Non-smoking section?

The wildfires left a layer of smoke over the city...

Welcome to the Rock!

Sea Lions on Pier 39

View of San Francisco from yet another angle

Shoot. I had really wanted them.
But then again, I don't want the Coast Guard to get me ;)

Yet ANOTHER CG cutter :)

Statue in a park, descriptive, I know...

Park where said statue lives

Ghirardelli Square

Hyde St. Pier (just like the sign says)

Alcatraz! If you want to go, you have to buy tickets in advance!!

Approaching Alcatraz Island...

Arriving at the pier...

Look! It's a CG Helo :)
Pretty helicopter!

This commissary/O Club is in even worse shape than ours!

Baby and mama seagull
(lots of guano on the island!)

Former barracks

The exercise yard
SF is so close - you'd think you could almost make it
aside from the currents and FREEZING cold water!

Heading back inside from the exercise yard

Inside, where the Marines dropped the grenades
on revolting prisoners

Me, on Alcatraz, with the city in the background

Alcatraz Lighthouse - the first California lighthouse

Michigan Avenue - gotta represent!

See the hole in the back that they bored with a spoon handle?

The cells

Seagull, flowers, Angel island in the distance

Some succulent from a garden on Alcatraz

Fire hydrant on Alcatraz
I thought it looked cool

Returning to SF via ferry

Taking the ferry from SF to Jack London Square
Very smoky!

CG ship (in drydock?)

I'm still around...

After five weeks, I'm spending this week out west with my husband! He's been doing his internship in finance. I'm exploring. He's working. Yay for being together! Woohoo!

Hopefully, I'll return to blogging soon... with fun pictures!

Congrats Aunt R on your wedding!! Sorry we couldn't be there.

Exploring San Francisco

I saw lots of CG presence while there - it was fun!

The Bay Bridge (as seen from the ferry)

San Fran!

Cute little RHI :)

Lombard St.


Me at the Coit Tower hill

Chinatown Gate

Napa Valley

I had been to California with dh before, but this time I was excited to finally do "tourist things" as I call them. Last time, I had taken a "dh tour," which meant I saw all of the Coast Guard stations/ships in the area and all of the good surf spots. If there happened to be a cool tourist thing I could see from a station, ship, or surf spot, that was mere coincidence.

We got to travel to wine country, of course, with our fabulous guide M. She has a membership to a fabulous winery, V. Sattui. We tasted a bunch of wonderful wines, and enjoyed wandering around their picnic area - next time we're definitely buying cheese and bread and sitting out on the lawn. It was wonderful! Thanks, M!

Future wine, aka grapes growing on vines

Look at them grow!

DH and I by the grapes

Handsome guy!

Us just outside the tasting room

Dh with M and baby T

DH with his friend Jeff, who met us there

V. Sattui

Pretty Napa Valley!