Alcatraz

Sunday morning, we got up and did our usual stuff and then left Mill Valley for San Francisco.  Such a quick drive compared to what we have to go through to get to the City!  We parked in the Pier 39 garage (cha-ching) and walked down to Fisherman's Wharf while we waited for Jim to come in on the Bart train.  We hit a couple of shops and just basically wandered around down the street.

Jim arrived at Pier 39 and we met back up with Staci and the girls.  We went to Pier 39 and shopped a bit.  Again, the girls went off on their own (because they are old enough...finally!)  Jim, Staci and I wandered the pier.  We saw the sea lions which don't seem to be taking over any longer.  After that, we realized (thanks to Emma's text) that the Italy vs. Spain game was on so we went to the Hard Rock Cafe to watch the second half.  When the girls were done shopping, they joined us and we had a couple of snacks before heading down to Pier 33 for our boat to Alcatraz.

Once there, we had to wait for about 20 minutes to board the boat.  We got to the island and took the tour, along with wandering around the grounds.  Such great history - and what a good tour!  I would recommend it to anyone who has not done so yet. 

After the tour and the boat ride back to the dock, we sat in the usual SF traffic to get to the bridge, then we were finally on our way!  We dropped Jim back at the Bart station and took Staci and Briana back home.  It was good to be home after all of the driving and windy roads!  A great time was had by all!

I'll post some other pictures in a couple of days - of things that have been going on in the past months...

Baby Seagulls

Until then...love to all!
Signed,
Star, Sun, Sea and Moon Shine
(Angie, Kaya, Staci and Briana - aka the "Shine" Family) ...it was a lllloooonnnngggg and windy road!

Busy Day In The Fog and Sun

Staci and I started our day by taking a quick walk to the Drive-Thru Coffee stand next door to our hotel.  They had some pretty good coffee and the BEST lids!  We are so easily amused!  When we returned to the room, we all started to get ready for the day. 

Open

Close...isn't that the BEST????

First stop today was the Golden Gate Bridge!  We decided it would be a good idea to walk across the bridge.  1.7 miles one way - in the fog, the mist and the usual traffic of the bridge.  It was a good walk there.  We stopped to grab some pictures along the way.  It was REALLY foggy, so the fog horn was sounding periodically.  When we got to the San Francisco side, we took a quick bathroom break and started to head back.  On the way to the path, we saw a sign that was offering Free Talks about the Bridge.  Since we have found so many bargains during this trip, we thought we should take the opportunity to learn something!  It was about a 15 minute talk and we all enjoyed it.  We stopped on the way back to the path to look at the replica of the bridge that you can sway and move.  Next we walked back across the bridge, mostly without stopping this time.  We wanted to see if we could get there in 1/2 hour and we did!

We piled back in the Suburban and freshened up, then off to Sausalito we went!  We started to shop, then Staci and I set the girls off on their own while we grabbed a Starbuck's and watched the people go by.  We met up about 45 minutes later to see what they came up with.  Kaya bought an adorable bag that she can use for school and travel.  It has Kaya written all over it (peace signs).  Briana came back with a hat that looks great on her! 

Off we went in the Suburban again to Tiburon.  We wandered around the small downtown area.  A bit on the pricey side, we decided to head back to the hotel.  But not before we got the girls some Gelato ice cream - our own little taste of Italy.

Boats in Tiburon - the Golden Gate Bridge is in those clouds in the distance!

Back at the hotel, we had some left over pizza and sandwiches and got ready for the beach.  We were a bit worried because the fog was supposed to be heavy on the coast.  However, we decided to go for it.  Off we went to Stinson Beach.  Through the fog, up the hill, down and around (another windy road!) we arrived and found a spot on the beach.  Kaya and Briana took the soccer ball down the beach and kicked it around (along with dug a hole) while Staci and I sat and talked (and burned) on the beach.  After a couple of hours, we decided to call the girls back (hence the picture of the lifeguard - isn't modern technology great?) and head back to the hotel to clean up for dinner.

We found a great Mexican restaurant here in Mill Valley.  We toasted to the last night of vacation and enjoyed some delicious Mexican food.  Now we are all tucked in for the night and ready for an early start to San Francisco in the morning.  After a wander around Pier 39 and Fisherman's Wharf, we will be off to Alcatraz!

Driving. Windy Driving.

This morning we took our time getting up and going.  We took showers, had some breakfast and then started for Glass Beach in Fort Bragg.  We explored there for a bit and Staci and I were stalked by some squirrels.  Kaya and Briana climbed down to the actual beach and around for a bit.  "We got crabs!" exclaimed Kaya.  Turns out, there was a family of crabs in one of the small pools.  The crabs were fighting and they snapped some pictures.  After Glass Beach, we walked around Fort Bragg and did some shopping. 

Glass Beach

"We've Got Crabs!"

Seal at Glass Beach

Go Briana, Go!

Staci and Angie's favorite squirrel

Kaya and Briana at Glass Beach

Once we were done in Fort Bragg, we decided to go to Bodega Bay and look for some tide pools (or, as Staci keeps saying, "tad poles.")  It took about 3 hours or so to get there, after a few mishaps.  When we arrived, we had our picnic lunch and went to the visitors center to find out where the tide pools are.  We found a Marine Lab and went on a free tour.  They have a man made tide pool and a docent that talks about the lab and what they study there.

A pic of the beach on the way to Bodega Bay

After the tour, we made our way to our hotel in Mill Valley and took a quick rest.  We went out for pizza and came back and played a game of Life while watching the US Olympic Trials for gymnastics.  After some showers, we'll be off to bed. 

Northern California

Emma, Maddie, Grandma Skubec and Jerry left for Italy this morning at dark o'clock.  They should arrive in Rome at about 11:00 p.m. our time - 8:00 a.m. Rome time.

We (Kaya, Briana, Staci and myself), on the other hand, decided to explore Northern California!  We left at about 9:00 a.m. from San Ramon.  First stop, Starbucks!  Once on the road, we headed over the Richmond/San Rafael Bridge and up Hwy 101.  We made a brief stop in Ukiah (You, Kaya!) for gas and a quick stretch.  Gas was only $3.59 per gallon!

Onward and upward we went.  We reached our first destination - Confusion Hill.  There's really no explaining it - water runs up hill, someone appears taller than someone that is actually taller, you stand straight but are being pulled uphill.  Also, you can roll a water bottle uphill, along with a golf ball!

Kaya and Briana in the Shoe House.

Kaya is finally taller than I am...or so it appears!

Staci, Briana and Kaya

Twisted Tree

Oh yah, this is us being "Chipalopes."

Next stop was Richardson Grove State Park.  The redwoods are so amazing!  We had a picnic lunch and relaxed for a bit.  Then we went through the redwood exhibit.  There were a lot of interesting facts and history through the exhibit.  After our walk, Kaya and Briana wanted to go to the river and dip their toes in.  While they were hanging out in the water, Staci and I walked down to a little bridge to get a different perspective.  It was quite relaxing listening to the water run over the rocks.

Fallen Redwood

The river

Briana and Kaya dipping their toes in

Looking down the river at Kaya and Briana

A nice swimming hole at the fork in the river

After the redwoods, we started our windy drive to the coast.  It took about an hour and a half and we had A LOT of good laughs!  We pulled over to snap a few pics of the coast.  Then we landed at our hotel in Fort Bragg.  We sat quietly on the deck for a bit because the weather was so nice and perfectly warm.  We were overlooking the ocean and it looked as if there was a wave of fog just waiting to roll in.  After some dinner at North Coast Brewing Co., we are all tucked in our room for the night.

View from our room in Fort Bragg