San Jose Staycation

I’m back in the game, folks!

The past number of weeks have been fairly busy over in my neck of the woods. With playing tourist in my own city for a little bit, then having one of my closest friends come for a visit, things have been jam-packed full of fun and I can’t wait to blog about everything. I took SO many pictures of touring around San Jose, then heading off to Yosemite, which was a feat all in itself to even get there. My GPS was definitely on something.

I’ve been feeling a little homesick for Newfoundland, and while I am still looking at flights for going back in April-May month, I thought I’d finally start making roots down here in San Jose. It still feels funny for me to call San Jose my city. But we’ve been living here for over a year and I wanted to take my husband on a city wide exploration, because the poor fella works long hours and doesn’t get to explore where he lives, like I do on a daily basis.

So we got to know our little neck of the woods and became tourists in our own city. A full itinerary was booked to check out museums, restaurants, theaters and even staying at a hotel for the night. You’d be amazed at how much new stuff you find out about your city, just exploring new-to-you places.

Now today I’m going to give you a bit of a sneak into what will be showing up on the blog within the next few weeks!

Tech-MuseumThis was at the Tech Museum of Innovation, so colourful and really fun to play around for a couple of hours. It’s now a given fact that I am always a cold person. Check out the thermal exhibit. Red = cold, white = hot. Tons of my body shows so much red, my husband who is always super warm was mostly white. I’ll show you more around this place in a little while :)

California-TheatreI had no idea this place existed. Cinequest is a yearly film festival that comes to San Jose. Check out the incredibly intricate detailing and gorgeous architecture in this building! So lucky to have had the chance to sit here and watch a few films. I know my Dad (a retired Architect) would love to see this spot in person.

Winchester-Mystery-HouseWe’ve driven past the Winchester Mystery House quite a bit since moving to the United States, and finally had the chance to go inside and do a tour. Definitely a must-do when you visit the area. Way too many tiny rooms, so creepy, super weird, but awesome.

FairmontKiller packaging hotel sample sized bathroom products at the Fairmont in San Jose. Sold. I’d totally buy it, especially to give to my guests when they visit our house.

Tourists-in-San-JoseDelicious food in downtown San Jose, enjoying the fun European-feel walkways, and I can never go without photographing a set of awesome looking PALM TREES.

Egyptian-MuseumThe Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum!!

Downtown-San-JoseSo many restaurants available in downtown San Jose. Almost equivalent to the amount of bars per street in my home city of St. John’s Newfoundland. In that middle picture check out the lobby of one of the towers at Fairmont San Jose (fancy smanchy looking right?!) and finally the last pic is my first time at a Japanese restaurant! Of course, I ordered chicken. Typical!

All that and more, coming to the blog soon!

When is the last time you had a staycation, let alone explored your own city?

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Explore Carmel, California

My best friend is coming to visit! That means it’s going to be a fun girls trip all week long, I’m not sure I can hold in my excitement. Jenna and I have been BFF’s since we were 3 years old, and it’s been far too long since I have seen her. Three years!

Even though her flight isn’t for a few months, I still can’t help myself from creating an itinerary for her to see all the best things California has to offer. As soon as she said she booked her flight, I compiled a list of my favourite towns/cities, hiking spots, restaurants, wineries and of course shopping areas. I mean, hello outlet shopping, we are in the USA after all. The top of that must-see list? Carmel, California. She’s going to have a jam-packed week full of sightseeing, that’s for sure. I can’t wait to take her to Carmel, the same spot that I surprised my Husband for a weekend getaway.Trees-and-a-Carmel-Castle

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Explore California: Fremont Older Open Space Preserve

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Prepare yourself folks, this twelfth edition of  POM Friday is going to be photo heavy today.

I’ve been meaning to check out Fremont Older Open Space Preserve for a while, and finally I decided to drive there with Alfie earlier this week. If I was more technical savvy, I’d insert the Instagram video I took of Alfie on the hike, with some beauty views. But you can see that on my instagram feed :)

We only went for a quick jaunt which was a 3km round trip, but I’d love to come back on a weekend with my husband and Alfie again as there were many trails to explore. I just didn’t want to get lost. Trust me, it happens.

Side note if you do take your dogs, note that they do not have garbage cans on site. Of course Alfie decided to take the biggest stinker of his life moments before we got on the trail and stupid me bagged it up AND PUT IT IN MY CAR. You know darn well on the drive home all windows and sunroof was cranked open. Next time it’s sitting beside my car until we were ready to leave.

I brought my bright green nerd pack and tossed in a granola bar, water, and dog bags — then Alfie and I were on our way up the (somewhat) steep trail until we got to Hunters Point. It wasn’t too far from the public parking, and you can choose various lengths of trails, as there were a lot of forks-in-the-road. I love how diverse these trails were, Alfie had a field day barking and saying hello to all the mountain bikers, we walked past a couple of other dogs and their owners and some seasoned hikers with their hiking poles. I’m fairly certain this was a horse riding trail too, so many hoof marks and droppings. Ha!

Now I’ll let the photos do the rest of the talking. Enjoy your weekend!

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