California 1996

Sandra's sister, Anna, was staying with us for the summer.  It was her first trip to the U.S.A. and we wondered what we could do to make her trip memorable.  Naturally, the first thing that came to mind was California.  Hollywood is what people from overseas know, and mostly what they believe America is like, so naturally when she visited us in Vancouver, she was underwhelmed.  We weren't going to let her be disappointed, so we set off on a road trip for ten days in July, 1996.  

Our trip took us first to San Mateo, located in the bay area, to visit Sandra's relatives.  We spent the day with Gina, Pola, Gerzen, and Barrick and they showed us around nearby San Francisco, where we spent the night and next day exploring.  We then motored off to San Jose, the largest city in Northern California, and Monterey.  We didn't spend much time there, but rather set off along the beautiful California coastal highway Route 1 toward Los Angeles and San Diego, our other primary destinations.  Along the way, we stopped in Malibu, Santa Barbara, Long Beach, Newport, and Pismo Beach to check out the towns.  We spent a day and night at Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park, where we rode every ride they had.  That was a blast.  We spent the next day and night in Anaheim, of course visiting Disneyland.  Sandra had been to Disneyland once before, but it was the first time for Anna and I.  It really does have a magical feeling.  

Next on our agenda was Hollywood, where we took a convertible Cadillac tour of Beverly Hills, Bel-Air and Hollywood. While we were there, we also visited Universal Studios and celebrated Anna's 17th birthday.  Then it was off to San Diego to see Sea World.  We watched all their shows and had a lot of fun.  At the end of our trip, we were exhausted.  We had planned to hop across the border to Tijuana, and also to check out the San Diego Zoo, but Anna, at 17, wasn't too into those things.  So, we set off for home, but passing through Sacramento at mid-day in 95°F heat, our air conditioning broke.  The rest of the trip home seemed to take a long, long time.  We were exhausted and had to sleep at a rest stop on the way back, since we had planned to drive straight through the night.  All told, our trip lasted ten days and nine nights. 

We returned to San Francisco/San Mateo twice more since then, so counting Sandra's trip to San Mateo before we were married, that's four times so far.  California is a nice place to visit, but the climate is so arid and much of the state is smog-ridden.  We enjoyed the San Francisco area very much, however.  If we lived in California, that is probably where it would be, despite the highest cost of living West of the Mississippi.  San Diego was very pleasant as well.  It had bright sunshine, beautiful water, and was never too hot or too cold.  Our trip was a success and we all had fun.

You can find out more information by clicking on the links to the left, including lots of information and photos of California and its major metropolitan areas.