Sacramento Saturdays

One Saturday evening each month the sidewalks in Sacramento's Midtown are teeming with people, New York-style, and restaurants, cafes and art galleries are abuzz with the kind of vibe you don't usually associate with the sleepy state capitol.
This is the area -- between 18th and 26th Streets a few blocks north of the capitol -- where the 2nd Saturday ArtWalk takes place on, yes, the second Saturday of each month. Businesses, including a couple of dozen art galleries, stay open until at least 9 p.m. and offer wine-and-cheese receptions while showcasing their collections of sculpture, painting and other types of art. Street musicians and bands perform outside, people mingle and wander the usually quiet neighborhood and, all in all, it's quite a happening.
The ArtWalk capped a full day in Sacramento where I traveled with a group of travel writers recently. We toured a couple of new hotels, including Le Rivage, a luxury property on the Sacramento River (and home of the local outpost of Scott's Seafood) two miles from downtown, and the snazzy The Citizen, (at right) which Joie De Vivre Hospitality opened in November. The San Francisco- based company, known for its unique and themed hotels in the Bay Area, completely remodeled a handsome 82-year old office tower downtown. The 198-room boutique hotel, with its elegant Art Deco lobby and restaurant, adds a touch of chic to Sacramento's chain-based hotel scene.
I was also able to check out a new exhibit of beautiful Indian baskets from 20 different California tribes at the California Museum (on display until March 14, 2010). It's amazing to see the intricate work such as that done by the Achumawi tribe of Shasta County whose baskets (below), made in 1900, were woven from pine roots, willow shoots, grass and other fibers.
A few blocks south in Old Sacramento I stopped in to revisit everyone's favorite railroad museum, the California State Railroad Museum. Even if you're not a rail buff, you'll understand why people get obsessive about trains when you hop on the steam locomotives, read about the engineering feat of laying track through the Sierras and see the golden "Lost Spike" up close.
Before setting out on the ArtWalk, we had a lovely dinner at Mulvaney's B&L where chef Patrick Mulvaney emphasizes local ingredients and American comfort food served under the tall ceilings of a restored 1893 firehouse. There seems to be more reason than ever to check out Sacramento.

Spring in the Pinnacles

April and May are the prime months to visit Pinnacles National Monument, the craggy remains of an ancient volcano that rise out of the Gabilan Mountains in central California, south of the town of Hollister. Last weekend, with the poppies and other wildflowers blooming and the hills a lush green, it was no surprise that the park's campground was at capacity. The weather was in the high 60s, perfect for the two main activities here: hiking and rock climbing. Even with parking lots full, you could still find plenty of solitude along the trails and in quiet moments gazing at the stars in the clear night sky.
Pinnacles is renowned among rock climbers, who love its dramatic outcroppings and sheer walls. The visitor center stocks climbers' guides describing routes. But most people come here to walk the trails and explore the caves and tunnels, many carved from the rock by the Civilian Conservation Corp. during a massive public works project in the 1930s.
A group of friends and I hiked the easy 2.2-mile Moses Spring-Rim Trail Loop, where the only challenge was crouching as we negotiated a few tight spots (with flashlights) in the caves. We came across a small bat taking an afternoon nap (photo at right), apparently part of a colony of Townsend's big-eared bats, which stay in the cave year round, according to park literature.

In recent years, the Pinnacles has become known for a much grander winged creature: the California condor. The park is one of only a few release sites in the U.S. and Mexico of this endangered species, which is the largest of North American land birds. A captive breeding program in the 1980s and 1990s has been successful and it's now common to see condors flying and swooping over the high peaks. Their wingspans can reach 10 feet. Two telescopes are available outside the visitor center to help with close up viewing and rangers are often close by to help with identification (they can easily be mistaken for vultures and ravens).
If you go, however, bring your own binoculars to carry along the trails. And, get to the Pinnacles before mid June when the wildflowers fade and the weather really heats up.

