A day in the wine country

Petaluma, California: Well, Dear Reader, we didn't make it but 50 miles today! After a few days of City Life, we decided to tour a bit of the wine country north of San Francisco. It is a lovely part of California, but the traffic is simply unbearable. DT did great going through town and across the Golden Gate Bridge on Highway 101, but just a few miles north of San Francisco traffic just crawled. It was so annoying! People simply cannot merge. Do they not teach merging any longer? After we checked into our campsite, we hopped in the Honda, only to sit in traffic along Highway 12. DT was driving me to the wonderful Oakville Grocer - and it took HOURS.

Golden Gate Bridge

We did find wonderful treasures at the Oakville Grocer. After DT's grandmother introduced me to this fabulous gourmet food store in 1983, I have been a steady customer. It is a treat to visit the Oakville Grocer and see what is new. Unfortunately, they no longer offer mail-order.

On our way home, we stopped for a delightful dinner in Sonoma at the Depot Hotel-Cucina Rustica. We did not have a reservation and it was after 7 pm on a Friday night and we landed a pool-side table for two on the patio! Once the Depot Hotel, the Cucina Rustica is situated across the street from the Sonoma train station and was used for years by train travelers. The building is gorgeous and the patio is jungle-like with vines growing up over the fences, making a quiet and fragrant scene.

DT had a seafood soup and linguine with a kalamata olive, capers and anchovy red sauce. I had a smoked salmon appetizer and veal marsala for dinner. For dessert they offered raspberries with a zablione creme and we did not refuse. If you are ever in Sonoma and are craving Italian food, we recommend the Depot Hotel.

Hotel Depot-Cucina Rustica in Sonoma

RV Park: Petaluma KOA