The whirlwind continued Sunday afternoon as I stopped by to visit Anne Marie, Brad and Sydney. Sydney performed a Bach minuet on her violin and then docented two of her paintings, right.
A renaissance child if ever I met one!
It was still a very cool summer afternoon and with only a sweatshirt to protect me, my teeth were chattering as I waited for the MUNI streetcar to take me back to Church Street.
Despite the chilly weather, when it came time for Anita and me to drive down to the South Bay and meet up with our high school friends, we opted to convert to topless mode.
Her new car, a Mercedes two-seater, is a fun and stylish little thing. Good quality construction, fun handling, tight suspension, and a nifty mechanism to draw down the top and stuff it away in the trunk.
So nifty that I decided to film it. I know, geeky, huh?
It was a bit chilly on the drive down. Near Candlestick Point we encountered a little misting but persisted because we could see the sun just beyond the airport. The sun stayed just beyond our reach until we hit Menlo Park. From there, it was a very pleasant ride.
Dinner with the Wilcox gang was at Frankie, Johnnie and Luigi’s, too. This South Bay establishment has been around since I was in junior high school. We have good pizza in Khrungthep, but I still miss this more American style of pizza. The one with a more substantial crust.
Below: Grilled salmon with a tomato sauce
Below: Pasta with spinach, walnuts and gorgonzola cheese.
Below: Onion, mushroom and basil pizza
Below: Lilian describes the Strombli – a monster of meat – to Anita
Brad, Donna and their children were there, as was Samantha, Lilian and Albert. Sadly, Eric, Jimmy, and Maggie weren’t able to make it. Brad and Donna’s children, Evan and Cara, taught us some new games including “chopsticks” – an addition game of strategy that is beyond me.
Above: Back row from left – Samantha, Anita, Lilian, Brad. Front row from left – Evan, Chris, Albert and Cara. Below left: Evan and Cara make the strangest faces while Brad and I are posing normally. Below right: Lilian, Anita and Samantha pour over my senior year yearbook. My twentieth anniversary reunion was the Saturday before I arrived so we were looking at pictures discussing who was where and doing what these days.
Above: Evan patiently listens as I repeat my understanding of the instructions for “chopsticks”.
It was fun visiting with friends and wish there had been even more time to catch up.
christao408 
Very nice pics. We all wish we had enough time to spend with our family and friends.
hahaha… that’s a HUGE pizza! 🙂 Will you be at the Theater Festival today? or Up Your Alley Fair? 🙂
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Wonderful pictures Chris. So glad you are having such a good time. I almost got the same car… but went for the suv because of my knees. You look so happy in your pictures. Enjoy and load up with memories for your return.
THOSE ARE HUGE PIZZAS!Just look at them!They are as big as 2 girls!Or…it might be you have tiny friends
Nice, nice, Nice! Oh, by the way, I like that car!
hohohoho, i wanna meet up anita the next time i back to the states =) she looks like one of my mongolia friends
Haha. My best friend recently bought a new Mercedes SLK too. I was sooooo envious. :o) I think my drive home after work would be that much better with non-airconditioned wind breezing across my face. How refreshing! :o)
@YNOTswim – Sorry, Tony – I’ve been in Kansas City since Tuesday. My entries are delayed.
@ZSA_MD – Thanks. I can easily imagine you sporting around in the covertible with a colorful scarf around your hair and Audrey Hepburn-style sunglasses.
@gyjcwang – While Lily and Anita are both pretty svelte girls, the pizza is quite large. Blame the foreshortening in perspective.
@lcfu – I’m sure I can arrange the meeting.
@kenpcho – Singing along to your favorite Spice Girls tunes…
Mercedes has lots of “nifty” mechanisms!!! I’m so glad you were able to hang out with some of the old gang….especially since you missed the reunion. You’ll have to be sure to make the trip home for the next one…Diana and I are talking about doing a combined, late 80’s 25yr.
You are just eating way too well on your vacation. 🙂 Wish I was there to eat all that yummy food with you!
I love all your foodie shots. I can only imagine how much food you must try to eat while there for a short time. I already have a list of places to eat at when I return to Washington. Things I miss that aren’t down here. My vegetarian son would love that basil, onion and mushroom pizza.
@socaltransplant – Yes, I do try to eat a lot of different types of food, but I try not to eat too much of any of the food. So far, I’ve managed not to gain any weight while here.