A Tale of Two Bakeries

When I was up in Sebastopol and Forestville recently I came across two bakeries, each wonderful in their own way.
Early in the morning, just before I walked up to Florence Avenue to see Patrick Amiot's art (see previous post), I tracked down Patisserie Angelica, a bakery that I had heard about for some time. I wandered around lost a bit because it's a little difficult to find. When you get to the Whole Foods in downtown Sebastopol look east and you'll see a nondescript A-Frame building (the address is 6821 Laguna Park Way). That's Patisserie Angelica.
Step inside and you're in a different world -- a Parisian type of world. The display case of cakes and pastries is a jewel box of treats. I love almond croissants and the one I had was the real deal: buttery, flaky and still warm from the oven. I savored it with a caffe latte. Not surprisingly, the pastry chef, Condra Easley, trained in Paris and it shows.
A few hours later, I headed up the winding old Cazadero Highway out of Monte Rio on the Russian River.
The goal was Raymond's, a totally different type of bakery than Patisserie Angelica. People drive from miles around for Raymond's breads, pizza and focaccia served in a cozy, neighborly atmosphere in a spot in a curve of the road, nestled under tall redwood trees. The old logging town of Cazadero is a mile away. I loved the rustic-style mushroom-onion-olive focaccia, pillowy and baked crisp, and friends in Forestville raved about the Italian ciabatta loaf I brought them that evening. Raymond's would be an ideal place for picnic supplies when you're on your way to Jenner or other spots on the north Sonoma coast but call ahead because their hours are limited. It's only open three days a week: Fridays, Saturday and Sundays. On Fridays, Raymond's stays open until 9 p.m. but on weekends it closes at 3 p.m. and some breads or pizzas sell out earlier than that so call ahead to make sure they have what you're after (I took the photo above at left at 1 p.m. on a Saturday and some of the shelves were already bare).

A Neighborhood Gallery of Sorts

A few years ago, Patrick Amiot, a French-Canadian who lives in Sebastopol with his wife, Brigitte, and two daughters, came across an old rowboat at a flea market, bought it and transformed it into a sculpture: a giddy fisherman holding his catch.Amiot displayed it out on his front lawn and found it soon drew a lot of people who couldn't help but smile when they saw the whimsical sulpture on Florence Avenue. It was the start of an outdoor art gallery in Sebastopol, which has undergone a relatively recent transition from agricultural town to a leftist mecca, a kind of Berkeley for Sonoma County. Today, many of Amiot's neighbors on Florence -- and friends all over Sebastopol -- have placed Amiot's sculptures, made from objects he's found on scavenger hunts, in their front yards.
Some of the residents selected the pieces and bought them, but others are simply displaying them (if there's one that you fancy, you can ask the artist about making a purchase or having one custom designed). You can't help but grin as you stroll through the pretty neighborhood of old Victorians just a few blocks from downtown. In one yard, there's a skeleton riding a motorcyle. A few steps away there's a farmer with a chicken on his tractor and, across the street, blondes in a red convertible. Amiot's house (top) is the funkiest, with a scattering of sculptures and an old fire alarm box with free guides to his works in front.
To get to Florence from downtown, begin at the corner of Main and Bodega and head west on Bodega, turn right on Florence and walk the few blocks. One of the houses is the George A. Strout House (at 253 Florence), a 1903 Queen Anne Victorian on the National Registry of Historic Places. Continue on Florence until Healdsburg Avenue turn left to make a loop back downtown.

Trendspotting in Northern California

An image came to mind after attending this week's Northern California Visitor Industry Outlook Conference: the thousands of people lined up along San Francisco's Crissy Field on a beautiful day several months ago to watch the arrival of the Queen Mary, the largest ship ever to sail under the Golden Gate Bridge. It was an exciting day and an amazing sight -- the massive ship seemed to barely squeeze under the span. Those kinds of experiences -- fun, close to home and free -- may be what people will be looking for this year and possibly for a couple of years to come. The industry experts and economists at the forum painted a gloomy picture of the U.S. economy and its impact on travel. Consumers are "spending less and staying closer to home," said Dan Mishell, research director for the California Travel and Tourism Commission. A recent CTTC survey found that 19% of consumers planned to take fewer trips this year and 23% would stay with friends and family instead of paying for lodging. The upshot for travelers who have a bit of discretionary income is that they will find good deals: hotels all over California are lowering prices to lure guests. In San Francisco, hotel prices are dropping and the convention and visitors bureau is starting a special campaign to attract locals to the city's special events, such as the King Tut exhibit opening June 27 at the DeYoung. For better or for worse, that term coined last year -- "staycation" -- looks like it's here to stay.

A Bit of Bhutan in San Francisco

It's one of those places that people who've been say IS truly magical -- the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan. It's on my wish list but, for now, an exhibit here in San Francisco will have to do. The Dragon's Gift: The Sacred Arts of Bhutan, opens Saturday, Feb. 21 at the Asian Art Museum. I got a sneak preview at a press event of the spectacular objects that cover three galleries on the museum's first floor. Last year was the first time Bhutanese art has ever been exhibited outside of Bhutan: the show went first to Honolulu and then to New York. "It's a wonderful platform for Bhutan," said a beaming Penden Wangchuck (shown above), Bhutan's minister of cultural affairs, on Wednesday. "It's an opportunity to showcase a small country wedged in the Himalayas between two giants, India and China." He said all the objects are sacred to the Bhutanese, who practice a type of Buddhism (Vajrayana) that arrived in the country -- one of the few in Asia never colonized -- in the 8th century. The exhibit pieces are used in daily religious practices, such as a ritual to wash away bad karma. Sculptures of dieties are covered with gold, turquoise and coral. Just outside the galleries, Bhutanese monks chant and perform rituals at an altar several times a day during the duration of the exhibit. The museum store, as usual, is selling some terrific stuff, including new items from Bhutan. I came away vowing to return soon to see the art at a calmer pace -- and to get some of that bad karma cleansed.

