R.C.A.F.E.*

Got ya wondering now, didn't I? Well, you have to read (actually, you could just scroll down, but you SHOULD read. It's the right thing to do, and you know it).

(And No, Audrey, it's NOT the name of the great coffee place in Israel, so don't even try.)

It has been called to my attention that we have not let you know that we are now in California. Oh my goodness, what a glaring omission.

We are now in California. (you're welcome)

So, to catch you up...yesterday evening, we had a powerful lesson in Mommy Can Certainly Be Mistaken. After a whole afternoon spent at the beach in Oregon (proving nature is exhausting and time consuming), we headed south, staying along the coast (the Oregon coast is spectacular, add it to your list). We intended to drive a couple of hours and stop in Coos Bay. Well, one thing led to another, and Mommy thought "Just a little further...." and we wound up in the next significant town and then in the next, which was Brookings, Oregon. I was sure that we were miles from the border. And then I looked at our guidebook (it was LATE by this point...after 8:00 p.m.), and it mentioned that there was a hotel that was in Crescent City, CA, "only 25 minutes south of Brookings". 25 MINUTES? WE'RE NEAR CALIFORNIA?? LET'S GO! So we went.

We stayed in Crescent City last night, and headed out this morning, with the goal of getting to Fort Bragg tonight. ANOTHER powerful lesson (this one even more so...we're on a roll) in Mommy Sometimes Doesn't Have a Clue What She's Talking About. Same concept, different day. I thought Fort Bragg was close (sorta like thinking the border of California was far), but it wasn't (and I mean wasn't). Even later tonight than last. Oh, well. We're here.

But rewind for a moment...before leaving Crescent City, we decided to make a stop at (drum roll) OCEAN WORLD!! The appeal was primarily the opportunity to pet sharks, which sold Phoebe immediately. Ben, if you're reading this, it's time to fall down now--Phoebe did actually pet a shark. She was sure you wouldn't believe her, so here's a photo.


The shark didn't bite, it didn't even feel weird, even though we learned that shark skin is made up of millions of tiny little teeth, which is why its skin was (and sometimes still is) used as sandpaper. HOWEVER...when we moved on in the exhibit, the strangest thing happened. I hestitate to tell you, but you have the right to know. Maybe the best way to explain is to ask if you've seen that Woody Allen movie "Zelig". You know, it was kinda funny, but it was kind of heartbreaking at the same time? Well....well....maybe it's just better that you see it with your own eyes....brace yourself...


And since Ocean World wasn't enough for us, we made our next faithful stop at "The Trees of Mystery!" (aka California Redwoods--hey, those old growth redwoods have to be good for making money somehow), home of Paul Bunyan and Babe! (okay, stepping down off my cynic's soapbox now)

(just for size reference, here's Phoebe on his shoe:)
This attraction features an aerial tram that goes up up up through the canopy of huge redwoods to a little observation deck on the mountain top and then down down down again. But! And I say again, But! For the intrepid among us, there is a second option--you can hike down, instead of taking the tram. The sign by the trail says "For Advanced Hikers Only", with multiple accompanying warnings about the trail and it advises hikers to "check with the attendant" before you do it. So we checked. And then we went, "advanced hikers" that we are. It was the best part of the day. Here's a photo of Phoebe on the trail, and us at the bottom, just before we returned our hiking sticks that we picked up at the top.


We talked and talked and made a list of things to research (tallest tree in the world, oldest tree in the world, and lots more info about the history of tree-sitters in California.."they were SO brave!", Phoebe said. Right on. (and in this case, I don't even care if that expression dates me)

And just one more photo for those of you who, for whatever reason, have not had the good fortune to see the California redwoods "up close and personal". Phoebe, with a representative of the largest trees in the world. Gorgeous.


*Oh. Rampant Commercialism And Flagrant Exploitation