Castello di Amorosa

Deep in the heart of Napa Valley, there is a castle.  A wine castle.  It’s called Castello di Amorosa and it is just about the coolest place in the United States.  

This is a legit castle.  It has everything, from gargoyles…

To wishing wells…

To lush gardens…

To the regal Prince Edward the Cat (we named him… that’s not his official name) who reigns over the castle with a stern paw. 

He’s so regal.  

And of course, there are the vineyards…

And the wine itself! 

The wine, of course, was amazing.  Interestingly enough, I’m usually a fan of red wine, but my favorite wine here was definitely the Chardonnay.  It was the most amazing white wine I’ve ever tasted.  

Finally, after the sampling, we made our way to the gift shop, where I realized that these vineyards and wineries have discovered the most brilliant marketing plan ever: get your customers buzzed and then set them loose in the gift shop.  Seriously.  You want to buy everything.  I especially liked this book…

After a delightful dinner, we ended up leaving Napa around 10:30 – 11:00 at night.  Four hours later, the massive 6.0 earthquake struck.  My friends and I had no idea until the next morning, when I woke to several text messages, a missed call, and a voicemail.  

I immediately assumed my parents were checking to make sure I would make it to the airport on time (which, in case you’re wondering, I almost didn’t), so I called my mom and told her, “Don’t worry.  I’m awake.  We have plenty of time.”

But instead of expressing her relief, she just asked if I was okay, if we’d been affected at all.  I had no idea what she was talking about.  By that point, my friend Hannah was awake and also receiving text messages from concerned loved ones.  It turns out that, had we been awake at 3 AM, we would have felt the earth shaking and swaying. 

I know it’s been more than a week now, but I’m still thinking about all the nice people that we met in Napa.  It’s such a beautiful and wonderful community with good, honest people.  I hope that they’re all alright and that they will soon bounce back from this horrible disaster.  

Aside from the earthquake, my trip to California was an absolute delight.  Thank you, Hannah, my dearest friend.  I can’t wait to return! 

 

The Problem with Pictures

So, I have a problem. It’s called I Want to Share my California Pictures with all of you but I Take WAY Too Many Pictures for One Blog Post.  To solve this problem, I’ve decided to split the pictures up into several different posts.  

For this first post, I thought I’d share my favorite part of San Francisco… the SEA LIONS!

Seriously, I love sea lions. They are absolutely one of my very favorite animals ever.  I was thrilled this trip to be able to visit the Marine Mammal Center and see how they work to help stranded and sick marine mammals all over the coast: http://www.marinemammalcenter.org

I also got to visit the Aquarium on the Bay (I think that’s what it was called).  I’m a big fan of all marine life, so I will never pass up an opportunity to peruse an aquarium. 

As you can see, I’m particularly fond of jellyfish and sea stars, especially this sea star who looks like he just finished an epic Broadway musical number.

 

 

California Bound

Hi, friends! 

Well, after writing that lovely post about getting back to work and being a responsible adult… I’m off to California!  My best friend from high school lives out in San Francisco, so I’m going to spend a few days out there, seeing sea lions, drinking wine, and having an all around good time. I’ve been once before and had an awesome time. 

I’m especially excited this year to visit some new places, especially the Marine Mammal Center. Although one of my goals is to become a New York Times best-selling author by the time I’m 30, marine life will always be my first love.  

Well, I’m going to continue writing as much as I can today, though I will be setting my books aside in order to pack and prepare for the journey to San Francisco tomorrow.  I hope you all have a great rest of the week!  

A Few New Cemetery Tours Photos!

 

 

 

 

 

My college buddy texted me this picture the other day.  As far as I know, we have no connections on Amazon, so I think it’s pretty neat that Amazon is recommending Cemetery Tours to readers… especially with Stephen King!  

 

Love from my office.  🙂  

 

A picture from one of my youngest readers!  

 

 

Love from San Francisco!  

My sister, who is a freshmen in college, has been recommending Cemetery Tours to new friends she meets on campus.  Apparently, one of them approached her the other day and demanded to know if there would be a sequel!  So exciting!  And yes, in fact, there will be a sequel!  It is being written at this very moment.  🙂