Small World, Big City: Petaluma

Petaluma--what a pretty name. On my last day in San Francisco for the holidays, my family and I drove to Petaluma with a plan to dig for seashells. We packed a bucket and a shovel, and headed out early in the morning. One of my mom's hobbies is waking all of us up, since she herself is an early riser. I had a friend who said, "I understand why she wakes people up, I'm an early riser too, and it's very lonely to be the only one awake, while everyone else is sleeping." At the same time, my brother and I are both late sleepers, and I never found it lonely to be the only one awake at night while everyone is sleeping. It's actually quite peaceful--nobody disturbs you. Maybe I should convert to an early riser, and I might enjoy the quiet time in the morning. Anyhow, I digress.

It was a beautiful drive, and one of the warmer days during the holidays. This time around, it was shockingly cold in San Francisco--I expect the bay area to be cold during the summer, but it has never been this bad during the winter.

Our first stop was at a 50s style diner, called Sax's. They call themselves a "friendly diner," and the decor inside is very girl power oriented, with inspirational sayings on the bathroom walls, and pictures of ladies riding motorcycles, along with Marilyn Monroe and other older actresses. There, I had the best French toast that I have had in my life. They hand slice sour dough bread, dip it in milk, eggs, cinnamon and sugar, and then fry it and slather it with raspberry cream cheese. I can't imagine french toast any other way now. It usually is too sweet, so the sour dough and cream cheese did a good job of balancing that. They also have home made jam and biscuits. I really liked their grits, which nobody else enjoyed. Portions were huge. I wish I had taken a photo of that French toast, but alas, I got overly excited and ate it right away.

After that five star breakfast, we went for a hike to an estuary. Someone had done some work, building little bridges and a little house by the beach. Someone's car had broken down nearby, and my mom and I drove to find the sheriff, who came and helped him out. That area has no cell phone reception, so if you get stuck, it's very hard to find help.

We then went to Goat Rock Beach, where the breeding season for harbor seals was just beginning. In March, the pups are born. When we walked down to the shore, we found about thirty of them on the beach. Some of them played in the water, jumping like in Sea World. Their ability to move on land is very limited--they essentially bounce on their bellies to move anywhere. As such, they get nervous when they see any threats on land, and head straight for the water. As I was trying to take pictures, some would look up at me, nervously, before deciding that I probably wasn't that dangerous and going back to sleep.

On the way back, we stopped by a fresh seafood deli, and had raw and grilled oysters and a fish sandwich. Overall, a very good experience.