Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Now Boarding Flight to San Francisco

Hubby was in Las Vegas on business last week and he is San Francisco this week. We both despise Las Vegas so meeting in San Francisco was a no-brainer. In addition, we had to go apartment hunting, whee!

With the storm we got on Thursday/Friday, I was scared that my flight was going to be cancelled. All flights to TO and MTL were cancelled. Luckily, I was going West. It was delayed, but I got to Vancouver in time to catch my SF connection.

On Friday night, we met with R’s friend. We had dinner at First Crush. I was exhausted/completely jet lagged by 1 am. We were staying across the street at the Renaissance Hotel Parc 55 in Union Square. Union Square is definitely the place to be. I’d love to live there, but R finds it too busy. Nothing is ever too busy for me!

On Saturday morning, we were off to Napa Valley. The weather was fantastic: Sunny and 20 degrees. Our first stop was Darioush. Persepolis was the inspiration behind the architecture of the winery. The stone was quarried near the region of Persepolis (Iran). It made me feel like going to Iran…in a few (ok, several) years from now. Our second stop was Clos Duval. Not the most impressive winery, but definitely the best wine (Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 2002) I’ve had during the whole day.

We had lunch at Bouchon. As usual, we were not disappointed. Bouchon is one of the best restaurant I know. After lunch, we drove to Sterling.

Sterling is famous for its tram car that takes you up to the winery. We were there about three years ago, but I still can’t get over how breathtaking the views are from the top. Our last winery was Luna. We had a complimentary tasting so we stopped by. The winery and the wine were nothing to write home about. We made it back to SF around 6pm.

We spent Sunday hanging out downtown. We had brunch in a little café in Nob Hill and checked out two apartments. One was an awful one bedroom for a mere $1650/month + utilities. The other one was great, but there was nothing in our price range available. Call me crazy, but I just can’t bring myself to pay $2,750/month for a one bedroom apartment even if it has ocean view (see picture)! We had a totally yummy dinner at 1550 Hyde Cafe and Wine Bar.

I went shopping in Union Square on Monday while DH worked. I am not a shopper. I don’t enjoy shopping aimlessly. I never liked Macy’s. Seven floors of clothing is just overwhelming. They should sort their stuff by price, it would make shopping a lot more efficient! I ended up with two lip glosses from Victoria Secret. I know, I am just wild. R left to Monterey after lunch. I headed to the airport. I took the red-eye back and was at work by 10am. That’s dedication.

It’s weird to think that my next trip to SF will be one-way. Ack… It seems to be more real now that I came out of the closet!

6 comments:

Raquel said...

Is this a permenant move? Will we ever see you living in the big and cold "O" again?

Ms.Smarties said...

Maybe, maybe not. I am making sure I am keeping all of my options open. I am hoping it's permanent, but if I hate it for whatever reason I won't torture myself!

Our visas are good for five years. If we don't have a green card by then, we'll have to see. I am not sure if we would come back to Ottawa though. I am thinking Australia at the moment!

Raquel said...

Would you mind if I say I am insanely jealous of you and the moment? :)

To answer your question, I don't scrapbook so I can't help you.

Sorry. :(

Lexy said...

So do you have a job in San Fran, or is it just the boy?

And I would be uber jealous if you went to Australia. I love it there.

To answer your question, I have no idea what site, other than e-vite would be good. I've only ever used e-vite.

Lexy said...

disregard my stupid job question, you answered it in your announcement post. My brain no longer functions now that I've spawned a child.

Ms.Smarties said...

Hehe.

The only reason why we're going is that I am legally allowed to work. L1 is a company transfer visa. I get an L2 as a spouse. Then I need to apply for a work permit which will take about two months to get.

During those two months, I am going to finish my market research certificate and look for a job. My resume is up to date, my potential employers spreadsheet is set up, and here I come!