Welcome to Winnamucce

Well, here we are in the middle of Nevada, sleeping in a pleasant hotel located in a town with a funny name. I like towns with funny names.

Anyway, today was fun - we spent some time in Fairytale Town and Funderland.
Just outside of Sacramento is this beautiful park chock full of shade trees, fragrant flowers and bushes. It's also where we find the city zoo and the land of fun and fairy tales. First we hit Fairytale Land: the kids sat in King Arthur's chair, climbed up a big shoe, went up in a barn, played in Sherwood Forest
and some other fun stuff.

Then it was off to Funderland, where each kid received five tickets. Emma knew exactly what she wanted to do: the Crazy Cups that spin like...well...crazy. Eva joined her and they giggled and spun like crazy. The guys headed off for the carousel, they love those horseys - Isaac did it twice. Emma did a log ride and got her shoes all wet, Levi and Isaac flew some airplanes. All three of them did their first rollercoaster and loved it!
After the five rides we ate really tasty fried food that clogged up our arteries. Then we piled back into the van for the long ride to Winnamacce - a four hour drive east on I80 through the bleak and deserted wasteland called Nevada. There were some stunning views going over the mountains, and some of the desert hills had a kind of poetry to them.

So here we are, tucked in bed; we did drive thru KFC and feasted in the room, then went for a dip in the cool pool.
Now we're getting rested for the drive tomorrow to Salt Lake City.

Goodbye Monterey, Hello San Fransisco!

Friday was our last full day in Monterey, so we made the most of it. We slept in, and then went to a wonderful restaurant by the bay called New Beginnings; what a scrumptous breakfast! The pancakes were a foot in diamter, I ordered a stuffed breakfast burrito that was almost a foot long - and no, I didn't eat it all! The coffee was tasty as well. We then waddled over to Cannery Row, the kids really wanted to do the "penny mutilation" thing. While E.L.I and Eva ruined their pennies the mom's did some shopping. After awhile the guys and Lydia went back to the vans to hang out while the mom's and E/E finished up.

During naptime I headed out to a quaint and stuffy old bookstore tucked away in a small side street. I had some books I was looking for, but I was hoping to be surprised by what I found. Maybe I'd find a good philosophy or theology book, maybe a good history or biography. I ended up with two novels and a biography. I found a 1930's copy of The Count of Monte Cristo, a 1951 James Michner Return to Paradise, and a 1960's copy of Dag Hammershkilglehlged's biography. Fun. Then back to the hotel to swim with the kids - it was sunny and beautiful outside. Once we got dried off and cleaned up we went out to eat at Bubba Gumps. This was the third time Jerm and Maria had eaten there, but they didn't mind. I was a bit skeptical of the place, but they didn't disaapoint. It was a fun atmosphere, we sat outside on a deck overlooking the bay, a great tasting meal and good music - surrounded by my family...ahhh. We had to waddle out of this restaurant as well, over to Starbucks for a drink and a fudge shop for ice cream...I tried the fudge and I was very disappointed. But Emma's cottencandy ice cream wasn't bad.

So now all we had to do was drive to the local Wells Fargo bank for Tara to transfer some money, and we could get the kids in bed and have a few hours to ourself. All I had to do was get to the bank. I knew right where the bank was. We had gone by it a few days earlier. I took us down a street that was supposed to take us right to where the bank is supposed to be. But the street didn't take me there, and we missed the turn off, and next I know we are stuck in the middle of nowwhere, with nowwhere to tun off. Needless to say, S&F and Tara were very annoyed with me. But then they got even more annoyed when I didn't listen to their directions on how to get back to where we came from. I just kept driving, and we ended up along the bay under a fullmoon - a pretty view of the dark ocean. So we slowly wound our way up the bay to Monterey, and Faye got us to the bank forty-five minutes later. We were laughing about it after Tara transfered the money.

Saturday (yesterday) was our last morning in Monterey, the agenda was to leave at a reasonable time so we'd have some fun time in San Fransisco. Well, the kids slept in till after 9am, and then by the time we got them up and ready to go, as well as he van packed and ready to go, it was after 10am.
By the time we were all checked out of the hotel it was 10:30, and then we had to head down to Cannery Row - Tara needed to exchange a t-shirt and I needed Starbucks. So it was after 11 till we headed out of Monterey. The scenic drive to San Fransisco was beautiful; sandy hills and dry rolling fields; forest studded mini-mountains and lots of ocean.

We were impresssed with San Fransisco, once we entered the city proper we were delighted by all the multi-colored homes stacked on the steep streets, everywhere we looked. Exiting on King Street we drove by the Giants Stadium and then crawled for forty minutes to Fisherman's Wharf. Eli was screaming for too long, so Tara jumped in the back to feed him the rest of the way. Good idea. People were everywhere, we found a place to park by wharf 45, and then slowly weaved our way to the main area - there were people everywhere. Three strollers can make an imposing line, but we kept getting cut off. Finally we made it to No. 9 Fisherman's Grotto for a tasty dinner, overlooking the bay, the yachtes, the Golden Gate bridge.

