California: Day 4 ~ Sonoma Wine Tasting and the California Coastal Highway

This morning we drove up to Sonoma to the Jacuzzi Winery.

Once again we felt as if we were in Italy!

Right behind me to the left is a lime tree loaded with fresh ripe fruit!

The fact that it looks and feels like Italy is not an accident.

That's the way the owners designed it.

The winery opened at 10:00 am and we were at the tasting bar at 10:07!

So many tastings......

We could select five different wines but we had to tell the sommelier our choice - pronouncing it as best we could! He got a big kick of that! I got one pretty near right and he was properly impressed. We decided to stop after three. He, in turn, insisted on choosing another three for us! Since HE chose then HE pronounced!

This one was Summer's favorite so she bought a bottle to take home and enjoy!

Summer makes an excellent tour guide!

Just look at that smile!

This vineyard also featured olive oil tastings.....which, of course, we tried!!

I think I need this wine glass sling!!

We spent well over an hour here before we got back in the car for the trek over to the California Coastal Highway.

SINCE we are in California and SINCE we had the equivalent of a regular sized glass of wine that morning -

we decided to lunch at the In-N-Out Burger!

It was not a long drive over to Bodega Bay.....

where we saw seals frolicking in the water.....

and proud seagulls showing off their physiques. 

There was a lovely restaurant - but we had just stuffed ourselves with burgers and fries! - where we could have sat out like these ladies did! I took this picture because I loved how they bought a whole bottle of wine to split between them and lingered there enjoying the afternoon.

THIS lady was seated at the next table over and I watched as she ordered a second glass of wine and settled back. It kind of made me wish they could all three have shared lunch - and that bottle of wine! - with each other!

Soon after leaving the bay we met the Pacific Ocean!

It is majestic!

So much power in those waves.

Then it was a long drive to go on up the coast.

Summer is an excellent driver and I was happy about that!

She slung ME around like I was in a pinball machine but we stayed ON the road!

We saw some magnificent scenes.

I could sit here all day just watching the wave action.

We continued up Highway 1 to Fort Bragg where we had dinner at Cap'n Flints.

It is located harbor side and we arrived just in time to see the sky and water change colors as the sun set and the moon came out.

It is so beautiful here! 

Each day of our trip has been drastically different than the one before.

I love that we are getting to do so many things and see so much of California.

While I have been writing Summer has been researching and planning for tomorrow.

I think it is going to be every bit as wonderful as today was!!

Now for some news from home.

Louis Dean and I talked on the phone this evening and he said the first few days I was gone he was real excited! He got to do all the stuff he couldn't do if I had been there! As in he carried all his sheet music, notebooks and music papers into the den where he moved lots of 'debris' out of his way so he could spread them all out and SORT THEM!! He had also gone after the squirrels for a couple of days - with no luck!

At least the squirrel deal kept him out of the house! 

Now he is lonely and ready for me to come home! He will be going to Quadville in the morning and that will keep him occupied for Wednesday. He may not go to Fort Worth on Friday so he can do 'Damage Control' since I am coming home on Saturday. I am sad to hear that since he doesn't know HOW to do Damage Control and if he is at HOME on Friday, well, that's just one more day he has to do even MORE damage to the house. WAIT!!! Did I just say that?? Yes, I think I DID!!

The time change from California to Texas is 2 hours and I sometimes forget that and so does he. He called me early one morning and said, "It's 10:00 and you're always up by 10!" It was 8:00 here. Then last night I called HIM after watching The Blacklist to tell him goodnight. It was 11:00 here - but I realized when he answered groggily that it was 1:00 in the morning THERE!!

So my journal entry is right on time tonight. It says 11:35 on my laptop. It's really 9:35 here in California!

Either way - I'm putting a fork in it can calling this day DONE!