Brisbane, QLD


Thursday, August 9, 2012

SONOMA

On our last evening at Sonoma and the Napa Valley, I took a quick trip into town. Sonoma is a small historic town with remnants of its Mexican past. It was the capital of the short lived Republic of California. Today it is the centre of the Californian wine industry.
Sonoma Town Hall


The old picture theatre caught my attention and I had to look twice at the box office to notice that it wasn't a real live person inside but a model in period dress. 

Then I returned to our accommodation. The Sonoma Lodge. It was very comfortable with a bar and coffee shop, a restaurant, lounges, conference rooms, and a business centre.

 At the back was a lovely swimming pool area with plush lounges for relaxation.

 Our room was comfy with a .....

little balcony. We got dressed up for our farewell dinner. We had enjoyed ourselves with this group and tour. I can recommend the American company, "Tauck Tours." 

The next day it was back to San Francisco. We arrived at 9:30am and our flight didn't leave until 9:30pm. We were able to use the facilities of Le Meridien Hotel and stored our luggage. Then we went exploring again on the cable cars. At last our plane arrived to take us home, 15 hours to Auckland NZ, a 2 hour wait there and then a 3 hour flight to Brisbane. We sure do live down under, but we love it and we are always happy to be back in our hometown. So ended another Adventure before Dementia.

14 comments:

  1. Congratulations on your "Homeric" odyessy of your Californian adventures. The Greek original would be very proud of your efforts.
    Great to note that you have included the times in the air, many people just don't realise just how far we are away from the US and Europe.
    Did you see on the TV that our so wonderful warmish weather is about to end for August and we will be back to thick clothing! Minus 7 celsius in Young this morning and horrible winds that go straight through you. Yuck!!! The miracle of a warm August is about to end!
    Cheers with oncoming shivers
    Colin (HB)

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  2. Really nice! Brought back good memories for me of when I lived in S.F.! Thanks for sharing!
    Ann

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  3. Diane, your Sonoma hotel looks lovely. Except for the long plane ride home, your trip was wonderful.

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  4. Your hotel room looks very nice, as does the hotel. I've enjoyed your travel tales.

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  5. I like the "headhunter" lol ! today they look different !

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  6. A wonderful trip for you both experiencing the beautiful Napa Valley and it's wines. I agree Diane its always nice to return home to our own beds and kitchens.

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  7. beautiful fountain and i love the hanging sculpture. that is a really nice room with the balcony.

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  8. Looks like very nice accommodation. And yes, the flight 'down under' is always the killer, isn't it?

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  9. And what a wonderful adventure it was. I have enjoyed everyone of your posts Diane, and the photos have been brilliant.

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  10. It was a great trip -- thanks for sharing it. (And there couldn't be a better city than San Francisco to waste some hours in exploring!)

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  11. This looks like it was a really lovely place to stay. Glad to hear that this was a good tour!

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  12. Diane, thank you for sharing your journey with us. I find it interesting seeing the world through others experiences and this town sounds like it's full of character. I love small towns and what they offer.

    That's not too bad, 20 hours to get back home. The shortest flight from Canada to Adelaide which I could find was 28 hours and too many time zones! lol

    Have a wonderful weekend.

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  13. I loved that Sonoma Valley still retained some of it's rustic charm, and that its vineyards and wines were all exceptional!

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  14. Love the hotel it looks very grand. As for living down under, my SIL lives there and after our last visit in 2006 we said never again. 25 hour trip with a 6'4" man sitting in cattle class is no fun at all. We will only fly again WHEN and IF we win the lottery and can afford to fly First class. I think we will not be flying there again!! Diane

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