Carissa's Birthday, 2008
Carissa's friends took her to Benny Hanna's
for her birthday, 3/26.
Family took Carissa to Mercado's on March
27th.
Then at 4 a.m. Mario took Carissa to San Francisco. Beau came for them in his cab and they were off for a birthday weekend.
Their first day they drove around and saw Fisherman's Wharf and Chinatown and went up and down every street.
They even rode the cable car. Had to pay over $50 per night for parking. Moral of that story is DO NOT RENT A CAR IN SAN FRANCISCO!!!
Oh, and big bag of presents he bought for her birthday was stolen from the cable car!!!! How discouraging!!!
Today, March 29, they're at the Winchester Mystery House ~ going there because Grandma's been wanting to see that place for 50 years!!!!
In 1884, a wealthy widow named Sarah L. Winchester began a construction project of such magnitude that it was to occupy the lives of carpenters and craftsmen until her death thirty-eight years later. The Victorian mansion, designed and built by the Winchester Rifle heiress, is filled with so
many unexplained oddities, that it has come to be known as the Winchester Mystery House.
Sarah Winchester built a home that is an architectural marvel. Unlike most homes of its era, this 160-room Victorian mansion had modern heating and sewer systems, gas lights that operated by pressing a button, three working elevators, and 47 fireplaces. From rambling roofs and exquisite hand inlaid parquet floors to the gold and silver chandeliers and Tiffany art glass windows, you will be impressed by the staggering amount of creativity, energy, and expense poured into each and every detail.
These stairs that lead to the ceiling are just one of the many
bizarre features that Mrs. Winchester designed and had built.When Grandma asked Mario how he liked the Winchester House tour,
he replied, "Tight!"If you want to read more about the Winchester House, here are some links:
A really neat video is the first link. Watch it if you have time:
http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/8/9/01920/64523/travel/Tourist+Trap:+Winchester+Mystery+House
http://www.californiawinchestermysteryhouse.com/
http://www.travellady.com/Issues/March05/1300WinchesterMysteryHouse.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winchester_Mystery_House
http://www.ghosts.org/haunted/winchester/winchester.html
http://googlesightseeing.com/2008/03/28/the-winchester-mystery-house/
http://paranormal.about.com/library/weekly/aa052200b.htm
http://coolthingsinrandomplaces.com/winchester-mystery-house/
http://www.californialodging.org/winchester-mystery-house.html
http://itotd.com/articles/279/winchester-mystery-house/
http://antiques.about.com/od/holiday/a/aa101604.htm
http://www.vpa.org/wmhpics.html
It's 7:19 AM, March 30th, and they should have been arriving any time now,
but Grandma just got a call from Julian (Mario),
"We missed our plane, Mama, what do we do?"So, they're on an extended vacation and they'll come home later today!
Their San Francisco and Winchester Mystery House Picture Collection:
Kaiden and Kane at Tag Football Practice
