Sunday Fun(?)day

So...no farmer's market photos for you today. I forgot the camera (surprise, surprise). The stands are now filled with greens, root vegetables, peppers, onions, beets, radishes, and carrots. The tomatoes are basically finished; there are a few die-hard apples to be had. Pears are just beginning to show up and the star of the fruit show is currently the persimmon. Or, rather, persimmons. Who knew that there were so many varieties of persimmons? We've tried 2 so far and find them pretty tasty. Aaron calls them the love-child of a tomato and mango. Add a little papaya into that mix and I think the description is pretty apt. In any case, it is fascinating to learn the growing season in a new climate; each week we look forward to seeing the newcomers at the market. 

Yesterday, despite the grey drizzle, we went to the Ferry Building farmer's market. While it does have an amazing produce selection, the real draw is all of the prepared foods and gourmet offerings within the building itself. It's pretty spectacular. I've since learned that the Ferry building was just renovated in 2003. (Little A - you'll love it - the grandeur of a train/ferry station has been preserved in its beautiful ceilings and marble halls.) It was an unexploited gem of the city until after the 1989 earthquake. It had been "covered up" by a freeway overpass until the freeway fell down (Yikes!) and they had to rebuild the area. Now it is front and center where Market and Embarcadero meet. And the area has undergone "seismic retrofitting," as they say.

Aaron was pumped because 4505 Meats has a booth there; their motto is "Bacon is the new black" and they supposedly make the best hot dog in the city (or perhaps in the country). The hot dogs are, um, stuffed with bacon. Needless to say, I didn't eat there. It did smell pretty fantastic, though. Besides the bountiful organic produce offerings, the market has everything from wild mushrooms to organic honey to smoked fish to unfiltered olive oils to a wine bar. We also learned that their oyster bar (oysters from Marin county) has a happy hour Monday-Thursday during which oysters are $1 and beers are $3.50. It's like heaven for Aaron. I just like the view overlooking the water. This is basically what it looks like, even on a grey day.

See those white cranes in the background? That's Oakland. Almost all of the shipping is done through the Oakland ports now. In the foreground is the new Bay Bridge and the edge of Yerba Buena Island.

We've already started to become wimps about the weather. Despite chuckling all weekend about how we'd escaped the Midwest winter just in time, we find ourselves freezing and hunkered down in front of our heater today. It is still sunny and in the 50's but our cold, hard Minnesotan exteriors have started to crack already.

After the Temescal Farmer's market this morning, Aaron took me on what was probably the single most physically challenging experience of my life. We climbed the mountain on the way to Grizzly Peak. Now, I'm in decent shape and bike to work, run or walk every day but nothing prepared me for this. This makes the hills outside of Stillwater look like child's play. It isn't even that the road up is that steep, but that for 6 miles, you are climbing, climbing, climbing up the mountain without any time for recovery. The views from the top are amazing, but it was grueling. Aaron, of course, was barely breathing hard. The other thing that makes the climb so incredibly humbling is when 60-70 year old men pass you and are gone around the next bend before you can say "boo."

We were about .7 miles from the top and I had to stop for a moment to catch my breath. A man and a woman (in very good shape) passed us and we started up after them. I was chasing my spirit animal by that point. Around the next bend, we heard/saw them stopped. She was kneeling on the ground next to her bike, throwing up. I could totally relate. It's pretty hard.

However, you are rewarded when you get to the top and survey the view. When you first turn onto Grizzly Peak Road, you climb through the trees and come to the first clearing to the east. You can't really get a sense of perspective from the picture below because I was too afraid to get close enough to the edge but the valley is vast. There are no houses or anything on this side of the mountain. It is beautiful. 

Then we carried on until we saw this:

The Bay Bridge/San Francisco is straight ahead, port of Oakland to the left where the white cranes are.

Here, the Golden Gate Bridge is in the background, and the tiny island in the center of the picture is Alcatraz. Downtown Oakland is right behind the pine tree.

In the photo below, please note the gold house at the edge of the mountain. Next time I'm out, I'll take a picture of that house from where we live to show how high it is. It's pretty phenomenal. I think they might make a little more cash than we do if they can afford those views.

