Jelly Belly

Don's a fan of Jelly Bellies, so he suggested we go to the factory and take a tour, since we're in the neighborhood (Fairfield, CA). I found lots of things to take pictures of, but when we saw the line going out the door waiting for a tour, we decided it was time to go home and shine the motorhome a little more. It's probably because kids are out of school for the summer. A Friday afternoon probably wasn't the best timing, either.

Anyhow, I thought you might enjoy these few photos and fun facts. The name Jelly Belly was inspired by the rhyme with Leadbelly, a 1920s blues singer.

Mr. Belly himself greets everyone near the main entrance.

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Don liked the Jelly Belly Bug. There were also a minivan (in photo), a truck and a truck/5th wheel that I didn't get photos of.

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How about a Jelly Belly motorcycle?

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From Jelly Belly

Everyone knows Ronald Reagan was a great fan of Jelly Bellies. Here's his image made up of JB's. I'm not sure if this is a copy or the original, but the web site says, "A portrait of President Ronald Reagan made from 10,000 Jelly Belly beans hangs in the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif."

From Jelly Belly

Also on the web site, "During the presidency of Ronald Reagan, Jelly Belly beans were served in the Oval Office and on Air Force One. A holder was designed for the plane so the jar of Jelly Belly beans would not spill during turbulence." For more fun facts, go to www.jellybelly.com/fun_stuff/fun_facts.aspx

The store sells everything imaginable with Jelly Belly as the theme.

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They even hang above your head as you browse around.

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There's Jelly Belly jewelry -- notice the prices! You'd think they were made of precious gemstones.

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Jelly Belly shirts ($40 and up), aka Beanware apparel.

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This one is pretty cool, especially if you're in competition with Lance Armstrong.

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But we finally got a break from all this when we saw the Dreyer's Ice Cream bus parked outside, giving rides to those who parked in remote lots.

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At least we're finding a way to entertain ourselves since we didn't get to make the trip to Alaska this summer, due to Don's knee surgery. Our friends Dennis & Carol Hill (RV Driving School) went without us and are writing a blog with lots of terrific photos of eagles, bears, and other wildlife, as well as breathtaking scenery. Check it out at http://rvdrivingschool.blogspot.com/

Back to polishing the wheels so Dennis will be proud of me!

Travis AFB and San Francisco

We drove about 125 miles on Wednesday from Watsonville to Travis Air Force Base near Fairfield, California. This is a nice FamCamp (Family Camp, for military active duty or retired personnel and their families), with thick, cool grass -- Shadow loves rolling in it!

From RV Sites

...and full hookups! It's nice to have 50 amps, water and sewer connections, after a week of boondocking at Don's sis-in-law's house, even though we had a 20 amp connection there. We can do laundry in our own machine, and we have a nice shady patio every afternoon, since we're parked facing north.

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The weather here isn't as hot as we expected, since it's inland, about halfway between San Francisco and Sacramento.

On Thursday, we drove into The City (as San Francisco is called in this part of the world). Don lived there and I lived near there, in our previous lives a long time ago. It was a beautiful day, and we enjoyed being tourists.

We remember paying 50 cents to a dollar at toll booths; this time it was $4.00.

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We don't remember the traffic being this bad during the middle of the day. This looks like rush hour, but it was about 10:30 am.

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We crossed several bridges...the Carquinez

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...the Bay, part 1 from Oakland to Yerba Buena/Treasure Islands

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...the Bay, part 2 from the islands to San Francisco

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...and, after spending several hours in The City, the Golden Gate north to Sausalito

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...and finally the Richmond-San Rafael back to the East Bay

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The one thing that hasn't changed is how beautiful this city is.

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We went directly to Fisherman's Wharf.

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We drove the car and left the motorhome in the RV park, but these folks must not have had anything else to drive into the city. Look closely, there are 3 motorhomes.

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Fisherman's Wharf is a great place to get clam chowder and lots of other seafood.

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You can get "cheap eats" to take with you...

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...or you can eat in a nice restaurant with linen tablecloths and napkins.

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We chose the latter, eating clam chowder in sourdough bread bowls with shrimp salads at Tarantino's, seated next to large windows overlooking a collection of fishing boats at the docks below.

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There are lots of ways to get around the city, in addition to walking and driving. For instance...Ducks

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...Quackers

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...Double-deck open top busses and bicycles

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...Streetcars

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...even new Go Cars

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...and, of course, the famous Cable Cars

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For a sequence of photos showing how cable cars are turned around at the end of the line, click on any photo and view the entire album.

Don and I traded taking each other's photos with a family seated across from us in the cable car. They were visiting from Mesa, AZ.

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If you get tired while climbing the streets in the city, there are lots of places to sit down for a rest, as long as you don't care who your companions are.

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Finally, as we left the Marina District and headed out of the city, I got a good shot of Alcatraz Island in the distance.

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To see all the photos in this album, click on any photo and choose the San Francisco album.

Birthday and Winchester House

Today is Don's 65th birthday!

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Last night, because she was leaving early this morning to return to her home in Hawaii, his sis-in-law Charley baked his favorite cake, pineapple upside down. And the family members still here after the wedding gave him cards and gifts while sharing the cake.

From Birthday and Winchester House

From Birthday and Winchester House

From Birthday and Winchester House

He's now officially a senior citizen with Medicare and all the discounts offered everywhere. In fact, part of our celebration of this momentous event included one of his "Bucket List" items, visiting the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, CA, where he saved $3 on the entry fee because he's 65.

Here are several photos from our tours of this wonderful and unusual place (www.winchestermysteryhouse.com/). You can see more photos in the web album by clicking on any photo then click on the album name on the right under "Belongs To." If you want to return to this blog, use your browser's Back button.

Front of the house.

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Back of the house.

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Carriage house.

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Foreman's house.

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Unfinished ballroom wall being added next to existing room.

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Another part of new wall added next to window.

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Sarah Winchester had a fascination with the number 13, one which I share. Here, she had a shrub pruned in the shape of the number.

From Birthday and Winchester House

The door to nowhere.

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Another exterior door with no outside access steps. A bathroom is inside, totally inaccessible.

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A statue depicting a Native American (Indian), Chief Little Fawn. It is thought that Mrs. Winchester added this statue as a tribute to Indians who were killed with the Winchester Rifle.

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The deer statue is in line with Chief Little Fawn's gaze, as if he's going to shoot it using his bow and arrow.

From Birthday and Winchester House

These front doors were never used. Only Mrs. Winchester and the workers who installed them ever passed through them. She never had visitors.

From Birthday and Winchester House

At the end of the interior tour, our guide summarized this bizarre mansion as containing 160 rooms, 10,000 windows, 2,000 doors, 52 skylights, 47 fireplaces, 40 bedrooms, 40 staircases, 13 bathrooms, 6 kitchens, 2 basements, and only 1 shower. Also, 1 seance room where the spirits of people killed by the Winchester rifle supposedly met with Sarah Winchester to guide her in building this unusual house.