Not only has string group Kronos Quartet assembled a significant list of long-term female collaborators and composers over their tenure, they come from around the world. Franghiz Ali-Zadeh is a pianist and composer from Azerbaijan, Alexandra du Bois got her start learning violin in Virginia, Tanya Tagaq is an Inuit throat singer from Cambridge Bay, Canada, and that’s without mentioning Asha Bhosle, Sophia Gubaidalina or the others.

Over Mother’s Day weekend Kronos continues its multi-year collaboration with Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA), one of the most unique and exciting art museums in the country. The contemporary concert features more than one world premier, thematically collected as a concert that celebrates the female perspective.

Founder and artistic director David Harrington searches for what he finds aurally interesting, not what would look nice printed on a coffee shop mix tape sleeve. It’s not diversity for diversity’s sake, rather an intricate brocade of sounds that are eclectic, creating something new. (This aesthetic is echoed by YBCA in other mediums, which strengthens the relationship between performer and performance space in this case.)

It’s a muse for the ear, and although I will always adore traditional string quartet music, there’s no sense in letting an art form become stale and static. In fact, I think this experimentation and continual exploration honors the past as much as a honed performance of an older piece because it reflects what was once characterized as musical boldness. Think of the wide-eyed excitement when Beethoven arranged his first large-scale concerts; they too were once a new sound experience.

Women’s Voices features works written or arranged specifically for the Quartet including the world premiere of All Clear, a new piece written and performed by multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ (born in Vietnam, residing in Fremont); the world premiere of Mosaic (from music of Delia Derbyshire): in memory of Connie Sterne, an exploration of musical themes by the late Delia Derbyshire (arranged by SF Conservatory grad student Danny Clay with David Harrington); as well as three Bay Area premieres: Laurie Anderson’s Flow, Nicole Lizée’s Death to Kosmische, and Derek Charke’s Tundra Songs featuring Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq, mentioned above.

I’m taking my mom and encourage you to do the same. It’ll be extra special to hear these new sounds from woman with the woman who brought me into the world. There are just two concerts, Fri and Sat May 11 and 12^th, both at 8pm.

I tend to rack up points on my odometer and learn a lot about wine.

Even with the abundance of wine-growing regions celebrating new releases, Dry Creek Passport Weekend has been marked on my calendar years running. Some combination of the stunning setting, the variety and quality of wines, and the fanfare at each winery make it a consistent hit. It’s sold out again this year.

If you didn’t snag ticket you can head to most of the wineries today and enjoy the same reduced rates offered for Passport Weekend. (a full list included at the bottom of this pdf) Also, the area is worth visiting at many times of year, say, on a quiet weekend in the fall when you get the Adirondack chairs on Dry Creek at Truett Hurst all to yourself and the old zin vines are lit up with electic mustard flowers.

So this is by no means your only chance, but if you are one of the lucky ones, here are my preview picks for the festival, the things that I’ve enjoyed and recommended in the region before, and places that are new or caught my eye.

Just remember this passport weekend is a bit like going to the Museum of Natural History for the first time – you can’t see it all so decide that the blue whale and the Hall of Dinosaurs are your top picks and play the rest by ear based on your energy. To help with congestion on the roads, visit your favorite wineries closest to where you pick up your festival pass first, then those at the opposite end of the valley on the next day or later in the day.

A few other tips from the hosts:
- Skip the perfume and big scents so everyone can focus on the subtlty of the wine
- Swirl, Sniff, Sip, Spit – don’t overdue it
- It’s a long, hot, day – drink plenty of water
- Drive carefully
- Sorry to say there’s no pets other than service animals
- Check in is at 10:45, don’t arrive early

Montemaggiore
Tour, Sunday morning
Head up the back road of the valley to this amazing winery run by the Ciolino family using biodynamic practices. Their syrah is touted as some of the very best in the valley. This is a rare chance to have a personal tour of this estate and the innovative techniques they employee to foster the land and make great wine.

Truett Hurst
Say howdy to the grazing sheep and walk behind the winery to Dry Creek to put your toe in, or see if there’s a spare chair. Red and white wine drinkers will be equally satisfied.

Da Vero is serving wine made with the unique Sagrantino grape paired with lamb and crusty bread. This biodynamic winery is also celebrating their 30th year anniversary this weekend.

