Monday 24 November 2008

is it jet lag or am I just being lazy?

Slept like a log from 8.30pm until 4.00pm. Awake until about 6.00am, had to drag my ass out of bed at 10. I'm not convinced that this is a result of the travel, since I do have episodes like this from time to time. Not complaining though - I didn't have to go to work today...


So, where was I? Ah - THAT trip on Highway 1.


The weather on our first Saturday was a bit gloomy. We headed north and then roughly west through Muir Woods . By the time we got there the fog was coming in, so we couldn't see the wood for the trees, or the trees for the wood...you get the idea. Patches of sunlight kept breaking through, so we drove onwards to meet up with
Highway 1. All of the advice given in the website is well given. It would have been a bit hair-raising at the best of times, but add horizontal rain, fog and nightfall it turned out to be a it of a nightmare. In the UK there are barriers along the edge of dangerous roads. Not on HWY 1. At some points the road can only be inches from the edge. The driving conditions just kept getting worse. I'm sure the view would have been spectacular, had we been able to see it. I'm not planning on doing it again any time soon to check it out, though.


At one point in the afternoon we stopped for some food - it was awful, so I left it. Number Guy needed the fuel, so he was forced to eat his. I wasn't downhearted, though - we were headed back to Sebastapol where I knew I could get something good at the East West Cafe (that lamb salad again, yum!).


We got back to the hotel, fed, watered and weary at about 8.00pm. The day had turned out to literally be a washout, but I knew that there was indeed breathtaking scenery when the weather finally decided to let up.


Sunday saw us driving to Mountain View via Carmel along HWY 1.The road at this point was much better, so I was able to enjoy the coastline. It was stunning. No other way to describe it. We stopped for lunch at a somewhat dubious-looking roadside cafe which turned out to serve great food, so by now the good food experiences were outweighing the bad.

Carmel is very picturesque and the beach is stunning. Unfortunately the infection that had been following me around for 4 weeks decided to lodge in my sinuses, so I was feeling really crappy. We cut the visit short and headed to
Monterey. As luck would have it we stumbled upon a clinic on our way to Fisherman's Wharf so I was at least armed with a prescription.


Again, can't remember the name of the restaurant, but we had another great meal. Mine was a bit like risotto, but with very small pasta instead of rice. It had crab and lots of garlic - I wish I could have bottled it and brought it home.


Got to Mountain View about 9.00pm, a great time had been had by all.


ETA - forgot to say that we were sat by a window while we had our meal. Turns out is it a favourite site for brown pelicans , which are actually grey. Some were intent on sleeping, others were coming and going. They don;t seem to be the most agile of birds but we managed to avoid any pelican-through-window incedents :0)

4 comments:

  1. Hey ! I lived in Mountain View for a wee while , I loved the wee bookshop and the micro-brewery's, although it was 10+ years ago, so its probably all changed.

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  2. How far up the coast did you get? Did you discover Point Reyes, and PR Station? (Which has good restaurants, btw.)
    You missed an experience if you didn't stop in Muir Woods. Might seem a bit touristy, but redwoods are always special.
    Oh, I'm getting withdrawal symptoms!

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  3. Oh, I wish you'd said something before you went. Really, really I do. We could have told you about so many fabulous places, and you know that we're a bit into food.

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  4. Sali India

    Ein Honigkuchenpferd ist ein "Ginger Bread" oder so ;-)
    Es ist schön, dass du wieder zurück bist aus USA!

    Liebe Grüsse - ZiZi

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