Needless to say, the way down is much easier. That is, except the fact that you descend for 6 straight miles on a bumpy road in very cold wind, so that by the time you reach the bottom of the mountain, you can't feel your hands or feet. Three hours later, our feet have finally thawed out. Oakland is a beautiful, curious city.

One last thing. Thanksgiving night, Aaron and I went to explore a new dive bar, the Kingfish. The most exciting thing about this bar is that the awesome Ethiopian restaurant across the street delivers!!! However, they weren't open on Thanksgiving night. BUT...the bartender had deep-friend an entire turkey, made mashed potatoes and gravy, and brought it all into the bar for whoever wanted some. He explained that since not everyone has family in the Bay Area, he wanted to make sure everyone had some turkey. It was awesome. Later, he was talking to another patron about the awesome ammunition sale starting on Black Friday, but he IS from Nevada so we let that one pass...

Simon's settling in well and is contemplating a new job. For the time being, he's helping his dad keep up on his internet reading and advising him on his Fantasy football choices.

Layers

So, winter has arrived in Oakland. This is what it looks like:

Seriously. Simon has found aaaaallllllll of the sunny spots in our apartment and is hibernating. We're laughing our heads off because people are talking about how "freezing" it is. Yesterday the low was 46. However, last night there was a crazy storm that involved high winds, torrential rain, and very dark skies - nothing unusual for Midwesterners, but Californians think it is time to batten down the hatches.

Today the clouds broke and after we went to the farmer's market (pics to come next week!) Aaron rode up the mountain for the first time (despite my protestations about his broken arm). Um...these mountains are harder than Minnesota hills. We both have a lot of training to do. We also rode out and back on the path that I'll take to work last Thursday. My commute to work is 5 miles and approximately 58 times harder than my commute was in Mpls. Basically, I have to cross 3 major sets of hills ranging from a 5-9% grade on each incline. For those of you who don't bike, that's pretty hard. But, I've found a safe route through very pretty areas of Oakland and Piedmont (more on Piedmont another time) including one street that is called Trestle Glen. Apparently, the amazing homes on this street used to be summer homes for richie-richies from San Francisco. The weather is better in Oakland, you know ;)

Anyway, Oakland's proximity to unbelievable natural beauty is pretty incredible. If we walk about 30 minutes from our apartment up Ocean View Terrace to the top of the hill, we can survey the entire Bay. It is gorgeous. We don't have pics of that yet but we do have some of today's walk to Lake Temescal Regional Park. It is a 1.8 mile walk (according to google maps) from our front door and you can't believe that you are only 4 miles from downtown Oakland. So, enjoy some of the sights of our neighborhood...

Our street and our Miami Vice building (not our car):

The Claremont Golf Course, a few blocks from our apartment. The walking path goes right through this area.

Broadway Terrace takes us directly to the park. It is a very, very steep climb near the end. You can just see the Bay in this picture. If I was a better photographer, you'd be more satisfied.

The south entrance to the park:

Some pictures of the park from the walking path. The lake is man-made (by damming Temescal creek) and is in a tiny valley formed by one of the many fault lines that "decorate" the Bay Area.

The swimming beach:

The birds have found a pretty fantastic viewing area:

The view on the way back down the hill into Rockridge:

See that city over there? That's San Francisco. And the Bay Bridge.

We've had a fantastic weekend. Heard Kites and Crows in the city atVelo Rouge Cafe on Friday night after a great dinner at Pizzetta 211. Went to 2 wineries on Saturday and had a fabulous time. This is our kind of town!

Can't write anymore right now because I start my job tomorrow and need to get organized tonight! Wish me luck - I have my commuter bike lights all set to go! :)

Why Oakland?