Kachina is grilling up elk sliders to go with their sultry cabernets. I’m there.

Michel-Schlumberger
Even with a recent management change, this winery is able to maintain the level of finesse that makes it so sought-after. The winery is simply gorgeous, and there’s a large oak tree shading the corner of a vegetable a garden to the side of the entrance, past a sun-drenched fountain. It’s one of the very top on my list this year, again.

Martorana has bocce courts, and, you can follow a trail past the winery to the river for an intermission from the crowds.

Stephen and Walker is the newest to the scene, as far as I know. It’ll be fun to check them out.

Teledeschi is offering massages and tri tip and chocolate and zinfandel and terranova. Once again: massages, tri-tip, chocolate, and delightfully complicated red wines. Yes.

Zichini will take guests into their cave for a barrel tasting, a real treat.

Unti doesn’t normally have a tasting room open so Passport Weekend is a good chance to taste their wines. I’m very happy about their Grenache, but I’ve not yet met an Unti I didn’t like.

Sbragia has incredible old school zin, and a view of practically the whole valley. Often folks start their tour or end their tour here since it’s at the far end of the valley.

PS. I don’t understand how this Text Enhance thing works yet, but I sincerely apologize for the links with ads if those show on your computer, I didn’t enable them nor am I paid for hosting them. 

Over the years I have watched their projects flourish with excitement, and even been a part of some of them, like contributing a story to the anthology they put together about Ireland. Last year, when one of the Wild Writing Women, Jacqueline Harmon Butler, asked me to add my two cents on trip preparedness for her most recent edition of The Travel Writer’s Handbook I jumped at the task. And now I am happy to say I’ve got a copy in my hands!

This is a guidebook for guidebooking and a vessel for the rules of good travel writing, which makes it a useful book whether you’re dreaming of becoming a travel writer from your cubicle or you’ve got a folder of clips and need a reference designed not just for general craft, but one that details the intricacies of the travel market. This 7th version, based on the original ideas of the original author, now deceased Louise Purwin Zobel, Jacqueline fleshes out the most modern of dilemmas about camera phone photos and gets real on press freebies customs and other curiosities of the trade.

In my favorite section Jacqueline details the building blocks of various types of travel stories depending on the reader, publication, and purpose; “ideally your content will sing with active verbs and precise nouns that appeal to the reader’s five senses…” She breaks down the anatomy of historic articles, info-pieces, and even humorous stories so that one research trip could be told in an array of tones. This is helpful when freelancing, where careers can easily depend on selling articles multiple times, but it is useful, no matter how much freelance you do or want to do, to know about what you are doing to make a good story. If you don’t know, I think your good story has a lot to do with luck. Harsh, but true.

Writing isn’t referred to as craft for nothing. And as a teacher of this craft with regards to travel writing Jacqueline is as crisp as her descriptions of white-washed walls on the Mediterranean. The Travel Writer’s Handbook sits comfortably on my shelf next to Syd Field’s Screenplay, Robert McKee’s Story, Ed Hasbrouk’s Practical Nomad and assorted Joseph Campbell – all within arms reach.

*NOTE: Use caution, we are dealing with a seriously caustic hydroxide. Although it’s totally possible to teach yourself, if you are at all apprehensive I do recommend learning soap-making in a class setting where all of the steps are demonstrated and specific issues can be addressed, and I’m not just plugging my class here.*

Making soap is one of those connective activities that, while I’m doing it, makes me feel as though I am really a part of the generations before me. Even though its been years since my first batch, I still recall the myths of soaps discovery along the Tigress River ages ago. It was told to me that the intense ash from nearby active volcanos mixed with mountain stream water and the fat from ritual sacrifices so that when the women would go to wash in the river they’d find suds where the streams met with it. Ash is one of the most basic ways to make a strong base liquid, which then saponifies when it meets with fat. If you couldn’t source lye or potassium hydroxide from the hardware store you could make your own by dunking a pillowcase full of charcoal into a bucket of purified water for several hours, then testing the pH. But even when using store-bought ingredients. the chemical reaction is the same reaction those washer women experienced, and all those who have made soap since.

