Our second home is in Northern California, and I'm not above boasting about the joys of living an hour from Wine Country. The nearness of paradise makes me want to wax poetic about Napa Valley and those delicious little grapes. But, after giving it my best shot, all I came up with was:
Roses are red,
Violets are blue.
I love fruity Pinots,
And the Cabernets too.
Recently, out-of-town guests were the perfect excuse to revisit the charming town of St. Helena in Napa Valley.
Main Street St. Helena
As social director, my plan was to start with breakfast at Gillwood's Cafe, move on to some low-key shopping, explore galleries, and then end the afternoon with wine tasting at Oxbow. And don't I love it when a plan comes together without a hitch. Napa Valley is the kind of place where hitches would be just an excuse to try something different.
Salmon Benedict at Gillwood's Cafe
Satiated with food, and with coffee pumping through our veins, we let the exploration begin. We started at Baksheest Fair Trade which carries interesting merchandise for that perfect gift, or a home or garden or jewelry accessory to treat yourself. (I treated myself to earrings.) The boutique is committed to fair trade principles to empower marginalized third world artisans while providing customers with a delightful shopping experience.
Baksheest Fair Trade, lower right corner (Masonic Building Circa 1892)
Interesting Merchandise
Colorful Displays (above and below)
This trip we simply couldn't squeeze in another meal, but we've eaten at The Market on earlier trips and it's a worthwhile stop.
The Market restaurant: Try the Zinfandel Braised Lamb Shank
Across the street, we wandered shops with interesting art pieces, amazing furniture, and unusual home items.
Eye Catching Giraffe at the Art Gallery on Main
Martin Showroom: A pleasure to browse
Unique Treasures
Before leaving downtown we popped into Lolo's, a favorite of mine when I'm in St. Helena. In addition to designer clothes, Lolo's carries jewelry and some home items. It's always a new experience.
Lolo's Consignment for deals on gently used designer clothing
Our friends, Susan and Joe, who were our professed reason for this outing, suggested we stop at Dean and Deluca's as we headed south from St. Helena. Seems our friends had been doing a bit of internet research on things to do in Napa Valley and realized Dean & Deluca's had a store just outside of town. They'd become familiar with the gourmet and specialty food giant from visits to New York City.
Dean & Deluca's: Purveyors of food, wine, and kitchenware
Pricey, but a delight to behold
A head start on dinner
It had been a perfect day and we planned to cap it off with A Taste at Oxbow. John, our sommelier, was knowledgeable, friendly and funny. All we had to do was sit back and enjoy.
John, our sommelier.
Looking over the wine list
We left happy and with only one decision left to make. How would we spend tomorrow.
[Have you ever wondered what it means to wax poetic? The word wax comes from an archaic word meaning "to grow." Think of waxing and waning which means getting bigger and then smaller as in the moon waxes and wanes. In reference to poetry waxing means to use flowery, or expressive language "to grow" your descriptions.]
Julie Albrecht Royce, Travel Adventures Editor, is the author of Traveling Michigan's Sunset Coast and Traveling Michigan's Thumb, both published by Thunder Bay Press. She writes a monthly column for wanderingeducators.com.
On her blog, Julie is currently writing two weekly series.
On Mondays, she posts in her series entitled, "Ugly Shoes and Boomer Do Europe." This series captures the humor and adventure of her rail trip from Amsterdam to Budapest and then return river cruise back to Amsterdam.
On Thursdays, Julie writes about PILZ, the legal thriller novel she has written.
Log on to www.jkroyce.com/blog to follow along.
All photos courtesy and copyright Julie and Bob Royce