Week Forty Eight Tuesday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 19, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful for Day Fifteen,  Sixteen and Seventeen of our American trip. 

On Sunday we started the day all together. We headed off to beautiful Hearst Castle  a famous estate that belonged to William Randolph Hearst a newspaper magnate who died in 1951. It was designed by architect Julia Morgan. It is a national and Californian Historical Landmark. The gardens were incredible and the buildings the sign of a very unique and eccentric man. 



After visiting Hearst Castle we headed south towards a little seaside town called Pimso Beach. We stopped and had lunch and the boys rode on to Los Olivos and the girls travelled in the van. 

Los Olivos is a beautiful little town of art galleries, wine tasting rooms and historic homes. 

We stayed at the Fess Parker Wine Country Inn and Spa. 


On Monday we all drove to Santa Barbara where we dropped our bags and then headed out to watch The Second day of the Tour of California. The boys rode to a little town called Ojai. We met them there and then all travelled on to Santa Clarita where the stage finished. The finish was a very exciting one as two boys who had been in a breakaway during the race stayed away right up until the finish and came first and second. The other thing that was exciting was seeing all the riders up close. Wiggins was there and was rushed past me for a wee test in the antidoping area! 


That night we all headed in different directions for dinner. Our brief to the concierge was somewhere close. The restaurant we went to was out our back door and it was fun. We shared  a communal table and sat with a couple who were on their second Tinder date. It was a night of great food, interesting conversation and a pretty spot. 

On Tuesday morning I was tour guide for David and Mark. We did a short self guided walking tour of Santa Barbara. The town has a big Spanish influence. 

I was very surprised by the large number of homeless people in this town and was baffled that so many of the rich and famous have holiday homes here ( eg Oprah, Ellen,  Tim Allen,  Jeff Bridges, Kevin Costner, Tom Cruise, Whoopie Goldberg, Jennifer Lopez, Julia-Louise Dreyfus, Steven Spielberg). In the afternoon the boys did the Gibraltar climb before the pros raced it in the Tour of California. The girls got a glimpse of why the rich and famous like this town. Our lovely guide Marie drove us around the Santa Barbara hills and we got glimpses of the amazing views of the coastline and  of long driveways, big gates and amazing homes. 


We finished the day with a Mexican meal with all our travelling companions. We said our goodbyes, thanked our wonderful guides Marie and Adam and talked about our fantastic trip. It was a great finish to a truly memorable experience. 

David and I are off to Los Angeles next for a few days and then home. 


Until next blog ……

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Week Forty Seven Saturday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 16, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful for Day Thirteen and Fourteen of our American trip. 

On Friday we departed from Monterey and drove up the Seventeen Mile Drive through the Del Monte Forest and along the dramatic Pacific Coast. The boys did the same thing on their bicycles. On one side of us were amazing homes and the other amazing coast line. We finished by popping into Pebble Beach Golf Links – the home of the US Open 5 times. 



We finished our day with a beautiful long lunch overlooking the water. 



On Saturday the boys did their longest ride yet along the Big Sur Coast. We did the same route in the comfort of our bus. It was a very special day of stunning scenery, wildlife and friendship. 





We finished our day with another beautiful meal at Robin’s in the town of Cambria. 


Until next time 

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Week Forty Seven Friday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 14, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful for windows that open and the smell of the sea  – our hotel in Monterey has both! 

It is Day Twelve of our American trip. 

We left St Helene and The Napa wine region yesterday and made our way to Monterey. 

 The boys cycled up Mt Diablo and the girls hiked Mt Diablo. Again it was a lovely day of great company and lovely scenery.  

We arrived in Monterey to our lovely hotel Monterey Plaza Hotel and quickly changed as we had a dinner booking at Roy’s at Pebble Beach. 

While David and I where enjoying a golf club view the rest of our group were meeting Keeanu Reeves! 


I will blog again soon 

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Week Forty Seven Tuesday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 12, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful for Day Eight , Nine and Ten of our American Trip.

On Monday we started the second part of our trip which is traveling with Bikestyle Tours a company specialising in cycling holidays to France, Italy, Spain and the USA. The boys are cycling and the girls are sightseeing.

We started our day with a 45 minute drive to Muir Woods. The boys set off on their cycle for the day and the girls set off on a 5 mile hike in the Muir Woods  and beyond. We had a lovely morning of walking and talking. The walk was harder than I expected as it went up for the first half and then back down into the valley for the second half. We all managed however and Ava who is Grade 5 did especially well.

A Banana Slug

Some sort of funghi

Looking down into the valley

On top of the world

Beautiful Muir Woods

Among the fairies

The massive trees

A great group of girls – Eva, Jan, Jenny, Angela and Kylie

We finished the day at Press Restaurant in St Helene .

I spent Day Nine investigating the streets of Calistoga and then finishing the afternoon visiting the famous Francis Ford Coppola winery just north of Healdsburg. This winery not only had lovely wines to taste but had a lot of memorabilia from Francis Ford Coppolas movies.

