No trip to Marin or the City is complete without a trip across the bridge, or at a minimum, a glimpse at the most iconic structure of the West Coast. The Golden Gate Bridge is taken for granted by most of us who live here. But with the phantasmagoric colossus of rebuilding the Bay Bridge, we should take a moment to savor the beauty, longevity, and splendor of the world's most famous bridge. First some bridge basics. The bridge is 1.7 miles long, with the suspension span 1.2 miles. The bridge is 90 feet wide, including 10 feet of walkway. The [View Full Entry]

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On one of our two or three annual trips to Seattle, we got so hungry for lunch that we headed to Serious Pie for a cherry bomb pizza, salad and ice tea. We got a ride over to the restaurant and our next hotel from our driver, who just happened to be out front when we were ready to move!! Now some people say pizza is pizza, but they have never been to a Tom Douglas restaurant in the Seattle area, have they? For those of you unfamiliar, Tom Douglas is the Seattle restaurantuer who more or less made Northwest cuisine [View Full Entry]

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When we were in Hanoi a few years ago, we decided to eat at one of the newest and most popular restaurants in all of Hanoi, Restaurant Bobby Chinn. Overlooking the central Hoan Kiem Lake at the heart of Hanoi, Restaurant Bobby Chinn is the standard for international cuisine in a city long known for culinary adventure. A well known international hotspot, Restaurant Bobby Chinn offers a hip setting for an unforgettable evening of culinary delights, and some unexpected sights as well. Hanoi is a beautiful, artsy, and cultured city, along the lines of San Francisco or Seattle. It is a [View Full Entry]

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Just about every travel show or travel magazine has done a story on American barbecue. And almost every story features the famous Salt Lick in Austin, Texas. Now that they have opened a Salt Lick in the Red Rock Casino in Las Vegas, I feel compelled to do my own BBQ story. So fasten your seat belts, loosen your other belt, and bring your appetite. Here we go! First, we have never been to the famous Salt Lick in Austin, only to the one in Vegas. We have been there thrice, and each time was memorable. The first time was an [View Full Entry]

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How in the world did they ever build a maximum security state prison in groovy Marin County? I always wondered about this. And I wondered about the guys in San Quentin who looked out at Alcatraz Federal Prison. I wonder if they had a Morse code back to the inmates at Quentin? We drove past San Quentin today on our way to Larkspur and Novato in Marin County. It caused me to look into a little about this famous or infamous place in history. San Quentin opened in July of 1852, making it the state's oldest prison. It houses California's only [View Full Entry]

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It is hard to rank the ten best after the first two. But here goes. A little blurb about each one just to pique your interest. 10. Inn at Spanish Bay (Pebble Beach, CA) Several things about this 17 Mile Drive Inn make it remarkable. First, the one you have heard about, is the lone bagpiper who walks down the 1st fairway at 6pm every night. He (or she) ends up at the outdoor patio/bar/lounge area where a cozy, warming bonfire keeps the patrons warm. Of course, the Links at Spanish Bay is a very nice and upscale course, difficult on [View Full Entry]

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For you out of towners, and out of country folks, we often drive up to the Napa Valley for the day, since it is only a 45 minute drive. Just down the road are the Sonoma Valley, Yountville, St. Helena, and Calistoga. We enjoy the drive, shop a little, and have a nice lunch or brunch before heading home. Most of the wineries now charge a small fee for tasting a sub selection of their offerings. You can usually apply this fee to a purchase of wine at their winery. In the old days, you could taste all you wanted, and [View Full Entry]

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I wear mostly Hawaiian shirts when it is warm, with my favorite being the silks of Tommy Bahama. They are rather pricey, starting around $100 and go on up. Many retail stores have popped up around the country. And upscale stores like Nordstrom carry their line of clothing. I particularly enjoy the stores on the west coast that have a Tommy Bahama Tropical Cafe attached. We have been to the ones in Scottsdale (Kierland), Palm Desert (El Paseo), Orange County, and Maui (Shops at Wailea). But on my meager retirement fund, I really cannot afford so many $100 plus shirts. [View Full Entry]

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No trip to Queenstown, New Zealand is complete without a few adrenalin inducing adeventures in between the fabulous wines and kiwi brews. Upon getting to Queentown after a drive from Christchurch, we decided the Shotover Jet would be the thrill ride of the day. We heard so much about the jet boats from anyone who ever went to Queenstown. And our Concierge said the Shotover Jet is the BEST, so we signed up for a mid day flight, I mean ride, on the Shotover River. I was much more at ease knowing the Shotover name came from the river, and not [View Full Entry]

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We had a quiet evening last night since we had a 4:30am wake up call this morning. We had to pack, eat some breakfast, and get picked up at 5:30 for the train station. It is a 4 hour train ride from Cuzco to Aguas Caliente, also called Machu Picchu pueblo. It was a pleasant but long ride, on a very nice train car, called the Vistadome. The only one nicer in the Hiram Bingham, named after the American explorer who discovered Machu Picchu, operated by the Orient Express people. From the high, dry area of Cuzco, we rapidly moved into [View Full Entry]

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