PCH Day 2 -- Pacific Grove

"There is no end to the adventures we can have if we only seek them with our eyes open." -- Jawaharlal Nehru

Today instead of merely following Highway 1, I took a little detour to the west. It was well worth it. Leaving Santa Cruz early this morning, I headed towards the old mission town of San Juan Bautista. The town itself is old and quaint, resembling an "Old West Town" almost. The church and mission lie right near main street. I paid the small fee which enabled me to tour the mission museum and church. They also have a small gift shop where I purchased a pretty cross for my wall collection. The mission church was founded in 1797, the 15th of the many missions begun by the Franciscan monks and is the largest of all. Another interesting bit of trivia is that the mission and the town of San Juan Bautista lie right on the San Andreas Fault! I am not a fan of earthquakes AT ALL, but it was kind of cool to be standing on top of it! I talked to a couple of people in town about it, and they both unequivocally stated that they'd much rather live on the fault than in places that can be hit by hurricanes or tornados. I don't know that I'd agree.

*Recommendation Time -- If you ever make it to San Juan Bautista, you have to go to the San Juan Bakery! I ate the best bear claw and the most delectable chocolate croissant I've ever had! I got a brownie for the road but haven't eaten it yet; trying to show some self control.

 

The dirt road right behind this fence is part of the San Andreas Fault scarp line.

In my detour off of the Pacific Coast Highway today I saw tons of farms. For the first time ever I saw migrant workers. I have read books in which they played roles, but have never seen any at work. There were so many of them, and they seemed to be working so hard. 

Something else I saw which was slightly disconcerting was a man spraying something on plants, and he was wearing a hazmat suit. It makes you wonder what is being sprayed if he is dressed head to toe in hazmat. 

Funny thing: one town I drove through was Castroville, the artichoke center of the world! Below is the world's largest artichoke. 😊

I eventually made my way to my destination and "home" for the next two nights, Pacific Grove. This town is in close proximity to both Monterey and Carmel but is touted as being more reasonably priced, which is why I chose it as my homebase. I plan to visit the other two towns while I'm here. Today I focused on Pacific Grove.

While waiting for my room to be prepared, I walked to the Point Pinos Lighthouse less than a mile away. I had researched this lighthouse earlier so that I would be familiar with it when I got here. It has an interesting story, both in relating to the light itself and to its keepers. It was $5 to tour the house and grounds. I did not take pictures inside, but there were several interactive exhibits and many period pieces placed around the dwelling. I really enjoyed my visit. 

Now, what you've all been waiting for, the beach! As soon as I checked in to my hotel, I made the short 1/2 mile walk to the nearest beach access. This was a much different beach than I have ever visited. It was amazing, from the color of the water to the gigantic rocks to the tide pools and their ebb and flow. I apologize now for the picture overload; I can't help it. I was overcome. 

Look at the alien-like underwater plants left visible as the tide went out. WEIRD!!!

Finally, tonight for dinner I went Mexican. I ate at Michael's Grill & Taquiria. It is no-frills, order at the counter, fix your own drink hole-in-the-wall. As with many hole-in-the-wall establishments though, the food served was amazing. I had something like a burrito which they called a wrap, (They had burritos too.) which was delicious. I stole the picture below from online, but it looks just like mine. I may even return tomorrow; it was THAT good. Another good thing is that I only paid $6.62! 

PCH -- Day 1 -- Santa Cruz

"The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page." -- St. Augustine

Today I picked up my rental car and began my journey south down the Pacific Coast Highway. I was slightly apprehensive initially because I had to get from the San Francisco Airport to Highway 1 via a California freeway. (Ahhhhh!) My prayers though, along with those of some faithful warriors got me through the anticipated rough spot with great ease. I was on the PCH in no time and was immediately in awe.

My first glimpse of the Pacific was just that, a glimpse, but I didn't have to drive far before there was a place to pull off at Half Moon Bay. I got some great pictures. I continued south, pulling off every time I saw something I wanted to get a picture of. There are several state beaches with safe parking lots, bathrooms, and trails to the beach. The fee is $10 for the day and is on an honor basis. Since I just pulled in for a few pictures, I paid at the first beach but not afterwards. I hope that was ethical; I didn't feel like I cheated them. Enjoy these beach pictures.

I chose to spend my first night on the road in Santa Cruz. I made this decision for two reasons: the boardwalk with an amusement park and the wharf with sea lions. I was not disappointed with either and was also surprised by the downtown area of Santa Cruz. The central downtown area is about a mile off the beach which helps with keeping congestion down. It is two main parallel streets with boutiques, gift shops, restaurants, and book stores including Bookshop Santa Cruz. I ate at Betty's Eat Inn downtown and had a hamburger and french fries. The hamburger was pretty good, the fries not so much. While downtown, I learned that Santa Cruz was directly affected by the 1989 earthquake when 40 buildings were damaged, killing six people. There are plaques downtown commemorating the lives lost and the rebuild.

The amusement park on the boardwalk was awesome. I compare it to Coney Island. There were a few of the same rides even. Santa Cruz has more rides and midway games, arcades, mini golf, and laser tag. Like Coney Island, there is the option of purchasing a bracelet for unlimited rides. Yes, I bought it. I rode my favorite swing ride four times. Unlike Coney Island, there is a sky glider. I rode it four times too. I also rode several others and totally got my $40 worth.