Alright. Now, for all of you skeptics out there who went bananas when we told you we were moving to, dear lord, Oakland, CA!?!?!?!?, just settle down. The neighborhoods of Oakland vary widely, as is the case in any big city, and we have chosen carefully. Yes, there are some parts of Oakland where we would choose not to spend our time, but we love our neighborhood. We are neatly situated at the foothills of Oakland, right where Oakland and Berkeley merge. We're a 10 minute walk from the bart and our neighborhood is filled with Craftsman houses, children, friendly neighbors, friendly dogs, and kitties sunning themselves on nearly every front stoop. We are also a 10 minute bike ride from downtown, Lake Merritt and perhaps the most fabulous beer shop on the face of the earth (more on that later). Since husboyf broke his arm before our move, we haven't been biking yet, but we have our virgin tour planned for tomorrow.

I was offered a job a week after we moved out here and start work next Monday. We are INCREDIBLY thankful for that income but did not expect our funemployment to be so brief. So, we are trying to take advantage of our few days off together by being tourists in our new city. We've had amazing weather since we arrived with higher than average temperatures (70-80 most days!), beautiful sun, and no fog. While errybody knows that Oakland has better weather than San Francisco, this week SF gave Oakland a run for its money! Yesterday, since neither of us had ever done so, we walked the Golden Gate Bridge. It is 1.7 miles each way and is truly spectacular. On a clear day, you can see the entire city, Alcatraz, Angel Island, Sausalito, the Oakland and Berkeley Hills, and the Pacific Ocean. It is indescribably beautiful. Especially if you go on a day without fog. Now, I do have to warn you that if you are afraid of heights, this is NOT the outing for you. Boats look like toys below you and the vibrations from the traffic are extremely noticeable. It is pretty fantastic when you look up at this bridge, built nearly 80 years ago, that connects a city built on some of the craziest terrain EVER, to a county that offers anything a nature lover could desire.

After this little tourist outing, and a bus route that took us somewhere VERY unexpected, we made our way back into the city, namely, the Mission district. It's one of the most colorful parts of the city and one must make note of 2 wonderful items.

1. TARTINE BAKERY. This bakery may, quite literally, be the best bakery I have EVER been too. And that includes (sorry, France) many of the bakeries I've visited in Europe. Their bread is sold out every day and is a wet dough that takes 7 days to make. Many have called it the best bread in the country, if not the world. Now, besides the bread, they also have fantastic pastries, pressed sandwiches, and other items that make you want to bathe in a sea of their goodies. It is really that good. If you are in the San Francisco area, please go there. You will NOT be sorry.

2. MONK'S KETTLE. We discovered this place when we were visiting in October, looking for an apartment in Oakland. They have 24 taps and over 150 offerings in bottle and these offerings are something to write home about. Local microbrews, Belgians, English ales...you name it, they have something similar - or better! The employees know their stuff and can find you exactly what you want - even if you can't put your finger on it! It is a mecca of beer. And perhaps the most important aspect of our latest visit was our server hipping us to the best beer joints in Oakland. Um, also, by the way, he lives in Oakland, because that's where all the cool kids live.

So, as we were leaving the Monk's Kettle to go back across the bay to our humble little town :) we were musing on how much we loved Oakland. Ironic, right? But it is our kind of town. Urban, gritty, cosmopolitan (in its own way) yet still quiet, full of people who want to tell you what's up and encourage you to explore whatever it is that they know about Oakland. We've met so many people who are from somewhere else, have friends/relatives in Minneapolis, or simply know where Minneapolis is (sorry, New Yorkers!). Now, there are still a lot of crazies here but people generally give you the time of day, are friendly, and are interested in conversation. It's great.

Our server at the Monk's Kettle revealed the great Beer Revolution to us yesterday. It's a mom-and-pop joint down in Jack London Square (sitting on the dock of the bay, anyone?) and it is fabulous! Unlike Minnesota, California has very progressive liquor laws. Namely, they don't really care when it is sold or how. At Beer Revolution, you can drink while you shop or buy a bottle and pay a $1 corkage fee to drink it at their counter or on their lovely patio. They have any type of beer you could imagine from an extensive stock of Belgians, domestic IPAs, stouts, ales, etc.... We were served by one of the owners of the joint who intimately knew everything they had to offer and was eager to spend the time explaining their products to us. It. was. awesome. So awesome, in fact, that we decided we would spend every Friday night there and began making a list of all of our friends/family who would enjoy it so we would have another excuse to go back. The best part of our trip was the fact that 2 patrons purchased a bottle of Belgian sour ale for anyone to share. Just because they wanted to try it. The beer itself was fantastic but the fact that these gentlemen simply left the beer for anyone else to try was even better.

