Breathtaking
Chasing the Sun
Awoke on Saturday to a gray haze that had settled over the city. An unsettling feeling that summer has arrived to San Francisco laid heavy. Chad and I set out in our car over the golden gate bridge to find the sun. There is one unfailing hope during the summer in San Francisco that if you hop in your car and drive 20 minutes in any direction, you will find the sun, and remember that you live in California.
Found ourselves on a hike not far from the square in downtown Sonoma, a trail called the Overlook Trail that transports you to the hills overlooking Sonoma, with views of Mount Tam and San Pablo bay. We walked through tall dry grassy fields dotted with knotty blue oaks, bright orange poppies and yellow buttercups, and listened to the leaves dance in the wind. Kept thinking to myself how beautifully landscaped the nature around us is, without ever meeting the hands of men and women.
After the hike, we had a beautiful meal at the girl and the fig, a lovely french restaurant that I have been wanting to try since we moved out here. Goat cheese platter, beet salad, leek and potato soup, lamb plate over potato puree, and vanilla creme caramel for dessert, all masterfully prepared and savored with every bite.
As it grew dark, Chad and I drove about 20 minutes north to Sugarloaf Ridge State Park where we were fortunate enough to catch the observatory on a open-to-the-public night. We looked through huge telescopes while retired astronomers and teachers pointed out saturn’s rings, mars, star clusters, and galaxies light years away. We were also able to watch the international space station pass through our night sky and several minutes later, the US space shuttle Atlantis en route to catch up with the station in its final mission. It’s amazing the perspective you get as you stare at a night sky teeming with bright stars, thousands of suns, thousands of planets and galaxies. At the risk of sounding like a big space nerd, I’ll stop and just say it is humbling to realize how small we are in this universe.
