MONTERREY BAY

The drive up Highway 1 along California's coast is spectacular!! There are not many beaches like you might see along the eastern coast. You can see the Coast Range Mountains come right to the shore...very rocky!! We fooled around in Monterrey today taking in The Cannery, which is the factory that puts the fish that are caught into cans that are sent to your grocery store! The coastline was filled with surfers today and the huge waves they were riding in. John Steinbeck was a native son. Monterrey was the setting for two of his famous books, East of Eden and Cannery Row, which didn't make him very popular. Over twenty famous movies have been filmed here.

The little town between shore pictures is Pacific Grove. It is the town that Leigh Botts from Dear Mr Henshaw lived in! I thought you would enjoy seeing the real place. One picture is of a home behind the gas station that really ping pings!

Drove up to Half Moon Bay.........which used to be a nothing place. It has suddenly become trendy with lots of shopping and eateries. We stopped for lunch at a most unusual place..The Half Moon Bay Inn if you are ever traveling this way. Larry had a Dungeoness Crab Sandwich that he will rave about for years..... The spare toilet paper roll end of paper had been fashioned into a ROSE! and we left through a tunnel!

This evening we headed into the city..........TONS of traffic...rain......... But it was still fun to see all the familiar places, Chinatown, Little Italy, The Stinking Rose(a garlic restaurant), the very impressive financial district, and Fisherman's Wharf, our very favorite place to stay!

Cross your fingers that tomorrow will be sunshiny!