Mach.80's news room

Just recently I had an opportunity on my San Francisco trip to take a drive around Northern California and see the beautiful wine country.  Never have I seen such beautiful rolling hills that seem to just go on forever and blend into the distant horizon.  There were many wineries on the way to where ever I was going, I think Sonoma.  After sampling some of the delicious wine and cheese I decided to drive to Santa Rosa and then west to Bodega Bay.  Ah, yes Bodega Bay!  That cute little town featured in Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds.”  I have been a rather large fan of that movie ever since we studied it in high school.  It’s just one of those things that stick with you.  Did you ever notice that just about every scene was picturesque, especially during the driving scene with Tippi Hedron in her Aston Martin, and the boat scene when she cuts across the bay to see her love interest?  It’s also interesting to note that there was never any music during that film.  I think Hitchcock only wanted you to hear the natural elements; the wind, the water, and of course…the birds.

After arriving in Bodega I passed the old school house which is still there and sometimes open to tours from what I hear.  That actual school house is located several miles south of the bay in contrary to the film which made it seem like it was just up the road.  So after all that driving around you have to get something to eat, right?  So, where do go?  The Tides restaurant of course!  The restaurant is still there, however it is not the original structure.  The Tides was torn down and rebuilt in the 90’s and replaced with a new restaurant, market, and gift shop.  The food was great and it was nice to hear some stories from the locals that live there.  The town is definitely different from the way it appears in the movie.  Bodega Bay was originally established as a fishing community and still is, but after driving around it’s obviously more of a small retirement community with a golf course, inns and spas supported by tourism.  I have seen “The Birds” hundreds of times, so I guess I had my own pre conception of what this little town was going to be and was a little shocked when it wasn’t hustling and bustling like I thought.  Progress is good, but there are some things that should remain the same.  I guess even this small community isn’t isolated from the winds of change.