great takes on family travel in the U.S.

In a previous post, I wrote about my friends Kelly and Justin from Australia, and described some of the places I think are great first-time-visitor spots in the Bay Area. With new guests arriving (bringing with it my in-laws for their annual visit) I am thinking about interesting places to take frequent visitors. Last time we visited my in-laws in Iowa, they treated us to a great afternoon at Reiman Gardens at Iowa State University, where my kids enjoyed exploring the beautiful butterfly conservatory. As their visit approaches this year, I have planned a couple outings that all generations can enjoy.

Exploratorium

Fitzgerald Marine Reserve

Natural Bridges State Park

Cable Car ride from Powell to Ghiradhelli Square

Bucks of Woodside

Ferry Building Farmer’s Market

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art as I have written before, my kids love this place. I would let them lead Grandma and Grandpa around!

From guest blogger Marsha Takeda-Morrison of Sweatpantsmom

I’m about to make myself very unpopular with the fitness-conscious, hard-bodied L.A. crowd, but I have a confession to make: I think walking is boring. I’d really love to make use of the track that winds around our local park or make walking my kids to school a healthy habit, but to be perfectly honest, until they line the entire route with Cirque du Soleil performers or end-to-end plasma screens showing Sex and the City reruns, I’ll continue to drive my car, damnit.

The one exception is when I’m mesmerized by a good garden. I’m not talking about the neighbor’s zero-scaped front yard, but a spectacularly crafted, bigger than life garden extravaganza that takes my mind off the doldrums of walking. Luckily, Los Angeles has quite a few of those and spring is the perfect time to visit them. Here are a few that actually get me out of my car and putting foot to gravel (or dirt.) I might just have to drop some cash on a pair of new walking shoes.

My favorite are the Gardens at the Getty Center. From the top of the garden, where you have a magnificent view of the grounds, to the winding path that leads down to the maze-like center, the entire environment is absolutely enchanting and at the same time Zen-like and peaceful. And no article of mine would be complete without a reference to food – the cafeteria-style Café at the Getty Center is one of my favorite places to eat in the city. Sometimes I meet friends there for lunch, and we get so distracted by our excellent meals and strong coffee that we forget to head over to the exhibits. Don’t tell anybody.

Slightly east of Los Angeles in the city of La Cañada Flintridge are the charming Descanso Gardens. You’ll find a beautiful, low key setting here, perfect for young children to explore. I went there last fall on a field trip with my daughter’s class and we had a very personal, thorough walking tour through the grounds that ended in a nice surprise – a small pumpkin patch.

A fifteen minute drive heading southeast will get you to the beautiful Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanical Gardens. This is one of the best-kept secrets in Los Angeles – a magnificent, lush garden with strolling peacocks and unusually small crowds. This holds special significance for me – it was one of the last places we took my husband’s 101-year old grandmother. Her eyesight was failing, but she was able to identify many of the plants and flowers just by their smell and feel.

Conveniently, from the Arboretum you can get to the famous Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens in San Marino in just ten short minutes. You may have heard of the Huntington Art Gallery, home to such celebrated works of art as Thomas Gainsborough’s The Blue Boy and Thomas Lawrence’s Pinkie. The gardens are truly spectacular – my favorite is the Ikebana House, where you can see exquisite examples of the traditional art of Japanese flower arranging.

Bottom line? It amazes even me, but when surrounded by floral, fauna and a cool spring breeze at my back, I truly feel like I could walk forever.

Are you a walker? A gardener? A walker in a garden, like me? What are your favorite springtime destinations?

I live in a flat, arid area of Texas so one of my joys is visiting the lush, hilly, historic section of Texas known as the Hill Country. One of my favorite places to visit is Fredericksburg. Fredericksburg combines a rich German heritage with a healthy dose of Texas hospitality and offers something for everyone in every age range.

For those of us who love to shop there are over 150 boutiques, along with some of the best antique shopping in the state at the antique emporiums. You won’t find chain or franchise stores here. The majority of the shops are locally owned. Do not pass up a chance to indulge your sweet tooth while you are here – take time to visit the Rather Sweet Bakery & Café, I promise you’ll thank me for it! With such a heavenly assortment of pastries, you are sure to be delighted. But don’t worry, you’ll walk off all of those calories while you’re window shopping!

