Monterrey

The road trip to Monterrey took us down Highway 1, around the edge of San Francisco and past San Jose. Its a beautiful strip of road that goes along the spine of the San Francisco Peninsula. After going around the southern part of San Jose we joined up with the 101 to avoid downtown and traffic.

 

We were going to the Kaiser Conference - something that they set up for all the new partners. They went all out. I can honestly say that this was something that I've been waiting for a long time to go to. 

I'll spare you the details, but the high point was hitting the Monterrey Aquarium. Its one thing to come here and examine the exhibits - which I can easily say are world renown. Its another thing to come here and watch the sun set over the Pacific with a glass of wine in one hand and a plate of sushi in the other.

My friends from work who had made the cut were there with me. We spent the time slowly making our way through the show. Along the way I got a chance to meet and actually shake hands with the C.E.O of kaiser. He seemed like a very down to earth person. Of course I was more in shock of meeting him than anything else. 

That morning we slept in. It sounded like there were two sea lions mating outside our window that night. We got brunch at this cute little place called toro place cafe. I think it was a convert gas station - but a welcome detour and the food was not bad. On the road trip back we hit Salinas - it seems that we always manage to get here once a year. Well perhaps every other year - to go to the Steinbeck museum. I make it a point to buy one book to support the museum. 

Maui

 There are those that love the Island of Maui. They love the delicate juxtaposition of land and sea. They love the beaches, the surfing, the laid back casualness of the small towns. They love the drinks along the pool and late afternoon swims in beautiful water. Etc. . .

I'm not one of them. Don't get me wrong Maui is paradise. There some cool spots and I have a good friend who loves to go there all the time to catch up on her surfing. But I guess that Maria and I are just not into the whole flip flop vacation thing. However, my friend Matt was getting married and so off like a prom dress we went.

 We arrived at the airport and luckily there are direct flights from Oakland here. (The ones from Oakland are cheaper than the ones from SFO as well). Immediately one is aware that Island life is not cheap. I think next time, we should have just rented a car and that would have given us the freedom to do whatever we wanted and would have been more cost effective than getting the shuttles.

It seems that most of the major hotels are located along a strip of hotels along the northwest side of the Island in Kaanapali. On one end of the strip is the Sheraton  -- which is really nice but incredibly expensive and on the other side is the Hyatt -- which a buddy at work mentioned was a bit run down. We stayed at the Kaanapali Beach Hotel. I can only say that this place has likely seen better days, but is cozy.

One of the best things we did every morning was to get up and got for a run along the beach walking path - which isn't very wide (which is why going early in the morning is good to avoid the crowd). Watching the sun rise over the water and seeing the nearby Islands in the distance was truly remarkable.

We did the Road to Hana as well. They told me that its called "divorce road" as all the couples who attempt this marathon trip start of happy, but by the time it ends - are at each others throats. There are a multitude of cute spots to stop and get in pics of the myriad waterfalls. There is some decent hiking as well. Along the way we stopped in a small Town called Paia - which I think will be a cool spot to stop next time we are around this neck of the woods. If they have houses to rent - this might be the perfect place to chill. From what I've been told by Airi (who goes there quite a bit) its this part of the Island that is actually very authentic if you're into the whole surf experience. By journey's end we made our way back and hit Polli's Mexican Restaurant. Food was pretty good - but I was impressed with the hot sauce that they had. We bought a bottle or two of this - but then found out we couldn't bring it on the plane!

http://www.pollismexicanrestaurant.com

It was getting close to the wedding and we had a day to kill. We checked out the local sushi and were totally blown away by how good it was. I guess being on a tiny island surrounded my thousands of miles of ocean has that effect on the seafood. We went shopping afterwards and managed to find this little number for Maria: Not bad if I can say so myself. . . . mee-YOW!

On Wedding day, we got up and managed to get in a 4 mile run. The humidity of the beach can just drain the energy out of you. Matt and his bride Ashley picked out this cute little estate overlooking the Kaanapali beach. The location provided a beautiful sunset and the happy couple was married while the rest of us raided the wine bar.

