A quick check in on a rare quiet afternoon while on my trip. We are having a fabulous time. It has been nice to stay in the same place for several nights though. Up until now we changed hotels and cities everyday. We are staying in an Airbnb tiny apartment in Berkeley for four nights. Two nights down and two to go. They even let us do our laundry. It has a small kitchenette but we have been eating out with Match guy’s son.
Tomorrow we are going to Napa Valley and going to tour some wineries. I will enjoy getting out of the city and back into the countryside.
I am starting to miss my wide open space. Berkeley has way too many people, cars and houses for my liking. We went for a six mile walk yesterday up to the Berkeley University campus and through the main part of the city. While interesting it is crowded and loud! The flowers are blooming and it has beautiful smells from the gardenias and roses.
I struggle to decide what my favorite part of the trip has been. Meeting up with the couple I met on the Camino is at the top of my list. We had a wonderful visit at their beautiful home. They live on the edge of Petaluma and had beautiful views of the distant mountains. Their house was open and spacious. Carolyn fixed a wonderful lunch for us. We picked lemons off the lemon tree in their back yard. She sent gifts home with me. The visit brought back wonderful memories of a time we shared on the Camino.
The redwoods are breathtaking. Someone posted on my Facebook wall that big trees are good medicine and I believe it. We walked the Lady Bird Johnson hike which was an almost two miles loop through the National Redwood Forest. I loved the ones that were hollowed out but still standing and growing at the top of the tree. The flora in the forest was beautiful too.
I fell in love with the open plains of WY. Not sure I could handle the winters but the views are incredible. I also loved the OR coast line. We stopped at several beaches and went wading in the very cold Pacific Ocean. The ferry ride in Seattle was a blast. What a beautiful country USA is – such diversity.
Thursday morning we head to the Sequoia National Forest and will spend the night in Western CA. Friday we drive to the Grand Canyon and will spend two nights there. Sunday will find us in Santa Fe for four nights and we will head home Thursday. We have traveled over 3,400 miles so far with a bunch more miles to go.
Match guy and I continue to enjoy each other’s company and have lots of fun together. His son is very nice and I have enjoyed spending time with him also.
It has been interesting staying in an Airbnb. Our host is good and checks in with us each day but leaves us alone for the most part. The apartment is nicely furnished although I would add a few more little touches. It is quiet and clean and that is most important.
The weather has been great since we left the snow behind last week. No rain in WA, OR or CA so far. I hear back home has gotten some rain. We will probably run into rain in Sequoia and at the Grand Canyon by the looks of the forecast.
Grateful for the opportunity to see so many parts of the USA, grateful for safe travels so far, and grateful for the chance to visit my friends from the Camino.