The bottling area

The Godfathers desk and chair

The view

Our evening was spent in another beautiful restaurant called Bouchon – a beautiful French restaurant in the town of Yountville.
Day Ten started with a great coffee. The boys headed off for their 90km ride through the hills of Napa. The girls had a lovely sleep in and then some wandered the streets of St Helene visiting the shops and art galleries while others visited the beautiful Health Spas which the area is also famous for. After lunch the group split up – some enjoying the wineries and others content to stay close to the town and indulge in more delicious food At Cook Bistro and Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen.

More divine food

Again until next time


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Week Forty Six Sunday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 9, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful for Day Six and Seven of our America trip. 

We finally made it to San Francisco . Our day on Friday was supposed to be a 10am flight and a quiet afternoon in San Francisco. Instead we spent 15 hours in the Las Vegas airport. We managed to be on the last plane for the day and made it to our hotel in San Francisco by 1am Saturday morning. I am grateful that we got here safely, that our hotel had not given away our booking and that all our luggage arrived safely too. I am also grateful that I was not tempted by the many many slot machines at the Vegas airport. 

Our dinner on Friday night



Saturday was an early start with a tour of Alcatraz. It was really interesting learning about the prison and I can highly recommend the audio tour to anyone who goes. It was very informative and very user friendly. ( I always like to do an audio tour especially if I am with the kids because I think it is a really good way of becoming informed about the tourist attraction you are visiting. Sometimes however they are extremely confusing and can take away from what you are seeing – for example the one we did at the Louvre a few years ago). There was only one successful escape from Alcatraz and no one knows if the three who escaped actually lived. 

A cell at Alcatraz

The cell block at Alcatraz

Alcatraz from the Ferry


We had a lovely lunch at a French Bistro called Cafe Claude in the afternoon with Angela, Troy and Eva Hawthorn who we are traveling with in the coming week. We also had a ride in the famous San Francisco cable car and of course finished the afternoon with some shopping. Our day continued into the evening with a beautiful dinner at the Burrit Room and Tavern. 

Sunday has been a great day. We spent the morning doing a driving tour around the town. Our guide’s name was Reid and his company’s name was Small Car, Big Time Tours. We had four hours driving around the city learning about the history, the architecture and the people. It was wonderful. We finished the morning with lunch at Cafe Zoetrope which is owned and often visited by Francis Ford Coppola the famous American film producer who’s movies include all The Godfather movies. After lunch we had a real coffee ( which is very hard to come by in America) in Cafe Trieste. This cafe was the first place to introduce espresso to the people of San Francisco. It was good coffee. We will continue into the evening with dinner at one of the many restaurants here. 

David with our guide Reid

My very cool husband David

The Golden Gate Bridge

Typical San Francisco architecture

San Francisco


Until tomorrow…..

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Week Forty Six Friday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 7, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful that I am under no time pressure. It is Day five of our American holiday today and David and I are traveling to San Francisco. We got to the airport this morning and our 11am flight was cancelled. We have been scheduled to fly out on a 4pm  plane  and  we are wait listed to be on a 1pm flight. 

I am so grateful that we do not have to get a connecting flight anywhere. There were people in the queue who were supposed to be on our  plane who had connecting flights to Singapore. They were going to miss their connection. David and I have nothing booked or planned today so there is no problem if we are delayed. 

“People say there’s delays on flights. Delays, really? New York to California in five hours, that used to take 30 years, a bunch of people used to die on the way there, have a baby, you would end up with a whole different group of people by the time you got there.“Now you watch a movie and [go to the toilet] and you’re home.” — Louis C.K. 

Today I am grateful David booked us on business class because it means we get preference if there are any seats available on earlier flights. I am a little worried as our baggage is probably going to be on an earlier flight. 
Today I am also grateful that I am safe. During the night my phone alerted me that there was an armed and dangerous person on the road in Las Vegas. We were also alerted when it was again safe. I am constantly amazed at the technology available that allows messages like this to be sent. We got one in Japan when we were there last time that alerted us to the impending earthquake……Wouldn’t it be nice if a message was sent to say today is beautiful and we hope you have a wonderful day! 

I will let you know when we arrive in San Francisco …….

Until then 

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Week Forty Six Thursday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 6, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful for the rest of Day Two and Day Three and Four of our American trip. 

The second evening David and I went to another show called Le Reve – The Dream. It was a choreographed show in an aqua theatre in the round. 

Le Reve


We then went to dinner after the concert at Sinatra. The food was amazing – I had asparagus and broccolini soup with lobster and then home made fettuccini with fresh truffles. The other thing that was pretty exciting was the foyer of the restaurant had an Academy award, a Golden globe and a Grammy . 

Sinatra

On Day Three we wandered down The Strip. There are so many shops here ! And I haven’t bought anything! We spent the evening listening to Lionel Ritchie in concert. He was amazing ! I saw him in the 80s doing his Dancing on the Ceiling Tour when he actually danced on the ceiling. There was still dancing on the ceiling but not by Lionel. I still think he is one of the best entertainers I have ever seen ( my other favorite was Peter Allen ). 