Like I said before, Maui is not a bad place to go to. For some it is their Mecca. It offers a lot to those who are into surfing, love the beach, and dig the spirit of the Islands. For my money I think I'd take Kauai (which is another entry on to itself). However, by day four I was sick of resort life and getting Island fever. I was ready to get back to San Francisco - my home by the bay. After all, from what I can remember Sinatra didn't write any songs about Maui. ; )

Puerto Rico - A Week on the Island

Wanted to finally post a few pics of Puerto Rico. It was a flip flop vacation on steroids. The currency is the same, there is no need for a passport, and everyone speaks english. Some would argue that it would have been easier to just go to SoCal and save the money and the awful plane travel time. However there are some things that make the trip worth while. I loved the old city of San Juan.

 In many ways it reminds me of the French Quarter in New Orleans. Its streets are narrow and cobble stoned. The metal lace balconies and tiny shops add such an ambience. We stayed at El Convento Hotel - which was a 16th century convent. It is well located - but not worth the price.

The best idea is to wonder about the old city and to avoid La Perla - which is on the north portion of the city. Its basically a slum that has a spectacular view. Our taxi driver would tell us later that its not as bad as the press gives it credit for - but still a place to avoid. The rest of the old city is a wealth of old fortifications and small trendy shops and restaurants.
      To the south of the city is where all the cruise ships arrive. The streets that radiate out from this point are uber touristy. As you get away from that section the bars and clubs are much better.

I personally like Cafe Punto - which is next to the Capella Cristo - a small bar that serves somewhat watered down sangria - but an excellent place to catch some shade and read a book. We found ourselves hitting this place up on a regular basis. Around the corner is The Wafflery, a restaurant that serves a collection of lunch foods on waffles. This is actually an amazing combination and actually impressed Maria - which is praise from caesar regarding food. The first night that we arrived we went out to Barrachina - which has an amazing central courtyard and is where pina coladas were supposedly created.

As far as trendy bars are concerned - there are too many. Go nuts. We had a particularly good time at The Mezzanine at St. Germain - a very sleek upstairs bar. You need to travel up a small winding staircase to the upper level. Its decorated like a trendy bar in 1920's Paris. The balconies surrounding the main dinning area are particularly spectacular to just lounge about. Also, La Madre is an excellent mexican restaurant and bar. They play old cartoons on the wall and the drinks are not watered down here. The food here was enough to make Maria smile - which was good enough for me.

I would recommend just spending time figuring out which bar works out for you. The ones on Calle Fortenza are not bad, but can be touristy and overpriced. The ones around Casa Blanca have great views of the sun setting.

 Now one note about hotels - DONT USE THEM!!! There are a ton of luxury apartments all over town that are much more spacious and bigger than your average hotel. Whats more - if you are spending a week out here then you can get them for a much lower price and if you are traveling with a group of people this is a much better choice.

El convento was a nice hotel. While we were there, there were two separate weddings. In the center of the hotel was a Tapas restaurant called Picoteca - but the smells of cooking grease are pervasive through out the hotel. Again - go with a short term apartment rental

 Night life in Old San Juan is fantastic. We got our fill of Salsa dancing and on the weekends there were a ton of music venues all over town. We managed to find a few places were the locals were playing guitars and charades.

There were a few independent art galleries that we managed to get into as well. You just need to keep your eyes open for them.




Dont forget to hit at least one reggie bar when your out there as well.



Ok, I've learned a long time ago that flip flop vacations and lounging is not exactly our type of vacation - at least we can't sit still for too long. There are a bunch of urban hikes in the old city that are worth your time.
Watching the sun set from the old fortifications, called El Murro on the western portion of the city is spectacular! It seems that everyone comes out at twilight to fly kites, have a picnic, and walk about the green expanse that leads up to the old fortress.



The Paseo Del Murro is another excellent hike - its a walkway that surrounds the outer walls of the city and makes for a good space to go running as it is uninterrupted with cross streets and congestion. Just exit the city from the red gate and go for it.

