Coastal Trip - Day 4 - Carmel to San Fran Sept 29th

Carmel was such a beautiful town that it was hard to say goodbye but there were so many great stops still ahead of us. We drove down to the beach in Carmel and then took the entrance to 17 Mile Drive to enjoy a nice little drive thru Pebble Beach. Absolutely lived up to the billing with its coastal views and the famous golf course. From there we headed to Monterey where we had some lunch on Cannery Row before getting on the road to San Francisco.

Karen and Karthik were nice enough to put us up in their condo for the night, right next to AT&T Park, home of the Giants baseball team, and with great views of downtown SF. We headed out to Union Square where we caught a trolley and I think we laughed the whole ride while I took the pics and videos below and tried not to drop my camera in the street. We rode over the hill to Fisherman's Wharf and with the lights going down in the city and the sun shining on the bay, we stopped into the Buena Vista restaurant to grab some food, and of course I had to have an Irish coffee in the restaurant that made it famous in the States. Our evening ended with a quick stroll over to Ghiradelli Square to see the chocolate being made, prior to calling it a night.

Coastal Trip - Day 3 - Solvang to Carmel Sept 28th

We saw so many great places on this day, it is hard to choose just a few pics and videos. Our day started in Solvang, then headed up the 101 to San Luis Obispo where we checked out the mission and heard the bells at noon. From there we split off to Hwy 1, headed to Morro Bay to see the famous Morro rock and then to San Simeon for our tour of the Hearst Castle. That certainly lived up to our expectations and was a truly incredible place and property. Heading north again on the 1, we passed some seals relaxing on the beach, made the gorgeous drive thru Big Sur, across the picturesque Bixby Bridge, eventually reaching our B&B in Carmel just before dusk. After settling in, we walked a couple blocks and stumbled upon Casanova restaurant which was a fun and delicious dinner. It ended up that we drove ~ 200 miles mostly coastline on this day and is definitely one of the most beautiful drives one can take.

Coastal Trip - Day 2 - LA to Solvang Sept 27th

On Day 2, after a nice brunch in Santa Monica, we headed out on Highway 1, passing thru the beautiful towns of Malibu and Faria Beach before stopping in Santa Barbara for lunch by the pier. From there, we moved on to the small, bucolic wine country town of Solvang made additionally famous by the movie Sideways, and our rest stop for that night.

Coastal Trip - Day 1 - SD to LA Sept 26th

Kelly and I headed out on Sat for our "babymoon" (thanks Beck/Padilla for the term), starting a trip up the CA coast that we have been looking forward to for quite a while. The first night was just a quick trip to LA. Thanks to Gregor for hosting and recommending Casa Sanchez for dinner, and Betsy, Hollywood, Chilltown, Ryan, Michelle, & Silky for joining us, an excellent start to our California adventure.

Justin & Jamie's Wedding - Sept 25th

Jamie and Justin had an absolutely beautiful SD wedding, which was naturally a great reunion for quite a few of us. Thanks to J & J for inviting us and giving all of us a great opportunity to catch up.