San Franciso

I wish I could be there!

C

I live in Hayward, just across the bay, so if you should decide you want a nice home cooked meal instead of a) overpriced convention crap or b) overpriced other (decent) food give me a shout we'll see what we can coordinate. Best to reach me by email l y n o t h at g m a i l dot c o m :) We have a pretty nice L(?)NS not incredibly far from me that you could probably twist my arm and get me to show you ;) LOL.

Fair warning, "just across the bay" =3D about an hour drive, possibly less depending where in SF you will be and which bridge you have to take. I'll help you sort out routes and whatnot :D

Hi Sandy,

There is a great shop in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. It's about

40 miles northwest and would take about 45mins. - 1 hr. to drive there from downtown. I live on the far northwest side of Chicago and drive up to Welcome Stitchery in Crystal Lake about twice a year. Here is their info..........

Welcome Stitchery

48 Brink St. Crystal Lake, IL 60014

I will be there. In fact, I am coming in the Thurs before late afternoon so I can explore Fri, Sat, and Sun morning.

Last time I was there, I had one day to explore, so saw Alcatraz, the harbor and the chocolate factory. Now, I'm trying to figure out where to go. Let's see - Sausalito, Japanese Tea Garden, ferry tour/boat tour, Muir woods..... decisions, decisions. Especially since I have a funky ankle that can be unpredictable as to how much walking I can do.

I am tak>Evening All (well it's evening here anyway),

Cheryl, would love to meet you, next time maybe! S

Will keep it in mind and check with my fellow travellers and let you know, thanks Sandy

Thanks for that, I grew up just outside Elgin (born in Maywood) so I am familiar with Crystal Lake. I've seen their ads in the stitching magazines but have never been there, if we have any money left by time we get to Chicago I will definately check it out. Thanks

Hi Fran, I get in on Saturday afternoon (provided our flight is on time). I am doing Dahlia Circle on Mon/Tue and The Color Square on Wed. I can't wait and also can't believe it is just alittle over 3 weeks away! I'll see you there. Sandy

I'd love to but they're just too horridly expensive to consider. Even if I stayed with family while I was there, I'd have to pay a "commuter fee" which would still put it way out of range. Some members of our EGA chapter are (hopefully) having our own little retreat at a bed & breakfast in Etna, CA. All together, that should cost us right around $100 (food & all) for two nights and meals the rest of the time. I wonder what kind of turn out they'll have this year with so many people needing to be so careful with their money. Even those who have always been able to afford or put away money for seminars are having to give it lots of thought. I've been hearing that the applications for seminar scholarships have increased. My problem, though, is that I don't want to come back & teach anything. :-))))

Liz from Humbug

It's always a fine line Liz, we have the same problems in Australia. Each state here has its own guild (good thing there are only 7 states) and they run independly of each other. Some states are stronger than others, but all are suffering falling membership & fewer seminars. We have one 'national' convention run by a private company and that attracts stitchers from all over the country. Since this years semiar was in California we decided to make a holiday of it - flights to the States are quite high & the Aus $ is worth less than the US$. This is not something we would do every year but we have been planning/saving for this for 2 years.

I hope your getaway is a good one, there is alot to be said for a weekend of stitching & laughing with friends - no matter what the cost! Enjoy!

Sandy

I hope all who are going a WONDERFUL time in San Francisco. There are too many places to go to even start suggesting. If there are any firemen in your family, then Coit Tower is a must. Lilllian Coit was a Fire Fighting Junkie back in the old days & had the tower built in the shape of a fire hose in their honor. The Japanese Tea Gardens are great, as are the Planetarium, Aquarium and Museum of Natural History. The Cliffhouse is fun (though I haven't been there in 20 years) and, if you like hands on fun, the Exploratorium is also lots of fun. It is "supposed" to be for kids but DH & I enjoy it whenever we go. Also, the cable cars and places like Lombard Street (the really twisty one) are fun to experience. You might also want to watch the movie "Bullitt" with Steve McQueen for a view of The City that you WILL NOT get while you are there. At least, I HOPE not. :-))) And those places don't even include the artsy fartsy museum stuff that some people enjoy. :-))

You have to find the time to visit Muir Woods while you are there. Words are not enough. Just thinking about there centers me.

C

where are Muir Woods & what are they?

Thanks Liz, there is more to see than I think we will have time for, what with class and everything that will be going on. I was in SF once, about 33 years ago...maybe this time I'll have enough time to see more!

SNIP fartsy

njoy. :-))

Muir Woods are about 20 minutes from my house...and the comment above is true...I think it might be heaven on earth!! You can just walk thru the the woods by the ocean.....GORGEOUS!!

I go there quite often to do my thinking.

just me, Cathy from KY in CA

Oh my - if I'd only known you then! LOL

I could use a visit out there RIGHT NOW.

C

To see some of all this is why I am coming in on Thurs - 2 -3 days to EXPLORE!