Sonoma wine tour

One day, before my parents came to stay with us, my husband asked me where I wanted to make trips with my parents. I was very skeptical, about their health, as they were aged people and coming from India to the USA. Suddenly, one day my husband got a good deal of Sonoma tour. He sought my opinion whether accept the deal or not. After a little thought, I asked him to accept that. I thought that, if they denied to go there, we would go twice. Anyway after they spent some days, I asked them. When both of them agreed with us, we decided to go there on one Saturday.

The tour was scheduled to start at 8 o’clock in the morning from SFO, which was far from our home. So, we woke up very early in the morning to prepare for the day. Our plan was to start from home at 7 in the morning. We started around 7 o’clock and we reached SFO at quarter to eight. Everything was fine. The weather in SFO was little bit foggy, which was very normal for the foggy city. Our journey started from Ferry Building, SFO. I was very happy, when our bus crossed Golden Gate Bridge, which was fortunately clear and they could see the bridge. The famous landmark of SFO was the dream of every tourist to see in their own eye, my parents were lucky to cross the bridge and got the full view of it. The vibrant lash greenery of Sonoma welcomed us. First we went to Loxton Wineries.

Wine Barrels in Loxton wineries

 My husband was very happy to taste six different kinds of wines. Our tour guide who was a very friendly person offered us different kinds of cheese and chocolates which could be best possible with wines. . I tasted 2 types, and then I didn’t like to taste more .So, I sat outside the winery with my son and parents. From there we went to Landmark winery.

Landmark winiries

Landmark wineries

I didn’t want to taste more. My mother and I went through the winery which was beautifully decorated. The bright colored full bloomed flowers added beauty on the sunny day. My mother, who loves gardening, admired the skillfully decorated garden. Our tour guide this provided a special kind of beard with olive oil to eat with wine. The bread was very tasty. Then our bus took us to a restaurant area for lunch. However, we carried our lunch with us. So, we wanted to sit somewhere. Also, we were searching an area where my parents could rest and enjoy. Our tour guide showed us the historical Sonoma Barrack, which was converted in a museum. We bought two tickets for them to see the historical movie about Sonoma. My mother enjoyed the movie a lot. Sonoma, previously known as Solano had a rich history. The area ruled by different country at different times. The county was the natural habitats of Pomo, Miwok and Wappo tribes of natives Indians. Spaniards, Russians, and other Europeans claimed and settled in the county from the late 16th to mid-19th century, seeking timber, fur, and farmland. The Mission San Francisco Solano, founded in 1823 as the last and northernmost of 21 California missions, is in the present City of Sonoma, at the northern end of El Camino Real. Sonoma Barracks (part of Spain's Fourth Military District), was established in 1836 by Commandant General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo. His duties was keeping an eye on the Russian traders at Fort Ross, secularizing the Mission, maintaining cooperation with the Native Americans of the entire region, and sharing out the lands for large estates and ranches. Sonoma became part of America in 1846 after Mexican American war. Anyway, after my parents sat in the Historical Sonoma Barrack, my husband, son and I went to have lunch at a park opposite to the road. After lunch we headed to Robledo winery. My parents didn’t want to go to the winery, so, we three went there. The owner told us an interesting story about their ranch. His father came from Mexico at the age of 16 to work in the wineries in Sonoma. Currently they were owner of 400 acre of land. It was an amazing story of a penniless to billionaire man. That was the end our tour. Our bus took us to SFO again. And we reached home at 7 in the evening. Though my parents didn’t enjoy the wine tasting, but they enjoyed the beauty of Sonoma and its past history.

San Francisco De Solano, the last mission of the mission trail