Saturday in Suburbia

I was fortunate enough to take a day trip to the suburbs of The Peninsula this past weekend. Not only was it nice to get out of the city for the day, but driving down the unlit, two-lane Alpine Road lined with yellow and orange trees evoked a feeling of autumn in New York, which is one of three things I miss about living there; the other two being pizza and bagels.

Growing up in a small town like Rye, NY I am very familiar with the suburbs. However I never expected to encounter a town that reminded me so much of Rye right in the backyard of my beloved San Francisco. The local watering hole, the soccer field, the gourmet grocery store, the country club, the city center, the farm stand... all these things are characteristic to the suburban lifestyle and are ever so present in Portola Valley (aka PV), my weekend destination. The bike lane is filled with business men on their weekend rides, or families in a tandem cycle heading to their afternoon soccer match. Parents and their little ones fill the pumpkin patch with wagons collecting their Halloween gourds, with one mother yelling to her son "Remember, the rule is you have to be able to carry it, not roll it!"

And as you drive up Skyline Blvd, outside the PV borders, you'll find men on motorcycles stopping for a beer at Alice's Restaurant before heading up the curvy road to Windy Hill, the most beautiful summit in The Peninsula. From Windy Hill you can see the valley of suburban towns below you, the industrial East Bay beyond you, the Pacific Ocean behind you (if you can see past the fog - unlikely) and if you squint your eyes you can even see Angel Island and Golden Gate Bridge in the far distance. A prime spot for any photographer, hiker, or picnickers.

Beyond small towns like PV, Atherton and Ladera (which apparently isn't even a real town it's so small) is the more well-known Palo Alto, home of the top-notch Stanford University. It was game day at Stanford so the traffic was pretty high, but driving through the campus a bit gives you a glimpse at the palm tree-lined medical buildings and student dorms. If crowded stadiums aren't your forte, head to the Dutch Goose in Menlo Park for some local brew and deviled eggs - their specialty! Here we found young adults adorned in college sweatshirts rooting for their Alma mater, as well as a diverse family or two getting their Saturday night burger fix. The tables in the booths are etched with initials and even some scandalous messages to fellow diners. Definitely the perfect place to cap off a day in the 'burbs - to remind you that it's not all country clubs and pumpkin patches.

I guess I'll always have a little place in my heart for suburban simplicity.