There are as many variations in making soap as there are in making cheese, and the primary division follows this analogy – there are soft and hard cheeses and soft (liquid) and hard (bar) soaps. So as you research soap making for, perhaps your Earth Day project, keep in mind that there are numerous approaches and styles even within both main types.

I think making your own soap is a fun and simple contribution to make to reduce the packaging you use, but as I said, the historic context also makes it a joy to do.

To make a good, solid bar of soap you need at least one oil that’s considered by soap-makers to be “hard.” Unfortunately, these are usually the oils that are more difficult to find, and some have political or environmental connections that make them less than ideal. I avoid palm oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, vegetable shortening, and factory-farmed animal fat for those reasons. My preferred “hard” oils are organic coconut oil, animal fats procured from Local Butcher, castor oil, avocado oil, and fair trade shea butter.

Then, there are the so-called softer oils, like olive oil, canola oil, and softer animal fats like lard and especially chicken fat.

Use a lye calculator to plug in the amounts of each oil you want to use to make your soap. A total fat weight of 100 ounces yields around 8 large bars. The rule of thumb that has held true for me: the more types of fats you use the more luxurious your soap. Try to keep the harder and softer fats in balance so you have a solid enough bar. If you want lots of bubbles use at least 3 ounces of coconut in 100 ounce batch. If you use all olive oil you’ll have to cure your bar for months in most cases. Further research on the assets of each fat can help, too.

After you plug in the amounts you’ll determine the range of liquid to use and the amount of lye. Use the 6 or 7 category in the green field on the lye calculator I’ve linked to above to optimal soap that’s gentle and slightly moisturizing. Follow soap-making instructions given on the lye calculator read-out (make sure you check the box to include basic soap making instructions when you’re plugging in amounts).

It is easy and simple to make a cold process bar this way. Once you buy the initial set-up items (list below) it becomes very inexpensive to have some ritzy soap for you and your friends. Best of all, it continues to be interesting over time because of the complexities of coloring, scenting, swirling, superfatting (yup, that’s for real), cooking, processing, and blending soap. There are soaps from all over the globe, so its possible to use different ingredients and learn about world cultures through this little crafty project.

Basic Soap-Making Tools
This list is really as short as it can be. I’ve tried soap-making with a crappy scale, without a hand blender, using a butcher knife to cut the soap, and without measuring temperature but you don’t get a reliably good bar without the following, for the above general method of cold process soap:

Digital scale to .00 ounces
Accurate thermometer
Soap-only bowls, pitcher, measuring cup
hand blender
gloves
protective eyewear
Slotted spoon
rubber spatula
bath towl
pastry cutter
cleaned used milk containers or other recycled container for soap mold

Coming to Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga from the north you wind out of San Jose, enter a corridor of tree-lined highway and turn onto a road straddled by shaded mansions and mansionettes. Montalvo Road leads through a distinguished neighborhood, but it is a welcoming meander that adds to the grandeur of the experience.

Since hearing about this arts center, home to California’s first artist residency program, I have yet to chat with someone casually who has known about it too, or better yet, been there. But Montalvo is a place everyone should know about.

It is so special because it is one of California’s only true manor houses that is as bustling today as it was when the Phelans where living there, or which ever distinct  family it happened to be. The lavishness of the family was focused around the arts; since the completion of Montalvo now 100 years ago there have been artists of all types invited to visit and create work here.

When Montalvo’s visionary, the once-Senator James D. Phelan passed away, the grounds – including 175 acres of wooded land criss-crossed with hiking trails – where left by him to continue this purpose. The estate is beautifully maintained to host art shows, annual events like next weekend’s popular Arts Splash, classes, public hiking, talks and tours, concert and theater series, dinners, and of course the famous multi-disciplinary residency program. They even have a chef in residency, Niki Ford, Chez Panisse alum.

I can’t wait to explore. For some reason there’s been inertia and my only trip has been driving around the grounds at night in the rain, but I am so determined that I know it won’t be long until I’m there in daylight to see the rare trees in the arboretum, photo the succulent garden and the Italianate sculptures, hike, hear a string quarter, take a tour of Phelan’s villa, or take a native plant gardening class. Each week the calendar of events makes for rich options, so whether you’re visiting or local it’s a worthwhile stop.

Montalvo is an authentic part of California history that is pulsing with life, a place built to provide artists with time and space to work, (like when Jack London was invited for a writing retreat). Its a part of the old California that I dream of knowing more intimately.

