With a side trip to one of the largest Carrefour in France.
Since we were already in Europe and the Eurostar is such a convenient and comfortable way to go from downtown Paris to downtown London, we did a 2-day trip to London. During those 2 days, we walked a lot using the tube once in the evening of the first day to go meet some good friends in East London.
The previously HP-owned Little Basin Campground is now part of the Big Basin Redwoods State Park. Pretty good because it is most likely the best campground of the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Thank you Lionel and Vicky for inviting us.
Campsite #128 is so good that it is not even shown on the map when you try to make a reservation!
We have very fond memories of our first visit to the Big Island of Hawaii so it did not require much convincing to plan another trip this year.
Since we had already visited the whole island last time, we decided to stay on the North coast this time since it offers the best weather and white sand beaches. We stayed at the at the Mauna Lani Hotel and Bungalows (pictured above).
Our room was nicely located at the end of the hallway and had a gorgeous view of the Ocean. The hotel has its own white sand beach with lots of cabanas available for everyone to enjoy. From there, you can see a picture perfect sunset every evening.
The resort is built on the ground of ancient traditional fish ponds where you can see plenty of fish and crabs.
There is also a pool where the hotel staff raises turtles that are released to the ocean every year. The turtles occasionally come back to the beach for everyone’s enjoyment.
A short walk away, there is another protected beach that is home to a lot of marine life. We snorkeled there for hours and still wished we could have done it longer.
The hotel also provides complimentary bicycles that we borrowed several times to go to the local market and to tour the resort.Â
Since we needed to include some cultural activity to our trip, we hiked to the petroglyph park nearby.
One day, we even ventured a bit further North and ended up at the beautiful and super crowded (on a Thursday!) Hapuna beach. This was a gorgeous day to boogie board so locals and tourists were there en masse.
Nice chill long weekend in Big Sur. The Treebones resort is nice. We really liked the lodge and the grounds. We only wish Big Sur was warmer and less windy…Â 
The main attraction of the weekend was a visit to Safari West in Santa Rosa. Alicia and I liked it a lot and left us wanting for the real thing… One day soon!
Birthday weekend in Napa Valley.
We started Saturday with some excellent food at Bistro Jeanty in Yountville. Osso Bucco and Quenelles for appetizer followed by Steak Tartare, Coq au Vin, and Short Ribs. 
Followed with a visit of Castillo di Amorosa, a winery built like a medieval Italian castle with torture room and armory. The chairs were a bit uncomfortable but you get used to it after some time!
To an outsider, It seems like Washington state rarely gets more than 5 consecutive days of clear sky and sunshine. We lucked out while visiting the area to see Alicia’s family during the long 4th of July weekend. Great time meeting/seeing everyone.
Alicia and nephews (from left to right): Henry, Luis, Eduardo, and Christian.
