The Fish Family reunion Sunday afternoon in Burbank brought the eldest of my father's siblings, Jeanne Ulrich, from Illinois back to her birth state. Cousins and second cousins I've not seen for years and my sisters all got together with my sisters, Janet and me for several hours of catching up.We spent Sunday evening with my sister Cynthia at her home in Acton in the high desert North of LA.
The next day we worked our way back to Venice and to dinner with cousin Clarisa and her family in Orange.
We had another fine morning in Venice on Tuesday and drove up the coast through Santa Barbara past San Simeon and San Luis Obispo in excellent weather.
Waking in Monterrey Thursday we went to the Monterrey
Aquarium for their fantastic marine life exhibits. In the afternoon
we drove North toward Half Moon Bay where we cut inland. We got increasing
rain that let up only after dark when we got to Palo Alto making the coast
more and more dramatic. We had dinner and stayed with college pal Roger
and his wife Vicki and their lovely daughters Kelly
and Angela. Friday we drove further North and inland
to Martinez on the Sacramento River delta to meet with NY friend Marsha
to hike in the spectacular Berkeley Hills. She took us up to Inspiration
Point along the Berkeley Hills ridge. The rain caught us off and on but
also made some dramatic vistas of San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge
and the whole bay - magnificent !
Saturday we finished our trip with the filght back from San Francisco
to New York catching climbing views of San Francisco, Oakland's Lake Merritt,
The Berkeley Hills ridge North of Hwy 24.... to night view of midtown
Manhattan including Empire State Building (green, bottom-center).