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Wish You Were Here: Astride camels in the Sahara Desert

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

Our readers have circled the world over the last year, heading for Alaska for a bear-watching vacation, the Galapagos for wildlife adventures,  England to explore maritime history and more, sharing travel tales and helpful tips along the way.Today’s reader missive comes from four South Bay friends whose adventures included camels in the Sahara Desert.Wish You Were HereMOROCCO: A 15-day tour of Morocco took Pete Anderson of San Jose, Sarah Sherfy of Gilroy, Sylvia Shih of Seaside and Debbie Anderson of San Jose on a guided adventure across the sands of the Sahara (pictured) near Merzouga, a small town near the Algerian border. “We traveled together with a local guide, Youssef and a driver, Nabil,” Debbie says. The tour included Casablanca, Fes, Midelt, Ouarzazat and Todra Gorge, as well as the port city of Essaouira and coastal town of Safi on the Atlantic coast. “We stayed in riads, a traditional Moroccan house or palace with an indoor garden and courtyard lo...

TasteFood: You say breakfast, I say dinner, we all say delicious

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

Who doesn’t like eggs for dinner? If you raise your hand, then you might try this North African stew. Shakshouka is a bright and spicy one-skillet meal — a thick ragout of tomatoes and sweet peppers with runny eggs poached in the sauce. It’s traditionally served for breakfast throughout North Africa and the Middle East, but shakshouka is also a vibrant brunch dish and a warming, homey dinner.The base of shakshouka is flexible and forgiving, thus amenable to additional ingredients and varying heat levels. This recipe nudges the stew into dinner territory with the hearty additions of chickpeas, wilted greens and spicy sausage. These ingredients are optional; for a meatless option, add black olives to the ragout and feta cheese scattered over the top. Or point the dish toward North Africa with the addition of spicy lamb merguez sausages.Whichever way you customize it, serve shakshouka with crusty bread or couscous for soaking up the egg yolk and sauce.Prepare shakshou...

Why have three San Jose outdoor cats suddenly rejected their warm beds?

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

DEAR JOAN: In 2022, we purchased three outdoor houses for our three outdoor cats; one on the front porch and another two in the backyard. The houses are exposed but under a porch roof and barn roof.The front porch cat is female, while there are two male cats in the backyard, and they do not mingle. The cats initially slept in these little houses, especially when the weather was cold, but now none of the three venture inside these structures.We have cleaned the bedding and keep them free of debris. We are looking for an answer to why the three cats refuse to sleep in these three structures, especially now as the weather turns colder.— Patrick and Mary Taylor, San JoseDEAR PATRICK AND MARY: Cats can be extremely picky and fickle when it comes to sleeping choices, but my guess is that some other creature came sniffing around the houses, perhaps even taking a snooze inside, and now the cats don’t feel safe. When you’re an outdoor cat, you’re perhaps at your most vulnerable when yo...

Share the Spirit: How one Concord garden made a world of difference, and a reason to get out of bed

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

Walk inside the Bayberry Skilled Nursing and Healthcare Center and it looks and feels like any other nursing home.There’s a temperature check, a sign-in desk, a corkboard with activities and a handful of residents hanging out in the nearby dining room. It’s mostly quiet, aside from the television and some murmured conversations.But walk through the dining room, push open the exit door and there’s a whole new world outside.Residents Lillia Alvarez, from right, and Lynn Jaeger garden at the Bayberry Skilled Nursing & Healthcare Center in Concord, Calif., on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023.​ (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) In a small courtyard, covered in warm sunlight, a handful of residents are laughing, talking and focused on their very important job: maintaining a vibrant garden full of flowers and strawberries, cherry tomatoes and bell peppers, and an array of other potted plants.Lynn Jaeger, 64, walked over to one of the plants, plucked a fresh basil leaf off and handed it to ...