So, in case you were still wondering? We like Oakland better. (No disrespect, San Francisco.)

Transplants.

So, here we are. Living in Oakland, California after being Minneapolites for over 10 years. A week and a half ago, we packed up everything we owned into a 16 foot truck and drove across the country in 3.5 days. Our cat, Simon (see picture) was awesome. He freaked out every morning for a half-hour until we stopped for coffee. After we stopped, he just settled into his little pet taxi, as if he somehow understood that driving was his destiny for the day and he might as well enjoy it. You know how cats do.

For the most part, the drive was beautiful. Well, that is, except for most of Nebraska (sorry, Ross). Wyoming was one of the most amazingly desolate places either of us has ever seen, but was beautiful in its own right. We were, however, exceedingly happy when we realized that we had driven 350 of the 401 miles through Wyoming. Utah was by far the most attractive part of the drive. The day we drove into Salt Lake City was a 12 hour driving day, but the red hills, roadside ravines, and fall foliage was spectacular. Driving out of Salt Lake City, however, was another thing all together. We left before the sun came up as we had another long day ahead of us. The city is nestled in a valley (as are most cities in the mountains) and as we drove away from the city, past the "Great Salt Lake" (love you, BOH) and through the salt flats, we both felt as if we were on some other planet. The salt flats go on FOREVER. Really. Like, for 100 miles, you drive on the straightest road you've ever seen, toward the mountains, without ever getting closer. There is NOTHING around you except a railroad, I-80, salt flats and the occasional salt refinery. It's crazy. I know it's an optical illusion, but it hypnotized both of us to the point of being freaked out a little. Once we climbed over the first ridge of mountains into Nevada, we both were relieved that we had actually escaped the Twilight Zone.

Sidenote: driving across the country teaches you many things; i.e. why Sinclair gas has a dinosaur on its sign and from where the Morton salt girl comes. It's worth the trip. Really.

We had fabulous weather for the entire trip EXCEPT for the last day. We stayed in Reno, which is only about 3.5 hours from the Bay Area. We considered driving straight through but the thought of unpacking our truck after 12+ hours of driving was too much for us. So...we arrived in Reno at 4, went for a run and blamed our horrendous performance on "altitude," went to Floyd's Fireside lounge for a $3 microbrew (served by a woman in an awesome 80's black lace, see-through top), relaxed and ate delicious, vegan pizza for dinner while Simon explored the scents that our hotel room had to offer. The following morning, we left Reno at 6:30 and the rain started. Now, I'm a nervous driver anyway but driving a moving truck through the Sierra Nevada mountains when it is raining/snowing is my personal hell. It rained the ENTIRE TIME and just about the time I was celebrating the fact that we had survived Donner Pass, I realized that we had only survived the EXIT for Donner Pass. And, just about that time, the snow started falling. Heavily. And, just about the time you think that the worst part of driving through the mountains is over, you realize that you have to descend 7300 feet. In a moving truck. It was not. fun. at. all. Don't ask me what it's like around Tahoe because I have absolutely no idea. I was merely saying hail Marys. But, my husboyf is an amazing driver (even with a broken arm) and we survived. The crazy thing about the Sierra Nevadas is that as soon as you finish the descent, you are in farm country! Hello, Sacramento!!! And, thanks to our dear friend Miss T, hello coffee!

The rest of the drive was uneventful since it was a Sunday morning and we found our way to our new home. The only bummer of the day was the rain. Oh, and the fact that we hit a tree with the moving truck. Sorry, tree! Fortunately, they didn't notice the sizeable dent when we returned the truck...And now, thanks to my cousin and his partner, we are moved in, relatively settled, and enjoying Oakland!!!