She has a VW camper van and we planned on staying the night in her van on our way to SF.
Because of winter weather we had to adjust where we went for part of the trip, but wow we had a slaphappy fun time getting to SF.
Day 1: Denver to Ely, NV
Stopped in Grand Junction and went thrifting and continued on our way... Landed in Ely at 10 or 11p and slept at a KOA. Yes it was cold at first but we survived. We woke up to a winter storm surrounding us.
Day 2: Ely to Sacramento, CA
Plans shifted as we were planning on going to Yosemite National Forest due to road closures, so we headed towards Sacramento to see Jil's family who saw us posting about our trip on Facebook and reminded her she can't not visit them on our way to SF. Plus, it was a warm place to stay. We drove down the "Loneliest Road in America" (which yes I see why they call it that) towards Reno. We laughed so much along the way and even made a music video lip syncing to a song! We traveled really well together... We took a road right before we got to Reno so we could drive through Lake Tahoe which I am SOOO glad we did because it is so beautiful there and when the kids are a bit older I would love to rent a houseboat and stay there. We took some pictures by the water and it was near sundown so we went to the 18th floor of Harrahs and visited their bar, had some champagne and watched the sun go down over the water. Then we drove through the windy Sierra Nevada roads to Sacramento. Got to town at 830/9 and had dinner w her cousins at a nice Mexican restaurant near them.
Day 3: Sacramento to San Francisco
We got up, took a shower (our first on the trip), and met her aunt and uncle and cousins for breakfast. Her family is really nice and so it was real comfortable to be around them. Then off the San Fran. We arrived in the city via the Oakland Bridge and went immediately to the Mission District to fuel up on delicious coffee and check out the shops. Then we decided on a restaurant called Greens that was recommended to us... We made a reservation, had some time to spare so we watched the sunset over the Golden Gate Bridge. The restaurant was along the marina and so we had a breathtaking view over dinner. I had the most delicious margarita ever. In fact, I took a picture of the menu so I could figure out how to make it back at home. After dinner we went to the famous tiki bar inside the Fairmont Hotel, then met up with Jil's boyfriend who travels to SF frequently for work. He was staying at Hotel Vitale so we met him for a drink. Then our plan was to drive to the cheap motel across town to stay there but we had to get there before 11 because the manager wanted to go to sleep by then. It was a little odd, and moments later Jil's generous boyfriend got us a room to stay at his hotel. It was too kind. Especially when we woke up to see the immaculate view of the water, bridge, and Ferry Building. It was very, very nice! We felt like queens!
Day 4: San Fran to Denver
We got up, met Jil's boyfriend for coffee at the Ferry Building and then we found food. Jil is celiac and we found a gluten free bakery so she was in sweet tooth heaven! We went to another lil restaurant in the same building and got something a bit more savory. We went back to hotel to pack up, then embarked on a walk up lots of stairs to a beautiful tower (the name is escaping me) and then back to the hotel to get my stuff and take the BART to the airport to go home.
A friend of mine told me the SF airport has the best food and I was happy to find a pretty good tofu burrito before the flight.
I knew the first thing the kids would ask me when I got home was if I got them a present and I was officially empty handed until the airport where I bought storybooks and coloring books about SF. Sure enough after a hugs and kisses, they asked!
It was a fun trip and I wish I could have stayed a little longer in SF, that city is right up my alley!
Here's some photos from our trip!
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