Vacation in the Sierras

I went on vacation again :) I stayed in a town called Angels Camp, CA - it's in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, about an hour east of Stockton, CA. It's called the Gold Country, because there was a lot of gold mining in the area and logging, too. Nowadays, there are a lot of vineyards and tasting rooms. Most of the towns there have old buildings from the 1800s in their downtowns, so they try to promote old-timey tourism.

Here are some photos from my vacation.

Mercer Cavern

Our tour guide

At Railtown 1897 (train museum)

Our tour guide, again!

Calaveras Big Tree State Park

Downtown Angels Camp

Calaveras County Historical Museum

Road work ahead!

Ironwood Winery

Wine cave

New Melones Lake

Columbia State Historical Park

Sunsets in the mountains

December days

I walk around my neighborhood a lot, but usually its on Shabbat, so I can't take photographs. But the fall weather has been so beautiful lately, I fit in several walks during this week. Here are some photos of Los Angeles dressed in autumn hues. Enjoy.

Thanksgiving 2011

Thanksgiving in SoCal - you never know what you'll get. Last Sunday, we had a torrential rainstorm - water flowing down my street, up and over the curb. Yesterday morning it was 45 degF when I got up at 7 am; but by mid-day, it was 75 degF! And today will be in the 80's. Expect just about anything except snow ;)

This kind of weather lends itself to beautiful skies - here are a couple of sunrises.



The pomegranate in my front yard is turning gold and losing leaves. At the same time, my little cassia tree is blooming away. My garden usually has something in bloom all year long - another perk of living in SoCal.



On Thanksgiving, I like to bake pies. I tried a new recipe this year - an apricot jam tart that has ground almonds in the crust:


I love that the holiday has "thanks" in its name - we all should be grateful for the good things in our lives. Thanks!

Beauty and rainbows

Last week I went to the Huntington Library to see an exhibit of furniture and decorations by Sam Maloof, a master woodworker. He lived in an enclave of painters, potters, and other artisans. Here are a couple of impressions:



Roses in their garden:


I got home and this was parked across the street from me:


It's been raining off and on for the past week. On Friday, there was the most unusual rainbow low on the horizon, right up against the Hollywood Hills:


And today, there was another rainbow, nestled amongst the palm trees:
Fall is a great time in SoCal. Enjoy.

Moving into fall

Days are getting shorter, weather changes day by day. Must be autumn in Southern California.

Happy New Year

Happy Jewish new year, that is. In between holidays, I still have to commute to work, plus go here and there on errands and such. The photos this week are mostly outdoors - with fall around the corner, the sky has turned interesting again. And even everyday things like traffic signs and office buildings take on a creative look. Hope you enjoy.