Today was a big day!! The family were off to Squaw Valley for two nights and they were going to drop me off in Sacramento on the way, lucky me!! This meant that today's drive was through all new territory for me.
The land here is showing the results of practically no rain over the last few months, the land and hillsides are very brown and it must be very hard for those who make their living off the land. We passed a few hilly areas but as we approached nearer to Sacramento I was amazed at how flat everything is around here, very like the mid west in that aspect!! Just outside Sacramento I noticed the vast areas of water, divided up by rushes on one side but stretching for miles. I later learned that these are Paddy Fields as Sacramento is one of the largest rice growing areas in the world. Learn something new every day!!! We dropped off the Interstate and it did not take long to find my hotel, just opposite the Amtrak station, even nearer than I thought! So we went off to Starbucks for a drink and then it was farewell to family for a few days, but I will see them again on Friday for the weekend.
All I have to do to get to Old Sacramento is to walk across the road and through the car parking building opposite. Having done this I found myself in a totally different world, it was as if I had gone back over a hundred years in time. Lots of shops with old fashioned facades, mostly touristy and lots with different foodstuffs plus the Railway Museum that is a must to visit! I went to the Olive Mix where there are the most incredible mixes of Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar, flavours you would never have thought of, and just walking in the shop was enough to give you a sniff of it all!! I tasted a few combinations - Strawberry Dark + Basil Olive Oil, Black Cherry Dark + Harissa Olive Oil, Espresso Dark + Blood Orange Olive Oil to name a few. There is a correct way to taste them and we are shown how to do that!! i will return to possibly purchase some, there are some small bottles available! I also, need to do the walk along the river!!
I returned to the hotel and, after contacting Peggy, I began Googling various directions to get around Sacramento. She picked me up just after 4 pm and we went to the Cheesecake Factory for tea. I enjoyed my dinner with a glass of wine and of course had to try a piece of the house speciality, I chose the Cherry cheesecake but most of it came back to the hotel with me in a doggy bag - tea tomorrow!! Peggy and I chatted away for a couple of hours or so over dinner and it made the meal even more enjoyable!
A long, tiring but very enjoyable day!!
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