G & M Travels 2011 # 6 Monterey
OK....tonight we have had our very first experience of being WARM outdoors! What a concept. We’re not where this email is about but that’s because I’m behind as I’ve mentioned. Anyway, we really are in the area just north of Lake Isabella in California on the Kern River. It’s been a wonderful evening of sitting OUTDOORS and enjoying the stars. We’d almost forgotten what that was like. But enough about all of that. We raced down I 5 and made our way to our contest winnings at the beautiful Monterey Plaza Hotel and Spa. Very nice. We had a balcony room that you can actually see in the first photo, overlooking the bay. Apart from the confusing issues with parking an RV sort of vehicle at the property, it was grand. The first evening we walked to the “tourist” pier and decided upon a restaurant that actually still served abalone. It was farmed but quite good. It’s been so long since I’ve had abalone, and they even give you the shell! Truly dinner was great and we had a fun time.
The next am it was time for our spa appointments! We won a couple hours and chose a couples massage. That just means that you’re in the same room at the same time and have a massage but who cares actually? You’re having a massage, and you should be in your own world.....which we each were. After slithering out of there, feeling pretty awesome, we went to lunch and to the famous aquarium. Very close to the aquarium is Doc’s laboratory where Mike is standing in the photos..... for any of you who have read Steinbeck’s novels about Cannery Row. And if you haven’t, you should.
The aquarium was good. It has changed since the last few times I’ve been there and I felt that there were a few too many lectures about saving the world when I was just there to see the fish and learn stuff....but it’s probably a good thing for the younger kids to learn. I just already knew and it got old after a while.....sorry. But some of the photos are fun of the beautiful sea creatures. The one seahorse that looks just like a bunch of leaves is pretty cool. Check it out.
We went to dinner at the famous Sardine Factory (since we had a $100 credit winning coupon) and that was so GOOD. I’d been there a number of times before and the place did not disappoint. We could not finish our dinner and the next night when we warmed up our leftovers....they were great! That’s hard to do with fish. Wonderful restaurant and so many nice people that have worked there for years and years. We actually went dancing after that.....amazing for us. Very fun stay in Monterey!
The drive down the coast on Hiway 1 is not to be described. It is so beautiful....and we had a beautiful day for it for sure. Only problem was that the hiway was closed at Gorda, which was near our first destination, because a mountain fell down on the hiway. It took some time to figure out if where we had reservations to camp was north or south of the slide. It was north so we decided to just drive down the 65 miles and then drive back the way we came in a couple days and drive down 101 to get to the Hearst Castle. Which is where we were scheduled to go next. And which was only 35 miles south of our first stop.....except for the slide (mountain) in the way. Oh well....
So we did the coast and it was Mike’s birthday while we were camped at a National Forest campground near Lucia. It was fun and we enjoyed the beach nearby and even though it was foggy and chilly and the wood we bought for a fire was not of the burning sort....we had a good time. We did, however, learn that there was another way out of there that meant we didn’t have to drive all the way back to Monterey. We could go over the Nacimento/Fergurson Road! (Does anybody besides me remember the song Carole King wrote about the “Old Fergurson Road? I drove Mike crazy singing it!) Anyway, this road was wonderful. Easy for me to say since I’m not the driver of big rig.
Anyway, we came over the mountains and into the sunlight and saved about 120 miles to get to our next destination at Sam Simeon......Hearst Castle. Next email..... I just want to say a couple things about the weather. I know that everyone everywhere is having a worst weather experience than usual this year so we’re not alone. But I forgot to mention how thankful I was, in the last email, to say that even though we froze our butts off and had sooooo much rain and stuff over the last couple months, at least we didn’t have tornados! Not ok....very sad stuff. But.....when we went doing our I5 thing and got into California and were feeling thankful about no tornados even though we were all those other things I mentioned, wellllllll.........we turn on the news cause we had cable at this RV place and there were tornados not 20 miles away and we got all the warnings about what to do. Like, for instance, if you’re in a vehicle or a trailer....get out! Comforting. So we had the big thunderstorm and all and saw not a single tornado....and for that we are thankful! Aloha, Gayle and Mike
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