Lionel Ritchie


My favorite song from last night – 

We Are the World – Lionel Richie, Tina Turner, Michael Jackson

Visit me at: http://odiailprossimotuo.wordpress.com A wonderfull video of the most important and good singer in the US and in the World singing “We Are the Wordl”


Today we spent seeing the Grand
Canyon in a helicopter. Wow! We flew out over the Hoover Dam, flew to the bottom of the Canyon, had a boat ride in the base of the Canyon, walked around the Sky Walk and flew back to Las Vegas. Tonight we are resting – I used up a lot of nervous energy today. 

Our helicopter

Hoover Dam

Flying in to the Canyon

The base of the Canyon

David and I on the skywalk


Until tomorrow ……

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Week Forty Six Tuesday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 4, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful to be having a wonderful holiday in America. The next few weeks I will be blogging about our holiday. 
We flew into Los Angeles and then up to Vegas. 

We are staying in an amazing hotel called the Wynn Encore.

Wynn Encore


I am grateful David and I both managed an eight hour sleep last night. 
Last night we went to a show called Showstoppers which was a collection of show tunes. It was amazing. We then had a late dinner at Andreas. It was contemporary Japanese in a very groovy setting. 
This morning we wandered The Strip. Everything here is big. The people, the meals, the buildings, the casinos……we walked though The Bellagio which had a Japanese Garden display. It was not at all zen like a beautiful Japanese garden – it was a Japanese garden on steroids.

The Bellagio


More Bellagio

More Japanes garden


And there is lots of sugar everywhere……even the spoons are made from sugar – 

Coffee with a sugar spoon


David and I have spent the afternoon enjoying sitting around the pool. Until tomorrow or the next day….

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Week Forty Six Monday’s Grateful List 

Posted on May 4, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful that last Wednesday I had my first ride on the road since my accident. 

I think it is useful for me to review the last Forty Six Weeks.

On June 10th , 2015 I fell off my bicycle and sustained numerous injuries. You can read about that day if you do not know about it here : http://www.jennifertucker.me/2015/07/02/not-a-grateful-post-thought-i-would-put-down-the-way-i-saw-june-7th-the-day-of-the-accident/

I spent a night in intensive care and then two weeks in hospital recovering.

I spent the next three months being looked after totally by my family and much help was given to us as a family by our friends and family.

A week after being discharged from hospital I had to be readmitted to The Royal Brisbane Hospital with vomiting as my gut wasn’t working properly because it had been bruised so badly in the accident. I spent about three days in hospital this visit.

On Tuesday 1st September I had to go back in to hospital overnight as the fracture in my arm had not healed from the accident and I had a plate inserted. I required a general anaethetic and spent a night in hospital. It was quite a painful operation and took another few months to recover from. 

On Wednesday 25th November I had a large mole removed from my back that was precancerous. This was not major but it did mean I could not exercise for approximately 6 weeks as the incision was in a difficult spot on my lower back. 

On Tuesday 8th March this year I had another general following a mammogram that picked up unusual cells. Again this was not a big operation but I had to take things quietly for a couple of weeks after. 

So today I am grateful that after all this time I have finally done a ride on the road. I went with two of my lovely cycling friends and did 1/2 a river loop. The girls devised a very gentle route with no hills. I felt very safe and I loved it. 

Alex, Jottie and I doing my first 1/2 River Loop


I am also grateful that I have completed a learn to row course. This has been on my bucket list for a few years. 

The girls I learnt to row with

 

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Week Forty Five – Monday’s Grateful List. 

Posted on April 25, 2016 by admin

Today I am grateful for Anzac Day. 



They shall grow not old, 

as we that are left grow old; 

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. 

At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them. 

Lest we forget. 

Today I am grateful for a day to stop , reflect and remember all those who served in our armed forces, those who are  serving in our armed forces and those who have died defending our country and our freedom.

Today I am grateful for my grandfather who served in World War 2 in the Air Force. He was a coast guard watcher in Papua New Guinea. He was stationed behind enemy lines and watched the Japanese Air Force planes in the area and radioed back their position to the allied forces.  He was stationed in the jungle near a place called Tufi. My grandpa never talked about the war. Mum remembers his return from war and recounts that he was green with mould. Prior to the war he was a school teacher and he returned to teaching on his return. Today I am grateful that he fought for our continued freedom here in Australia and that he continued to serve his country on his return by returning to his beloved profession teaching.  

George Alexander Henley, Royal Australian Airforce, Stationed at 304 Radar Station

Joan and George Henley


Today I am grateful for those individuals who are presently serving. I have friends who have children that are in the army and navy now. It must be such a mixture of emotion for those relatives – knowing that their children are serving their country and potentially going to war but being so proud of the choice they have made to serve. 

Photo courtesy of Kym Streeter who’s husband has served in the army and who has two children serving in the navy at present.

Today I am grateful to all those people who support our servicemen and women -To the partners and parents they come home too and  to the medical and nursing profession who care for them when they are injured or sick. 

Today I am grateful to all the other countries who have servicemen and women defending our way of life and fighting for a world that is free from terror. 

Please take the time to read today a friend of mines blog post about her old next door neighbour who was effected by war and please take the time today to reflect on the sacrifices our service men and women make so we can live freely. – Help Me Honour Mr Mac this Anzac Day

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