Thanks to Montalvo Arts Center for use of all images. Find more on their inviting Flickr stream.

Summertime pizza parties at Montalvo

Daniel Patterson and his “Group” of investors are serious about being in Oakland, together with the opening of Haven in December they now have three spaces. Plum Bar came just a couple months before Haven as an extension of Plum the restaurant’s evening offering. Tasty (and surprisingly affordable) bar eats like countrified Berkshire pork pate with tarragon mustard, perfectly crunchy multi-colored quinoa fritters, and brioche sliders are as fun as the frothy, flowered drinks. The original menu was created by Scott Beatie, who is now working on the Hog and Rocks line-up in SF, but the cocktails remain strong with Chef Ron Boyd’s oversight.

If you’ve had a grande lunch, than a light romantic dinner of Plum Bar’s small plates makes the cherry on top of the day. I have been in just such a situation with much delight.

I found gribenes on the menu as a topping for chicken wings – the only time I’ve seen them outside of my Bubba’s kitchen! For those of you who aren’t accustomed to this snack, your heart is happy for you; gribenes are roasted then fried chicken skins, kind of the pork rinds of Jews. They were a famous accoutrement to the wings and were easily the first thing missing from our table.

In between sips of my special green guava and rose geranium lowball I looked around the room and felt inspired by the crafty decor. The walls were covered with book pages, neatly decoupaged in every direction.

When the young spring cleaning bug got me I headed for a bathroom redo a la Plum Bar. I was dreaming about wintery nights made warmer with a fancy drink in Uptown so the work went fast. Et voila! My bathroom is all done.

More photos of food and drinks at Plum Bar:

Recently a relative was visiting from the East Coast. After a scrumptious breakfeast at Dottie’s, including a gluttonous square of their intoxicating blueberry coffeecake, we wanted a stroll. Plus it was sunny.

It’s easy to forget about the Federal Building – a place that’s free to tour almost any time it is open – but we were an alley’s length away and its angular shape, with its network of shadows, drew us near. After getting through the TSA-esque security line we were free to roam the lobby and a few other floors where there were offices on display or other attractions. After long waits in traffic heading from the 101 to the Bay Bridge I’ve memorized the profile of the building that includes a large square cut out in the center of the building. The guards told us that it was a public seating area and directed us to the floor.

This Federal Building, where Nancy Pelosi’s offices are located, is a highlight of San Francisco’s green architecture. The 18-floor, platinum LEED-certified building was completed in 2007 by Thom Mayne and the firm from which he hails, Morphosis, who has been known to make one project the continuation of another. In this case he drew on lessons learned from a previous design challenge in Los Angeles creating a new CalTrans headquarters.

My first impression after winding passed the security turnstyles was that I had gone spelunking – the inner lobby is not at all unlike the inside of some large underground cavern with angular shapes jutting in from all sides. The colors are striking even without being vibrant, but it isn’t a spacious feeling space.

On the higher floors we found the opening, and got to see the glass and steel wall attachments that cover the building in closer detail. Better yet, the view from each side was marvelous; to the north was a view of Civic Center Plaza, the Asian Art Museum and City Hall, and to the south the hills blanketed with colorful neighborhoods and snakes of highway. There were plenty of vacant tables had our plan been to picnic or had we brought books to read with our feet propped in the sun. On our way back inside there was a small set of stairs that looked like they headed back to the elevator, but on they way they came to an unexpected mini-lobby,  outfitted with a ping pong table, plenty of rackets and balls. It seemed to be waiting for us.

As we began a little match we were greeted by a man, an out of work architect, himself touring the structure, and asked us if we knew when we awoke this morning that we’d be playing table tennis in the Federal Building. “No.” we chimed in unison, grinning. And that was the best part.

Head to the Federal Building yourself for impromptu ping pong, city views, and a futuristic architectural wonder. There’s more info here.

Asian Box has the same idea as their first restaurant, but with a South East Asian twist. The menu board looks a bit gimmicky at first glance, but it is soon obvious how many personalized combinations can come from their offerings. Start with a base like Asian vegetable salad or long grain brown rice – all of them free of wheat gluten, then build with six-spice chicken, lemongrass pork, garlic soy beef, coconut curry tofu or lime basil shrimp. From there you can add steamed or stir-fried veggies, “box toppers” like crisp shallots or peanuts, and Asian Box’s own line up of special sauces, complete with, ahem, unique names like Hot Box It.