With full bellies we walked around for a bit, finally ending up on a wharf dock to gaze upon an authentic WW2 Submarine and a Merchant Marine ship. Neat. Never seen one up close like that, very imposing. Levi and Isaac thought they were cool. But now we decided it was time to find the park at the base of the bridge; we'd let the kids get out and play while we took some neat pics of the city. But we never really found the park, though we had fun driving through the Presidio and seeing some neat streets. Finally we crossed the famous Golden Gate, we all decided it'd be more fun to walk it next time. And now it was off to Fairfield for our next night of blissful sleep.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium, the Menace Park, and a Dangerous Mexican Restaurant

Whew, what a day! Wednesday was a wonderful vacation day. We started off with an inspiring morning at the world-renown and impressive Monterey Bay Aquarium. I didn't know that sea otters were so important to Monterey; but they had a wonderful diisplay concerning their threatened habitats around the earth. There was a two-story aquarium with gigantic ocean sunfish, graceful sea turtles, massive tunas and many other beautiful fishes. The kids enjoyed the penguins and a play zone where they could draw and learn about sea mammals like whales, seals, sea lions and dolphins. The facility was housed in an abandoned cannery factory; the museum included many elements of the original slaughterhouse to educate us about the abuses of the ocean, its fragility, and the lessons we have learned.

Eva, Isaac and Levi are fascinated by sea lions - this particular kid section had lots of buttons to press, buttons that made loud animal noises.

Isaac the scholar, teaching his Daddy about the ocean!

Isaac the dess up dolphin. I'm not sure what they were supposed to do with that stuff, but whatever it was, we didn't do it...but the kids still liked using them.
After a great morning at the aquarium we wandered over to Jersey's Cheesesteaks restaurant; it is a sports bar with great cheesesteaks and fish. With lunch finished we got back to the hotel so the kids could get a nap. I sat by the pool and read for a couple of hours - ahhhhh. The kids woke up ready to go, so we headed down to the famous Dennis the Menace Park. It's a wonderful playground with inventive and delightful equipment for kids of all ages. The kids impressed me with their climbing abilities. We spent along time there, and then had to scoot to find a place for supper at 9pm.

Isaac has turned into a climbing machine. Up and down he went on all sorts of steps, chain ladders and curly poles. What a big boy!
Levi and Isaac both love slides, they couldn't get down them fast enough to climb up something in order to go down the slide again.





There is a local Mexican restaurant across form our hotel that we decided to try; it was mostly empty...which always annoys me about restaurants. But we were already there and thus took over the place. No sooner then we got the hands washed, kids sat down in chairs and mouths full of chips and salsa, we had a scare. All the kids were sitting on their knees, which is typical, but Levi happened to push back from the table for some reason, and he pushed the whole chair backwards. Since he was on his knees, he somehow landed on his feet, standing on the back of the chair. The fall frightened him, and he started choking on the chips in his throat. Between crying and gagging, we all were worried. The manager rushed out at the wailing sounds of our son, but there was nothing he could do. Eventually Levi calmed down, got a drink of water, and in a matter of minutes was munching on salsa soaked chips. We finished the meal without anymore scares, but we wondered what else Levi would do on the trip. He's already scraped up both knees and fallen out of his bed. But we're still having fun.

Now Thursday is coming to an end. Eva is over playing with Emma and Levi, Isaac is tearing pages out of his puzzle book, Eli just went down for a nap and Lydia is conked in her bed. We're waiting on pizza to show up, Jerm and Maria are out on a date celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary. Dad's already in bed and we're kind of wishing we were too! This morning we started off on a three hour tour of the Big Sur. Faye located a local guide who got a small bus for us to ride along the windy, hilly historic scenery. He took us by beautiful homes worth eight figure numbers; soaring cliffs, fog-soaked crags, and the deep blue ocean. It was a fun trip and it was nice to not have to drive - just ride and sometimes snooze.

Aunt Faye and Isaac laughed alot on this trip! She was excited for us to see Big Sur, and Isaac loved sitting in a bus with no car seat, no seat belt, snuggled up to his dear aunt!
As good Hallman's, we stopped for a snack; here Emma is trying to convince Eva that she really should eat this ygourt snack - it is good for her and tastes good too.

Beautiful Emma outshines all the glory of the gorgeous ocean shore.
Here's the Hallman clan at Big Sur!
Ahhh, how sweet!