I walked out to the end of the half-mile long wharf to eat at Dolphin Restaurant. It was probably the best deal of any place I've eaten yet. I got the meal below for $24, tip included. The salmon was delicious. While eating I got to watch the fog roll in over the water, listen to the gulls and sea lions, and smell the salty beach air. So enjoyable. After dinner I visited with the many sea lions who hang around on the underside of the wharf. I highly recommend the entire wharf experience!

So ends another spectacular day. I get a little tired of just my own company sometimes, but a Facetime call to Kathryn and Saber tonight and some special encouraging texts from friends help with any loneliness which might pop up. This trip is exposing me to so many sights and experiences, and I am so grateful for this opportunity. Stay tuned for more adventures of the travel junkie teacher!

San Francisco Day 2

"In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks." -- John Muir

Morning came early for me since I was still on East Coast time. I found one restaurant that opened at 7:00. I was the second one in, and the place was full by 7:30! I ate at the Hollywood Cafe on North Point Street. It was an amazing breakfast!! I needed to eat well in preparation for my day, and my order of "Vivian Leigh" was perfect. Feast your eyes below! Look closely at the fresh fruit which included every fruit I could imagine except peaches. I highly recommend this place.

After breakfast I had some time to kill and visited Lombard Street. This is a very steep hill which includes several sets of stairs, lovely flowers, pretty homes, and limited traffic. It was absolutely gorgeous and probably my favorite part of San Francisco!

My big physical activity on tap for the day was biking across the Golden Gate Bridge. I pre-ordered an excursion from Dylan's Tours. I was impressed with the price ($85), the kindness of the employees, and the organization of my tour. The excursion included the bike rental, a shuttle to Muir Woods, and a return shuttle to Fisherman's Wharf.

I really enjoyed the bike ride through part of Fisherman's Wharf, along Marina Drive, across the bridge, and into Sausalito. Surprisingly there was a good deal of downhill riding. Full disclosure though, there were some hills that I had to push the bike up. I tried, but some of these hills are freakishly steep!!!

I loved Sausalito! It is a little bayside village with several shops and tons of restaurants. (I visited the Sausalito Taco Shop and had the BEST homemade limeade. It hit the spot after the bike ride.) There were so many flowers that I could smell them as I rode in. It really is a lovely little town. I learned later that it is extremely expensive to live there. (Some teeny houseboats right outside of town go for $2 million!!!!)

The next part of the day was majestic Muir Woods. The shuttle took us on a road with more hairpins than I've ever been on, including driving through the Smokies. The tense ride was definitely worth it though when we got to the woods. Muir Woods is a well-managed national park with trails, bridges, streams, and TREES. The shuttle driver recommended staying on the main trail which was well-marked and passed four bridges. I took his recommendation and avoided the less-walked trails. I really enjoyed my walk. It was well worth the additional $15 which I had to pay to get into the park. I apologize ahead of time for all the tree pictures. I could not resist.

Day 2 was delightful in so many ways -- lovely views, exercise, new experiences, personal accomplishment. It was a day well spent.

P.S. Sorry, San Francisco, but I still love NYC more. :)

San Francisco Day 1

"Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights, it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of the living." -- Miriam Beard

Today began my longest, furthest, solo journey. It is a little scary, but I am learning not to avoid doing what I want to do out of fear. So, California for the next two weeks, eight hotels, 501 miles; starting with San Francisco.

I began with the cable cars and learned a few important things quickly:
*Get an app called MuniMobile on your phone and buy a passport ticket for the number of days you need. This saves a tremendous amount of money. It's also easier to carry your ticket on your phone.
*The most popular boarding location is the Powell/Market St. turn-around. The line I got in was worse than a line at Disney World, mostly because it wasn't steadily moving. I finally figured out that if I walked down the "tracks" for just two blocks, I would cut my wait time by 1-1.5 hours!

I rode to Fisherman's Wharf and was extremely grateful for that cable car. The hills!!! I've seen them on television, but no tv show has done them justice. Walking some of these hills was NOT an option! The wharf is definitely a tourist destination. The area is full of restaurants, souvenir shops, ice cream shops (I saw a Swensen's on the way there! On my list for tomorrow!), candy stores, museums, and various other tourist magnets. I was satisfied just to stroll around getting my bearings.

The history buff in me could not resist the World War II ship, SS Jeremiah O'Brien. It was an really good deal. For $20, I got to tour the ship entirely on my own, visit the museum in the first hold, and watch a 45 minute film about the history of the ship. It was so much fun! This is the only surviving operating Liberty Ship from World War II. This ship took troops and supplies to Normandy and later transported bombs to the Pacific theater. It was so neat to be in the exact location those men were in! (The view from the top deck was cool too!)

I ate at a seafood restaurant on Pier 39 but was not super impressed. It was the Pier Market. Made my way back to the cable cars for an early return to my hotel. At that point, I had been up for 17 hours, and I have a big day tomorrow -- biking across the Golden Gate Bridge.

One more thing, and this is very unusual. Look at the sign below. I couldn't resist taking a pic. You don't see this in North Carolina!