California

We spent about a week in California in January. We interviewed in Sacramento and San Francisco. While we were in Sacramento we hung out with some friends, Jason and Veronica. We went out to dinner at a Japanese fondue place and went to see the capitol. The next day Stephen and I drove out to Napa Valley to see the wine country. The landscape and all the vineyards really reminded me of being in Italy and I felt right at home there. It was really beautiful. I even had my first In-N-Out Burger experience. Stephen had been dying to take me. Our last adventure with them was the wonderful ski trip we took to Lake Tahoe.

After the Sacramento interview we headed north to San Francisco. We were able to stay with some friends in Walnut Creek, a little ways outside the city. Steve and Cara were so sweet and hospitable. They also had some really young kittens that were a blast to play with. I tried to get one in my suitcase when we left, but Stephen caught me : (  One of our days there we went out to Muir Woods to see some big Redwood trees. I had never seen one and they are amazing. It was such a blessing to see a part a of God's creation that I had never experienced before. We had a great time exploring.

Afterward we drove down the coast a bit to Half Moon Bay. We stopped at a few beaches and even had lunch at a little restaurant on the water.

That evening, Stephen and I went into the city together. We walked around pier 39 and saw the famous sea lions. It is a spot on the pier where tons of sea lions come to sunbathe. It was really cool. The next day Stephen had his interview and  I braved the city solo. I had a great day just exploring. I started back at the pier and walked around to see the place in the daylight.Then I headed over to some shops, watched a ton of street performers, and went in a lot of art galleries. There were just so many cool things to do there. I even got over to Ghirardelli square where the make the chocolate, and yes I got lots of samples. After his interview, Stephen met with  me. We went to dinner, walked around a bit and shopped, then went back to Ghirardelli square for some dessert. On the was out of town we drove down the famous curvy road they have there in SanFran. That night we caught the red eye  home. It was an amazing trip I will never forget and I definitely want to go back!

The fountain at Ghirardelli square

eating some fresh seafood