Brisbane Fireworks - New Year 2014 or should that be 2013?

Brisbane New Year's Eve Fireworks overlooking Eagle Street Pier

 

Happy New Year Everybody!  May you have a fabulous, healthy, wealthy and, above all, interesting 2014!

EEEK Hurry ... only 358 shopping days to Xmas!

Party Poppers

Party video on YouTube here...

Happy Birthday Keith, for more party pics, click here

Napa Valley - Wine Tasting....

And today?  It's Sunday....what's on the agenda?

Lunch and Wine Tasting @ Inglenook, a well kept secret and almost the "private" winery of Francis Ford Coppola, famous of course for The Godfather!  Difficult to choose, but for me, this was possibly the highlight of our trip!  If you have a little spare time, I recommend you read the history of this winery, fascinating.

Next up, wine tasting @ Paraduxx, famous for Napa Valley reds

... and finally ... wine tasting @ Silver Oak where we each were presented with a crystal glass each, somehow I inherited a second, so just two beautiful thin crystal glasses to pop in the suitcase minus boxes for safe travel home!  I am happy to say, they made it in tact!

Life's tough!

Francis Ford Coppola's winery and yet another beautiful blue November sky!

The little white house in the middle?  Home to Francis Ford Coppola.

Beautiful Redwood tree

Would you pay $1.2M for this car?

For lunch, we were fortunate in experiencing a private event in The Daniel Cellar, exquisite, we couldn't have asked for more.

A private tour followed by lunch, with our chef walking us through the dishes and our personal Sommelier talking us through the history of the winery from 1842 through today.

,

and on to ... Paraduxx to enjoy a few reds ...

... and finally ... a stop at Silky Oak winery ...

... and this I just have to share! that evening, we headed out to a nearby restaurant for dinner, our waiter recommended Chicken Pot Pie, "a traditional American dish" - until it arrived, I hadn't appreciated it would serve a family of four for a week!  Delicious but I confess, it beat me!  

I hope the many restaurants of San Fran at least offer returned food for the many many homeless people we noticed!

Hop on - Hop Off in San Fran ...

Set the jet lag to one side, don't waste a minute... meet downstairs at 8, quick brekkie and let's hit the town!  With only a day to see the sights, options are limited, so first let's hop on a hop-on/hop-off bus tour... how to decide?  Come on girls, don't dilly dally, just do it...

 

The boys didn't wanna have fun, so here we are, from the left that's Hell's our favourite [and only] resident celebrity from MKR, Mel, Me and Shaden... girl's just wanna have fun...

 

Transamerica Pyramid Building, standing tall, once the world's tallest pyramid building until London's The Shard took over in 2012.

Remember the building covered in goo in GhostBusters II?

Mel and Shaden looking cool!  Actually, it was seasonally COLD!  
Double underwear weather at least!

... and Hel's with her warming coffee...

... pretty buildings ...

Saints Peter and Paul Church on Filbert Street

Love the architecture

Shaden gets up close and personal with dinner...

Good Pizza? Just look at that queue!

and, yay - this is it - we must be in San Fran... THE Bridge!

and real proof.. yes I was there...

Janet Sutherland, San Fran

Mutiny on The Bounty... 

Inspiration for Otis Redding's ... Sitting on the Dock of the Bay

Heading into Sausalito.  

A tragedy he died only 3 days after recording it and 6 weeks before it was even released.

So after a wander around beautiful Sausalito, a little town full of restaurants, cafe's and curiosity shops, a change of pace, all too soon, let's head back to San Fran on the ferry

Past Alcatraz...

 

... a perfect way to mix with the yacht's in the bay when you have limited time 

 

Let's not forget the The famous Bushman of Fisherman's Wharf!

and finally... The Night Tour... drive past beautiful City Hall

... and did you hear the beautiful story of how San Francisco and its people turned San Fran into Gotham City for a day?  

To grant a wish for 5 year old Craig, diagnosed with Leukemia who wanted to be Batkid for a day and his wish came true, thanks to the Make a Wish Foundation?

A pretty city of lights....

More pics available <click here> 

Tomorrow?

Wine tasting in the Napa Valley!