Anyone live near San Jose, CA??

emily_325

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So mine and my husband's 1 year anniversary is quickly approaching. It's October 15th. We wanted to get away for a long weekend, and after looking around we're thinking of going to San Jose, CA.

For starters, we want to get AWAY from Los Angeles. I've also wanted to go to the Winchester Mystery House since I was a little girl. For those who aren't familiar, http://www.winchestermysteryhouse.com/.

Wherever we go, we want to take Anya with us, and that's another perk of San Jose. So far I've found at least one non roach motel that allows pets (and several roachy looking ones
). The one I'm looking at actually looks kind of nice.


So....if anyone is familiar with the area, does this sound like an okay choice of destination? Do you know of any other fun things to do there? Good restaurants? Theaters? Other ghost tours?
I'm thinking we'll have at least 2 full days to enjoy the city and relax.

Thanks in advance!
 

lookingglass

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I have ALWAYS wanted to go to the Winchester House after my father brought back pictures from his visit. He said it was an amazing time.

Have fun searching, and have a blast! Congrats on your one year mark as well.
 

happyhendrix

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San Jose is nice city My grandmother lived there and my mother was raised there. Until she moved more east bay. Anyway I dont remember much about the city but it is nice. A little warmer than most bay area cities!
 

planetofthecats

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Some ideas, in itinerary format:

Day 1:
- fly into SF International Airport, rent car
- drive along coastal highway to Moss Beach or Half Moon Bay for lunch
- afternoon browsing shops in Half Moon Bay
- drive down coastal highway, stopping at scenic points if you like
- stop over in Pescadero for the famous olallieberry pie at Duarte's (http://www.duartestavern.com/index.html)
- continue down coastal highway to Santa Cruz, drop off stuff at feline-friendly hotel or bed & breakfast
- stroll around Santa Cruz, find dinner, relax in a cafe, bar, or bookstore

Day 2:
- a lovely breakfast in Santa Cruz
- down coastal highway to Monterey: the Monterey Bay Aquarium (http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/)
- lunch in Monterey
- drive up to San Jose, check into hotel
- Winchester Mystery House
- dinner in San Jose, or go up to the village in Mountain View for some romance

Day 3:
- Tech Museum in San Jose (http://www.thetech.org/)
- fly out of SF or San Jose back to the sunny Southland

Mid-October is probably as good a time as any for minimal fog along the coast. You could also do a drive along the ridgeline on Skyline Drive and hit a Harley bar in the Redwood City area.

A more Northerly alternative: SF, Muir Woods, Wine Country
- many nice anniversary dining choices in SF and Wine Country
- Muir Woods is great! (http://www.nps.gov/muwo/)
- Wine Country has plenty of spas, will look great in October

You might find the Chowhound SF Bay Area forums useful: http://www.chowhound.com/boards/show/1

Have fun!
 

sarahp

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Yup, that's a great sugggestion! I'm near San Jose, and try to avoid it... We rarely go there - certainly not as a touristy destination!

For an anniversary weekend I would go to Monterey/Half Moon Bay as well, then just make a trip into the Mystery House. A friend of mine went there recently and said she loved it.

I know you really want to take Anya with you, but wouldn't a long drive and being alone in a strange place be worse for her than being along in her own home? She'll be fine on her own
Of course if you get another kitty before you go she'll have a new friend to play and bond with as well
 
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emily_325

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Thanks guys! I'm going to check out all of those links today when I have time. I'll definitely look into staying somewhere smaller like Monterey and then just dirving in to San Jose. Great idea guys. We really want to get out of the city.

And a far as Anya, we've thought long and hard on it already. She adjusts REALLY well. She loves riding in the car, doesn't mind her carrier at all, and often just goes out with us. Of course I realize that a drive this far is different, but she is the reason we might possibly make it a weekend away closer to home.

We'll probably take her with this in mind and the fact that while we know a few people in Los Angeles, there's no one here that we trust to come in and check on her and take care of her. While we love them all, we have some REALLY flaky friends.
I can see them saying they'll come over and spend time with her every day and then being like, "Eh, I'll go tomorrow. She'll be fine..."


So, we're still deciding. Thanks for the suggestions though, and if anyone has more, keep them coming!
 

hopehacker

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Another cool idea, since you're going to be in Northern California is to drive up and see the Redwoods, and then on the way back down to the Bay Area, check out Half Moon Bay. It looks like something right out of New England. Very beautiful.
 
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emily_325

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Okay, now we're leaning toward just driving up to Big Bear Lake for a long weekend. It's only 2 hours as opposed to the 5-6 hour drive and we've never been there either. The drive would be much easier on us and our dear Anya.

There's a TON of pet-friendly housing there, I just have to call and make sure that "pets allowed" doesn't just mean dogs as I'm finding is the case in many establishments. I would think that a dog could easily tear up as much if not more stuff than a cat...

We're also thinking that for an anniversary a nice mountain town/village with a lake, etc would be more romantic.
 

hopehacker

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Well, during that time of the year, the leaves should be changing and it should be beautiful in Big Bear. Just remember that sometimes in the Autumn it can be fire season in the Big Bear area. Last autumn was a real disaster in that area.
 
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emily_325

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Originally Posted by HopeHacker

Well, during that time of the year, the leaves should be changing and it should be beautiful in Big Bear. Just remember that sometimes in the Autumn it can be fire season in the Big Bear area. Last autumn was a real disaster in that area.
Good point, Hope. I think we're going to risk it though because like you said, if the leaves are turning it should be really beautiful. I cleared it with Brian, and I think that once I clear it with the hotel that we can bring Anya I'm making reservations.

I told Brian though that if they say no to cats, that they are dogs only, we'll teach her to bark and toss a blanket over her carrier while we're bringing her in. What they don't know won't hurt them.
 
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