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Last year, we watched the July 4th fireworks from North Crestview Park in San Carlos. The view was impressive — you could see fireworks stretching across the Bay Area, from San Jose to Oakland, all in one sweep. But the fireworks themselves felt distant and small, which took away some of
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As 2024 winds down, we decided to follow a similar approach to our Thanksgiving trip: prioritizing peaceful rest over hectic schedules. So, we planned only a 4-night trip, which included two nights in Paso Robles and two in Solvang. Paso Robles has always been one of our favorite stopovers on
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My family’s Thanksgiving tradition has often involved long-distance road trips. In past years, we’ve explored the Grand Canyon (2021) and the Great Canyon Loop (2022) and even visited relatives in Illinois (2023). This year, however, I decided it was time for a change. Instead of a grand adventure,
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Every third Friday of the month, my wife gets a day off from work (called Happy Friday). On July's Happy Friday, With our daughter away at summer camp for a month, we decided to head out for a short day trip to Point Lobos State Reserve. 0:00
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Last July, my daughter attended CSSSA (California State Summer School for the Arts), a 4-week program held at CalArts (California Institute of the Arts) in Valencia, CA. We needed to drop her off on the opening day, and it was a 5-hour drive from home. I felt a same-day return
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My usual Memorial Day ritual was visiting Yosemite, but this year, we decided to check off the last two parks on my California National Park list: Sequoia and Kings Canyon. Although they are two separate Parks, they operate as one, requiring only a single entrance fee. We planned a three-day
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We booked a Luau show at my hotel, "Legends of Hawaii Luau," for the last night. A luau is a traditional Hawaiian party or feast, and many places host one. My favorite Luau experience was at the Hale Koa Hotel (in Oahu) in 2008 when Glen Medeiros hosted
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Trying great local food and restaurants is one of the highlights of a family trip. We tried several local cuisines, and each place was worth mentioning. In Hawaii, the general advice is to "start early." The day begins early across the islands, not just in National Parks. Many
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National Parks have been the main inspiration behind our recent family trips, so we couldn't pass up visiting the Hawaiian Volcanoes National Park. While I still don't understand why Mauna Kea isn't designated as a National Park, while this place is - there must
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The highlight of our Hawaii trip was visiting Mauna Kea, the tallest mountain in Hawaii, with a peak of 13,803 feet (4,207 meters), making it the highest point I've ever been to in my life. Planning this part of the trip was challenging, particularly when it
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Exploring the beautiful beaches should be an essential activity in Hawaii. The Big Island boasts a variety of stunning beaches, each with its unique charm. What impressed me most was the excellent preservation of these beaches. However, this realization was bittersweet, as it might underscore the significant role that money
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During my daughter's last spring break, we visited Hawaii. Which island? Hawaii. I was curious why Big Island has the name while other islands have more Hawaiian(?) names like Ohau or Maui. It turns out that “Hawaii” is its actual name, and Americans simply started calling it the
