Napa Valley

I spent last weekend in Napa Valley with one of my best girls, Lisa! I met Lisa at our first job out of college. She moved from Washington, and I hadn't made many friends in Houston yet. She asked me if I liked to shop and I must have lied, because we became instant friends! I was supposed to visit her in Boise last fall while Ross was deployed to Korea, but she came down with a nasty sickness a few days before I was supposed to head out. So, we cancelled my flight and rebooked to meet in Napa!

We both arrived in Oakland late Thursday night. I really wanted to see Alcatraz from Pier 39 and Lisa really wanted crab chowder. We turned on the Garmin (GPS), got out our maps, and hit the road to San Francisco! About 30 minutes later after non-stop chatting (what are girl's trips for?) we realized we were going the wrong direction. OOPS! We turned around, got back on track, and had a yummy bowl of chowder along with an oyster shooter to celebrate at the Crab House. The chowder was yum and so was the huge oyster in the shooter. The shooter itself (the drink part) was not so good. It was too dark to see Alcatraz, or anything for that matter, but you could hear the seals loud and clear.

The biggest oyster ever in my shooter

After dinner, we headed north to the wine country. We found an awesome deal on a hotel right south of Napa. It was an interesting place. It was an all green hotel called the Gaia. I probably won’t ever stay there again, but it was just us and the price was right.

Because we rented a tiny car we decided we were low-emitting and fuel efficient enough for this parking spot!

A swan at our hotel protecting her egg.

Friday morning we woke up early and met our LIMO! We signed up for an all day wine tour that drove us around in a black stretched limo. We felt pretty cool. Our tour guide stopped at some of his favorite tasting rooms and had a picnic lunch for us. It was a must do, if you plan to make a trip to the wine country anytime soon. We were on the tour with a couple, Carrie and Greg - who just got engaged!, and Michael - who was visiting from Germany.

Lisa, Me, Carrie, Greg, and Michael

Tasting the wine at Napa Cellars/Folie a Deux

At Peju (one of my favorite stops) with our rapping tasting guide:)

Still at Peju

Another vineyard along the way

Castello di Amorosa (If you watched the Bachelor this is where Jake took Vienna and Gia!)

View from the Castle

I have never seen so many beautiful flowers in one place. They were blooming all over the wine country.

First growth on the grape vines!

Old Olive tree

For dinner we ended up in downtown Napa at a place called Ristorante Allegria.

The next morning we started our self-guided tour. We had a map and a list of vineyards. We decided to make the loop and stop at every vineyard that look tempting until we got tired or hungry.

Domaine Carneros - we started the morning at this amazing place with sparkling wine and gorgeous views. It is also where I discovered my camera was low on battery :(

My first In-N-Out burger experience. It was tasty!

We made it to around 10ish vineyards each day and didn't even come close to scratching the surface. I can't wait to make a return trip soon! We lucked out with weather. It was beautiful both days - around 70 and sunny.

I miss you already Lisa! When is our next girl's trip?