Sunday, August 27, 2023

July 18, 2023 - Visit Bodega and Traveled to Berkeley

This morning we were preparing to travel back to Jeff’s house in Berkeley. Before we left Bodega, the kids played ping pong games, and adults were busy with packing and clearing the rental AirB&B.  

Then we drove to Bodega town, which is where Alfred Hitchcock filmed the 1963 movie "The Birds". Most of the film's exterior scenes were filmed around the two towns of Bodega (a small inland village) and Bodega Bay (a larger village on the bay). 


We went to the Saint Teresa of Avila Church and walked around for photo opportunities. We also spotted the nearby court house used in The Birds movie. 

Then, we walked to the town which is just about one block of the street.  It was interesting to visit such famous place and enjoy this quiet and extremely small town.


Then, we drove back to Berkeley and arrived at Jeff’s new house around noon. We had rice triangles from Oori Rice Triangles in Rockridge. Rice triangles are Japanese rice balls also known as onigiri. They are wrapped in seaweed with a variety of fillings and flavors. This was our first time to try it, and we all loved it.  

In the afternoon, we all walked around the neighborhood to Monkey Island Park, which is Winnie’s afternoon walking destination. In addition to showing Jason and Theresa around the  neighborhood, the kids also had a lot of fun in the park.

In the afternoon, we had a happy hour with treats including cheeses, chips, and a special watermelon drink made by Jennifer and the kids. We had pasta made by Jennifer on their wonderful backyard porch. With the California weather and the treats, it was truly enjoyable. In additional, Jeff and Jennifer have done a lot of work to remodel their new house and they definitely did a wonderful job.  It is very homey and comfortable home for their whole family.

After dinner, some of us found a new hobby of playing Benjy’s VR toys.  Everybody had a wonderful time trying this new high tech game.  Maisie was too young to play, however, she had good time by just singing and performing for some of us.

July 19, 2023 - Tilden Regional Park and Relaxing at Home

We and Jason’s family went out to the Tilden Regional Park Little Farm for the kids to see and feed the animals on the farm. The kids also had fun riding the merry-go-round. 

Then, we relaxed at home in the afternoon. Chef Jeff cooked using his fantastic grill on the back porch.  We all hanged around watching him cook and enjoyed the nice weather. Benjy even did some book reading to entertain Maisie. It was a nice afternoon filled with warm family feelings.

The dinner was delicious and we all enjoyed it very much. After dinner, we all went out and walked around the neighborhood.

July 20, 2023 - SF Downtown and Astros vs A's Baseball Game

We did not have any particular plan for today, we just hung around the house and relaxed.  Jason’s family and Lucy went to San Francisco Pier 39 area for some tourist activities.  


In the afternoon, we just had the usual happy hour again. Jennifer did wonderful cooking for all of us. Jason and Jeff went to the Astros game in Oakland A's Coliseum and had wonderful time. The Astros won the game, 3-1.

July 21, 2023 - Swimming, Tennis, and Workout in Fremont Club

After long consideration, Jeff and Jennifer joined the Fremont Club yesterday.  It has wonderful facilities for tennis and swimming. Jason's family and Lucy went to the swimming pool in the morning and had a wonderful time.  


In the afternoon, we all went to the club again with Jeff's family. Benjy, Talia, Lucy, Jennifer and Jeff all played tennis, and Fei and Tony went to workout at the Gym.   

July 22, 2023 - Last Day in Berkeley & Flew Back to Houston

Chef Jeff got up earlier in the morning and made breakfast using his fantastic grill.  We had a chance again to watch him cooking each breakfast item and had a wonderful time together.   


After breakfast, we had to get ready and prepare for heading back to Houston. We got to SF airport early, retuned the rental car, and had lunch at the airport. Surprisingly, SF airport has pretty nice lunch selections.  We chose a Japanese restaurant and had great food.

When we got back to Houston, it was about 6 pm already.  


It was a nice family reunion, and we got a chance to enjoy Jeff and Jennifer’s new house and we all love what they have done with it.  It is a very cozy and homey with a lot of built-in functional facilities.  Their long and hard work definitely paid off.