We also made it a point to hit two places out side of the old city. The first was the Rain Forest - kind of a let down in retrospect. The trails trough the forest were nice - but overall I wasn't really impressed. I think one really needs to go closer to the equator to get to a more substantial ecosystem - Costa Rica comes readily to mind

The 2nd destination was the bio luminescent bays. THIS IS A MUST! We got loaded up into kayaks and traveled through a stinking swamp that was infested with mosquitos to get to this place. Maria and I had some experience with Kayaking and managed to get through without out too much trouble - but there were others that tipped their kayak and went neck deep into fetid water. Once we got to the bay, however it was well worth it. Pick a night with a new moon to go and watch the water light up.

Ok, so overall Puerto Rico has some unique things to check out. Next time I think we will hit the city of  Ponce on the south portion of the Island as well. I can only offer the following tips:

1) Don't got for a hotel - rent an apartment

2) Don't rent a car - traffic REALLY sucks

3) Everything goes slow in PR - be patient

4) CLOSE YOUR WINDOWS AT NIGHT - EVEN IN THE CITY

(Mosquitos are everywhere)

5) Hit the biobays

6) Avoid La Perla

Mission - San Francisco

You could write a whole book on the Mission District of San Francisco. I think its one of the best places in town and its the place I recommend for all people coming to visit. That and I recommend NOT going to Fisherman's Wharf (hate that place - why does everyone HAVE to go there?!). The Mission is a mix of gentrification and grunge. It has a variety of small restaurants and shops. What I love is how eclectic the people are. You have everything from the yuppies to the hippies and everything in between.

Ok, this entry is going to focus on 16th Street. Just awesome. I love the fact that if you google this street and see it on the Maps - it doesn't show all the shops and restaurants - you actually need to go there and walk the street to see every tiny nook. One of my favorite book stores is there - called Adobe Books. I went there for a wine tasting one night and just sat about drinking some Merlot while paging through whatever caught my fancy. Across the street (and down about half a block) is the Roxie Theater - a haven for Indie films and (even better) Indie film festivals.

This particular night we hit Andalu. Its a tapas place that we managed to score a 10 course meal with wine parings for $70 bucks for two people. You have to go through Livingsocial.com to get the tickets. Btw, Maria tuned me in to Livingsocial.com, incredible deals on this website. Anyway, back to Andalu. We had come here a week prior with Brett and Kan. The hostess put us in the corner bay window. People watching while eating here is such a good combo. Long story short, they know how to do tapas well here.

Ok gotta run - so check out the Mission and for heaven's sake stay the hell away from Fisherman's Wharf!

Grand Canyon - Plateau Point - Hiking Day 4

The third day's hike brought us up from the Colorado River to Indian Garden Camp. We made our way up through a series of switch backs known as the Devil's Cork Screw which was most pleasant than the name implies. What amazed me is the number of small springs and streams along the way that gave way to lush vegetation. Wherever water flowed there was an abundance of life which was juxtaposed to the relative desolation that surrounded it.

 After making camp, we hiked the 1.5 miles to Plateau Point in time to see the sun set. This spot is not to be missed and I felt bad for the hikers who had to make it back to the south rim and miss this point.

 Every ten minutes was a new spectacle as the setting sun would adjust the colors of the surrounding rock walls. Maria and I stayed back behind the group to catch in the last rays and then used our headlamps to make it back to camp. I personally didn't sleep well that night - ground was too hard and the relatively small campsite made it easy to hear any noise. Sometime around midnight the wind picked up and I could hear the trees swaying vigorously to them. This had the sedating effect I need to catch some rest.

We woke up early the next morning and hit the trail as early as possible. The last mile brought us to the very wall of the south rim and then the switch backs came in earnest. There are two places along the way at the 3 mile and the 1.5 mile mark. It was strange that in a matter of only 4 days our bodies had become so accustomed to traveling with large backpacks. It was not as difficult as I had thought it had been. When we made it to the top we could see all the other tourists with their small day packs passing us. The custom is to let the uphill people pass you if you are heading down. It was nice to see people moving aside to let us lumber past. We got in a few pictures from the top and made it to the Canyon Lodge to get in some coffee before we made our way back to Flagstaff and then on to Sedona. 

