HoneymoonIdeas
Southern California
Things To Do
- Beach (which one?)
- Hollywood/dancing
- Disneyland
- California Adventure
- Six Flags Magic Mountain
- Teaching supplies store
San Francisco
Hotels
-
Bancroft Hotel http://www.bancrofthotel.com/core.html]
[USD 149
Things To Do
- Chinatown
- Exploratorium
- Kayaking with Ani and Brian
- Alcatraz
- Don't know you, don't know your tastes, but around night times I recommend checking out the underground-ish activities - see if anything looks good on Squidlist, also Anon Salon is a pretty chill if older alternative type crowd. And personally I think the Exploratorium is great for kids but maybe a little boring for adults - budget time to wandering around the area because it's very beautiful. Also, Orbitz bar (on Market, near the Mint, Safeway & Laguna St.) has really fancy cocktails, the likes of which Shanghai doesn't approach. Congrats on the marriage Mr. Sittig!
Things NOT To Do (maybe later)
Miscellaneous
- http://decafbad.com/blog/2006/04/25/a-honeymoon-in-san-francisco
Going through the Eyewitness California book to list some
fun/interesting/romantic/beautiful places you could visit while you're
here...
Going up highway One, there's some nice places:
#1. Solvang — if you really want to be tourists. The Danish
settlement, now with lots of Scandanavian shops and restaurants. It
also has a beautiful mission you can tour— I liked the connections
with Spain. Good lunch stop along the way.
#2. Hearst Castle — Palace built by William Randolph Hearst, --
amazing architecture and furnishings, in a gaudy sort of style, built
l922-1947. It has the glamour of high society in the 30's and 40's.
One of California's most popular tourist sights.
#3. San Luis Obispo— fun college town. It also has a mission you can
tour, a Carnegie library that is now a little local museum and a small
river that runs through town flanked by shops and fun restaurants.
College town amenities like book stores, coffee shops and movies.
#4. Santa Barbara— beautiful mediterranean style city, rebuilt after
the 1925 earthquake. Fabulous county courthouse (very spanish!) you
can tour, nice, small art museum, fun shopping up and down state
street, free trolleys down to the beach, fun peddle bicycle carts for
rent along the beachfront, little marine museum on the pier and the big
mission up the hill. Lots to do for a small town.
#5 Santa Cruz— small town situated between the ocean and the densely
forested Santa Cruz mountains. 18th century mission and good local
history museum, There is a beach "boardwalk" with an old style
amusement park. We camped in Henry Miller state park when you were
almost 2 Micah— cool redwood stands and a short drive to Santa Cruz
and the beach. UCSC college town.
#6. Monterey— Historic homes to visit, fisherman's wharf tourist
area and the amazing Monterey Bay aquarium. It is adjacent to the 17
mile drive through exculsive homes and the Pebble Beach Gold course--
we stopped there for breakfast at the gold club, remember?
#7. Carmel— Just below the 17 mile drive, it's a picturesque
village, with cute shops, darling homes and lots of art galleries.
Also home to the most beautiful California mission, the one where
Junipero Serra lived. Good nature trail along the ocean cliffs south
of town— great sea otter spottings.
#8. San Francisco— Golden Gate park—it's huge with a nice natural
history museum, Japanese garden, victorian glass greenhouse, redwood
grove and the newly refurbished art museum where Aaron's girlfriend,
Kate, works, My favorite art museum in California—Legion of honor
museum with a great view overlooking the golden gate bridge and with
trails down to it. Chinatown!! and you would even be able to order
off the Chinese menus! Up and down the hills on a cable car and ir
you're really into them, there is a cable car museum, Great shopping
around union square. Fisherman's wharf with all the street performers
and seafood places. 49 mile scenic drive all through San Francisco to
show off the high points. Pretty nicely landscaped zoo. The
Exploratorium. Ghirardelli square for ice cream and tourist shopping.
Tour of alcatraz island (make reservations ahead). Zig zag down
Lombard street. Good Italian food in north beach. Just across the
bridge is Muir woods— a beautiful stand of redwood trees with trails
to wander through it.
#9. Palo Alto — visit the home of the famous Aaron Sittig- get a
view of his Facebook office and maybe take a student led tour of
Stanford (impressive)
#10. Berkeley — visit the tiny home and pretty office of Ani Sittig
(maybe she can get you a deal in her hotel!) Greatest bookshop city (I
can recommend 7 or 8 great stores) and yummy cheap ethnic food. Last
visit Ani, Laurel and I ate at the co-op Cheeseboard Pizza. One kind
of pizza made each day and you eat it picnic style on the grassy median
of the street out front. Tour Berkeley campus, the Lawrence science
center and Amoeba music (Laurel's favorite).
#11. Yosemite — most popular high sierra destination. evergreen
forests, high meadows, sheer granite walls, notable waterfalls. Lots
of hiking trails. You'd have to make reservations soon to get in here.
#12. Sequoia— old family favorite. 34 separate groves of redwood
trees, granite peaks and rich wildlife habitat. Visit the General
Sherman tree, the congress trail, huckleberry meadow trail, Crescent
meadow trail to Tharpes log house, climb up Moro rock, tour Crystal
cave or hike deep into Muir Grove. Dorst campground campsites usually
available if you reserve in early summer. Great chipmunks.
#13. Orange county— Disineyland (of course), Knott's for old times
sake, Newport beach and the ferry to Balboa Island for a Balboa bar or
frozen banana! Richard Nixon library, South Coast Plaza shopping
extravaganza, Dinner at 314 Juniper! Visits to Grandparents houses
(they'd love that!) Laguna Beach tidepools, art galleries, and it's a
great picnic spot on the cliffs over the ocean.
#14. San Diego— Old Point lighthouse, Balboa park—big and
beautiful and includes the San Diego Zoo. Casa de Estudillo (1829
adobe house), Sea World, Wild Animal Park, Old Town area—good
Mexican restaurants.