Introducing our new neighborhood

Since we've been here for over a week, I suppose it's high time I talked about our new neighborhood. Our little patch of Oakland is called Jack London Square, right on the water across from Alameda Island. It's a former dockyard/warehouse district that is slowly becoming trendy/residential, although there are a good number of warehouses--mostly retail and food-related--still around. This means there's a fair amount of truck and delivery traffic during the day, but at night and on the weekends the streets are quiet.

I'll do full pics of our apartment when stuff is unpacked (and I get something to hang on our walls--tall ceilings are nice, but there's so much empty space!). But, here's a view out our dining nook window:

You can see the fancy condo building in the background--it's easy to tell which buildings are owned condos and not rentals, they usually have nicer landscaping.

Jack London Square has a lot going on, socially. The first weekend we were here, they hosted Pedalfest, a cycling extravaganza that featured stunt biking, wacky homemade bikes, and lots of gear for sale. We spent 2 hours in the sun taking in the sights--such a pleasant way to avoid unpacking! Here's Michael enjoying a New Holland Ranger IPA:

Yes, those are palm trees. They're just part of the landscaping around here. We're in danger of having far too much fun out here, as this weekend there is not only a music-festival-and-bbq-cookoff, but also a wine fest!

So far, we really like this little neighborhood, it seems like a good combination of residential quiet with easy, fun stuff to do. I know its been a while since I posted--I'll keep updating as we explore the area more, so the blog isn't dead yet.