Overseas Chinese Web Guide

Category: Travel

  • Alpine Meadows

    Alpine Meadows is a Lake Tahoe skiing and snowboarding resort. For kids, Alpine Meadows offer half-day and full-day classes for children as young as 3. However, at that age, the willingness of a child to participate in classes in an unfamiliar environment is a big factor to consider. For toddlers, Alpine Meadows offers an indoor play area located inside their lodge near the food court. And, speaking of food, while you can pick up cold sandwiches, Alpine Meadows also offers made-to-order salads and hot sandwiches.

  • California Road Conditions

    The California Department of Transportation offers a fast-loading page for looking up road conditions. If you plan on making a ski run to Lake Tahoe this winter, you could select “Add to Home Screen” to create a button for that page on your iPhone. For example, I-80, which runs from San Francisco to Lake Tahoe, currently shows the following alerts:

    This highway information is the latest reported as of Sunday, December 13, 2009 at 23:35 .




I 80  
    [IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA] 
    A HIGH WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT AT THE SAN FRANCISCO-OAKLAND BAY BRIDGE  
/IN SAN FRANCISCO/ (SAN FRANCISCO,ALAMEDA CO) - TRAVEL IS NOT RECOMMENDED  
FOR CAMPERS, TRAILERS OR PERMIT LOADS  

    [IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA & THE SIERRA NEVADA] 
**FOR EASTBOUND TRAFFIC: 
    CHAINS ARE REQUIRED ON ALL VEHICLES EXCEPT 4-WHEEL-DRIVE VEHICLES WITH SNOW 
TIRES ON ALL 4 WHEELS FROM 1 MI EAST OF BAXTER (PLACER CO) TO THE  
DONNER LAKE INTERCHANGE (NEVADA CO) 

    EASTBOUND TRUCKS ARE BEING SCREENED AT APPLEGATE (PLACER CO) - DRIVERS MUST  
HAVE MINIMUM CHAINS IN THEIR POSSESSION IN ORDER TO PROCEED - PERMIT LOADS ARE 
PROHIBITED 

**FOR WESTBOUND TRAFFIC: 
    CHAINS ARE REQUIRED ON ALL VEHICLES EXCEPT 4-WHEEL-DRIVE VEHICLES WITH SNOW 
TIRES ON ALL 4 WHEELS FROM TO THE DONNER LAKE INTERCHANGE (NEVADA CO) WHITMORE  
(PLACER CO)  

    WESTBOUND TRUCKS ARE BEING SCREENED 5 MI WEST OF RENO (WASHOE CO) - DRIVERS  
MUST HAVE MINIMUM CHAINS IN THEIR POSSESSION IN ORDER TO PROCEED - PERMIT LOADS 
ARE PROHIBITED

    Unfortunately, after you search for a particular highway, the website displays the results without changing the URL. So, how can you bookmark a particular highway?

    http://www.dot.ca.gov/cgi-bin/roadscell.cgi?roadnumber=80,280,680,101,580,680

    This covers all the major routes from the San Francisco Bay Area to Lake Tahoe. You can manually enter any highway numbers into the URL string and bookmark that page. Better than typing in a bunch of highway numbers into the search field every time.

  • Palo Alto Airport Day 2009

    The Palo Alto Airport hosted Airport Day on September 12, 2009. During the entire visit, we witnessed the constant buzz of small planes taking off and taxiing down the run way. We could also see up close planes of all shapes and sizes, as well as helicopters and gyroplanes. Little kids could also climb aboard a brilliant red Palo Alto fire engine and enjoy the view from inside the truck. I spotted a vendor selling a cup of frozen lemonade at a price that may have been higher than I had paid at Disneyland. civil-air-patrolturbo-gtspropellerred-baron

  • Disneyland

    Located in Anaheim, CA, Disneyland offers Southern California residents and visitors an incomparable experience. If you live in Orange County, you may not realize what a gem you have in your backyard. However, if you ever venture to Northern California or out-of-state, you will quickly discover that no place quite delivers like Disneyland. The park is absolutely immaculate, which is no small task considering the thousands of people who pass through the turnstile throughout the day. Additionally, Disneyland constantly refreshes the attractions so they do not feel tired and dated—like I have seen at other theme parks. The breadth of attractions is equally impressive. For young kids, no one caters to them like Disneyland does.

    I went during the Friday before Labor Day and really lucked out. Except for the 90 degree heat, Disneyland was absolutely fantastic. For the most part, I encountered 5 minute wait times for most attractions.

    disneyland-castlematterhorn

    If you are visiting Disneyland in the near future, I would recommend avoiding the Harbor Boulevard entrance. The Harbor Boulevard entrance is closed. Instead, signs will direct you to off-site parking at Anaheim Gardenwalk. Ugh. Not an ideal arrangement if the weather is hot and you have kids in tow.

    gardenwalk

    I also attended dinner at Ariel’s Disney Princess Celebration. Located in Disney’s California Adventure, Ariel’s Grotto offers families with young girls an opportunity to dine with their favorite Disney princesses. As you enter the Grotto, you are presented with the opportunity to take a photograph with Ariel—the princess, not the mermaid. You are only permitted one photo per group, so if you are dining with friends, you cannot have your own photo with Ariel, at least initially. However, Ariel does come around to the dining tables later on with her friends, Princess Aurora (aka Sleeping Beauty), Snow White, Cinderella and Belle, for photos. Where’s Mulan for the Asian children? I found the food to be surprisingly good. I had the tri-tip, which I enjoyed. Another dining companion had the redfish, which was also well-received. In addition to the main entree, your table also receives appetizer platters and an after dinner dessert plate. All very delicious, for a price.

    disneyland-ariels-grotto

  • Aquarium of the Pacific

    The Aquarium of the Pacific is a modern aquarium located in Long Beach, California. Visitors can see fishes and other marine animals from different parts of the world at the aquarium. The aquarium features both small and large fishes spread throughout its two-story structure. Besides the obligatory clownfish exhibit, the aquarium also features puffins, sea lions, and petting tanks for rays and sharks.