The highlight of what I sampled was the glazed beef, which was served on jasmine rice with scallions and chopped caramel egg, a sweeter version of the traditional tea egg. Also, the veggie salad base was much more than bland cabbage chards – it had at least six different vegetables, most of which I was told were organic. The tamarind vinaigrette and some spiced chicken really well matched with it. Even my friend, who was born in Vietnam, liked these California versions of her home continent’s street food.

There are a few outdoor tables, but I’d say this food lends itself well to picnicking. Bring your own to-go gear or use their eco-minded packaging – just one of a few considerations Asian Box is taking to be earth smart. It’s hard to spend more than $10 on your lunch, even with a Vietnamese iced coffee or a refreshing lemon lime marmalade cooler.

In Palo Alto’s trend-making ways, new food concepts like Asian Box and LYFE Kitchen are making waves. To me they represent the next generation of eating, designed to cross over America rather than stay on its’ edges. It might seem to be in opposition with a place like, say, Ubuntu, in Napa, but it is part of the same revolution. Ubuntu is on one end, the exemplary fine restaurant with garden-picked biodynamics gracing the plates, and LYFE Kitchen on the other, bringing the throngs into the conversation. Access to good food that’s healthy and affordable is going to continue to be an issue in the coming years, and the companies that address it, sacrificing initial profit to make major changes to the standard greasy spoon menu and outdated food distribution model, are going to be important players. Some companies will address our updates palates, interest in organics, etc., in a smaller way, some will reach more, but I see both approaches as valid and important.

Chef Chad Newton talks up the Jungle Jerky

With that said, Asian Box has plans to migrate to Emeryville and at least one other Bay Area location before the end of the year. Who knows when their “Jungle Jerky” or “Hot Box It” sauces will be on shelves outside the restaurant. And, as I write this, LYFE Kitchen is having their home meal launch luncheon in San Francisco to celebrate their eco and health-conscious food concepts trip to Costco freezer shelves. Silicon ain’t the only thing this valley is selling!

Everywhere you look in Big Sur there is something beautiful to see. I know travel writers have said this about many spots on the globe, but in my own realm of experience Big Sur rates in the tip top in terms of beauty.

I can hardly believe I live within driving distance from a place that is so majestic, so I make it a point of going at least once a year. Its been years I’ve been making these treks – short pack trips with hubby and poodle to Sykes Hot Springs, weekend pampering trips with massages (in view of the crashing coast), girlfriend getaways where ten of us pack a few rooms at the Big Sur Lodge and eat chanterelles all weekend.

For some reason this is the first I’ve blogged about Big Sur. I think it’s because the experience is so big to me that I was intimidated out of jotting down my notes. Other times when I visit marvelous places my urge is to pick up pen and paper. Could this be the writer’s equivalent of an adolescent crush? I feel like I don’t know what I’d say if Big Sur came along and stopped by my locker in the hallway…

I’ll stop questioning it for now and just get to my favorites, picked over years of visits at this special area just south of Santa Cruz on the California Coast.

1. Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park

Overlook trail, out to McWay Waterfall is the kind of scene you might need to be convinced actually exists. The 80-foot stream of water pours over granite cliffs onto sunny yellow sands in its own private beach cove on the Pacific. The view looks like those pictures used in motivational posters or dream-sequences in movies where characters dream-talk to their long lost loved ones.

Big Sur is a confusing string of state parks that have similar names to one another and are supported by a wealth of volunteers and docents. This one is south of Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park – not the same park. The Julia matters!

Park along the road or at the trail entrance on the coast-side of the highway and follow signs for Overlook Trail. There’s a small day-use fee at the ranger’s station where you can also pick up a trail map.

Even if you aren’t there for a day of hiking the waterfall view is not a long walk and doesn’t involve up hills. The cove is breathtaking. It’s well worth the stop.

2. Big Sur Lodge

I like this place – it’s not to fancy, not too drab, not too campy. The Lodge is where many local community activities take place, including the annual Chanterelle Fest, and passes to all Big Sur-area parks is included in your reservation since the inn operates in cooperation with the parks commission.

