Lake Tahoe R&R

We have just returned from a wonderfully relaxing week in South Lake Tahoe, CA. After a very busy semester working hard in senior studio and other classes, being a teacher's assistant and applying for grad school, and then working full time right after finishing my last final...I was more than ready for a getaway! Andy has also been really busy at work, since the surveying and construction season is getting underway. We were looking at our summer schedule in early spring and realized that we better take a vacation before we get sucked into maintaining a yard and garden, making it to as many car shows as we can, and long work weeks with Andy out of town a lot.
We chose to drive down to South Lake Tahoe to take advantage of time share lodging that we signed up for last August on our honeymoon. After 13 hours on the road, with a stopover in the casino-packed city of Winnemucca, we finally reached our destination. The resort was right on the lake and had all sorts of amenities. When we first arrived, it was a little chaotic because it was a popular time to be checking in AND they decided to set us up in a room with 2 twin beds. We considered not making a fuss about it and just pushing 'em together (we haven't been married near long enough to be sick of sleeping next to each other! Andy doesn't even snore yet!). But, Andy decided to go talk logic with the front desk people and came back with a new set of room keys! :) The new room was in the new wing and had all the new perks - a queen bed, a big-screen TV, and high-quality modern furnishings and finishes (much appreciated with my education). We settled in for the evening and talked about what we might want to do all week.
We took advantage of the fairly-warm weather the first day and went for a hike near Emerald Bay - getting a good view of that from above and hiking into the wilderness for a couple of miles to get a glimpse of Eagle Lake. It was a pretty easy hike with good views and decent weather - at least until the wind picked up and almost blew us off the mountain! It looked like a storm was blowing in, so we headed back to the town for a sushi dinner. It was a new adventure for both of us - going over the menu looking for something we were brave enough to try. We ended up with California Rolls, Calamari Rolls and Tempura. All wise choices. It was delicious!
The next day, we took our bikes out on Power Line trail - a short ride, but with plenty of ups and downs for a beginner like me. We were/are sadly out of shape and had to stop to rest and have some lunch after the big uphill climb. Sandwiches and chips on a pile of boulders, looking over the view (the top photo in the blog) and watching a lizard jump from rock to rock and some fire ants fight to move a crumb Andy dropped. High-class entertainment!
Unfortunately, the next morning we woke to see fluffy white stuff falling from the sky. Yup - winter had found us again! With our T-shirt wardrobe, we opted to stay inside, and ended up playing The Game of Life (I more than whooped Andy, and give my college career full credit for that) and reading all afternoon (a light-reading novel for me, car magazines for the andyman).
The rest of the week was also very chilly - raining, sleeting, misting, so we got quite good at entertaning ourselves in the resort. The indoor/outdoor swimming pool and hot tubs were nice, and we took full advantage of the activity center with games to check-out and the pool table and free wireless in the VIP lounge. We went out for a really nice dinner one evening - at the Riva Grill across the street. They give you a nice view of the water and serve the best halibut I've ever had. We also checked out a movie to watch one night - Into the Wild. A very intriguing story and a well-done movie. It is based on a true story, and there is a book with the same title.

When the week was over, we hit the road for the long drive home. We cut the vacation short by one day to make it back in time to see Andy's brother's family while they're visiting in Clarkston. It poured rain from Riggins to Clarkston, but we thankfully didn't see any deer on the road and managed to miss fleets of Memorial weekend campers on the windy mountain roads. We made good time and did the whole trip in one shot - only stopping for gas (that is outrageously pricey, by the way: $4.38 when we left California).

All-in-all a satisfying vacation. Andy's ready to get back to the garden and the shop, and I'm feeling refreshed enough to tackle the busy summer ahead. (Self-portrait before our fun dress-up dinner)