Chapter 2a: Monterey and Carmel with Jeff

Jeff arrived in SF on Thursday. Ian took a half day to hang out with them. I'm not going to talk about what they did while they hung out (although, I did recommend a great place to them for lunch and they went--I mention this now because this blog in part is supposed to be about getting to know SF and our neighborhood. It's called Monk's Kettle, it's awesome, and it's in our hood). Mostly because I wasn't there and don't remember what they told me. Also because most of what they did when I wasn't directly involved was play Grand Theft Auto. For hours. And hours.

Anyway, they call me at work and decide they want to go to Monterey for the weekend. Perfect opportunity to get in the car and explore California. What a great way also to escape the sudden heat wave, and our lack of air conditioning. I make reservations for Friday night at the Portola, and a mere 24 hours later and we're driving south. The trip was a little long--partly traffic and partly the wildfires on 101. This is definitely something new to us. We've been near hurricanes, tornadoes even, but wildfires? The helicopters flew back and forth over the stopped traffic, attempting to get the flames under control.

Monterey was great. Sunny and warm (I hear it usually isn't). The room was nice, just about right on the water.

We walked over to the old Fisherman's Wharf and walked along the dock.

It's really quaint. It was such a boardwalk-beachy feel, but distinct from the east coast. Almost old-world. I've never been to Coney Island, but maybe this could be a small town version of it.

The sea lions are right there in the water, so we had a long session of picture taking and looking out at the boats and the near sunset. But alas, we were hungry and found deliciousness at The Old Fisherman's Grotto. A slight bit touristy, but delicious nonetheless.

The next day was packed with the famous Monterey Bay aquarium, Cannery Row, walking along the water, and gazing at nearby sea lions. Guess I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. The aquarium was great in some areas, lacking a bit in others. The views in Monterey are stunning.

We decided to stay another night in Monterey, so after eating some fairly yummy Mexican food, we bought some beers and played UNO / watched pay per view in the hotel room.

The next day we wanted to finish up Monterey in the morning--there was a pool and with the beautiful weather, we wanted to take full advantage. Alas, it rained. We spent the morning in the hotel, watching soccer, eating breakfast.

Overall, I might say that you would be fine spending just a day here. Parts of Monterey can be...how would I say it...well, a little run-down. And once you see its 3 or so main attractions, you feel like you know that part of the area pretty well.

Sunday afternoon we opted to drive to Carmel by the Sea. We didn't realize how close it actually was. And unfortunately if we had realized, we would likely have stayed there Saturday night instead. It's absolutely charming.

The main drag is just lovely, the inns are overflowing with charming Bavarian character....and the beach is just lovely. It was a nice afternoon, only filled with a little regret that we had to return so soon.

If I were a penguin, my name would be Stan.