roadtrip 2013, part 1

I feel like I ran off and left you high and dry. I've been pottering about with my number one guy which is a bit overdue. Craig has been working extra hard through Christmas, New Years and Australia Day to save up time for an extended break.  We're one week into our overseas vacation and this is the first free moment that I've had to post.  Craig and I are in the states visiting San Francisco and Tahoe for three weeks which has been a combination of fun and exhausting.

I've been holding my cards close to my chest, but I'm finally comfortable mentioning that we've been considering a major international move. The idea has been in our back pocket for quite some time, but there are some pretty heavy logistics to tackle - finding jobs, getting a visa for Mr Badskirt and making sure it's the right thing for us. Let me be honest, doing all that while "on vacation" doesn't make for much of a holiday. I've been interviewing. I've been contemplating furniture and moving.  It's all quite stressful for something that may not actually happen.

Don't get me wrong though, I've had mountains of fun so far. There was a Superbowl party - friends, beer and football is always a good combination. It's the start of San Francisco beer week and my liver is already calling for a halt in the action.

Just as my bags were being zipped up for this trip, Tina (aka littlebluecottage) invited me to join the South Bay Modern Quilt Guild for a private lunch with illustrator and fabric designer, Heather Ross.  I had been trying to work out timing for a visit and lunch was just perfect.  We ate Woodfire Woodie which is just up the road from Santa Cruz in Scotts Valley. I give the food a big thumbs up and would definitely recommend their artisan pizzas.  As the restaurant is owned by a a guild member and her husband, we had the place opened just for us! Private lunch. Heather Ross. Fifteen talented and interesting quilters. I hit the jackpot on this one.

I also might have got a digital sneak peak or two at Heather's new range for Windham which is coming out shortly. I wish I could tell you about them... I think you'll be happy. I'm pretty certain the quilting community is going to be buzzing like crazy about the saturated colors and print themes.

Speaking of fabric, I popped just down the road to Santa Cruz to visit Hart's Fabric and buy a few prints that were calling my name. I've been to Hart's before and knew they had a great selection of prints.

Santa Cruz is one of my favorite cities to visit because of the array of colors at the boardwalk. Although it was winter and the rides were closed, I popped by for a few minutes to take it in and to take some photos of a Flat Stanley that I am hosting in both Australia and San Francisco. [more on his visit in another post later on!]

I've now found myself with an unhealthy obsession with viewing machines... uh oh... Someone remind me that I don't have room for anything this size in my luggage.

By then I was exhausted and disappointed that I couldn't make it to Intrepid Thread in Milpitas on my way back to San Francisco. Darn.

I used to live in San Francisco and we've visited several times, so I don't have any touristy photos to share aside from those of Flat Stanley gallavanting around. I do want to make a hotel recommendation though. Craig and I stayed at Hotel Tomo in Japantown which is a renovated and themed Best Western.

It's not a posh hotel and the renovations are a few years old now and show some wear, but it was incredibly priced and fun to wake up each day to the quirky mural. If you require opulence, this isn't for you. It was great for us. We like our hotels to be economical and clean with friendly staff.

Hotel Tomo is in the heart of Japantown. It's a short walk to the Japanese bookstore Kinokuniya. Although it is smaller than the Sydney branch, it is more reasonably priced. Nearby all sorts of Japanese stationary and character stores. There's also a Daiso. I was in heaven. Japantown is about 15 blocks from Union Square. It costs $2 to travel by bus (#2 or #3) in either direction.

Along with great Japanese food nearby, we'd also suggest Dosa which does southern indian food. It's a bit pricy, but tasty. We had two appetizers, then shared a masala dosa and a curry. The food was great, and a big thumbs up because they go above and beyond when catering to food allergies!

We also liked Sweet Maple for breakfast which is also just a few blocks away on Sutter St.  We're passing through San Francisco again at the end of this trip and we're likely to book again at Hotel Tomo. It met our needs and our budget. We earned sleeping credits.

And now we're on to South Lake Tahoe. Craig dashed off today to snowboard, but I decided to relax and visit some shops in Carson City. I've overdone it a little on this trip and strained a side muscle. I've self-prescribed two days of laziness before I hit the hills. And that's where I'll leave you for a bit...

I hope your week has been as enjoyable and action-packed as ours.
happy travels. happy crafting. --amy