Contented sigh. I may have just had the most relaxing vacation ever. Having spent years vacationing with my family and rarely alone or with someone whose company I truly enjoy, I can’t remember the last time I’ve had such a good time. Now my mother’s travel attitude did show up a bit on our return home (Blue Eyes gets a little frustrated with travel complications, whereas I’m much more chill and easily irritated by frustrated people). I got caught in the crosshairs there at the end and was a little snippy when he was saying goodbye, but the weekend was so great and that was such a teensy part of it. After a good night’s sleep, all I can think about was what an awesome time we had.

So Friday night I got into San Diego around 10 p.m. (midnight my time) after a very long and hectic day at work. Blue Eyes had spent a really fun day touring a medical supply vendor’s facility and giving professional recommendations on some new products. He’d also spent the evening at Morton’s and polished off half of a $100 bottle of wine so he was a bit dopey by the time I arrived. LOL. The view from one of the uppermost floors of our hotel was incredible. I’m including one of Blue Eyes’ many postcard-perfect pictures below for your viewing pleasure.

We slept in a bit on Saturday morning, enjoying the deliciously comfortable bed and watching the sun rise through the open balcony doors. Fortunately our bodies were on Central time so we were up fairly early by local standards. We drove around downtown searching for a place to eat and landed on Cafe 222, a popular local joint. I had the Benedict Arnold ((Eggs Benedict with spinach and tomatoes instead of ham) and Blue Eyes had Peanut Butter Banana French Toast. Freaking awesome food!!!

After breakfast, we hopped in our rental SUV and drove about an hour north into the mountains to the old mining town of Julian, CA. Along the way we stopped many times so Blue Eyes could take pictures of the breathtaking scenary. It was the most gorgeous day and the mountains, trees, lakes, etc., were just awesome. Julian is a town famous for its apples and you could smell them (and the resulting pies) immediately upon arriving in town. We checked out the B&B where we were staying and then took the innkeeper’s recommendation for a local apple picking spot. We paid $5 each to try five wines at a local winery and I purchased a bottle of apple wine to bring back. Then we walked across the road to the orchard and wandered around picking super-sweet/tart apples and enjoying each others’ company. It was perfect.

Saturday afternoon was spent walking around Julian checking out the tiny boutique stores, sampling apple cider and just generally having a blast. We went back to the room around 3 to drop our stuff and take a nap, then it was back out around 6 for a horse-drawn carriage ride around town with a local guide telling us about the town’s history. We ate at a very quaint and romantic little restaurant downtown. We sat in the carriage house overlooking the patio and the beautiful fire pit. I started with a yummy squash soup and bread and then was too full to eat my salmon spinach salad. LOL. So I watched Blue Eyes eat his Georgia Peach chicken and took my salad for a midnight snack, along with a slice of apple berry pie for later.

After dinner, we took a drive around the local roads. We finally pulled off the road only to come across a Coyote racing into some bushes. Yikes. Instead of getting out of the car like we had planned, we opened the roof and lay back for some star-gazing. You wouldn’t believe how brilliantly clear the night was. You could almost reach up and grab a star. It was just perfect. We were probably there an hour or so and then we went back to the B&B. I’ll keep the TMI to myself and leave the rest to your imaginations. All I will say is Mmm-Hmm!

Sunday morning was more sleeping in, a walk around the gorgeous B&B to view the rescued animal site (potbellied pig, rabbits, sheep, goats, chickens, etc.) and the grounds where they regularly hold weddings. The views from our room were amazing and I’m so thrilled that we chose that place to go. The room wasn’t much to speak of but it served its purpose and was really reasonable ($80) for the area. It was also the only one without a two-night minimum stay.

Probably the best part of our trip was after Sunday breakfast when we walked to a local art gallery and got to meet a brilliant local photographer who showed us his private gallery. I’ll get the URL from Blue Eyes later but let me just say that this man’s work almost made me cry it was so beautiful. And Blue Eyes had a blast chatting with the guy about camera equipment, printing techniques, etc. Blue Eyes used to have a photography studio so this was right up his alley. The man had a picture of a field filled with deep purple flowers that I loved, as well as a great shot of the setting sun hitting a field while, above him, the most massive monsoon-like storm was rolling in. I would have loved to take that one home but, like any great art, the prices were too steep for my budget. I did pick up a beautiful necklace/earring set by a local artist.

Reluctantly around 1 p.m. we headed back to the airport. We encountered a few frustrations there but I had a Very Big (and damned expensive) Bloody Mary and my BP dropped back down. Blue Eyes maintained his at a high level most of the evening, capped off when his fairly new luggage pretty much disintegrated at baggage claim. Sigh… Unfortunately a huge bottle of Apple Butter broke in his luggage (ugh) but the yummy pies we carried back made it home safe and sound.

It was a spectacular, amazing, delicious, special weekend and I am so glad I went. The company was excellent, the views were unparalleled and the sites we saw/people we met were just incredible. Sigh…