Grand Canyon - Hiking Day 3

Walking along the canyon floor with a twisted ankle was a real pain. I felt really sorry for anyone who had this happen to them, especially if they were all alone and in a remote part of the canyon. There was a book called "Death in the Grand Canyon" that I saw in Phantom Ranch - and it wasn't exactly a small one. It documented how people die in the canyon on a regular basis from anything from dehydration, to falling, to snake bites, and rafting mishaps. 

That said, we were able to make it into camp at a reasonable time and even had time to down a few beers at the ranch. From my memories of Death Valley - where a beer was $10, I was surprised to see that this place was reasonably priced. Phantom ranch is also the destination of hikers who come down from the south ridge and stay for a night and then go back to the south rim then next day.

We crossed the Colorado River the next morning. However before we left, we managed to see a med-evac helicopter come down to take out a hiker that had destroyed her knee the night before.  Poor thing.

The path brought us to a small clearing where one could go and sit by the river. This was the lowest point in the canyon. The water was relatively calm here. Of course, after this the up hill began.

From the river, we started heading up through a portion of the canyon known as the devil's corkscrew. A bunch of switchbacks in a narrower portion of the climb where it seemed as if the canyon was closing in on you.

 Overall, the climb got easier after that. We managed to get into Indian Garden campsite relatively early and managed to set up camp and just relax for a while. I think if we were not carrying so much equipment, we could have made an attempt to get to the south rim. However we would have missed plateau point - which I'll add an entry for next time.

Grand Canyon - Hiking Day 1-2

After a tough few months to study for the board exam, I finally had a chance to go on vacation. I think just not having to study palliative care medicine in itself was fantastic. We caught a plane to Pheonix and then a connecting flight to Flagstaff. I have to admit, the town is really cute. The downtown area is a collection of brick buildings and the bars and restaurants have a very cosmopolitan feel despite the small size. 

I would recommend staying at the Monte Vista hotel - the Ramada we picked out really sucked. The Monte Vista is down town and is perhaps one of the oldest hotels in town. The bar reminds me of something from old west stories. 

We also managed to hit some of the local restaurants including the Criollo which had some excellent Latin based food. The artwork on the walls was particularly fascinating:

http://criollolatinkitchen.com

We headed across the street to the wine loft - where a lot of the locals were sipping wine and playing board games - very cool hangout. We headed over to the Beaver Street Brewery which was really dead and I'm not sure why trip advisors rates it so high - it was borderline dive bar. However, the surrounding area did have a bunch of music venues which seemed to be in high gear. 

We awoke the next morning and headed out with our travel company - Four Seasons Hikes. To be honest with you. I felt that we could have probably gotten a cheaper deal than this company. Again, not sure why trip advisor rates it so high. Its not a bad company and the people were very professional, but next time I'll go for something a bit cheaper - that said they do offer a bunch of good hiking services for a bunch of different locations. 

We began on the north trail after traveling via van to the north rim for about 4 hours. The hike began at about 10 and I'll say now - Mid to late October is the perfect time to go! Not too hot and not too cold. We started along the North Kaibab trail and made our way to Cotton Wood camp grounds. Poor Maria was carrying about half her body weight in equipment - which we had to rectify the next day. However we all made the 7 mile trek. The campground was beautiful and if the Moon wasn't so bright we could have caught a great deal of the stars.

The path itself reminded me of hikes that I've taken before in the south west. It wasn't, however, until we made it past Cotton Wood that the true magnitude of the canyon really took fold. As we got close to Phantom Ranch - which is right next to the Colorado River, we could get a better view of the South rim and the sense of sheer size began to really set in.

For those of you who are interested, the Phantom Ranch actually has a bar. Which I taught was a bit strange in that every guide book and sign post we pasted has something about preserving yourself with water and avoiding dehydration. Either way the wine was pretty good =) .

By this time, my legs were killing me and I had managed to twist my ankle on a rock. We were passed by a bunch of people who were attempting to run the canyon from one end to the other - can you say wacko? I couldn't imaging being a runner and breaking an ankle in the middle of nowhere. That said there were at least three people that we saw being helicoptered out of the area.

Camping along the Colorado river was excellent. Hearing the water flowing by helped me sleep very well that night.