Sue wanted to visit California this time round. “A nice Spanish coastal city should be just fine,” she had said with a toss her curls. So we chose Monterey. This was our second visit to San Francisco and we were both having a gala time but she wanted something smaller, “more intimate, if you know what I mean.” So we drove down some 115 miles south to this town that Steinbeck made so popular in his novels. Sue, who happens to be the well-read one, informed me that the city was founded by Spanish soldiers and missionaries and was the capital Alta California belonging to Mexican territory.
The US seized the area in 1846 and developed it into a fishing port. Today, Monterey has a large population of Italian as well as Chinese immigrants. Thanks to its year-round temperate climate it attracts tourists by the droves. So much for somewhere smaller and “more intimate”! We saw this motel called Ramada Limited Monterey next to the highway and drove up. Luckily they had a couple of rooms vacant. For $73 per night we checked into rather large and comfortable guest room with a king-sized bed, bath with clean and crisp linen.
There was cable TV in the room, and an ironing board, etc and the bathroom had a hairdryer. Pretty neat. We also liked the heated swimming pool and Jacuzzi. It was getting late so we slept in early after a long and tiring drive. The next morning we awoke at the crack of dawn and drove down a little further south to view the Mc Way Waterfalls about which we had heard so much. ‘Spectacular’ is the word that comes to mind. This area is called the Big Sur and is famous for its mountainous frothy falls that simply drop into the ocean.
The area is also home to lovely parks like the Los Padres National Forest and Pfeiffer State Park. We didn’t stop at any but were simply content to drive around the highway next to the Saint Lucia Mountains. The next day we went to see the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the largest in the world. Interesting, but nothing to beat the waterfalls.
The US seized the area in 1846 and developed it into a fishing port. Today, Monterey has a large population of Italian as well as Chinese immigrants. Thanks to its year-round temperate climate it attracts tourists by the droves. So much for somewhere smaller and “more intimate”! We saw this motel called Ramada Limited Monterey next to the highway and drove up. Luckily they had a couple of rooms vacant. For $73 per night we checked into rather large and comfortable guest room with a king-sized bed, bath with clean and crisp linen.
There was cable TV in the room, and an ironing board, etc and the bathroom had a hairdryer. Pretty neat. We also liked the heated swimming pool and Jacuzzi. It was getting late so we slept in early after a long and tiring drive. The next morning we awoke at the crack of dawn and drove down a little further south to view the Mc Way Waterfalls about which we had heard so much. ‘Spectacular’ is the word that comes to mind. This area is called the Big Sur and is famous for its mountainous frothy falls that simply drop into the ocean.
The area is also home to lovely parks like the Los Padres National Forest and Pfeiffer State Park. We didn’t stop at any but were simply content to drive around the highway next to the Saint Lucia Mountains. The next day we went to see the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the largest in the world. Interesting, but nothing to beat the waterfalls.
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