NY to CA-9

Day 16 Sunday 7/23/17

After mass at Holy Spirit Church in San Jose, CA we returned home for a quick change of clothes and set off to the Wharf at Santa Cruz,

I went hang gliding with my GoPro and got this great
shot from above. The current wharf was built in 1914 and with 
a length of 2,745 feet, it's the longest pier on the West Coast of the U.S.

A fog hovered off shore and made for a poor
photo day and probably added to the 65° day.

For a Sunday, not crowded at all and no surfing.

For a fee, you can drive out to the end enjoy
lunch at....

Here's the MENU

As dogs are not allowed on the wharf, Bruce and
I hung out on a bench while Chuck parked the car
and Silvia and Aaron went for the food.

And soon enough, they returned...

...an angel bearing my kind of food (not hers) 
(fried breaded prawns & fries with a cold
Guinness). Bless you Silvia!!

Needless to say, about a mile away there's a more
private beach past the Surfer's Museum where
dogs are allowed.

Nice setting, picturesque; dogs have complete
unleashed access to the entire beach.

But, says I, how am I going to get down there?

Problem solved (but what came down had to go back up).

Bruce with his three trained humans.

And it is here where Bruce enjoys the surf and his friends to run
crazy on the beach unleashed.

Tide is in otherwise you'd be able to walk through the arch.

It amazed me how all the different breeds ran
around together and played seemingly oblivious
to each other. 

Bruce, being more laid back and shy didn't get
too involved with the local riff-raff.

In the distance, cormorant rock is a
favorite hang out for sea lions but today,
although we heard one (Chuck), I don't
see any competing for space with the birds. 

So far, a full day but more tonight; an invitation for a going away dinner for Andrea.

Andrea Battistoni completed his post-doctoral work
in Physics at Stamford and is returning to Italy to
teach high school math and physics in Rome.

Very well liked, there was quite a nice turnout
of folks whose lives he touched.

Lots of kids

Chuck at signature board with Andrea.

Francesco Federico & Silvia

Father & Son. No, not drunk; just caught in the middle of a blink

Oh, did I hear someone ask about the food? That whenever there's food, the nut-job will get a photo of it no matter what? Okay, if you insist.

Grilled eggplant

Grilled zucchini 

Rice salad

Lasagna 

Toasted garlic slices

Fried dough with oil and tomato sauce

One of many tunes sung that ended a delightful evening; A love song of the Alpini sung by Giacomo, Andrea and Davide.

Day 17 Monday 7/24/17

I used today for "catch up" day and have enjoyed looking back on what I've done two days at a time for the past week. A minor glitch has been taken care of. My coach battery has finally kicked the bucket...dead. Fortunately, in this area, my choices for RV services and for purchasing two deep cycle group 24 RV batteries were found and at a reasonable price. Chuck picked them up on his way home from work and tomorrow I'll drive Winnie 9.2 miles hopefully in about 18 minutes to have them installed. The timing is good. We'll be on the road again Thursday and knowing I've got a new fully charged pair of coach batteries eliminates that stress.

And, Taa-daaa. You'll never guess what we'll be having for dinner? Click the link for menu.

Almaden Sushi

Cinnabar Hills Roll: Shrimp tempura, cucumber and
yamagobo (carrot) topped w/tuna & salmon,
tobiko, green onions and spicy mayo.

What goes great with sushi and Chardonnay?
A tall Aaron...15 years in the aging process!!

Helping to make a great trip even greater.
Thank you.

Caught the old man borrowing glasses.
Held back my chuckle knowing what's
in store for him as he joins 'our club."
And his sister better not be laughing because
she's next.