California Coast 07

Day 1 Friday October 19th: D and I head to STL to go to LA. running a little late, dropped off luggage at the gate and parked the car. Horn on D's car locked up and would not stop going off. Eventually we got it off and caught the shuttle. Got to the gate just in time to catch our flight. LA at 1pm. Went to Hertz and D hooked us up with a Toyota Solara Convertible.  After we left the airport we went to our friend Wendy's house in LA and went out for a couple of drinks. We left Wendy's and headed up the PCH through Malibu and up to Santa Barbara. We got to Santa Barbara after 8pm and checked into the West Beach Inn on Castillo. The hotel was a pleasant surprise. Very sophisticated rooms. Once we got checked in and freshened up we drove around looking for a restaurant and hit downtown. there was a lot of cute restaurants and shops. We didn't get to eat until after 10pm so most places were closed and we ended up at this bar/restaurant and had a sandwich.

Day 2 Saturday October 20th: Up early! Grabbed the free continental at the hotel and hit the road! Up the 101 to Paso Robles! Wine Country! Drove through some beautiful areas including San Luis Obispo. I was the crazy camera girl. 11:00 AM hit Paso! Didn't even check into the hotel and hit our first winery. got off on this windy road not knowing where to go and then we hit Hunt Cellars. A cute tiny winery with a very friendly staff. Had our first tasting! Very nice wines! Left there and headed up 46. Our second stop was Costaro winery where the party was going on. There was 3 tasting rooms, olive oil tastings, a blues band, and a beautful view! Next stop Peachy Canyon winery. They were very busy. the wines were good. They also had some snacks set up and I bought this great olive oil Lemon Pasolivio. Next stop Stacked Stone Cellars! Great Rosetto! Very quiet and like being in someones back yard. Checked into out hotel and got ready for dinner at Still Waters Vineyard. Katie at Still Waters helped me to decide to go there. The vineyard is absolutely beautiful. The owners were great and very nice! After a long day back to the hotel.

Day 3 Sunday October 21st: Got up early and brought D breakfast in bed. Okay hotel free buffet, but none the less breakfast in bed. After breakfast headed out to the first winery. Way too early for D but he was a trooper! Went to Meridian first! Very pretty setting with a very nice staff. Next stop Tobin James! The most fun we had at a winery! Very rustic and comfortable! The bartender (forgot her name) was great.  Left Tobin with 5 bottles of wine and wine filled chocolates and headed to Cass Winery! Had a sandwich and snacks at Cass. Went there to stomp grapes, but we weren't into it. The place had a great setting and was right off a dirt road buried in the middle of nowhere!  The staff was very friendly. After we left there we went to Eberle Winery. Vary busy winery. There was a lot of people there. We were able to tour the caves and get a feel of wine making. We left Eberle with wine filled chocolates and headed home. On the way we stopped at Hug Cellars, a small winery in a shopping strip. They had a great Pinot. We left Hug and really went back to the room. We got back to the room and chilled for a little bit. We went into downtown Paso for dinner at Villa Creek a beautiful restaurant with organic food, great patio, and great service. It was very chilly, but D hooked us up with a heater and a blanket. After dinner we went to the Crooked Kilt a little pub in downtown and met a great couple from San Diego.

Day 4 Monday October 22nd: Packed up and went to breakfast at Margie's Diner and then headed up the 1A for Monterey! the first stop on the way  was a small beach and collected some beach rocks. Hit the road and stopped at the Hearst Castle where we were going to do the tour, but it was way too long! Back on the road and the next thing we saw was elephant seal beach. Hit the road on the 1a and drove up and down and around for the next few hours. Saw some beautiful sights. After a couple of hours of white knuckle driving and me taking a ton of pictures we finally got to Nepenthe a cute little restaurant in the middle of Big Sur. Great food and a great view. We left there and D drove on. He was such a trooper! We finally got to Pebble Beach and Monterey. We decided to do the 17 mile drive through Pebble Beach. Our first stop was Poppy Hills a great golf course. D bought a hat and a pullover for me. We had a drink on the deck. We headed out and the next stop was Spanish Bay Golf Course. We kept cruising up 17 mile and stopped at beautiful views on the way. Spyglass was the next golf course and it was a great course. the big dog lay ahead. Pebble Beach was our next stop! We hit the pro shop and D bought a pullover. then we hit the patio and had a drink on the 18. What a great view! We went to the hotel checked in and changed for dinner. Went to the Wharf and had dinner at Dominiques (?). There were seals hanging out in the marina right outside our window.  After dinner we went to the hotel bar and had a drink. Then to bed.

Day 5 Tuesday October 23rd: Woke up and headed to the shopping center in Monterey. It was your typical mall so we left and went to the waterfront and shopped around. It was a very touristy area. We left and went to Carmel. great shops! We went to The Grill in Carmel for lunch and it was good. We shopped around for a little more and stopped at Hogs breath. Cute place, but rude staff. We went back to Monterey because I needed more wine for my case! Yeah more tasting! I bought a couple more bottles and filled my case! UPS store and shipped. After that hit the hotel changed and went to the lobby bar for a couple of drinks. Ended up having a few and ordered pizza and chilled in the room! We ordered a movie (I said I would stay up)! I passed out before it even started!

Day 6 Wednesday  October 24th: Hit the road for San Fran! Decided to take a different route than the 1A, too tired! Stopped at a small mexican restaurant for a burrito...better than Chipoltle for sure! More winding roads and Derryl again was a great driver! and Got into San Fran bout 1pm checked into our quaint hotel. Walked around Union square and some of the shops. Decided to go back to the hotel and freshen up. Went for a drink at the Four Seasons (great martinis). Met a couple of people at the bar and they recommended this romantic little restaurant on Hyde at Green. Excellent meal! Went to a bar called Swig a couple of blocks from our hotel.

Day 7 Thursday October 25th: Woke up early and went out on the streets. We headed up Grant and hit Chinatown, the Italian area on Columbus, and the Fishermans Wharf. Went to lunch at Bourin (very big lunch). Headed back to downtown and found the biggest Banana republic ever! It was heaven! Rach and the boys came and picked us up. rach drove us around and took us across the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito. We walked around to the shops and stopped for a piece of pizza. Then Rachel to us to Golden Gate Park, Presidio, and Pacific Heights. We went to the Hinson's flat and had a drink. We went to dinner at Cha-Cha-Cha a tapas place with a very interesting decor. Left the Hinson's and went back to our hotel and had a couple of drinks at Calibro.

Day 8 Friday October 26th: Went shopping a little bit and had lunch at the Bloomingdales food court! Unbelieveable! After lunch we grabbed a cable car and went to the Costume Shop and then headed to Lombard Street (the most crooked street). It was the steepest walk I have ever done. After Lombard we went to Union St to hit a really great shopping area. We stopped for a snack and a couple of beers and shopped some more. We hopped a cab and then went back to the hotel. Had dinner at the Calibro (best guacamole).

Day 9 Saturday October 27th: Time to leave. Had to put the top down one more time.  San Fran airport at sunrise and STL at sunset. My luggage got lost with my costume in it. D and I hit Target for clothes and costume (very tired). Went to the Costume party really late and stayed for a couple of hours.

Day 10 Sunday October 28th: End of vacation! Very sad!