SENIORS DRIVE THROUGH CALIFORNIA



Seniors Settle Into Walnut Creek

Unknown This senior can’t travel to every town, city, country, borough, or county with an interesting name or where something catches my eye, so I write blogs on them. Right now I’m trying to remember how Walnut Creek caught my attention.

Aha, I just discovered that Walnut Creek was Voted in 1989 by the National Conference of Mayors as “The most livable small city in the nation.” That was it! Recent downtown renovation has made Walnut Creek even nicer.

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Walnut Creek was first known as “The Corners” — where the two roads leading from Pacheco and Lafayette converged. Today those “corners” are at the intersection of Mt. Diablo Boulevard and North Main Street. The oldest commercial structure still standing in Walnut Creek is the Albert Sherburne store, built around 1863.

Seniors Find Interesting History in Walnut Creek

Walnut Creek, pop. 65,000+,  is located 16 miles east of the city of Oakland and 23 miles east of San Francisco on I-680. The first known inhabitants of the Walnut Creek area were the Bolbones Indians.

In March 1772, the first Spanish explorers arrived. California became a possession of Mexico following the Mexican Revolution in 1821. To encourage settlement in its newly-acquired territory, Mexico made large land grants, four of which were in the Walnut Creek area.

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The Walnut Creek Homepage is simply loaded with lots and lots of information on the city. Spend some time here and you will learn lots about this “most livable city.” If you enjoy shopping, Walnut Creek is for you. The Broadway Plaza shopping center has several major anchor tenants, and is part of the downtown retail and restaurant district.

Roads are bicycle and pedestrian friendly. The pedestrian walkways are lined with trees so senior visitors will enjoy just strolling. And Walnut Creek has cultural offerings: the Lindsay Wildlife Museum, closely followed by the Lesner Center for the Arts.

Seniors Enjoy the Art & Wine Festival

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Me I’d head for the Ruth Bancroft Garden housing more than 2,000 cacti and drought resistant plants and an ongoing plant sale. The Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce annually celebrates the Walnut Creek Art & Wine Festival, a tradition that started in 1982 with two days of entertainment.

It’s a major event in town that brings in throngs of visitors from all over the state and nation. Hand-made crafts and works of art from more than 200 artisans, award-winning local and regional wines and microbrews and more packs the house, and its all free.

For seniors with a demanding palate, there are a host of quality restaurants in Walnut Creek. TripAdvisor highlights the Val de Vi Bistro and Wine Bar, the San Francisco Creamery Co. and Salvatore Ristorante Italian.

Walnut Creek Downtown has its own website with an invitation for a Walnut Creek Walk. Set your GPS for Walnut Creek and enjoy. -jeb

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