Monterey, monarchs and meanderings

An inch of hail fell during my stay in Asilomar on the Monterey Peninsula one morning recently and the little kernels of ice actually stuck on my car's windshield for a few hours. The record-breaking cold, however, didn't stop a small group of us shiver-prone Californians from enjoying our overnight stay here in what is one of the most beloved of state's old lodges. Asilomar, created in 1913 as a YWCA retreat, contains the largest collection of Julia Morgan's architecture in one location and the buildings and grounds are tenderly looked after by a state park and concession crew that includes long-term employees. One is Pat Cosio, a raconteur and 50-year dining room server who is a repository of all kinds of Asilomar lore (he can tell you about being there the day John F. Kennedy had breakfast in the hall). To get the official background on the place, however, call ahead and reserve a spot on the park service's tours of the grounds. The one I joined was led by Andrea Bates (left), a ranger with an deep knowledge and enthusiasm for Morgan's architecture, the local micro-habitats and Asilomar's history. The tour takes visitors inside many of the grand Arts and Crafts-style buildings designed by Morgan, the first architect to practice in California, and around the sprawling grounds with views of the crashing surf and the lush fairways of Pebble Beach. (If you don't catch a ranger-led tour, there are new self-guided walking audio tours available any time).
Later, my group hopped on three-speed beach cruiser bikes (for rent at Asilomar) for an easy four-mile ride loop ride stopping at a number of local sites, including the quaint old Point Pinos Lighthouse (above, right), the oldest continuously operating lighthouse on the west coast, Asilomar State Beach and the Pacific Grove Monarch Sanctuary. I'd always heard about the 40,000 monarch butterflies that migrate to this town every year but never visited between October and early February when they hunker down in the pine and eucalyptus trees. Bring some binoculars to see the clusters of butterflies up close, or plan to stop by when a docent is on hand with a telescope. Even without those aids, however, look close and soon you'll be aware of dozens of the colorful little insects circling around you. That evening, as the temperatures fell to near freezing, we warmed ourselves with a delicious Mediterranean-style dinner (rack of lamb was a highlight) at a long-time favorite Pacific Grove restaurant, Fandango.
Winter is a terrific time to visit the Monterey Peninsula: bundle up, bring an umbrella and you'll find much lower hotel rates, cozy spots by fireplaces and fewer crowds at the Monterey Bay Aquarium (which, by the way, recently released a wallet-sized sustainable seafood guide to sushi, part of its free Seafood Watch series of little folding guides that easily fit into pockets books).

Olio nuovo californiano

On a visit to my uncle in Italy a few years ago he took me to his local frantoio, an olive oil press, where anyone who has a few buckets of olives from their own trees can drop them off. The owners of the frantoio, in this case a co-op of local farmers, then press the olives, produce the oil, and a few days later you return to pick up bottles filled with an amount of olive oil equivalent to the weight of olives you left. Before leaving that morning, I had a discussion that I often have with my relatives who can't understand why something so routine to them is so interesting to me. Don't you have frantoios in California, asked my 80-year old uncle, who has rarely stepped outside of his corner of Tuscany? At that point, I had to say no.
Now, I can tell him that we do have frantoios here in California and they are working much like they do in Italy. And, the olive oil is pretty darned good. A couple of weeks ago, some friends invited me to join them on McEvoy Ranch's annual harvest open house, a day when regular clients and guests make their way to the rolling hills along the Marin and Sonoma border where 18,000 olive trees of Italian origin cover about 80 acres. Just like at my uncle's local frantoio, on this day anyone is invited to bring their own olives to press. And, you pick up an equivalent amount of olive oil later on.
McEvoy, which was founded in 1991 by Nan McEvoy, conducts regular ranch tours, but the harvest open house has a bit more to offer: a chance to show off the season's luscious and deep green, freshly pressed oil. There's also opportunities to buy a tree from dozens laid out in the beautiful grounds and consult with Samantha Dorsey (see above) who patiently fields all kinds of questions about types of olives, curing them, and taking care of trees. Judging from the number of people happily carting away the leafy trees more frantoios will be springing up all over California. Check out the McEvoy shop at the San Francisco Ferry Building for more information on olive oils and tree planting. Or, make a note to visit McEvoy web site in March, when they start their public tour program for 2009.