Holiday Day Trips

Oh by gosh, by golly. It’s that time of year yet again. And with Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Mobile Tuesday, and all the other shopping days days out of the way (please!), it’s time to get down to what’s real this season: hot cocoa, time with loved ones, and that child-like sense of wonder. Sure, we’ve got our gorgeous trees in Union Square and Pier 39, but if a little

Railroads abandoned and later rediscovered hold a certain mysterious and captivating quality. Some of my fondest childhood memories are of treks through the English countryside, following old tracks as they boorishly carved their way through rolling hills and deciduous woodlands. So when I heard of a passenger train service on a restored 19th-century railroad in the Santa Cruz mountains, I had to take a journey on the Roaring Camp Railroads for myself. Backtrack(s) This being

One of our favorite quick escapes from San Francisco is to the quaint seaside town of Sausalito, with its fountain-filled parks, charming souvenir stores, open cafes and magnificent Bay views. Sausalito is delightfully small and at the same time engaging enough to keep one occupied the whole day. Here, eight tips for things to do in Sausalito. 1. Geek out over the new and used tomes at Habitat Books (803 Bridgeway Boulevard, habitatbooks.com). 2. Grab a

REAL or FAKE? We’ve been embroiled in this debate for years now. We’re talking Christmas trees, of course, and which is better for the environment. Is it better to cut down more of our already disappearing forests or to set up ticking time bombs of chemicals in our living rooms? With passionate arguments on both sides, it looks like the jury is still out on this problem. So what’s a treehugger to do when