    Be sure to check the Aquarium of the Pacific website for ongoing promotions. Currently, booking online saves $5 per adult ticket. No additional online discount for children or seniors. However, if you present your AAA card, you receive a 10% discount on up to four tickets. So, buy adult tickets online, but use the AAA discount for the children tickets at the ticket booth.

    aquarium-of-the-pacificclownfishfinding-nemo

  • Day Out With Thomas – Roaring Camp

    Day Out With Thomas offers a ride aboard Thomas the Tank Engine, as well as other fun activities. Our local Day Out With Thomas was hosted by Roaring Camp Railroads in Felton, California. Tickets were $18.00 per person (2 and older) with a $7.10 service fee if purchased in advance online. Add in a $7.00 parking fee and the total comes to $50.10 for a party of two.

    The Thomas line ran on the beach train. However, it did not make the hour-long trip to Santa Cruz. Instead, Thomas traveled backwards for 15 minutes in one direction , and then reversed course and went forward along the same track.

    In addition to the train ride, Day Out with Thomas offers photo opportunities with Thomas the Tank Engine and Sir Topham Hatt, as well as coloring stations, jumping houses, temporary tattoos, face painting, clowns, puppet shows, videos and more.

    The line for Sir Topham Hatt’s meet and greet was a bit slow, so we didn’t make it all the way to the front of the line. The coloring station offered stamps, crayons and water colors for coloring and decorating the various coloring pages. At the tattoo station, children could pick from various Thomas themed tattoos to place on their arm or face.

    Day Out With Thomas also offered various stations where your child could play with various Thomas toys. And, for those who want to take some of these toys home, Day Out with Thomas also has a Gift Shop for purchasing a whole range of Thomas memorabilia from shirts and pajamas to lunch boxes, flash lights and toys, toys and more toys. Although the train ride is short, Day Out with Thomas offers more than enough activities to keep the little ones busy for a few hours.

    When we went to Day Out with Thomas, we booked the 8:30 AM ride aboard Thomas the Tank Engine. During our drive to Felton, Highway 17 was foggy at parts, but Roaring Camp itself was clear. The weather was in the mid 50s, but it didn’t feel cold at all. A light jacket was more than sufficient. As it turned out, 8:30 AM was the perfect time because we scored a great parking spot up front and the park was not crowded even after the conclusion of our train ride. The junior engineer was able to participate in a number of activities without having to wait in line (except for visiting Sir Topham Hatt). By around 10 AM, the clouds finally cleared, the place started to heat up, and the crowds flooded in. So, if you are looking to visit Day Out with Thomas at Roaring Camp, consider the early morning ride. The Weather Channel has an awesome hour-by-hour weather forecast, which is quite useful when deciding when to schedule your ride. Also, the ride along Highway 17 was clear in the early morning out to Felton; however, 17 slows down considerably as the day progresses. When we left around noon, we could see the traffic slow down in the westbound direction towards Santa Cruz.

    dowt-roaring-campdowt-thomas-the-tank-enginedowt-coloring-station

  • Oakland Zoo: Oakland, CA

    meerkat

    The Oakland Zoo offers a different experience than the larger San Francisco Zoo across the bay. For small children, the Oakland Zoo offers a more manageable experience since the exhibits are smaller and closer together. For example, the giraffes at the Oakland Zoo are confined to a large dirt lot instead of the gigantic savanna. The children see the giraffes without having to walk through a giant exhibit. I don’t know how the giraffes feel about it.

    Like the San Francisco Zoo, the Oakland Zoo is a zoo in transition with some older exhibits and some more recent ones. The newer children’s zoo offers shows and interactive exhibits. You will have a wonderful time at either zoo.

  • San Francisco Zoo: San Francisco, CA

    giraffe

    The San Francisco Zoo is a fun place for children and adults. Located near Lake Merced, the zoo showcases a broad spectrum of animals in various habitats. Some exhibits, like the giraffes at the African Savanna, appear expansive and more modern. Others, like the Lion House and the various playgrounds, seem dated. Overall, the zoo is a wonderful destination to visit. The park is large and walkable. The bonus is the Little Puffer Steam Train that loops around one section of the park. Children just love train rides.

  • Fairyland: Oakland, CA

    Fairyland is a large playground located near Lake Merritt in Oakland. It’s not an amusement park, so don’t expect a Disneyland or Great America-type experience. Instead, Fairyland offer sandboxes, slides, puppet shows, farm animals, and a few rides with a fairy tale theme. Most rides have minimum and maximum height requirements, so your child cannot be too little or too big. He or she must be just right.

    fairyland

    For families with young children, Fairyland is a fantastic value. Admission is $7/person, ages 1-100. And, Fairyland offers more than enough attractions to keep most children busy for several hours. Although the food at the concession stand is limited, it is reasonably priced. No $7 hot dogs or $3 bottles of water like I’ve seen at other places. Most items were 1-3 dollars. Also, if you want to bring your own food, you can dine in their picnic area inside the park. This place has a totally different feel from commercial amusement parks.

    While the park may appear dated, only the adults will notice. I do wish that the park had a more organic texture to it. A bit too much concrete for my taste, especially with a lot of young ones running around.

  • Don’t Feed the Animals

    dont-feed-the-animals

    During the winter season, you can visit the Ardenwood Historic Farm. Naturally, the farm is not as active during the winter; however, you can still enjoy visiting the many different farm animals. We saw some “free range” sheep roaming around the sheep pen with a sign reminding us not to feed the animals.