Dodge Sportsman Adventure c. 1973

Here it is... c/o AirBnB - still in full working order and clearly well-loved but lacking in some modern safety features - restraints aka seat belts in the back and a suspension not really designed for the z-bend drop from Saratoga Gap to the forest floor below. In darkness we swooped downwards for over an hour, the eating-table fell on our knees and our bones were rattled and our minds frayed. Communicating with the driver over the engine roar was impossible. We did three nights before yielding to the lure of a sweet B&B with hot water and sheets.

Big Basin Redwoods

Down in the woods things were impressively large... no bears or raccoons on our watch, just woodpeckers pecking and crested blue jays and a lovely boy next door and a waterfall a small trek upwards and a stoked roaring fire on our return. We got a lift in a ranger van thanks to our battery going flat and embraced the great American wilderness and the complementing joys of Boulder Creek - a former logging town with micro brewing, an organic market and DIY store that sold lanterns! What more does one need?

Bluebottle, SFMoMA

It's all about the cake! Can you spot your source works of art? We were here thanks to this book and a desire to combine the best coffee in town with the ultimate ganache. Sculpture courtyard lovely too.

Mondrian Cake
White Velvet Cake, red, yellow, blue velvet cake, chocolate ganache
“Composition in Red, Blue, and Yellow,” 1930

Albers Cracker + Cheese

Buttermilk cracker, Vella Daisy cheddar, parmesan cream wafer, Lambchopper goat Gouda
“Homage to the Square: Starting,” 1968

Thiebaud Layer Cake
Butter cake, strawberry buttercream, lemon curd
“Display Cakes”, 1971

Parks and Recreation, San Francisco

The parks were awesome! Dolores, Alta Plaza, Alamo, Koret Children's Quarter, Hayes Valley and Michelangelo each had a special something, not least the views and then the lovely folk we met. We made friends and even had repeat play dates... bliss.

Balmy Alley, Mission District

There are wall paintings everywhere in the Mission, but Balmy Alley feels like the heart of it all. In sunshine and with the odd roaming dog for company we wandered up and then down... their were stories of struggle we did not know the context for but we got the gist.

Started in the 1970s, there was passion and hardship and glorious colour, with the lovely ladies of the Precita Eyes Mural Arts Centre to chat to afterwards and then the delicious sweet treats of La Victoria, a block further on.

Brainwash, SOMA

So you need to do your laundry; have a bite to eat; get a drink; hear live music; chat with folks...

Sometimes you find a place that has everything you need, and pinball machines!

Special thanks to Karney and Biv and the Mnemonics

Golden Gate Park

I'm a sucker for Japanese Tea Gardens and this one was next door to the de Young Museum and its incredible view of of the Golden Gate Park.

We did art in the gardens and spun some Japanese-warrior-princess stories before Inuit art indoors and the stupendous view.