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Wish You Were Here: On the golf courses of Scotland

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

These last months have seen our readers traveling the world, exploring the glories of Bath, England, home to ancient Roman baths and plenty of Jane Austen lore, and trekking through Portugal. Along the way, they’ve shared their discoveries and offered travel tips, so we can go too.Here’s the latest installment, this time from a trio of golf devotees just back from Scotland.WISH YOU WERE HERESCOTLAND: In September, three longtime San Jose friends — from left, Larry Schiro, Al Sardella and Dan Peterson at the Carnoustie Golf Hotel — spent 12 days golfing and sightseeing in Scotland. “Just an unbelievable trip for friendships that are 60+ years!” Al says. “We booked our golf bucket list trip with Hidden Links, (which) arranged our lodging and transportation in Scotland as well as booking tee times at Eden, Kingsbarns and Carnoustie Championship course. Given there are so many golf courses in Scotland, (we) easily booked tee times at other cours...

The Italian town where Santa Claus is buried

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

By Silvia Marchetti | CNNEveryone knows that Santa will be doing the rounds at Christmas, squeezing down chimneys, knocking back glasses of whiskey, leaving presents under trees and ho-ho-ho-ing all the way back to the North Pole in his flying sled.Or – and you’ll want to ask children to look away at this point – will he actually just be lying dead beneath a church named after him in a port in southern Italy?The town of Bari, located on the heel of Italy’s boot, has laid claim to this alternate Santa story for nearly 1,000 years after the bearded gift-giver’s remains were said to have been interred beneath a church that bears his name.Santa here is Saint Nicholas, globally acknowledged as the man who inspired the Santa Claus legend. Nicholas, also known as Niklaus or Nicola, was a real-life Christian saint born, not in the frozen north, but in Myra, in what is today Turkey.Saint Nick, it is believed, was born around 270 C.E., and died 67 years later. He was revered around the Medite...

49ers great Ronnie Lott is still making a big impact on the Bay Area

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

Ronnie Lott is staring up at the walls in his Santa Clara office, looking at framed photos of him and fellow sports greats Chris Mullin, Magic Johnson and Joe Montana.“If you said, ‘What’s the second best thing they like?’” the 64-year-old San Francisco 49ers legend and Football Hall of Famer says of the impressive cast of characters. “The first thing is they love playing. The second thing is they love helping.”Those same words can be said about many of the notable sports figures that Lott, a longtime South Bay resident, has known through the decades, from legendary Raiders coach John Madden to all-universe hockey talent Wayne Gretzky.Former San Francisco 49ers Joe Montana and Ronnie Lott stand on the sidelines during the NFL game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Cincinnati Bengals at Levi’s Stadium on December 20, 2015 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) And that most certainly can be said about Lott himself, who, more than a quarte...

3 awesome whale festivals in spring 2024 to see in Northern California

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

Every year from winter to spring the California coast sees a huge migration of gray whales, commuting between their breeding grounds off Baja California, Mexico, to their feeding spots in the Arctic. To celebrate the passing of these big creatures, California holds big whale festivals in the spring where you can enjoy chowder, good wine, live music and, with luck, see whales blowing spouts on the ocean horizon. (Fun fact: Gray-whale spouts look like hearts.)The dates for several of Northern California’s whale fests for 2024 include three great ones within striking distance of the Bay Area. With COVID rising and dipping all the time, it’s best to check the status of the fests before hitting the road; but without ado, here are the cetacean celebrations scheduled so far:Fort Bragg Whale Fest: March 15-17, 2024This Mendocino city has a fully loaded schedule for this year’s Whale Fest – “like the migrating leviathans we celebrate, bigger and better than ever,̶...

Animal life: Have marmots taken over a Saratoga backyard?

