Day 20 – Berkeley
We had a great night’s sleep in actual beds! This morning, we gave the kids a good, long soak in the tub and started to sort laundry, unloading a pile of sand from the Oregon coast and pine needles from the Redwood forest onto Steve and Hélène’s beautiful hardwood floors in the process.
We set out this morning for Tilden Regional Park, one of several large parks that are strung together in the hills behind Berkeley and together make up a large network of trails and bike paths. First stop was an old carousel, enclosed in a kind of a four-season gazebo, where the kids took a spin. Then back in the car, across the park, to a petting farm, where we spent time with ducks, geese, chickens, pigs, goats, sheep and cows. From there we went to another corner of the park to take a ride on a miniature steam train on a little course through the woods.
We had lunch in the sculpture garden of Berkeley’s Lawrence Hall of Science and then explored the children’s museum there -- a wonderful space with lots of hands-on games and activities. The kids were in heaven.
Hélène’s office at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute is just up the hill from there, so we stopped in to say hello. We were amazed to discover a large tile mural on the outside of the building by West Lafayette artists Linda Vanderkolk and Scott Frankenberger. What a small world!
Back at Steve and Helene’s home, we made the kids a quick dinner and tucked them into bed, then enjoyed a delicious black bean salad that Steve prepared. We are jealous of the amount of fresh produce available down here – as well as of the variety and quality. Their local farmer’s market runs 50 weeks a year! Must be rough.
We had a great night’s sleep in actual beds! This morning, we gave the kids a good, long soak in the tub and started to sort laundry, unloading a pile of sand from the Oregon coast and pine needles from the Redwood forest onto Steve and Hélène’s beautiful hardwood floors in the process.
We set out this morning for Tilden Regional Park, one of several large parks that are strung together in the hills behind Berkeley and together make up a large network of trails and bike paths. First stop was an old carousel, enclosed in a kind of a four-season gazebo, where the kids took a spin. Then back in the car, across the park, to a petting farm, where we spent time with ducks, geese, chickens, pigs, goats, sheep and cows. From there we went to another corner of the park to take a ride on a miniature steam train on a little course through the woods.
We had lunch in the sculpture garden of Berkeley’s Lawrence Hall of Science and then explored the children’s museum there -- a wonderful space with lots of hands-on games and activities. The kids were in heaven.
Hélène’s office at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute is just up the hill from there, so we stopped in to say hello. We were amazed to discover a large tile mural on the outside of the building by West Lafayette artists Linda Vanderkolk and Scott Frankenberger. What a small world!
Back at Steve and Helene’s home, we made the kids a quick dinner and tucked them into bed, then enjoyed a delicious black bean salad that Steve prepared. We are jealous of the amount of fresh produce available down here – as well as of the variety and quality. Their local farmer’s market runs 50 weeks a year! Must be rough.
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