We got back for lunch at Louie Linguini's, a great local place with fresh seafood, eclectic and funny decor, and slow service. It seemed to us that since Californians are relaxed, they don't rush with getting their food to you - but when they did serve it, ooooh it was so good. Isaac especially enjoyed his very fancy and very tasty Macaroni and cheese.
Eli stayed relaxed too, he'd pass for a Californian anyday!

After the meal we drove over to the Old Fisherman's Wharf to shop. We needed to get some sweatshirts with Monterey emblazoned on the front. Once we found what we wanted, we celebrated with delicious ice cream - kids got bubble gum ice cream, I got double scoop of banana nut and peanut butter fudge. Yum. Then we walked over to the beach - what soft sand and salty ocean. Levi didn't care for it so much, but Isaac did; we walked hand in hand along the shore letting the surf wash up over our toes and shorts. Uncle Jerm had Emma and Eva in hand, cracking jokes and enjoying the sunshine. Once we got back to the hotel I took E.L.I down to the pool for a refreshing swim - their getting really good in the water; Levi will now kick himself all over the pool without holding my hand! Now we're bathed, in our p.j's, snacking on pizza; parents are counting down the minutes till bedtime!

May our footsteps always follow the same way...



Papa Ger and the guys modeling their new Monterey gear.

Relaxing in Monterey

Yesterday was our first full day in Monterey; it was wonderful to relax, sleep in, play in the pool, and after naps take a big walk. Here's some pics of our day, starting with our romp in the water.


As we walked around, of course we had to note where the local Starbucks was located. Neat place.

We also found several used bookstores that caught my attention; I really liked the hours for this bookstore - I'm thinking of putting it out front of my church doors.

Here are some classic pics of Monterey; the famous Cannery Row fictionalized by local John Steinbeck, the Wharf where you find lots of shops and restaurants, and the famous harbor with all the yachts. What fascinated me was the history; hardworking families fished in the bay, but then greedy men set up cannery factories and drained the bay dry of sardines and other fish. The dozens of factories closed, leaving a desolated and dilapidated waterfront. Now it has been restored; even redeemed - the beautiful Monterey Bay Aquarium resides in one of the old canneries, inspiring children and adults to be wise and creative stewards of the ocean.




On Tuesday nights Monterey is famous for its Street Markets; dozens and dozens of stalls with delicious foods, tasty vegetables, flowers, baskets, clothes, backrubs, and lots of treats. Emma and Eva had their face painted by a kind lady - this is California style face-painting! Tara and I ordered a falafel - we haven't had one since Israel in 1997; mmmmmmmh! Fortuantely Emma and the kids didn't like it, so we didn't have to share the delicacy. The kids feasted on enormous, juciy, flavorfull (no spray) strawberries and powerful-tasting raspberries. It was a fun night out on the town.





Today was also Eli's three month birthday - which means we take the Bear Pictures. Since we didn't have much room for our long trip, Tara brought a picture of the bear to be included in the photo shoot. Clever Tara!

Good Morning, Monterrey!

We've arrived! Late last night we rolled on in to Old Monterrey, tired but ready for our ultimate destination. Yesterday we enjoyed lots of time at Yosemite National Park. What a beautiful, marvelous, spacious, delightful place of mountian rock, waterfalls, trees and fields. We spent a bunch of hours there - driving to the park, walking to two of the waterfalls, eating lunch, and leisurely meandering around the quaint village.

Now we're getting ready for breakfast, ready to drive around Monterrey and see what is here. Then we'll hopefully jump in the pool, get some lunch, and then maybe naps.

I can hear the seagulls, maybe we'll go for a walk along the ocean soon!

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Here's some pics of majestic Sequoia National Park: they win the award for most artistic sign.

It was by far the most winding, slowest, breathtaking road we traveled yet. I was deeply thankful for the construction zone...I was so tired driving up that hill. The stop gave me a chance to take a snooze (with the van in park) while we waited our turn to drive a particular stretch of road.
It's really hard to comprehend just how are these enormous ancient trees. We gave up trying to photograph them, for one could only capture a fraction of the tree in any of the shots.
Eli and I take a rest from the climb up from viewing General Sherman, the most famous tree in the world. It is not the tallest tree, nor the thickest, but it is tall enough and thick enough to make it the tree with the most mass on the earth. What a gigantic work of art. I carried Eli the half mile down and the half mile up, he enjoyed the canter, and I enjoyed the fresh air with my son.

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Here are some pics from wonderful Yosemite:
Somewhere along the trail Isaac picked up a walking stick. He was loathe to leave it behind, but we had to teach him that one must never take anything out of a National Park.

The river flowing out of the park...

The Happy Hallman's at our new favorite national park.

This is the first waterfall we stopped to view... quite stunning.

Emma and Eli take a break on daddy's lap...just having fun...

This is famous Half Dome Rock...no one knows what happened to the other half.

Levi loves to learn more...