Some of the rooms have fireplaces, some have small kitchen units, and there’s a pool to take advantage of in the warmer months. The lodge is inside Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park so hiking trails are navigable directly from rooms including the one leading Pfeiffer Falls off Valley View Trail.

3. Big Sur Bakery

If you’re a scone geek than the name precedes you – Big Sur Bakery makes some of the states’ most renowned scones. They even have a shiny cookbook to show for it. You don’t have to have sweets here, however, lunch and dinner are served daily and the weekend brunch is one of the best on the Central Coast.

Although this is one of the few businesses without a drop-dead gorgeous view, the woodsy backsplash behind the bakery remind you where you are – as do the shaggy-bearded locals sipping their coffee on porch benches.

Although there are no bananas grown anywhere near this place, the bakers have some uncanny ability with them. Banana walnut muffins and banana strudel are my favorite items to eye in their case – get there before 11a if you want anything that can be called selection, they only bake once a day and picky people get there right when the doors open at 8am to make their choices.

I was sent as a pirate to bring back morning muffin treasure for our spread when I was last in Big Sur.

4. Henry Miller Library

It’s easy to forget the rich literary history of Northern California when you’re busy gawking. Big Sur has been the chosen home of several major American writers, most memorably Henry Miller who came on the coat tails of writing Air Conditioned Nightmare and left almost 20 years later after finishing the Tropic of Cancer.

His friendly personality is fondly remembered by old time Big Sur-ians, and his friend Emil White is the one who founded this memorial library using his own home for the purpose. The library operates as a non-profit with a visually-pleasing book shop centered around Miller and the writing of his contemporaries, and a slew of events including the annual short film fest and visits from performers of poetry and song.

You can put a dollar or two in the jar on the porch and grab some lemonade or coffee to go with one of Miller’s books and sit on the porch to read. Emil White’s paintings are an interesting take on the scenery, and some have funny political or poetic themes – thankfully they’ve been made into post cards. I know many of my family members have had one arrive in their mailbox before…

5. Point Sur Lighthouse

If you squint while you’re a passenger making your way down Route 1 you may think you’re seeing Mont Saint-Michelle in France. The lighthouse tops a coastal dome that is higher than any of the surrounding hills or cliffs, and a narrow road leads out from the main highway to a circular drive that climbs two full turns around the hill before coming to the top where you can tour the lighthouse. It is dramatic.

You can only tour the area with a chaperone, but there are plenty of scheduled tours throughout the year – Wednesday and Saturday mornings each week plus twilight tours with ghost tales in the high season from May to October. Meet the docent off the side of the road at the gate and you’ll caravan in. The fee is $10, a little higher for the twilight tours.

6. Point Lobos

I have a love-hate relationship with the work favorite – but this is one of those times I have to use it unabashedly. This really has to be my favorite coastal park in California. Point Lobos has three main areas to visit – the historic whaler’s cabin, the Cypress Cove trails (where the most otters can be found) and the popular Sea Lion Cove with the obvious name. There is a network of other trails criss-crossing the natural preserve, which is now taken care of by a private organization. California State Parks are under threat of loosing vital funding, so I happily pay my day use fee for a visit and am glad to see people coming together to protect natural resources like this for us all.

One thing to note about this place is it gets more poison oak than other parks in the area and that means when the leaves are young – April through May – sensitive folk should be wary. Even if you don’t touch the stuff you can get it since the oils are more potent this time of year.

Don’t skip a chat with one of the rangers in the central parking lot. They can tell you were sightings of otters, birds, even whales have most recently occurred, and also help you find you’re way around the park. I love that they all know so much about the flora and fauna in the area. It was one of these guides that first told me about the link between otters getting epilepsy and cat litter boxes. After following up with the Monterey Bay Aquarium folks I confirmed that one of the greatest contributors to stifled otter health is a cat owner not properly bagging and trashing their cat’s business. Toxins in it go right into the watershed and right into the ocean waters. That’s a whole long story, but suffice to say, never be shy with a park ranger, you never know what you’ll learn! And definitely bag up after your cat rather than putting their stuff in the toilet or leaving it outside. The otters will love you for it!

