Last day in California - Birthday!

Thursday, February 2nd
Since breakfast is truly my favorite meal of the day, we chose to forgo the lighter breakfast at our B&B and found a local restaurant in Carmel called From Scratch, to enjoy a hearty birthday breakfast. It was yummy!
After breakfast, we managed to take a nice bike ride along the coast near our B&B. We had to check out of our hotel by 12ish so we hurried to get packed up for the journey home.

 We spent some of the afternoon at the Monterrey Marina and Old Fisherman's Wharf admiring the boats and marine creatures. We stopped a local outlet mall for some shopping and a birthday manicure before hitting the highway back to San Francisco.

We probably had enough time to go past the airport back into the heart of San Fran for a fun dinner before our 11pm flight, but we just could not decide if it would be worth it. So, since we had eaten so well all week, I chose the simpler idea of stopping in San Jose at PF Changs for a meal we could depend on. It was great.

Unfortunately, our trip home included a restless night on the plane with a layover in cold Detroit. We landed in Birmingham at 9am Friday. Mom & I exchanged pictures before she made her way back to Auburn. Sad for the trip to come to an end, but I really enjoyed all that we got to do and see! I would definitely like to go back one day and see more - especially of Napa Valley. It was a great way to ring in my next decade!!

Highway 1 Fun

Wednesday, February 1st
Wednesday we continued our trek down Highway 1 to Big Sur. Poor mom had to keep her eyes on the road, but I enjoyed the many scenic viewpoints on this drive. We especially enjoyed Bixby Bridge - we are told this stretch of the road is often used in car commercials, etc.

Our first stop was Point Lomos

The lighthouse at PointSur

We made it to Big Sur and had a great lunch at Nepenthe Restaurant which has breathtaking views of the ocean.

After lunch, we went a little bit further south to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park to see a waterfall that used to go straight into the ocean - now just onto the beach.

After that we made our way back up Highway 1 to the cute downtown area of Carmel. We had an afternoon treat & coffee at a local bakery. We probably had about 1 1/2 hours of daylight left when we decided to go ahead and do part of the 17 Mile drive through Pebble Beach. Mom & I both wish we had taken a little more time or come back the next day to spend more time here.

We stopped at the golf course of Pebble Beach where they were getting prepared for the big Pro-Am tournament that started a few days later. It truly is a beautiful course and we enjoyed taking a few pictures from the 18th green. We managed to get a few souvineirs for the family here and Mom was wishing we could stay here a few more days to see Phil and the other great golfers she loves... :-)

We then made our way to the Lone Cypress - the iconic tree for this course and area. We continued along the coast as the sun was setting - very beautiful!

We made it back to our B&B just after dark and rested a bit before heading to dinner at another great local seafood restaurant called Fishwife in Pacific Grove.

Off to Monterrey

Tuesday, January 31st
Tuesday morning Mom and I took our time leaving the city and stopped at a few "must-see" sights on our way out. We stopped at Macondray Lane first, which was a cute little garden alley.  Mom managed to get a $50 parking ticket for not turning her tires the right way on the 3% incline street...made for some laughs!

Next, Lombard Street again. This time we go out and walked the famous street - I'm sure the people that live on this street love the crowds that are constantly there.

Finally, Alamo Square - home to the famous "painted ladies" that I remember from my favorite childhood show, Full House. (http://youtu.be/d-5HC44GRbk)

 So picturesque for San Fran.

We began the trek down highway 1 to Monterrey. The ocean views and cliffs became more impressive with each mile. We stopped in Santa Cruz for lunch at this not so great Mexican restaurant - note to self - planning the meals ahead of time usually works better! :-)

We finally made it to our Bed & Breakfast, Green Gables Inn, late afternoon. It was a cute little place right on the coast. Again, my parents had stayed here 20+ years ago and the decor was similar. We had dinner at a local seafood place in Cannery Row and called it a night!

California - Monday

Monday, January 30th
Monday morning we took the Golden Gate Bridge to Muir Woods to see the famous redwood trees. It was a little chilly in the forrest, but neat to see these large trees so close to the big city.

After that we headed back to the city and took a (1 hr) side-trip to grab In-N-Out burger. By the time we got it and made it back to the Golden Gate Park, it was time for our Segway tour at 1:30pm. So, we ended up saving our burgers for afterwards and they were still quite tasty. The Segway tour was a lot of fun - I just wish it had been a little warmer! As you can see, we have many, many layers on for this 2 hr tour of the park. Its a great way to see a large area and not as hard as I would have thought. My parents did really great on the segways - I was the only one who managed to take a tiny spill and bang up my knee with a good bruise. We were the only ones on our tour, so unfortunately we had to laugh at every joke our tour guide provided... No really, it was interesting and we learned a lot about the park and city.

Our tour guide told us of a great place for golden gate bridge viewing - Baker's Beach - so we made our way there after the segway tour. It was beautiful and somehow 10 degrees warmer than in the park! After a few pictures, we headed over to the bridge itself, so that we could actually walk out on it. Dad usually skips this part due his distaste for heights, but he mustered up the courage and went to the half-way part with us only pausing momentarily for a picture. It was sunset and a great time to see the sights.

Dinner Monday night was at a place one of my dad's patients recommended - The Stinking Rose. It was a garlic restaurant in the North Beach/Broadway area. Once we sat down, our waitress said she hoped we enjoyed our stinkin' experience! Everything on the menu had garlic, garlic, and more garlic on it. I got the pork chop w/ caramelized apples, garlic potatoes and it was delicious. After dinner we had to take dad to the airport so he could catch his red-eye flight. Sad for his part of the trip to end, but I think we managed to do and see alot in the 4 days we were all together!!