Ron and Jess head to California :)

We picked Ron and Jess up last Thursday evening and headed straight to In and Out Burger for a late dinner which looks like it has become a tradition with all our visitors.  We got to catch up a bit but with work quickly approaching and a long day of traveling we all hit the sack.  Friday, while Eli and I headed to work, they took off exploring Napa going to the Rutherford Grill, the Sterling Winery, and the Silverado Vineyard to begin their trip.  Once Eli and I got off of work we fixed vegetable tostadas and then went downtown for delicious Three Twins Ice Cream and music.  Luckily there was a fire to stand in front of because it was cold.  As Ron and Jess had just left 102 degree Virginia weather, they were not used to the cool, crisp California evenings but did not seem to mind.

Saturday morning we got up early and headed to Vallejo where we hopped on the ferry to San Francisco.  Once we got there and drank our coffee we walked down a few piers to do the Alcatraz tour which was home to the famous federal penitentiary known as "the Rock" from 1934 to 1963 as well as previously being a military prison and later spent time being occupied by Native Americans.  You hop on a  ferry which takes you to the island which is about a mile and a half away from the city.  There are many different things you can do on the island but we watched an informational video and did the audio tour which takes you all through the prison including D-Block which was the isolation area for the most disruptive inmates.  The audio was incredible and did a great job giving a detailed overview of Alcatraz.  I cannot and do not ever want to imagine life on Alcatraz.  After our tour it was already 1 in the afternoon, so we headed back into the city and sought after their famous bread bowls from Boudin Bakery.  This was Ron and Jess's first bread bowls and like us, they were instantly in love!  After eating, we waddled around the city and up lots of hills to Ron's highlight of the day, The Beat Museum.  Ron and Jessica took the tour as Eli and I looked through the shop and walked around exploring.  After the museum we hiked up to Coit Tower to get a look out of the city and then headed back on the ferry.

 

Once back in Napa, we went to Vintage Sweet Shoppe where they do a chocolate and wine tasting.  Most importantly here, we found out that Jessica's favorite was the sauvignon blanc!  That evening we spent playing cards and chatting for hours.

Sunday, we cannot take credit as Jessica planned our day!  We slept in a bit and then headed into Sonoma Valley to do a horseback riding tour at the Kunde Family Estate.  It was an hour tour which took you all over the property and to beautiful look outs of the valley.  Our horses and guide were great.  Immediately following the horseback riding we drove down the road to the rest of their property to do the Mountain Top Tour.  They shuttled us to the highest point on the property where you could see the vineyards on the property, the neighboring mountains, and you could even see as far as the San Pablo Bay.  It was a picture perfect day with beautiful sites and even better company.  Once we came down from the top we picnicked at Kunde and then headed back to Napa.  After cleaning up we did some more fine dining at Rotisserie and Wine which was founded by the famous chef, Tyler Florence.  It is a recently built restaurant that sits right on the river and offers a small but delicious menu.  After dinner, we played the game Farkle.  Jessica had a strong come from behind victory over all of us in which we saw her sweet dance moves!! :)

On Monday, Eli and I headed once again to work while Ron and Jessica headed north to Calistoga to see fainting goats!  There is a geyser the erupts every 40 minutes and there are goats that will faint.  The only problem is now the goats are used to the geyser and to people so they rarely faint...unfortunately we will not be getting a Christmas card with Ron and Jessica lying down next to the fainting goats.  The rest of the day they ate at a Mexican restaurant and did some more site-seeing around Napa.  Once Eli and I got home, we made eggplant and zucchini lasagna and enjoyed their company for the evening.  We tried to head to bed early as Tuesday was an early morning taking them to the airport in San Francisco.  It was hard to say goodbye as it was an amazing trip in which we just had the best time.  The good thing is we will see them in under two weeks on the EAST coast!!!