7. Ventana Inn and Spa

Joie de Vivre Hotels has a lovely outpost in Big Sur, one with the expected luxurious feel of other hotels in this Bay Area-based hotel group. There are nightly wine tasting with nosh from local sources, and a spacious lobby area where hours can quickly pass behind pages. My husband told me a looked like I was growing brain cells last time we were there and I was caught staring out the window. I couldn’t get enough of the atmosphere. Rooms are plush and you can book in-room massages. Another plus is the double-size pool area, one with a clothing-optional policy reflective of the laid-back vibe in Big Sur. I wish they’d include the daily resort fee of $25 per reservation into the overall fee but other than that there is little to gripe about with Ventana. Even if you’re staying elsewhere you can book the quality spa services here unlike posh Post Ranch Inn, just a driveway down the road, where you have to stay in order to book at the spa.

8. Esalen Baths

For the more adventurous visitor Esalen would be much further up on this list. It isn’t for everyone, but those who aren’t fazed by naked bodies or by new age ideas will be in for a treat. Esalen is a coastal resort set up for retreats on many subjects relating with self-empowerment, peace, communication, and spirituality. Members and retreat-goers have access to the spacious grounds during the day, but by 1am the famed Esalen hut tubs are opened to the public.

It isn’t as simple as getting there in the middle of the night, however. I would liken the experience of making a booking for the night baths to getting Bon Jovi tickets in the early 90s. You can’t give up, you must stay positive, and you have to focus. During the winter month’s reservations for the tub from 1-3am are only made the day of, for summer months you can reserve in advance. Call right at 8am when the phone lines open and keep calling until you get a person. You’ll most likely get a busy signal for your first ten tries. Keep at it. Then book for one to four people and pay over the phone. It is just $20 per person. Don’t show up drunk, they won’t let you in.

There is a widening of the road near the entrance and you’ll walk down in the dark to a booth where you’ll get the rest of the directions. Bring a flashlight. The baths themselves make all this fuss worth it. If you don’t believe me that is fine, I’ll have one less person to compete with when I’m calling repeatedly at 8am next time. I will say that the stars are amazing, the 6 or so baths are clustered on the cliffs above the waves, and there’s just a little healing sulfur in the water. It might not smell rosy but it sure leaves you’re body feeling amazing.

9. Condors

California’s state bird is another excuse to write that over-used word…but it is, my favorite. OK, I also love albatross. But condors are amazing, even to those whose favorite bird list has other choices. There are many regal soaring birds in Big Sur – my rule of thumb for picking out big vultures from condors is the wingspan and the angular stripe of white feathers on the outer wings of condors. They are especially fond of sitting in barren treetops eagle style, but can be found soaring over the cliffs and trees off Route 1 and the area’s hiking trails.

Condor numbers are coming back slowly but steadily thanks to people’s efforts, a handful or hard-working organizations, and an ad campaign to instruct recreational hunters to use lead-free bullets. Condors feed on downed pray and road kill and are susceptible to any poisons that leak from bullets. It might sound unlikely, like the cat-otter connection, but there are major links here that are measurable. If you’re in the market for bullets, surely get the lead-free ones. Cheers.

10. Nepenthe

This resort and restaurant is the biggest attraction in Big Sur from a tourist perspective. It’s the only place where you’ll see carloads of kids filing out of a minivan, but it is still very much worth a stop. There aren’t many restaurants in Big Sur, and as I usually stay at Big Sur Lodge I don’t care since I my room is equipped with a small kitchen. Even though I’ve waited in line and zigged around the parking lot in search for a spot – two things I don’t associate with the Big Sur experience in the least – I’ve never left with a furrowed brow. There are large window tables where a group can sit and dine with the coast in full view. There are outside and inside tables with views – and there’s a fun menu with a famous “ambrosia” hamburger made with salsa in the patty plus tasty vegetable dishes like chilled Brussels sprout salad with Gorgonzola. They make White Russians the right way I’ve been told by my trusty cocktail-savvy friends. If you head to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park in the morning for a waterfall walk and stop by the Henry Miller Library afterward, you’ll be a few short turns in the road from a scrumptious lunch at Nepenthe.

