California Road Trip with Dieter
March 2002

Pasadena, CA
We flew into LA to see his folks, spent a fun day riding roller coasters at Six Flags, then went to see my old college roommate Meg who is now in Pasadena for law school. We stopped at some mountain overlook and this photo in the car. [Insert funny story about getting caught making out by the cops!]

Sacramento, CA
The next day we drove up to Sacremento to visit his brothers (Dave, Dieter, Joe). I don't think Dieter has too much in common with his brothers, but dinner with them was nice. Even got to meet Lisa, Dave's pregnant wife. :)

Davis, CA
The next day, we drove to Davis to visit Dieter's high school friend Marta. I have to say, for a small town, Davis seemed pretty cool to me. Of course, Marta was an awesome tour guide, so maybe that influenced me a little bit. Either way, the town was warm, sunny, bike friendly, and highly educated. Pretty cool to me.

Vallejo, CA
Dieter and I stop for a picture at a rest stop overlooking the hills in Napa Valley.

San Francisco, CA
We took a lovely driving tour of SF, and got out for a nice visit to the Palace of Fine Arts. What a beauitful building and surrounding gardens!

Half Moon Bay, CA
The following day, we went to Dieter's picturesque hometown of Half Moon Bay. It's not too far outside of San Fran and is a lovely, small town on the ocean. Many people remember HMB because there is a huge pumpkin festival held there annualy. I think it'd be a great place to grow up with ocean and hills and great burritos (from Tres Amigos, of course). Pictured at breakfast: Julie (Dieter's ex from HS), Marta, me, and Dieter.

Skyline Blvd, CA
On our long, all day drive from HMB to Orange County, we took stops to check out scenic overlooks and the such.

Los Angeles, CA
For Easter, we had breakfast at a lovely pancake house, then went to a fancy mini-golf place that was just like real golf, only on a smaller scale. You can tell how seriously we all took it: Krys (Dieter's mom), Joey (little brother), me and Dieter.

Dieter, Golf Pro
He has a certain look about him that's sure to appeal to everday golfers. :)

Dieter, Cal, Krys, Joey
Dieter, Cal (dad), Krys, and Joe all look intently on as Krys goes for a shot. The rest of them were pretty good, but I don't think Dieter and I were quite on the same playing level. Ah well. It was still fun, was a nice relaxing end to a week of driving, and was a great excuse to be outdoors soaking up the Southern California sun!