Visit the grandchildren, of course!
Hubby Tony and I just returned from two weeks in California. Since the last trip was weighed heavily towards Son Tony's Central Valley family, this time we spent most of the time with Brian's family in the San Jose area. Brian was on a business trip for the first four days we were there, and DIL Nicole appreciated the extra adult hands. The first weekend I got to see Grandson Jay's baseball game and have quality time with twins Ell and Dee. The second weekend was a 6th birthday party for Jay.
During the week in between, Tony and I picked up a rental car and tooled around the area. We never got
farther than three hours away from Brian's, but we had a great time. First, we stopped in Morgan Hill for lunch and a little window shopping. We
kept going, and that night we slept in Gilroy, the self-proclaimed Garlic Capital of the World.
The next day we walked around Gilroy's downtown area, looked at their historical buildings, had some great Mexican food, and
indulged in a local specialty:
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| Just a subtle garlic taste |
On Wednesday we visited Mission San Juan Bautista (which still functions as a Catholic church) and the city around it.
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| San Juan Bautista-Wikipedia |
After the Mission we headed towards the coast, jumped off the highway in Carmel for lunch, then drove farther up the coast to the Point Sur Light Station and State Historic Park. There we joined a group of people on a walking tour to the top of the hill, where we got to go into the light house and other buildings and learn about the history of the area.
From Point Sur we drove to Monterey, where we checked into the historic Monterey Hotel. We have already been to the Monterey Aquarium multiple times, so we spent Thursday looking at the city's beautiful architecture, strolling along the oceanfront trail, and meandering around Cannery Row and Fisherman's Wharf.
Friday morning we checked out of the hotel. Our original plan was to take a scenic route home, but when we got a text from Brian that they needed some help with afternoon childcare we headed to their house in a more direct manner, arriving back shortly after lunch.
Five years ago: One Year Old (And Wonderful)
Nice you visited the grandkids and did some sightseeing -Christine cmlk79.blogspot.com
ReplyDelete"that they needed some help with afternoon childcare" I'll bet your son wishes he could make that call anytime he needed too.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter and SIL both love the fact that we are 10 minutes away and are usually available 24/7.
I don't know how today's busy parents keep all their balls in the air.
DeleteIsn't it fun to see far away grandies!
ReplyDeleteWe've always done Facetime, and phone calls, but they get busier out west, and it's difficult to schedule it!
(ツ) from Jenn Jilks , ON, Canada!
Nothing is better than face to face!
DeleteSounds like a great trip and it's always good to spend time with family, especia if grandchildren are involved! Garlic ice cream sounds interesting!
ReplyDeleteI can't say that I will ever eat garlic ice cream again, but I certainly had to try it once!
DeleteLet me know if you ever take another visit to San Juan Bautista. It's only 2 hours from us and we love to visit the mission and the town. There is a wonderful Mexican restaurant in the town, The Garden, that we like for a late lunch before heading home.
ReplyDeleteEarly in the planning process we had thought about driving as far as Fresno-and you CERTAINLY would have heard from me in advance :-)
DeleteComing to Fresno would be very easy when you visit your other son. No mountains to cross, just a straight drive down Hwy 99.
DeleteYour trip sounds fabulous, adn being with grand babies is the absolute best!
ReplyDeleteTony and I have decided that we will try to include some activities for just us on our California trips.
DeleteSounds like a good trip for everyone! That certainly doesn't look like a catholic church.
ReplyDeleteThe church is off to the right-a building that dates back to the early 1800s. The section on the left is part of the museum.
DeleteOh no, garlic ice cream? I don't think so! Wonderful to be with family though.
ReplyDeleteMy theory is that I'll try anything once, especially if it's something blogworthy :-).
DeleteWhat a great balance, plenty of family time, but time to explore on your own as well.
ReplyDeleteTony and I decided that's how we're going to approach organizing our trips going forward.
DeleteSounds like fun. We have been exploring locally, tomorrow we will be attending a Punkin Chunkin. I am itching to go on a trip, but not until his legs are fixed!
ReplyDeleteIsn't retirement great?
DeleteHi Kathy - this sounds like a great family visit... as well as having some time to yourselves - the garlic farm and food looks to be really interesting - chocolate garlic ... fascinating! - cheers Hilary
ReplyDelete