Interest Rates, Napa Valley and Private Planes

Quick Rate Update:

Not much change, but the markets didn’t react favorably to the State of the Union so rates were slightly worse yesterday, with slight improvement today.
30 Yr fixed rates range from 4.75% to 5% depending on loan size; 15 year rates are slightly lower, and 5-yr arms still hovering in the 3.25% to 3.5% range. All rates and programs are sensitive to FICO score, loan-to-value, reason for financing (purchase, refinance, cash-out) and occupancy type. Underwriting guidelines continue to contract and become more conservative. (!)

Napa Valley Report

We flew to the Bay area for a weekend of wine tasting with Steve’s sisters and their spouses over the Martin Luther King Holiday, which happens to coincide with Steve’s birthday. The most exciting part was flying up and back in a private plane owned by Steve’s younger sister and her husband, who is a pilot. Our “ride” was a four seater and my first comment upon seeing it was “we’re flying in that?” Everyone laughed. Although I’d flown in private planes in the past, nothing quite this small. They all assured me size doesn’t matter! The flight from Carlsbad took two and ½ hours, and was pretty amazing. The weather was clear and we could see forever. We hit a couple of bumpy sports over the grapevine but nothing major.

We took off in a van the next morning for Napa. First stop was Clos Pegase, where we tasted and bought a few bottles for our picnic on their lovely grounds. They have an amazing art collection, and offer tours twice a day. I heartily recommend visiting them. Next stop: Cuvaison, home of a favorite chardonnay. We then headed up into the hills for a private tour and tasting at the O’Shaughnessy Winery, which was a real treat. They offer really “big” reds and an enormous cave build into the hill, including a private dining room and private wine collection to boot.

Afterwards we drove up to our friends’ home on the hill above Calistoga for a glimpse of sunset accompanied by more wine and cheese before heading off to dinner at Brannan’s Grill downtown Calistoga. We had a lovely dinner and enjoyed listening to live jazz. I found out the restaurant is named for the founder of Calistoga, who named the city for its springs, e.g. the “Saratoga Springs” of California, hence Calistoga! www.brannansgrill.com

Sunday morning we visited Rombauer – our favorite Chardonnay – and then lunched at Frank Family Vineyards. Our final stop of the day was a tour and tasting at Schramsburg. Their sparkling wines are the best! www.schramsberg.com



Back in Palo Alto, we dined at Trader Vic’s, which is an institution there. Our return Monday was delayed due to heavy fog, and we finally took off after 2:00 in the afternoon. Luckily our pilot Chuck is instrument-rated, so we could have left earlier-- but we waited for better viz. Our flight home was entirely beautiful and uneventful and we arrived to witness a fabulous sunset just behind Catalina before landing. What Fun!

Thanksgiving in Cabo Pulmo, Mexico!

We ventured to the eastern tip of Baja California (Sea of Cortez) for a quiet getaway the week before Thanksgiving. We planned to scuba dive and just relax -- and that is exactly what we got! Warm, sunny weather, (80-ish days, 70-ish nights) with a bit of breeze toward the end of the week, and lots of quiet was just what the doctor ordered. The only music we heard—except for restaurant radios—was from our battery -operated IHome Ipod player! We pretty much lived in our swimsuits.

We had been warned we could run into trouble finding our way after dark, and to watch for cows on the road. We arrived without mishap around 9:00 p.m. to be greeted by an entirely dark village. Everything rolls up around that time. This was a Friday night! Directions to our home were left in an envelope at the door to the office. No keys allowed here! We literally locked up nothing all week!

Cabo Pulmo is about an hour and a half drive from the airport at San Jose Del Cabo, but seems worlds away from the activity center of Cabo San Lucas. Pulmo is located on the East Cape facing the Sea of Cortez. The last 6 miles of the trek are on a dirt road. You can take a dirt road the entire way from San Jose along the coast, but it takes much longer and isn’t wise in the dark.

Cabo Pulmo offers the only coral reef located in the Sea of Cortez. Jacques Cousteau called this the aquarium of the world, and for good reason! We dove three days, two-tanks each. We saw more fish, in sheer numbers, than anywhere else we’ve been diving. Although we missed out on seeing whale sharks, we saw huge fish balls and schools of jacks, that went on and on, forever. We saw sea turtles, and dozens of different kinds of local tropical fish. This is a fabulous place to dive and fish. They primarily use panga boats for fishing, and for diving as well. Back entry into the water only!

Steve spent much of his time painting his favorite fish, while I read a couple of books lazing in the sun. We generally just relaxed. Other than our diving, we snorkeled daily at the reef right off the beach, took a hike in the local hills, and drove up the coast to Los Barriles one afternoon.

This is not a destination for those seeking a lot of day- or night-time “action” although we had great dinners out every evening at one of the four different restaurants available. We ate a ton of fresh fish…either grilled, pan fried in oil and garlic, or in tacos. We met some interesting ex-pats who live in the area full-time, and chatted up the new divemaster over a couple of meals (and margaritas, beer and wine of course).

Be sure to shop in San Jose before you get on the road, as supplies are virtually non-existent in Cabo Pulmo (except for restaurants) and groceries are limited in La Riberia-- which is the closest “city.” On the plus side, there are no vendors on the beach, so you can have the beach essentially to yourself! We stayed in a “casita” in the village which was a large one-room home with full kitchen, bathroom, and best of all, a private outdoor shower. We had two patios, one at ground level and one at roof top level with a view of the hills and peek-a-boo water view. Our patio home was entirely private, surrounded by a hedge. We were a one to two minute walk to the beach, down a path. There are a few beachfront rentals in the village, although there are other rentals in the general vicinity that are completely isolated both on and off the shore.

I’d love to return with a group and rent a compound, or larger private home, of which there are a few in the immediate area. Viva la Mexico!