Southern Napa County is an ideal spot for our alternative Valentine’s celebration. It isn’t far from Oakland and San Francisco and doesn’t require that we get caught in the traffic net that Route 29 can so easily become. Some of my very favorite Napa things are in it’s lower half, and many of them still have reservations for those of us who know our S.O.s haven’t planned far in advance. Whether you’re staying over night or just going up for the day, here are my picks for Valentine’s week:

Silverado Resort and Spa

Situated at the rural gateway of Napa Valley, this comfortable spot isn’t so over the top that you feel you’re walking on eggshells. The rooms are updated yet casual and the one I most recently overnighted in had a kitchenette so we could stow away left overs and make morning tea without having to venture out into the real world. The beds were plush as ever and we were also steps from the pool and hot tub. Silverado is much more than a place to hang your coat, however. The restaurant is headed by Chef Jeffery Jake – the culinary character behind famed Carneros Inn restaurants FARM and Boonfly Cafe – who’s designed a seasonal menu with romantic fare. Beginning tonight you can order a four-course menu that starts with asparagus soup dolloped with house made creme fraiche. Next come manilla clams and chorizo in a bay leaf broth, leading to classic surf and turf of a petit filet mignon and lobster tail with creamy celery root gratin. Dessert is red velvet cake showered with passion fruit sauce, of course. Additionally there will be an opulent Husband and Wife Winemaker’s Dinner served on the 14th only with Tres Sabores wines. Call Brooke to reserve at 707-257-5431.

Robert Sinskey Vineyards

One of my very favorite winery stops is just up Silverado Trail from the Silverado Resort. There are three ways to taste – all available throughout this weekend and next, and Valentine’s Day itself. Walk in for the traditional tasting, which includes my pick for Valentine’s Day, the vin gris of pinot noir, plus the pinot noir and cabernet for which Sinskey is famous. For a more lavish visit call ahead and reserve a Cave Raider Tour or a Farm-to-Table Experience, where you can taste the bounty from the on-site kitchen garden after strolling through it. Each course is perfectly paired with a Sinskey wine.

Hoffman Farm

Last time I dropped by this gorgeous 23-acre farm with my friend from Napa Valley Life Magazine we sadly discovered that Mr. Hoffman had passed away. But I’ve heard from a number of folks that Mrs. Hoffman is still running things and you can drop by to pick fruit and honor the well-known arborist by peeking into his Bonsai Garden. He planted many varieties of stone fruit, some quite rare, wrote copiously on trees and agriculture, and was known for maintaining one of the last patches of farmed land in Napa with walnuts rather than grapes. Stop by to see some of the magic he created on your way along Silverado Trail. Although nothing is in season now, it is still worth a quick stop to see a few of the bonsai. 2125 Silverado Trail, 707-226-8938

Quintessa

This is probably the best American wine I’ve ever tasted. The vintages I’ve tried were simply subliminal. Although the reservations-only tasting costs $65 a person it is quite an experience and an ideal treat if you’ve been pocketing away for a romantic occasion. Call to make your reservation and you can specify your dietary preferences, and also request that your tasting include a trip up to the top of the winery – a hilltop view you are not likely to forget. Quintessa is one of those places that makes one wine a year from its variety of grapes planted on the estate. The owners come from Chile wine-making royalty, and are committed to strict biodynamic growing practices, including letting the soil breath for a season or two before planting again. The insectarium – a bird and bee-friendly pond overgrown with flowery plants – is also something you can request to see on your visit. The tasting itself is of several Quintessa vintages, paired with fine food from a rotating chef (they work with a different chef or restaurant each month). The gravity-smart wine making area is also fun to see – the grapes are dropped from above near the floor-to-ceiling glass blending room where each vintage is perfected.

Lawler’s Liquors

For the truly laid-back Valentine’s Day dinner I can recommend none better than the ravioli and malfatti from Lawler’s Liquors. It may sound funny to send people to this liquor store, complete with cigarette ads and neon Bud signs, but trust me – there’s good reason. I recommend bringing your own clayware container and ordering some of each of these handmade Italian delights. The malfatti are the pride of Napa locals, named “mistake” for their funny rolled shape. Sauces are made from scratch every day and the main man behind the counter is an avid reader so if you’re bookish don’t be shy – start up a conversation. Take back your hot meal to your hotel or home and enjoy in casual comfort. I think casual can be quite romantic. 2232 Jefferson Street, Napa, 707-226-9311