Traveling Adventures Part II

So we have already established that traveling with me is an adventure...one that is fun and full of surprises. And it is always worth the trip.


I recently returned from a trip to the west coast to visit a relative, and to see golf's greatest players in the world live and up close. Well, they were definitely alive, and the greatest players were kinda close, but the trip held unexpcted fun times as well. I will try to remember most of it, if you can keep in mind this is from my point of view only.....I'm sure others would have a very different take on this particular story.



Chapter 1: Babies, babies everywhere!

So who takes their child on a 6 hour non-stop flight across the USA? My husband, excited to be heading to California, is also excited to get a window seat, hoping to catch a glimpse of , I don't know, the Grand Canyon or something, 4 -5 hours into his first cross country flight. Too bad someone forgot to tell the young couple with the very agitated baby sitting right next to him. After 4 hours of off and on (but mostly on) again crying, whining, fussing and squirming, "Would you please close your window shade so he can try to sleep?" Not good. More crying and screaming and squirming. "Would you like anything to drink?" the flight attendent asks. "Can I get another Heineken?" The lady next to me asks. I am sitting BEHIND the screaming baby. The flight attendent brings the Heineken to the baby's father by mistake. Hey, maybe he'll give the baby the Heineken and we can all enjoy the last leg of this flight. Honey did I tell you Cousin Dottie is babysitting her grandaughter for the next three days? And she has 2 cats-but they won't bother us, and I bet that baby never cries......



Chapter 2: We're in California so who cares?



Off to buy stuff. The US Open Merchandise Pavilion, where my husband has volunteered to work 20 hours, is open to the public the weekend before the Open. It is like a mall. It is the size of a football field, built next to the first fairway between the North Course and the South Course at Torrey Pines. We drive along Coastal Highway 101 along the shores of the Pacific Ocean from Encinitas to La Jolla. Oh, Solana Beach! That's where the surfer got eaten by a shark! Oh, and La Jolla..the trial for the murder of that La Jolla surfer by a so called surfer gang, involving a UNH football player, is coming up the end of the month. Isn't California swell?



Chapter 3: The Way Life Should Be



A tee time at Coronado Golf Course. As a twosome at a busy municiple course, you always get paired up with other golfers. Most of the time it works out nicely. You meet new people, and have a good time, good laughs. Today was a bonus. We got to golf with two really nice guys who introduced themselves as Navajo Indians from New Mexico. How cool is that? And, they were running for political office of their tribe. They were in town for the Open, just like us. We had a blast. Our golf sucked, we hit trees, drank beer, and looked out at the harbor under the California sunshine.



Chapter 4: Does anyone ship wine?



What do I have to do to get California wine shipped to my house? It is getting ridiculous. We woke up to June Gloom, and decided to venture inland and north in search of sunshine and vineyards. We found both. Our first stop surprised us. We walked into a gigantic tasting room, where we were the only two tasters.....10 minutes later a tour bus filled with French tourists pulled up and we had an instant party. 50 French tourists, the two of us, and several servers who did not speak French. We will be buying wine, but how shall we get it home? Let's worry about that later.... After a morning of wine tasting, we head back down to San Diego in search of the USS Midway. We decide to do a quick tour, and then head over to Petco Park to get Padres vs Dodgers tickets. Before the game, we go over to The Fish Market for dinner. I am tired, but hey, I'm on vacation and the fun is just beginning. So we tour the Midway, we eat dinner, then we go watch Joe Torrey make mincemeat of the Padres. Now I know why we think the Red Sox are so great. Because they are!!!



Chapter 5: Dry Run

"Did you set the alarm?"

"Yep! I set it for 4:45 am." Tomorrow is my husband's first tour of duty. It is an official practice day at the Open.

"Good, that 'll give us more than enough time."

I am so exhausted I cannot see straight. The baby, cousin Dottie's grandaughter, by the way, does not cry. She does not fuss, she does not whine. Just for the record. We both sleep like babies..until the alram goes off. Crap! I jump out of bed and stumble to shut the cell phone alarm off. My husband stumbles out of bed, shaves and asks, "Do I have enough time for shower?"

Man am I tired!!

"Sure..." I am pulling on my shorts and shirt and grab my watch....

"Oh no!"

"What's wrong?"

"Oh no, I can't believe it! It's only 2:45!! I must've forgot to check to make sure thsi was s et for Pacific time! My cell is still on Eastern time!"

"You're kidding!"
"No, I am not kidding. We have had only 3 hrs sleep. I am going back to sleep. I am sleeping in my clothes."

And so that is how our first official day started....with three hours official sleep, and a few more hours of bad sleep....to the shuttle bus, in the dark, with no traffic, to the gates of the Volunteer Village. It is 6:15 am and I am on the grounds of the 2008 US Open. But it is only the beginning.....