Muir Woods with the Ayalas

It was a beautiful sunny day yesterday even though it started out with a lot of fog pouring in through the Golden Gate. I drove Jessica Ayala to her doctor’s appointment at the UCSF Hospital on Parnassus.The whole family came along for the ride. This included Jessica’s parents, her grandmother, and her brother and sister... Cesar and Monica (seen in the photo).Driving Raphael’s large Expedition SUV was like commandeering a Yacht. I managed okay, but had a little trouble getting out of the driveway in the beginning of the trip.

UCSF has expanded and grown. They had several food outlets, outside vendors and even a Farmer’s Market where we could buy produce if we so desired.We bought some snacks and drinks to tide us over as the appointment took around two hours, during this time the family waited looking out the window onto a gorgeous view of the city. But like anything, even the view got tiresome after awhile. We tried watching “Chicken Little” which was running on a monitor in the background, but Cesar and Monica had already seen it. Eventually, Jessica came out looking uninspired, and said that she had to wait two hours just to be informed that she should eat more vegetables! Sheesh !

This family paid a lot in gas, tolls and parking fees to get her to this appointment. I still wonder if she could have been better served locally. In any event, we travelled back across the Golden Gate bridge as I was reflecting on how this was one of the first times these kids had even been in an elevator ! The grandmother was equally as excited by the ride,as she hid her face with her hands to disguise her fear. All this not withstanding, it struck me that it might be nice to show them something on the way back that they may not otherwise think of seeing... Muir Woods !

We arrived in the Park after a long winding road near Mt.Tamalpais in Marin county. When we got parked, it occurred to me that we had four adults in tow, and the entry fee would add up to a nice chunk. Just then, I thought I better pony up, since I was the one that suggested this excursion in the first place!

The Grandmother,Parents and kids were wowed. They probably had crooks in their necks at the end of the day from all the looking up they were doing. It was an absolutely beautiful experience being in a cathedral built by God and nature.Hopefully, this will be an experience the kids will remember when they get older.I know that I won’t forget it.