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You absolutely HAVE to go to San Francisco Bay Area if you like food, nature, and culture! Chinatown has the most phenomenal Chinese food and shops for tourists! Union Street (near the famous squiggly Lombard Street) has great little shops. There is a pie place that is to die for! I can’t remember the name of it, but that pie crust will just melt in your mouth (I’m not really a pie person normally, either). The Farmers’ Market (down by the Harbor) is really great, too, because you can find some local vegetables and recipes that are really unique and healthy. Pier 39 is really great for the whole family. There are arcades, toy stores, restaurants, kite shops, one wall was painted by the famous painter Wyland. Seals have taken over the neighboring piers (by law they can’t be moved), and it is quite a site to see all of them basking in the California sun. I highly suggest going to Golden Gate National Park, too. There is a beautiful Japanese Tea Garden where you can have tea and traditional Japanese cuisine. The Redwood Forest is another great place for the whole family to enjoy. It has some of the largest and oldest trees on earth and has a fascinating history. While you are in California, drive Highway 1. It runs right along the coast (be careful in certain spots because it is literally right on the side of a cliff – though they do close that when it is too bad). It is one of the most beautiful places you don’t have to pay to get in. If you can get to Monterrey, go to the Monterry Bay Aquarium. It is one of the largest in the country with a wide array of animals. Kids and adults love it. DisneyLand is the obvious option; so, I’m not going to go into that because I’m sure you can look on their website. Another great place to go (in Northern California) is Lake Tahoe. It actually spreads across both Northern California and Nevada. It has great skiing in the winter but also has several fun activities available during the spring, summer and fall months. There are several ski resorts to choose from, and most all of them have summer activities available. To sum it up, California has a great variety of both family and adult things to see and do. You can make it a really inexpensive trip or stay at one of the many BNB’s and spend a little bit more. No matter what you do, you will enjoy yourself.

I lived here for 10 years, moved away a few years back and I get homesick for it all the time! Texas is probably one of my favorite places to be because there are so many different places to go and things to do. Obviously, the state itself is huge. You can go to the Hill Country (closest big city would be San Antonio) and raft on the Guadalupe River, go camping, rent a cabin, visit the Natural Bridge Caverns (so amazing!) and go to the James Avery jewelry headquarters (he is a Texan jeweler with a lot of talent…very well-known around there). You can go hunting at private ranches throughout the state. Around March every year, Houston has their famous Livestock Show and Rodeo. They have the typical rodeo stuff AND concerts with some of the greatest country artists from old to new! If you ever go into Downtown Houston, you have to go to the Water Wall. It is pretty hard to describe – you have to see it to believe it. It is very romantic at night…if you get dinner at the Spindletop Hotel (also downtown) and then ride one of the horsedrawn carriages down to the Water Wall, you will feel like royalty. Austin is a more artsy area and is home to the University of Texas. If you like history and/or architecture, I would recommend you take a tour of the campus because it has plenty of both. Dallas has a great rodeo bar where you can go line dancing, get some great Texas BBQ, and watch amateur bull riding. It’s fun for adults and kids! Dallas is the spot for the State Fair of Texas (which runs from the end of September through most of October) and home to Big Tex (a HUGE statue of a long tall Texan). There, you can experience a lot of the things that make Texas famous – food, music, animals, people! I could go on with this for a while, but that is one reason I love Texas most! It is home to more different things than I have ever seen anywhere else! That’s why the state slogan is “Texas: It’s like a whole other country”!