Birthday Bash: Berkeley and Beyond to Maui

Bear Down! The Golden State Bear at UC Berkeley

    Berkeley, California has now tripled in interest for me. My older son and his fiancé moved there this summer, joining my younger son (who is India for a few months). One too many times after visiting California I must have said to them “why would anyone want to live anywhere else?” They took it to heart. 

    We have our Berkeley routine now. We fly nonstop on United, IAD to SFO. We stay at the Residence Inn Berkeley which is all suites, and we enjoy a free breakfast buffet with brainiacs. We are one block away from the UCBerkeley campus, a divine place for morning walks. 

    To avoid confusion once again my sons live in Berkeley, they are not at Berkeley. 

In a hothouse in Berkeley Botanical Gardens 

Berkeley Botanical Gardens

    We went to the UC California Botanical Garden which have a crazy collection of plants and flowers from all over the world. 

Engaged! Nila and Peter

 

At Saul's Restaurant and Delicatessen

    There is some good eating in Berkeley. As it is the home of Alice Waters and Chez Panisse, you can experience the influence of her chef proteges all over town. We had the best Thai meal ever at Yimm Oakland. Yum. We had a raucous time at Rendez-Vous where we celebrated the engagement of Peter and Nila with Nila’s sister and her boyfriend. We had the world’s wackiest waiter, he wore one black glove and wore everyone out with his dramatics. We had a tres bon French brunch at La Note; the pancakes were made with crème freche. 

The cake!

View from El Techo

        

USA Today friends 

    My birthday party was November 9th at El Techo which, despite the name, had nothing to do with technology and everything to do with great Mexican food, and a rooftop setting with a kick ass view in the Mission District. We invited friends who have known me the longest so that they could tell me I haven’t changed a bit. 

My second birthday dinner 

    We were invited out for a second birthday dinner at Poggio Trattoria in Sausalito by our friends Daniel and Susan.

City Lights Bookstore

    We spent an afternoon in Chinatown, had lunch at Brandy Ho’s, browsed at City Lights, and then had special ice cream at Salt and Straw, where we met cousin Ben who was coincidentally in California for his first time. 

    Worn down by restaurant outings, on the last night we inaugurated Peter and Nila’s new apartment with its first dinner party. Nila made an amazing carrot soup. There is a carrot theme, I had carrot cake for my birthday, Peter is growing carrots in his garden; and now I’m looking for carats. 

Salt and Straw with Ben 

 Maui is Unreal

Wailea Bay

    I met Judy in Maui for birthday celebration part two, and we stayed at The Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea. Yes it’s the hotel that was the location for season one of White Lotus. But we behaved much better than those people. 

Nothing but blue, blue skies

 

    From one evenly cut blade of grass to another, from enormous banana trees to towering palms gently swaying in the trade winds, everything there is perfect. Spotless. The sky is always electric blue, the ocean water is balmy, the beach is always pristine, a variety of saturated greens make up the trees and plants. I decided it was all just a little too good to be true. Maui is both unreal and real. 

Our room with a view

Our goal was to do nothing but eat and relax and enjoy the ocean. We planned our days accordingly. We started with a daily breakfast buffet for $67 per person. Judy and I endeavored to eat at least $30 worth of food, but often didn't make it. There was a bottomless bin of bacon as at the Berkeley breakfast, but offset by tropical delights like papayas, pineapple, and fresh mango juice. 

    Our goal for the trip was to do nothing, and relax. We spent the mornings on the beach where they passed out watermelon and fruit juices,  and in the afternoon we migrated to a poolside cabana where we made bold choices for lunch like Hawaiian Nachos and Parmesan Truffle Fries. At about 4 we went to the room to rest from our rest. And then out to a fabulous dinner around 7.

    We ate dinner on site twice at Duo Steak and Seafood Restaurant, enjoying a wedge salad, a throwback to the 50’s which held the innocent belief that blue cheese on lettuce was good for you, a hearts of palm ceviche, and a new-to-me fish called Monchong. At Ferraro’s Restaurant Bar where I scarfed down black pasta in squid ink. 

 

    Off campus restaurant highlights:

           Reaching Morimoto restaurant at the Andaz Resort presents logistical challenges, there are 60 steps down in the dark to get there, not very ADA compliant. At the end of dinner they offer to helicopter you out, no I mean they offer to golf cart you out. We had tiny sushi tacos as an appetizer. 

              At The Restaurant at Hotel Wailea, the only Relais and Chateau property in Hawaii, the chef delivered a stunning prix fixe menu that included spiced carrot risotto, and Hamachi with “forbidden rice.” Not sure why it was forbidden, but we were allowed to have it.

               Finally, because we couldn’t get into the famous Big Mama’s Fish House due to the 6 month wait list, the concierge recommended the comparable Humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa at the Grand Wailea. Although we almost drowned in the sea of vowels, we came up for air long enough to eat macadamia nut-covered prawns, an ubi brioche loaf, followed by king salmon and swordfish. 

Wailea Beach Path 

    The Wailea Beach Path, is a 3 mile oceanfront stretch runs in front of the Four Seasons and other nearby resorts. Here you see dozens of guests trying to run and walk off their food comas. 

Fitbit report on my sleep

    At the Spa and Wellness Center I had an 80-minute-deep tissue massage followed by a 15-minute foot massage. That night I slept 9 hours. Unheard of. 

The outrigger

        I also went out on a canoe outrigger. We helped paddle for a short distance but mostly we “parked” above a coral reef where the water was so clear you could see to the bottom.We encountered sea turtles and held anemones and live coral. Our oarsman Sole broke out his ukelele and sang to us. I don’t think you would find a more amusing and amazing ride at Disney.  

     I was in a 10 day birthday bubble that I hoped would never burst. 

Oceanfront Yoga