San Francisco, then back home.

Following our weekend in Napa, we took a ferry from Vallejo to San Francisco. The skies finally cleared up enough to get some nice pictures. It's a pleasent 1 hour ride to get to downtown San Fran. From there we took Bart (train) to the Airport. It was a nice trip, a good chance for Pat and I to get away together. But we were really looking forward to get home and see the kids. Through a twist of fate, we ended up in business class on the flight home. What comfort! We arrived home at midnight on Monday May 21st. And the kids were happy to see us the next morning.

Secret Recipes of the CIA

Sunday (May 21st) Mary Ellen and Patrick attended a cooking demonstration at the CIA -- Cullinary Institute of America, California Campus. The campus is in the middle of Napa's Wine Country. After the demonstration we had lunch cooked at the school's restaurant. Patrick had Gruyere-Cheese-Souffle-Topped French Onion Soup. His Entree was a Caramelized Red Snapper Paella. Mary Ellen enjoyed Lamb with Arugula Salad and Yam chips. They shared a Molten Chocolate Lava Cake. The Campus store is amazing. Every cooking tool that ever existed could be found there. Here's a link to the school's website: http://www.ciachef.edu/california/default.asp

California Dreamin'

Mary Ellen attended the 4-day JavaOne conference in San Francisco in May. Pat joined her there while Mary Ellen's parents watched the kids. We had a lot of fun, but the weather was rainy. The weekend following the conference we rented a car north of San Fran and toured the wine country. We drove through Napa and the Sonoma Coast on Saturday May 20th.