California Road Trip of a Lifetime Day 3 - Santa Cruz, Moss Landing, Monterey,

We woke up in Santa Cruz at 7 am....WHY?!?!  Beats me, but at least we got an early start!  Our day started with a 4 mile run down the famous Santa Cruz boardwalk and then down to the pier to see the beautiful sea lions one last time.

The weather was perfect!  It was cool, around 55 degrees, with a nice breeze and a few scattered raindrops...ideal for running.  We then enjoyed some yummy waffles at the hotel and got ready for the day.

Around 10 a.m. we hit the road down Hwy 1 towards Monterey.  This particular part of Hwy 1 headed a little inland and went through the so-called "Salad Bowl of the World."  Yep, you guessed it!  This is where the majority of salad is grown.  There was lush greenery everywhere we looked.  About half-way in between Santa Cruz and Monterey we came across Moss Landing Elkhourn Slough.  This is an area of the bay that is home to a lot of wildlife.  Sea lions, seals, otters, and tons of birds were among the mix of wildlife we saw today.  It was incredible!  After taking a few a ton of pics, we were on our way towards Monterey!

I had booked the Monterey Downtown Travelodge before we had left for our trip...and let me just tell you, its not so pretty from the outside, but it is in a great location, the rooms are nice, and the front desk staff is very friendly, AND their is a free deluxe breakfast!  We arrived around noon and luckily got to check into our hotel early.

After we settled in, we bought tickets to the world famous Monterey Bay Aquarium, at our hotel, which I highly recommend instead of buying tickets at the aquarium, unless you want to stand in a long line.  Then we headed down to Cannery Row.  The front desk guy at the hotel was so kind to tell us about the free trolley that takes you all over the city.  We caught the trolley a block from our hotel and within 15 minutes we were at Cannery Row.  It was great and a well kept secret!  Who doesn't love free transportation?!?!  So if you are ever in the area, stay at a place close to the trolley and you'll never need a car!

We ate lunch at Sly McFly's down on Cannery Row prior to going to the aquarium.  We were starving.  This restaurant is said to be the oldest and most famous on Cannery Row.  And I must say it was pretty good!

Monterey Bay Aquarium is world famous and said to be the best aquarium in the world.  It was pretty incredible!  There were some amazing exhibits of jelly fish, tropical fish, the open ocean exhibit, a three-story reef exhibit, penguins, sea horses, etc.  I could go on and on.  It is definitely a must see if you are in the area!  We must of spent a few hours there and Andrew was like a little kid in a candy store, as he is most times he gets around animals of any kind.

After a fun time at the aquarium, we browsed the famous Cannery Row shops and bought some souvenirs.  After some shopping, catching an awesome view of the beach of Monterey, a cookie, or two, and some sightseeing, we decided that our feet needed a little rest and headed back to the hotel on the free trolley to get a little rest before dinner.

Around 7 p.m. we finally got ready for dinner.  We urban spooned it and found a nice authentic Mexican restaurant a couple of blocks from our hotel.  Lopez Restaurante had food that was so good and margaritas that were even better.  The hostess and waitress were very friendly, as were the customers that we met who gave us an excellent recommendation on what to order.  We ended up getting the combo fajitas and it was fantastic!  Once again, I highly recommend Lopez's!

We have had some really great food so far, and its only day 3!  I can't wait to see what Day 4 holds!  As of right now, its a 50 mile bike ride, please start praying for me now!

Stay tuned...

California Road Trip of a Lifetime Day 2 - San Francisco, Sausalito, Santa Cruz

I must start off by telling you how nice it was to wake up in San Francisco.  I am in love with that city.  It will forever have my heart.  You may remember one of my many previous blog posts back in October about San Fran.

We woke up around 8 am.  Why?!?!  No clue, maybe because it was 10 am our time.  Anyhow, we got dressed and headed out the door to the farmers market, which I must say is AMAZING!  It if full of tons and tons of tents with all kinds of organic fruits, veggies, flowers, and yummy food.  We enjoyed a delicious breakfast on the pier with some pretty good people watching.  The pier was packed!  Probably because the San Francisco Marathon was the very next day...bummer...I shoulda trained for it...if only I would have known.

After breakfast and the farmers market, I became a model for my photographer husband and was forced to take way too many took a whole bunch of photos as we headed on down to pier 33.

We took a left on Bay Street and picked up our nifty nissan rental car, but not before we saw some folks on a segway tour, of course Andrew HAD to take pics of them.  I just kept on walking and pretended I wasn't related for a split second.

We checked out of the Hotel Griffon by noon and made our way to the Golden Gate Bridge.  Ahhh what a site!  It is A-Freakin-Mazing!  What an incredible architectural structure!  One that you must see to appreciate it's beauty...that's for sure!

We stopped, took a few pics, admired the beauty a little more, it just never gets old, and then headed on down to Sausalito, which is an amazing little town right on the bay with both the Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate in its background, to enjoy a delicious lunch at the Sausalito Bakery and Cafe.  We became a fan of this place the last time we went, last October.  It is delicious.  Their sandwiches are mouthwatering and their cookies...to die for!  If you ever go to Sausalito, it is a must go!

After browsing a few shops, eating some ice cream, admiring an old Porsche and a couple of Lamborghinis, and taking a couple of pics we headed south!

After half an hour of getting lost enjoying the back roads of San Fran, we headed down Highway 1 towards Santa Cruz.  Driving down the coast was incredible.  The lush greenery, the views of the Pacific Ocean, the waves crashing along the shoreline, the fields of wildflowers, the mountains in the background, it was was stunning!  We drove for a couple of hours, with the windows down, the breeze in our face, and music in the background and just enjoyed part of God's amazing creation.

We arrived in Santa Cruz around 5 pm and found a hotel that had only one room left, the Continental Inn on Ocean Avenue.  We Andrew called a lot of the other surrounding hotels and this one was the only one with vacancy.  That's what we get for winging it...the hotel suits us just fine though.  No complaints here!  It is in a good location and close to the boardwalk.

After we relaxed and freshened up a bit, we left for dinner.  We drove past the famous amusement park boardwalk and ended up down by the wharf.  It was there that we saw some pretty talkative sea lions and a pretty incredible view of the ocean and boardwalk.

We wandered on down the wharf and ended up at Riva's Restaurant/Bar, where we enjoyed some delicious seafood at Riva's.  For those in the area, I highly recommend a bowl of clam chowder and the fish and calamari...delicious!

It was chilly!  I think the high today was 65 or so, and after the sun set it was probably 55 degrees outside, much different than the 105 degree weather back home, that's for sure!  After dinner we drove down Pacific Avenue hoping to catch the freak show...but there wasn't one.  However, downtown is pretty cool and has lots of cute shops.

After all that, I'd have to say that Day 2 of our California coastal road trip of a lifetime was a huge success!  Thanks in part to my partner in crime, who makes every vacation full of great memories and good times!  I heart him to the moon and back.

Stay tuned for Day 3...