I had initially wanted to attend the Tour de Fleur in Half Moon, but the tour packages are all sold out.  I guess it’s really popular and you should order the tickets months in advance.  The Tour de Fluer is organized by the city of Half Moon Bay and would include a behind the scene tours of local nurseries, wineries and farms.  Maybe next summer, so instead we went berry picking!

We headed out to Pescadero (a small town near San Francisco) for berry picking at Phipps Country Store and Farm.  It was too late for strawberry picking, but there were Boseyberries and Olallieberries.  Even thought the berries looked ripe and were black (purple), and yet they were still very sour!   A tiny few were sweet.  I’ve had mulberries that were much sweeter.  In between M and I, we picked about 1 pound of berries.  Cost of berries is $3 per lb.  Entrance fee is $3 per person, which includes tour of the animal farm full of exotic chickens, peacock, goats, and more.

I really couldn’t tell the difference between these berries, I use to just call them blackberries.  Picking blackberries remind me of my childhood in the summertime.  Our family would head out with our cousins to the nearest river for fishing and swimming.  While everyone was having fun swimming, I was the only kid busy eating ripe berries.  I guess my love for fruit has never ceased.

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M was the first to spot this mocking purple orchid. I had to see for myself and it was true, the flower has character. So I took a snapshot of it from the orchid nursery in Half Moon Bay.

This one below reminds me of a Japanese kimono.

And here are more colorful orchids: yellow, spotty, striped, all types.

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Happy New Year!

We recently had a chance to visit Half Moon Bay, which is just south of San Francisco. I usually avoid going to Half Moon Bay in the summer as it is always gray and foggy, unlike the beaches in southern California. But on our recent December trip it was very sunny. The water off the coast was deep blue and the sky was clear. The beaches had no surfers, just a couple of seals bopping up and down along the shoreline. The wind off the Pacific was refreshing and the air felt very clean.

We had access to the beaches via the new Ritz-Carlton Hotel and golf links. There were also lots of new pretty beach homes and mansions near the hotel too. Along with an agreement with the city, there’s a public parking lot with the hotel. Once parked, there are access paths to walk along that parallel the golf course near the edge of the coastal cliffs. So it was a good and much needed day trip for all of us.

On our drive up the winding highway, we made a spontaneous stop at an orchid nursery. I didn’t intend to make any purchases, but was very tempted. But now I know where to get my orchids in the future. And I think they would make great gifts, especially with the long lasting blooms. I also saw this huge cymbidian orchid that my mother would love. It had tons of flowers and look so healthy. It was only $18 and would probably retail for $30 at the florist.

But as much as I love orchids, I think they are a pain to take care of. The last orchid I had bloomed for 3 months and never again. The pink cymbidian orchid my mother grows in her garden only bloomed twice in the last five years. But despite my (or our) lack of insights into orchid care, seeing an orchid in bloom is always a nice surprise. And I was smiling ear to ear at the sight of this lovely orchid greenhouse.

I actaully didn’t realize Half Moon Bay is home to many nurseries. Amongst one of the best is Nurserymen Exchange. But they are not open to the public. There is a tour that is held every summer for a chance to tour Half Moon Bay’s local nursery, vineyard, and goat farm. It is Tour Des Fluers and held in July, ticket cost $20. You can get a behind the scene look at the day to day operations of these places. I think that would be a great idea and hope to attend the tour for 2009. I just don’t know who would enjoy this tour as much as myself. Especially the tour at the goat farm.

So here are some of my favorite pictures from the orchid nursery:

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