Back from vacation!

Well, I thought I'd write while I was away, but it didn't happen. We had a great vacation! Husband and I spent the Holidays with family and explored the great state of California - top to bottom.

There were reports of all kinds of severe weather, but we seemed to just miss it everywhere we went. Anyway, what's a little rain when we are used to driving in blizzard conditions this time of year? Those Californians are a little soft when it comes to dealing with a cloudy day, at least in the South.

So here are some impressions about California, from a New Yorker point of view:

- People in LA and San Diego drive FAST. I thought I was an aggressive driver, coming from NYC. I constantly found myself being passed, while doing 80+.

- There are a lot of line-cutters in this state. Several times, someone just stepped in front of us at the front of the line, and seemed genuinely surprised when we put the "smackdown" on them.

- The seals in Monterey made so much noise I could hear in the hotel room with the windows shut. Kind of like a kennel of barking dogs all night outside the window.

- People eat early. We'd start dinner around 8 and would shut the place down. Actually, this happens to us everywhere in America outside New York.

- Radio stations play more variety, more rock, and more local talent.

- It is surprisingly easy to cross the border and go to Mexico for the afternoon. I travel to Canada a lot, and you need a passport now. For Tijiuana, we just needed a driver's license. We parked on the US side and walked across a bridge. For lunch, we had raw shellfish and lemonade. Then we got some tattoos and veterinary drugs. Just kidding!

- In Tijiuana, everyone trying to sell us stuff called us "honeymooners". That was about the only endearing thing there.

- I bet that Hearst guy was a real s.o.b.

- We went to the Monterey aquarium and the San Diego zoo. Both excellent!

- We also saw lots of "wild" life - a parade of turkeys, elephant seals, harbor seals, sea lions, otters, hawks, and tons of deer.

Anyway it was a great trip and I actually did some working out while I was away. The downside? Restaurant meals + drinks with dinner every night = a 5 pound gain. Argh!