Mendocino & Fort Bragg

Hello ocean. This is the beautiful view that one finds around the tiny shops of Fort Bragg, California.

Aviva and I sit and take in the view at a winery just north of Mendocino, the Pacific Star Winery. I think I could get used to a view like this one. Aviva has a theory that the landscape accounts for the fact that everyone calls California cows "Happy Cows." Who could blame them for being happy? They get to bask in the sun and watch the waves crash against the rocks while chewing their cud. Not a bad deal.

Here I contemplate whether to start drinking that wine right away. Nah. Maybe I better wait until after noon. We sampled a wide range of wines but ended up buying a relatively inexpensive 2000 Zinfandel. It was smooth, simple and lovely--perfect, we figured, for sitting on the beach, eating cheese and sandwiches. That's what we did for part of the evening until it started to get too dark and too cold, and the rock we perched our asses on started to get just plain too hard. Funny how rock seats tend to do that eventually.

Anyway, I totally recommend the Pacific Star Winery. They have the most spectacular views and pretty darned good wine too. One of their wines is named after the vintner's father, who approached us as we were getting back into the car.

He asked, "Did ya try Dad's Daily Red?"
We replied in unison: "Yes."
"What did you think," asked Dad.
"It was great. Fantastic," We replied, speaking over each other.
He smiled and explained, "That's my wine. That's my picture on the bottle."

I couldn't help but thinking he looked awful spry for 84 and I vowed to start drinking red wine on a daily basis. Perhaps one need look no further than the Pacific Star Winery for that fountain of youth! Too bad my graduate student budget might make daily glasses of red wine prohibitively expensive.

In this shot, I'm searching for the perfect piece of beach to have our little picnic. Though given that the sun is setting quickly and the mercury is falling fast, we'll have to eat and run.

What a spectacular sunset! The colours aren't fabricated either--that photo is almost as beautiful as the real thing!

We bought some yummy sandwiches and focaccia courtesy of this fancy organic grocery store. Those places are a dime a dozen in California, it seems. In this shot, you can also see the previously mentioned rock seats. By the time we finished eating, our butts were sore and sandy, though my pain had more to do with the fact that I'd just spent an hour horseback riding. In any case, next time we decide to eat on the beach we'll bring blankets.