It’s been three years since I’ve been to my home state of California. I spent the first seventeen years of my life there, leaving only for Oklahoma where I went to University. Oklahoma was good to me for nearly a decade, but I’m glad that my husband whisked me away to good ole Washington State. We live much closer to my family in California than before, but after nearly 28 hours in the car this weekend, I realize it’s not quite as close as I imagined.
Yango and Iggy, our dogs, had a really cozy pallet in the rear of our Subaru Forester where they napped during our scenic drive through Oregon. We stayed overnight in Oregon twice during the drive to crop the driving sessions shorter.
We didn’t make it all the way down to my hometown of Bakersfield; instead we kicked around Northern California with my brother, mother and nephew as tour guides. It was our first time being to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo, CA. Part Marine World, part theme park, the amusement park hosts tourists with animal shows and roller coasters. The dolphin show was one of my favorites, mainly because they caught some sick air. See what I mean?
We also got to check out a few small aquarium-like exhibits and a Tiger show. My nephew seemed to enjoy the animal activities.
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| On our second day of the California sojourn, we kicked around San Francisco. Every time we visit the city, we like to check out new areas. This time around, we did a lot of drive-by sight seeing (good shutter-speed practice on the ole canon) and hiked around the Sutro Baths. |
I’d never heard of the Sutro Baths until my older brother Justin suggested the visit. We hiked around the site, trying to imagine what the original structure looked like. It opened in 1896 as the world’s largest indoor swimming pool establishment (thanks, Wiki!). Now a National Park, the land yields a small cave corridor, old stone structures and various hill shelves where large mason walls one stood.
They even filmed a small portion of Harold and Maude on the site! Remember where Maude protests the war, and ‘falls’ down the cliffside after a scuffle with Harold (or something to that effect)? Yep! It was here. I love stuff like that.
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No trip to San Fransciso is complete without a trip across the Golden Gate Bridge. Our journey across the bridge just so happened to coincide with it’s 75th Anniversary. That day, 75 years ago, the Golden Gate Bridge opened to the public. Presidio was nearly shut down for related events, so we didn’t get to check out the park area, but the bridge isn’t going anywhere.
We were sad to say goodbye, but no vacations are endless. We can’t wait to further explore the Bay Area in the future. Until then, we’re contented to kick around our local Puget Sound.
Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day Weekend!
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P.S. As a new military wife, I’d be remiss if I didn’t give a big thank you to all the men and women who have served our country. Many thanks!
Yea Yea Pueblo 
What beautiful photos! I hope you guys had a great trip! : )
Those baths look amazing! Seeing family is worth that drive though, hope you all had an amazing time.
I love road tripping but the drive to CA is quite the commitment from up here. Looks like yours was totally worth it. Those baths look awesome!
Road trips are pretty much my favorite ever. You captured some pretty fabulous moments, the photos are great friend!
Thanks for the peek into your weekend. I'm guessing that was your bro and nephew in pic? The weather looked like it cooperated for your trip. We're recovering from hail damage here in OK-baseball-sized!!! Unbelievable!! I need a road trip.
California is beautiful. I want to visit so badly. I'm hoping I can get there soon.http://www.glamkittenslitterbox.com/Twitter: @GlamKitten88
We heard about the weather! Hopefully you guys didn't have any damage.
i'll get there one of these days. it looks beautiful! and i can't get over that dolphin air!