Away to Monterey

On a recent trip to California I learned that Monterey is magical. And also that driving south on the PCH is not only picturesque when looking out the right window (craggy coastline, crashing waves), but also gorgeous (natural beauty) and shocking (mud slides and forest fire damage) when looking out the left window. The fire damage was from a few years ago but the mudslide looked pretty recent outside of Santa Cruz.

My Schmoopie and I started our CA 1 adventure in Half Moon Bay, but before we actually got going, we were smart enough to devour savory crepes at Maverick’s Creperie. Highly recommend. Hey, I’m not a food photographer and I forgot to take a shot of my pristine, untouched plate because I was starving. So here it is, slightly mauled. I got the Half Moon Bay savory crepe. It was de-lectable. *thumbs up*

How do you follow a delicious savory crepe? Why, with a hot Mexican Mocha from Alpresso coffee. You might decide to walk there from the crepe place because it’s pretty close, but perhaps while you are standing at the window giving your order to the affable barista it might begin to rain, and then your Schmoopie might volunteer as tribute to get soaked jogging back to the rental car while you wait in the nice dry 7-11 and shoot this photo of the coffee place. That is how it might go.

My hero. He is mostly dried out in this shot. Driving is fun on CA 1! That rhymes! Let me just tell you, California is gorgeous. Oh you already know this? I mean. Sheesh. So much natural beauty to either side of the PCH. Lots for your eyeballs to do. Impossibly bright green rolling hills and craggy mountains, rocky sea shores, crashing waves, neat rows of endless hilltop vineyards and artichoke fields. Humongous farms with neatly plowed rows of rich dark soil disappearing into the horizon. Strawberry fields forever! We were like, hey that’s the brand of strawberries we buy in Georgia! Now we know where they are grown. Also interesting viewing: Slowly turning gargantuan white wind mills and fields dotted with oil drilling rigs slowly pumping black gold.

At the end of our first day of driving we fetched up against this vision in Monterey. Well, just south of Monterey in Pacific Grove. I was like, wait we are staying there? Eeeee! The Green Gables Inn, overlooking the rocky coastline. So pretty!

I recommend staying there. Friendly hosts, cozy and nicely appointed room, and the breakfasts were gourmet, plentiful, and tasty. If you are lucky, your stay will overlap mushroom tart day.

We mostly just walked out the door of the B&B and then along the coast or around the town (Cannery Row) while we were there. It was wonderful. There was a paved coastal path that was busy with bicycles, joggers, dog walkers, and old fogies like us. We watched surfers wiping out and sea lions happily whacking their shellfish open on rocks they were balancing on their chests. It was adorable. The sea lions, not the wipe outs.

When you walk to Lover’s Point, you must smooch and take a selfie even if it is raining on you. Especially if it is raining on you.

We did the 17 mile drive along Pebble Beach and enjoyed every minute. This is a view of the legendary lone cypress defying the elements out there on the rocks, which is featured in the golf club logo. Upon closer inspection we discovered it is, in fact, anchored in place by ropes, which dampens the drama somewhat.

As we neared LA, we decided to make a side quest to Simi Valley and relive our teen years at the Reagan Presidential Library. I learned that it is not so much a library as it is a series of museum exhibits/films detailing his early life, rise in politics, and the US/world historical events during his presidency. He and Nancy are also buried there, and there’s a piece of the Berlin Wall. Very interesting. One of our favorite parts was going inside the actual former Air Force One on display in this impressive glassed-in hangar, along with a former Marine One and various other presidential entourage vehicles and artifacts. Look at the spectacular view out the glass! The library perches on top of mountain and has a commanding view of the entire surrounding area. It’s gorgeous up there. There was a special exhibit of the Dead Sea Scrolls there too, but it was sold out.

One of the coolest meals we had was outside this In-N-Out, which is perched at the end of a runway at LAX. I mean. Come on! So great. We battled our way into the parking lot, moving inches at a time, to finally get inside and wait in line to get our food. That place was crazy busy with hungry folks and dedicated plane spotters. We got our tray of deliciousness and sat outside while huge passenger jets buzzed our heads every few minutes just before they touched down. I had a double double animal style, fries, and no regrets.

Our trip ended with a few days in San Diego, in a hotel right by the bay. The weather was absolutely perfect and we did a lot of walking to see the sights and car trips to La Jolla and Coronado. We were advised to find a Blue Bottle and I am sure glad we did after I suffered through a couple days of truly terrible hotel coffee. I recommend you get the iced NOLA with a little extra simple syrup. Oh my word.

All fun trips must end. I snapped this on the way to the airport. You can infer the assignment: ‘Hey, cut wind vents in the fence sheeting.’ But whoever got the assignment clearly understood that if you’re not having fun, you ain’t doing it right.