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

DEAR JOAN: I have an acre and half of land, and the bottom half is covered with large twig houses that the marmots are building. They are stealing my persimmons and I am sure they are storing them.There are at least seven large mounds and I need to get rid of them. Do you have any  suggestions?I think they are also tearing off the leaves of the persimmons, probably for nesting material. They are also going after my neighbors trees.Diana Anderson, SaratogaDEAR DIANA: I think we might have a case of mistaken identity. Yosemite and the higher elevations are home to the yellow-bellied marmot, which also is known as a groundhog. The Yosemite variety is much smaller than the groundhogs we associate with Groundhog Day and Punxsutawney Phil.So while we don’t have any of the large- or medium-sized marmots in the Bay Area, we do have plenty of their smaller cousins, the ground squirrels. However, the marmots, groundhogs and ground squirrels do not build stick nests. They dig tunnels and creat...

Richmond is dreaming big for its vacant Hilltop Mall — can city officials finally make it happen?

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

RICHMOND – The worst type of mall is a dead mall.But this years-long, morbid reality has not yet galvanized Richmond officials and developers to settle on a clear vision to resurrect the former Hilltop Mall — a once-buzzing community jewel that started financially faltering years before shuttering in April of 2021.After the 1.1-million-square-foot mall opened its doors in September 1976, decades of patrons reveled in its name-brand retailers, indoor ice skating rink and dual movie theaters — all tucked within Richmond’s northern borders with San Pablo, Pinole and El Sobrante.These days, a 24 Hour Fitness and Walmart are the last lingering operators at “The Shops at Hilltop,” echoing how the pandemic accelerated the demise of legacy shopping centers across the nation.Questions abound as to whether or not the 143-acre mall site can realistically be transformed into a space that serves the modern needs of residents living nearby and across West Contra Costa County. It could...

Offense fuels Sharks’ resurgence, but more concerns lay directly ahead

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

The San Jose Sharks returned home early Monday morning after an 11-day road trip with as much confidence in themselves as they’ve had all season.Consider it a byproduct of beating three Eastern Conference teams that are in the mix for a playoff spot, and almost knocking off the defending Stanley Cup champions.The Sharks nearly capped off what had already been a positive road trip with another stirring victory Sunday, scoring twice in the final 3:45 of the third period to send their game with the Vegas Golden Knights into overtime.But after a scoreless extra session, Kevin Labanc and Mikael Granlund could not capitalize on their shootout attempts, and Jonathan Marchessault and Jack Eichel finished theirs as the Golden Knights handed the Sharks a 5-4 loss at T-Mobile Arena.Still, after losing their first 10 road games without picking up so much as a point, the Sharks went 3-1-1 to finish the trip, which included dramatic comeback wins over the New York Islanders and Detroit Red Wings....

Two people injured in massive San Francisco fire

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

(KRON) – The San Francisco Fire Department is working on containing a massive fire on the 700 block of Masonic.  Multiple buildings are evacuated with a partial floor collapse. According to SFFD, one person was rescued and transported to a local area hospital. Masonic Avenue between Hayes Street and Fulton Street is closed to traffic. Please avoid the area and find alternate routes.Update-- San Francisco officials are now reporting that two people have been injured due to the fire.

DUI stop led police to drugs, loaded handgun 

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

(KRON) –The Central Marin Police Department arrested a man for suspicion of DUI and allegedly found multiple drug substances. Central Marin officers were dispatched to Corte Madera Avenue regarding a report of a vehicle that had driven into a fence at 1:49 a.m. on Dec. 9.  Gilroy PD requests community’s help in finding alleged thief Upon arrival, officers located a man behind the wheel of the crashed vehicle. According to police, a search of the man and the vehicle resulted in the finding of 1.3 ounces of suspected cocaine, 1.25 ounces of suspected ecstasy, paraphernalia relating to drug sales, and a loaded handgun.The suspect was arrested and booked for felon in possession of a firearm, having a loaded firearm in a vehicle, and possession of a controlled substance for sale.

BART trains running slow due to wet weather

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:30:40 GMT

(BCN) -- BART trains are running slower by due to the wet weather, transit officials said early Monday morning.Travelers using the transit line are advised to expect delays of up to 10 minutes, BART officials said in an advisory around 5:40 a.m.Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.