My first stop traveling without Sarah brings me to Napa Valley, the world famous wine area just north of San Francisco. I spent a great afternoon with a friend I met in 1996 when I was in San Diego. It was the first time we have seen each other after more than 20 years, so there was a lot to talk about. We did some serious wine tasting and had an amazing lunch. Thanks M.A!
The City of Napa is a cute town with a nice little riverfront promenade:
A little more north from the city of Napa is the beautiful village of Yountville with a scenic downtown and great restaurants (Thanks C.H. – it’s a great place).
And right next to the Napa Valley there is Sonoma Valley, almost the same conditions for growing great vine, but a little less crowded… I visited the beautiful village of Sonoma with it’s famous Sonoma Plaza:
And since marijuana is legal now in California, they had to make new signs for the park 😂:
I visited the valley on Memorial Day weekend. So there where not only a ton of people (Memorial Day is the official start of the summer season here in the U.S.) but also a lot of flags, flowers and gratitude for the military men, women and those who risk their lives to serve the country. You can experience a lot more patriotism here than anywhere I have ever been in this world!
Nappa Valley, Sonoma Valley, Vacaville and surroundings is just a beautiful place – and it’s all about enjoying great food and amazing wine:
The two on the road are now heading east to a remote campground near Lake Tahoe. See you on the road!
Three on the Road 
Looks great Dominic! Isn’t that that last one in Sonoma? Maybe even a champagne or similar vineyard? I think I‘ve visited that one too.
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It is called Domaine Carneros, and yes, they are famous for sparkling wine. It is located right next to highway 12 – the street between Napa and Sonoma. But technically it’s a part of Napa. I didn’t do any tasting there, but the property did just look amazing…
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Glad to made it to Napa, Sonoma and especially Yountville. It sounds like you had some great samples of that red (& white) beverage for which they are famous. Ulla & I took 6 of our Nordic friends, to the first stop on our journey, t0 Domaine Carneros for a taste of the California “bubbly”. And then, at our Yountville hotel, we all shared a magnum of Pol Roger, Winston Churchill Cuvee, 2000, which I received for my birthday. A great start to the week there !!
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Sarah, Sarah, Sarah! @Dominik, wir sind uns jetzt aber schon so ein 3-5 Tages Rythmus an Posts gewohnt!:-)
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One of the best blogs.. super pics! It‘s so cool to be a reader now.. Sarah
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