Jun 28, 2010 - On Birdie's last day with me, we had a mixture of "country" and "city" activities. First we went on the Elkhorn Slough Safari in Moss Landing, with which we were both impressed.
We did the early morning pontoon ride through the slough, though it was a little chilly. We had dressed warmly, but, once again, I wished for my winter coat. The wildlife we saw, however, couldn't be beat. 
We saw lots of otters, sea lions, and harbor seals, and saw them up close enough that we could really enjoy them. 
I learned to tell the difference between harbor seals (no external ears, flat noses) and sea lions (external ears, longer snouts, big front flippers). 
We saw lots of gulls, of course, and several types of cormorants. But we also saw an avocet [below], 
some long-billed curlews, godwits, white pelicans, and lots of brown pelicans [above]. We both learned a lot about the creatures we were viewing. We ate lunch at Pete’s Fish Market nearby. They make the best bleu cheese salad I've ever had, and I love their cioppino (fish stew), for which they are famous. (Thanks, once again, to TripAdvisor for some great advice!)
After lunch we drove in to San Jose, and on our way saw lots of field workers picking produce. If North Dakota is America's Breadbasket, then California is America's Produce Department. :-) I've stopped a couple times at farmer's markets by the roadside and purchased cherries and other just-picked fresh produce.
In San Jose we saw a couple things: the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum and the Winchester Mystery House.
The most amazing thing about the eqyptian museum was the visit to a replica Egyptian tomb, right in the basement of the museum!! 
We were both amazed at the Egyptian artifacts that were on display, right in the middle of San Jose (though the biggest pieces were mostly copies). The building and grounds were beautiful and impressive. [wisteria, rose, jacaranda below]
Lastly, we toured the Winchester Mystery House. We had both seen TV shows about this place and enjoyed the tour. [No picture-taking was allowed! :-( ]
What an interesting story, and what a fun house! Sarah Winchester, heiress to some of the Winchester (rifle) fortune, moved to San Jose from New Haven, Connecticut, after the death of her infant daughter and her husband. a psychic told her that the spirits of the many dead as a result of the Winchester rifle were angry with her, and to appease them she must "build them a house". For 38 years, she had carpenters working around the clock, building on, and remodeling, her 160-room mansion. She seanced with spirits every evening and got instructions for the work to be done the next day. The house is full of strange things, meant to confuse the spirits, such as a door that opens to a wall, a door that opens to a drop to the next floor, windows set in the floor, and lots of unusual staircases. It was a fun place to visit.I brought Birdie to a hotel near the San Jose airport, and that ended our vacation together. But it was a fun vacation and I'm glad we got to do it.
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