> Sequoia--not so much.
> >Brain cells --not too many.
>
> Yep, I didn't see a single Giant Sequoia in Muir Woods!

Which sequoia trees do you like more and why: sequoia sempervirens or
sequoiadendron giganteum?

On Sun, 23 May 2010 19:08:20 +0000 (UTC), Steve Pope wrote:

> notbob > wrote:
>
>>On 2010-05-23, gtr > wrote:
>
>>> writing (5/10) there are plenty of redwoods remaining. Giant
>>> Sequoia--not so much.
>
>>Brain cells --not too many.
>
> Yep, I didn't see a single Giant Sequoia in Muir Woods!
>
> S.

of course not. they're nocturnal.

your pal,
blake

On 2010-05-23 18:43:45 -0700, Ostap Bender said:

> On May 23, 12:08*pm, (Steve Pope) wrote:
>> notbob > wrote:
>>> On 2010-05-23, gtr > wrote:
>>>> writing (5/10) there are plenty of redwoods remaining. Giant
>>>> Sequoia--not so much.
>>> Brain cells --not too many.
>>
>> Yep, I didn't see a single Giant Sequoia in Muir Woods!
>
> Which sequoia trees do you like more and why: sequoia sempervirens or
> sequoiadendron giganteum?

The coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) is what you will find in Muir Woods.