Monday, December 29, 2008

My Trip to California

Well friends, in spite of the almost record snowfall, I made it to California for the wedding. But I almost missed it!

I spent hours sitting in the Detroit airport, and far more hours sitting in the one in Phoenix. After an incredible 36 hours, most of which was spent in traveling to Detroit and sitting in airports, I was finally crawling into bed at Philip and Elizabeth's house at 6:55 a.m. (Grand Rapids time) on Saturday morning, about 11 hours after I was to have arrived in San Jose. I could tell you many stories about the snowfall, the 18-wheeler stuck in snow on a street across from our motel in Detroit, the nine snow plows in concert trying to clear the snow from the runway in Detroit, etc., but you've probably already read more than you want to know.

The wedding rehearsal took place on Saturday evening, which was when I got to meet Octavia, my nephew's fiancée, and her family.

The wedding was Sunday afternoon. Daniel is obviously thrilled with his bride, as she is her groom. The top picture shows the bridal couple.

The second picture is of those members of the Lee family (my younger sister's family) who were able to attend. The couple on the left is Philip and Elizabeth, the next man is Mary Ellen and Roger's oldest son, Jonathan. Standing in front of Jonathan is Rachel, the youngest daughter, and the only one of the children not married. (Her wedding is scheduled for June 27.) Mary Ellen and Roger are on Daniel's left, then Rebekah, their oldest daughter, and finally Aunt Elaine.

Philip and Elizabeth were my host and hostess and they did a wonderful job of it, making my time in California delightful, if totally different from time in the Midwest.

Jonathan had to leave directly from the reception to go back to Houston. Roger, Mary Ellen, and Rebekah all left early Monday morning to fly back to southwestern Indiana.

That left Rachel and me with Philip and Elizabeth for Monday, a day set aside for sightseeing in San Francisco. I had never before been in San Francisco, so they asked me what I wanted to see. It was a delightful day. We started up through the mountains, and along the coast. It was great to see the Pacific Ocean again. I had forgotten how the waves crash on the rocky shoreline in many places. We walked along the shoreline for a brief period of time, watching the surfers and seagulls. We then went to Fisherman's wharf, where we had lunch. From there we started toward the Golden Gate Bridge, seeing trolley cars along the way. It rained off and on, but when we got to the Golden Gate Park, the sun was out and it was beautiful. We were also able to see Alcatraz from our vantage point.

I was scheduled to return on Tuesday, but since the forecast was for ten more inches of snow, I changed my return flight (without any cost, thanks to Southwest Airlines) to Friday, December 26, meaning I got to spend Christmas with Philip and Elizabeth. Christmas evening we went to Elizabeth's parents' home. They live in San Jose as well. We had Christmas dinner with her dad's siblings and their families.

(The third picture is of Rachel on the left and Philip and Elizabeth on the right. I assume you recognize the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.)

For those of you who prayed for my trip, thank you so much. For the most part, it went very well. I could give you many more details, but you're probably already bored, so I'll leave it at this. If you want more details, email me and I'll be happy to fill in the gaps.

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2 comments:

Larry and Sallie Fogle said...

I read it, just a few days late. So glad you were able to go to CA. Thanks for coming for New Year's Eve.

Mother/Grandma Sharon said...

I thought Octavia's wedding dress was the most beautiful I have ever seen!