Free And For Me

My daughter graduated from college a month ago and was planning to leave for Hawaii and then study abroad.   With her leaving I decided we should getaway as a family.   So we took a family road trip to Northern California.

Our trip began with us staying in San Francisco.  I based our stay in San Francisco around our stay at The Clement Hotel in Palo Alto.   Palo Alto is a 20 minute drive  from San Francisco.  I figured this would be the perfect way to wrap up our mini vacay.

My son was aware that The Clement Hotel is inclusive  and had familiarized himself with the property prior to our stay.  My daughter had been busy with everything in her life.  She was just trusting my judgement and going along for the ride.  She had no idea that this boutique hotel has 23 suites which meant we would be in a very private setting.

When we arrived we were greeted by a the wonderful staff.  Checking in at the Clement felt like entering into a new home.   There was an instant feeling of warmth.   There was a bit of a hiccup when we arrived, but we did not mind.  As the staff sorted things out we waited in the cozy, modern living room that had strategically placed bowls of candy around the room.  My son could not wait to eat some because this was the weekend I was allowing sweets.  The living room is accented with a stone fireplace.  This was the perfect place for us to relax throughout our trip if we decided to do so.

As soon as things were sorted out we were escorted to our suite.  As we made our way down the hall I could hear my son and daughter whispering with excitement.   My son was excited because it was what he imagined and then some.  My daughter was excited because she had no idea of what to expect.  But, she was very pleased.  This warmed my heart knowing that ending our road trip here was a great way to celebrate my daughter’s summer adventures and a great way to say, ” See you soon!”

Our suite had one queen bed and a sofa bed that were turned down at night.  We loved the spacious stoned-lined bathroom.  I am not a big fan of bathrooms, but I fell in love with the heated floors and toilet seats.  Someone in our family had a bit of surprise with the bidet.

While our bags were being delivered to our room, we were like magicians.  We changed into our swimsuits and headed to the pool.  We have a pool at home, but we wanted to relax by the pool at The Clement after our time in San Francisco.  We had been running around none stop.   We had intentions of shopping and seeing the Palo Alto sights  as soon as we arrived, but we gave into to the relaxing feeling the hotel had to offer for a little while.

It has been a while since I had time to just really relax and be surrounded by people that just want to take care of me, let alone my entire family.  We needed to spend some time relaxing.   We were bent on staying at the hotel after we met the chef.   He was so friendly and wanted to feed us.  How could we turn him down?  This was a man that was proud of us skills and displayed them through his love for cooking.  I knew he was a real chef, because he genuinely wanted to feed us.  If we did not want to place an order for him to prepare a dish, he was showing us what was in the refrigerator or on the counters for us to eat.  We kept this in mind when he the he  was off work.  While he was gone the open kitchen was still accessible 24 hours a day.  Everything the  chef prepared was absolutely delicious!  When it was time for us to check out and say goodbye I did not know if I should have shook his hand or hugged him.  He really made us feel at home.

We dined by the pool or in the dining room.  Room service was available, but we never ordered room service.  Since we spent most of our time at the pool while enjoying the panoramic views,  we would place a phone order  and it was delivered to the rooftop deck.  I was a little concerned about this because I was trying to watch what I ate.  I really needed to be swimsuit ready for the entire summer.

We did spend a lot of time at the pool but we could not resist going to the mall which was less than five minutes away.  Throughout our entire trip my daughter was convinced she had to shop for her upcoming trips.  We shopped in San Francisco and then in Palo Alto.  We had to have some things mailed home.   You have to pay for shopping bags in the stores in both cities.  This was foreign to us because we do not do that in Southern California.   The Clement had this in mind and they provide the cutest shopping bags for their guests.

I know our plan was to relax, but the mall was calling our names.   It was nice to know that after we shopped and did a little sight seeing we could return to the hotel.  We could not resist the pool.  The temperatures in Palo Alto are quit a bit cooler than Southern California, so taking a dip in the pool at night was not an option, but we did get in the jacuzzi.   We sat, laughed, talked and snacked for hours.   When we were not placing an order or making a request someone would check in to see how we were doing.

Our waking ours were incredible and our sleep was very restful.   My son did not want to go to sleep.  He wanted to sit in the jacuzzi and just hang out all day and night.  I was so happy that these activities tired him out.  It did not help that the beds were so comfortable it was hard to get him up and going.

The personalized luxury accommodations are like a home away from home.

This trip was a perfect send off for my daughter.  When it was time to check out of our suite she and my son said, “This was such a good trip!”  There are times people take trips and they are not always good.  In my opinion this was an absolutely wonderful trip.

I know my kids sincerely enjoyed our stay.  My daughter and her best friend are planning to visit The Clement when my daughter returns from London.   Maybe the will invite me.

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