If you’ve never been before you should definitely take the family to visit Enchanted Rock (AKA Crying Rock) located about 15 miles north of Fredericksburg. It looks like a giant pink pebble stretching up to the sky. It has a history going back 11,000 years and is the second largest batholith (an underground rock formation uncovered by erosion) in North America. The kids will love the legend of the ghost fires flickering near the top and the ghostly groaning and creaking noises that occur during the day.

Another must-see with the family is the Butterfly Haus. The Butterfly Haus boasts 3,000 square feet inhabited by hundreds of butterflies native to Texas. I can’t even begin to describe how peaceful it is to sit down and have butterflies landing right on your hand (or head as the case may be). It took a while for my son to calm down enough to sit still but the reward was almost instantaneous and he was soon happily talking to the butterfly on his leg!

Fredericksburg is a place that you just have to visit at least once, and will likely find yourself wanting to see again. In addition to the few activities listed here you will find art galleries, herb and wildflower farms, museums, wineries, spas, golf, some of the best bed and breakfast places in Texas, and so much more.

Do you have a favorite spot, activity, or story about Fredericksburg? Feel free to share! I’ve been several times and still haven’t seen all there is to see or do in this tiny town.

Until next time . . .

Paige aka PJsTravelinTexas

I live just across the bridge from Berkeley & Oakland and I think these two cities are often overlooked by my friends and neighbors, who usually go south into the city for entertainment. I love Berkeley’s politics, the college influenced environment and the entertainment Oakland offers for families. East bay residents will have other suggestions, but here are my favorites for kids under the age of nine:

Aquatic Park—This small park in Berkeley has a nice concrete path along the “lake” suitable for trikes, strollers and little bikes. Kids can feed the ducks and play for hours on the large play structure on the north end of the park. Best of all, real trains go by on the tracks located right near the play structure and the conductors always wave back at the kids. This is fascinating for my kids. It beats a Thomas the Train video any day.

East Bay Vivarium—This is a wonderful weird place filled with snakes, lots of snakes, especially boa constrictors. It also happens to be one of the largest reptile stores in the nation. My young son can spend an hour looking at the exotic reptiles for sale here. If you ask , you can touch the a snake or two (ummm, I don’t ask.) They also have frogs, spiders and turtles. The turtles are nice. This is a creepy, crawly place and is fun for about an hour. It is one block from Berkeley’s 4^th Street which has several good restaurants, stores and a bookstore and it is only ten minutes from Aquatic park. The vivarium, park and 4th street are a nice way to spend morning, just enough to entertain a young toddler before a nap is needed.

Chabot Space & Science Center—The space center is a nice evening for kids and adults. Winter is a good time to visit because of the night time stargazing they offer through their huge telescopes. Once summer comes, the sky is too light until after nine o’clock to see much, too late for most kids. I suggest you have dinner in one of Berkeley’s or Montclair’s many restaurants and then venture to the nearby space center. My nine year daughter, who introduced me to the planetarium through her brownie troop recommends you go to “learn about outer space and see an interesting , wonderful, and amazing dinosaur show. After walking through all the exhibits about meteors, planets, and an astronaut’s life in a rocket ship you can dash to the telescopes and look beyond the starry night and enter a universe filled with many questions.” The place is interesting to kids and adults. I love gazing at star clusters millions of miles away.

The Oakland Zoo—I have always liked this zoo and used to go almost weekly when my kids were in pre-school. It is just the right size for little legs to wander without getting tired, the children’s exhibit is entertaining, the fruit bats horrifyingly interesting and the lunch spot is in the shade next to the flamingos. Does it get any better than that? It is also much warmer than the San Francisco zoo and more accessible for young kids. A bonus is the little rides park adjacent to the zoo entrance. The rides are fun for the kids and give a break to the “zooed out” parent. This zoo is safe, comfortable and just right for the animal lover in all of us.

There is also the Lawrence Hall of Science, a UC Berkeley Science & Math center, Tilden Park, one of the oldest and most popular parks in the bay area and Berkeley Iceland, a funky ice skating rink. If you need more information on anything in the Bay Area, I recommend the Berkeley Parent’s Network, a collection of tips, advice and discussion on everything for parents and visitors in the bay area.