Jewels

The Farmer's Market culture is a thriving business in this part of the country. One can purchase handcrafted goat cheese, locally foraged mushrooms, crusty loaves of sourdough bread and heirloom tomatoes of all colors and shapes. The real stars of the show, however, are berries, berries and more berries. We sampled real strawberries (the kind that don't taste like cardboard), plump raspberries and blueberries that were just plain addictive. Two new berries for us were marion berries and obsidian berries, both bursting with sweet goodness. We left the market, tapping our toes to the sounds of all the street musicians and licking the last of the purplish red juice from our fingers. Our wallet was a bit lighter but, oh, the antioxidants we enjoyed.

Our next jewel came in the form of a young man at a visitor's center near the coast. Ranger Clameron was brimming full of friendly advice on how to maximize our stay in the area. Best of all, he was from Minnesota so he could translate ocean talk into prairie-ese. Thanks to him, I think we can figure out how to read a tide chart and not get ourselves caught on a land bridge that turns into an island. He also gave us  great recommendations for the best tidepools, hiking trails, birdwatching and restaurants. (We've already warned our daughter we might not make it to the wedding.)

Without a doubt, the crowning jewel of our day was the Pacific Ocean. We made it! We walked along the beach with the ocean waves swirling and churning around us. The sand was spattered with seaweed, driftwood and shards of mollusks. We felt dwarfed by the vastness of so much water and truly blessed to be a part of such a marvelously created world.