Winchester House of Mystery and beyond

[fenchurch]

Well, that was actually pretty neat. It definitely lived up to the hype, at least for me... combining two things I quite enjoy (old mansions and funky construction) into one very large sprawling package. Although our tour guide had the sort of voice projecting that gives me a headache if it goes on too long (which it did) -- she seemed really nice when I chatted with her outside the "tour" aspect, but wow. That was quite a shout. What I found most interesting, though, is that they really have no idea why Sarah Winchester did what she did... the story about a mystic telling her that she needed to be constantly building on the house to keep the spirits of those killed by the Winchester Rifle at bay is actually just speculation. Considering how superstitious the woman seemed to be, it does seem likely that it's true.

When we left San Jose, we headed up through San Francisco, which may have been a mistake... although I don't know what other direction we could have gone that would have been quicker. The traffic was a bit of a mess, but we eventually made our way across the Bay Bridge and up through Vallejo toward Sacramento. We visited with my grandparents again for a bit, making sure their computers were all still up and running without any problems (mostly we were worried that we might have missed something when we fixed them on our way down to San Diego). They weren't feeling up to going out to dinner, so we looked up places nearby and ran out to grab take-away from The Pasty Shack -- exactly the sort of place I like to find when I'm on vacation... a small local place that's been around for awhile (about 60 years) and has a unique menu. Their pasties were pretty decent... although I've definitely had better.

After dinner we headed north again and settled in for the night at a hotel in Red Bluff... when we head out this morning, we're planning on doubling back a bit to Corning so we can pay one last visit to the Olive Pit, then we'll wend our way up into Oregon. The plan is to make stops along the way at some of the sights... although I don't think we're going to be able to make it over to Crater Lake on this trip, like we'd been hoping. We are planning to stop off at some of the caverns around Mt. Shasta, though!

Comments

[slm76.livejournal.com]

I've always wanted to visit the Winchester House, so I'm glad it lived up to it's fame. Now, I still want to go there *g* I vaguely remember the Ghost Hunters doing an investigation there, but I don't recall the results sadly enough.

[julia-here.livejournal.com]

From San Jose north? Our experience, in a very bad five days spent in a motel in Richmond, is that San Pablo/99 is usually faster than any other route, except for 4-6pm when you don't get anywhere no-how. Of course, it's the east side of the bay and there's no views, for most of it, but what the hay.

I've been following your trip with rapt interest; it's unlikely that I'll get further south than Newberg any time until next year.

Julia, jealous like whoa

[nmissi.livejournal.com]

ooh I am hoping you took pictures in the Winchester House and I want to hear all about it when you visit me; I've always wanted to see it!

[jedihealer.livejournal.com]

Pasties? Yum!

[saifai.livejournal.com]

Glad you liked the Winchester house. It's a fun place to visit. Been there once, but I want to go back and really appreciate it this time. I was quite young when I last went.

Gotta love the little food places you find on trips. And bonus, it has a website! I find out about the most interesting places to order food from people I know. :)

Sounds like you guys got more fun in store for ya'. Have fun!

[philips.livejournal.com]

The Winchester House is proof that remodeling makes you crazy. I remember all the Tiffany glass. That was pretty. Didn't her sadness and compulsiveness have something to do with the loss of her son (sons?). In any case, it is neat and I still remember our tour fondly. I hope the rest of your trip is enjoyable. :)

[pmgoose.livejournal.com]

The Winchester? *makes W sign* That sounds neat.

*not sure whether to geek out over Shaun of the Dead or Supernatural here* ;)