Unique Bay Area Christmas display a symbol of neighborly good will to all

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

A beloved hillside Christmas display has returned for the 74th year in El Cerrito, welcoming families in an annual tradition and serving as an enduring testament to the vision of its creator – and the holiday spirit.The display, a broad nativity scene on Moeser Lane, began in 1949 when a Sikh immigrant named Sundar Shadi hung a humble star outside of his home during the Christmas season. In the following years, he added Wise Men constructed from plywood, then eventually animals made of chicken wire and plaster.Related ArticlesEntertainment | Political cartoons: Who’s naughty and who’s nice this Christmas? Entertainment | Holiday travel season off to a smooth start across the country Entertainment | 5 tips for tackling Disneyland during the busiest week of the year Entertainment | 10 Champagne alternatives, budget bubbles to toast in 2024 Entertainment | Emerging COVID variant is spreading ahead of...

Homeless housing projects in Berkeley, San Pablo move forward with state Homekey money

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

Two planned homeless housing projects are moving forward in the East Bay after millions in state grants were allocated toward putting a roof over the heads of almost a hundred unhoused residents.The state this week announced more than $30 million from its Homekey homeless housing program will go to the facilities expected to open in Berekely and San Pablo, as the Bay Area continues ramping up efforts to bring thousands of homeless people off the street. Both sites will offer social services and allow residents to stay permanently. In Berekely, more than $14 million will help buy the former Rodeway Inn motel at 1461 University Ave. and convert it to 42 studio apartments. The city has already been leasing the property to temporarily shelter local homeless people. Renovations are expected to start in the spring.It’s Berkeley’s second award from the Homekey program. In 2020, the city won $16 million to transform the former Golden Bear Inn on San Pablo Avenue into supportive ...

Rainfall forecasted mid-week, NWS

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

(KRON) – The Bay Area is forecasted to have rainy weather for the week of Christmas, according to the National Weather Service.The first round of rain is predicted for Wednesday through Thursday. The rain is predicted to be less than one inch in the Bay. However, the North Bay is forecasted to have 0.5-2 inches of rain. Coastal flood, hazardous beach advisories for Christmas The second round of rain is forecasted from late Thursday through Saturday. According to NWS, this system could range from one to three inches in the coastal ranges and 0.2-1 inches in the interior. For your safety, allow extra time for travel and leave space in between cars. Cleaning your gutters and storm drainers can also be helpful.

Santa Clara County crews battling 3-alarm fire in Los Altos

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

(BCN) -- Firefighters are trying to contain a three-alarm fire in Los Altos early Monday morning, according to the Santa Clara County Fire Department.The blaze occurred at a commercial structure on El Camino Real between North San Antonio Road and Sherwood Avenue, Santa Clara County fire officials said on social media at 5:40 a.m.Motorists are advised to avoid the area and use alternate routes.Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.

San Rafael fallen tree causes power outage, road closure Sunday night

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

(BCN) -- A fallen tree caused a power outage and road closure in San Rafael on Sunday night, according to police.Around 8:30 p.m. Sunday, a tree along Vineyard Drive fell onto power lines, police said. This knocked out power service in the immediate area of Vineyard Drive, Coleman Drive, and north into some parts of Terra Linda. The portion of Vineyard Drive between Coleman Drive and Prospect Drive was also shut down.According to San Rafael police, crews determined there was no fire danger and PG&E already assessed the situation.Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.

‘It’s complicated’: DC officials mark 50th anniversary of Home Rule Act, continue push for statehood

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:20:51 GMT

D.C. got a unique Christmas Eve surprise from President Richard Nixon a half century ago — the right to self-governance.It came after decades of failures for the city, between 1948 and 1964, as a handful of bills came to the floor of Congress only to fail passage.“After turning out by the thousands for the March on Washington to support Black voting rights across the country, they couldn’t vote in their home city,” the DC library notes in its commemoration of 50 years of home rule.D.C. leaders wrote to their “friend and ally” Martin Luther King, Jr. to support their cause, the library added.“King spent three days in D.C., meeting with community leaders and leading rallies in support of racial justice and D.C. Home Rule,” the commemoration said.Over the years that passed, leaders like former Mayor Marion Barry and activist Dick Gregory would be among those that pushed to increase self-governance until Congress finally passed the Home Rule Act...