Eric and Mandy Wright: April 2010

My parents had some time off around the Easter holiday, and they flew to California to see Eric and me. I was so excited to have them visit!!! My Mom and sister drove out here in June with me. However, both of my parents had not seen our apartment all 'fixed' up (using my Southern vocabulary). My parents arrived on Thursday evening, and I was so happy to see them in CA.

On Friday, I gave my parents the Palo Alto tour. We went to Stanford and downtown Palo Alto. I was sure to make stops at all of the Stanford sports facilities to keep my Dad interested. He really liked the Stanford golf course. It is a beautiful course. We stopped at the Apple store downtown the day before the iPad was revealed and Google. For lunch we had In-N-Out Burger. Yum! Later in the day, we went to Happy Feet, a Chinese reflexology spa, to get massages. The massages are very interesting. They are done fully clothed in a large recliner in a room with other customers using reflexology. However, for $25 per hour, it was a fun, relaxing, and new experience for me and my parents. After our massages, Dad found a Chinese restaurant next door where we had appetizers before dinner. We had the BEST wonton soup ever! We loved it. We met up with Eric for dinner at a Thai restaurant in downtown Palo Alto. This was the first time for my parents to have Thai food, and they liked it.

Saturday was a big trip for us. We headed to Monterey Bay, Pebble Beach, and Carmel for the day. Eric and I went to this area when I visited in November 2008 when he was rotating at Stanford as medical student. My parents are golf enthusiasts and loved Pebble Beach and the 17-Mile Drive. The golf courses and views are amazing. My Dad got a few pebbles from the beach for paper weights. We had lunch at the club house where we saw pictures of famous golfers. My Dad brought his putter and practiced on the putting green. He putted well. Now, we are looking forward to watching the US Open in June this year to see Pebble Beach again but on TV. We went to Carmel to visit Clint Eastwood's area. We browsed in the shops and had dessert at a famous candy store. We headed back to Palo Alto, watched the NCAA basketball semi-finals on TV, and ordered pizza.

My Dad left Sunday morning for Atlanta to see the Masters. So Mom and I went to the local farmer's market and then to San Jose for shopping at Santana Row. Mom left for home that afternoon. It was a great to spend time with my parents! I can't wait for them to come back to visit us again.