Day: July 12, 2005

Categories
California

Yosemite

Today, we rented a car and left San Francisco. We headed east to Yosemite National Park, the home of the giant sequoia trees, many beautiful mountains, and waterfalls. The drive was very interesting–a chance to get to see the rural part of California. We spent more than four hours in the park, first hiking up to see some of the famous sequoia trees and then driving to the Yosemite Valley, which is bordered by majestic mountains and graceful waterfalls.
Giant SequoiaBridalveil Falls

We’re staying at the Best Western that’s about half an hour south of the park entrance. Once again, I have free in room internet access. However, this time, we have three queen size beds arranged as two rooms with a bathroom and wet bar in the middle. It’s much more comfortable than the Adante Hotel, which had two double beds in a closet size room.

Tomorrow, we’ll get back on the road and head to Monterey. I don’t know where we’re staying and what amenities they offer, so I may be offline until Sunday.

Categories
California Computers General

Twin beds and parking brakes

Today, while waiting with the luggage in the Adante Hotel’s lobby, I witnessed firsthand how unusual some of our American ways seem to the rest of the world. First, I noticed a car pull up in front of the hotel. The rental agent got out, and a lady got in. She and another lady loaded their luggage, but then just seemed to sit there. At one point, she pulled up about six feet, then stopped. The second lady had gone back into the hotel lobby and was standing there looking confused. My sister asked me what kind of car my parents were picking up, and I told her I had no idea. The lady overheard me, asked me if I was American, and asked for help with their rental car. Their Chevy Mailbu had a tap on / tap off floor pedal to control the parking brake. The ladies thanked me and said something about their rental in New York had a normal parking brake in the center console. Ironically, my parents ended up with a Malibu as a rental. My dad struggled to figure out the parking brake too.

The second interesting exchange that took place in the hotel lobby was between the guy at the front desk and a man from Germany. The man seemed upset about the accomodations in his room. Apparently, he booked a room for four people and the hotel gave him a room for two. A few exchanges later, it came out that the man thought that a twin bed slept two people. It seems that in Germany, what we would call a twin bed is referred to as a single bed. Fortunately, the hotel had extra rooms with two double beds available, and they were able to get him into a room that would sleep four people.