My Presidents’ Day weekend adventure started on Sunday afternoon, when Dad commented on my bored look and offered to take me shopping at Costco. I wasn’t exactly bored, but I agreed to tag along. As we were starting up our Lexus SUV, the nice weather convinced my dad that perhaps hiking would be ideal.
The two of us decided to swing by Rancho San Antonio before visiting Costco. At 3pm that Sunday, the place was packed. None of the main parking lots had spaces, but we were lucky enough to find a spot on Cristo Rey Drive, allowing us to squeeze in a 4-mile hike before heading to the Mountain View Costco at 5pm to stock up on necessities.
The next day, Dad and I went to Santa Cruz. Truth be told, it was Mom’s turn to “walk the dog,” but she was too lazy to go shopping for Presidents’ Day deals that day. We left the house around 11am and somehow ended up at one of the few Chinese restaurants in town: Special Noodle @ 415 Ocean Street.
Our meal consisted of four dishes: fried chicken, leek pockets, eggplant noodles, and xiaolongbao. Dad focused on the noodles and liked them enough to defend the ~$60 (including tax + tip) bill. I’ll admit, seeing a bunch of young girls run around with “Miller Mustang” logos on their chests gave me a laugh; great minds really do think alike (at least, in deciding where to eat).
The rest of the afternoon was spent walking around the beaches and piers. Neither of had the guts to ride the roller coaster rides on the Santa Cruz Boardwalk, but we still had a good time. (If the Sky Glider had been cheaper, I’d have considered it; 1pt = $1 so a one-way trip on that sluggish thing was $8.)
Anyway, we mainly hung out around Main and Seabright Beach. On the 65min drive home, there was talk of bringing our bikes and hitting the trails and/or bringing a towel and reading on the sands next time.
