August 6 and 7, 2008: San Luis Obispo County and Santa Barbara

First of all, thanks to Hunter and Nicole for their supportive comments on our blog...sadly, I did not buy any caramel in Carmel to bring back, but I'll think of something else :)

The photo at left is of William Randolph Hearst's private library and office at Hearst Castle. Sarah and I decided to do a second tour yesterday morning, which included Hearst's private quarters and the kitchen. Hearst would go to his office at 1:00 am each night after his guests had gone to bed and read every single one of his newspapers (brought in by private plane each day). He'd make notes for all his editors to read in the morning. Hearst was in heated competition with Joseph Pulitzer to sell the most newspapers, and as a result, the headlines became increasingly sensationalist. He and Pulitzer were blamed for the advent of "yellow journalism" during the 1930s.

After the tour, Sarah and I headed to Cambria, a small town just south of San Simeon. The guidebook raved about the French Corner Bakery. And they do indeed make really, really good Bearclaws. And lattes :)

In the afternoon, we continued driving south, with stops at Morro Rock - one in a chain of volcanic caps that run along the edge of Morro Bay - and Montana de Oro State Park, where we hiked along the cliff ridge and watched pelicans diving for fish. The weather was on the moody side (there was a persistent bank of fog hanging along the coast), but the views were still spectacular.

We stayed overnight in San Luis Obispo, an old mission town that is now home to the California Polytechnic Institute, and is therefore packed with college students. That means lots of all-night pizzerias and coffee shops. I felt right at home :)

This morning we had a look at the mission, which is currently undergoing renovations, but had some interesting pieces on display in the museum. They showed pieces of furniture and other household items brought by the missionaries from Spain.

Their goal was to convert the local Chumash natives and stake a political claim for the Spanish government, which was feeling threatened by Russian and English explorers in the area.

South of San Luis Obispo, we stopped at Pismo Beach, home of the Pismo clam and a favourite with surfers. Grey skies did not deter all the tourists who had signed up for surfing classes; there were about 50 people in the water with their boards, determined to conquer the waves. Most of the time, the waves conquered them. Frankly, it looked like an awful lot of hard work for what usually amounted to about 5 seconds of wave riding.

We continued our journey south for a hike at Guadalupe Nepimo State Park. Famous for its sand dunes, this park was the location where Cecil B. DeMille filmed his original "Ten Commandments" silent movie in 1923. After shooting was completed, the crew just abandoned the set, which was eventually covered by the sand dunes. Pieces of the set keep re-appearing as the sand shifts, and the park rangers have set up a sort of movie museum at the visitor centre with stuff they find. The park is also a nature preserve and large sections of the dunes are roped off to preserve the habitats of endangered birds like the California Tern.

By then, we both figured we'd burned enough calories to merit a nice lunch, so we stopped in Los Olivos, a small town along Highway 101 made famous by the movie "Sideways". Pretty much all you'll find in Los Olivos are wine-tasting shops representing all the local wineries. They line both sides of the incredibly picturesque main street and were kept busy with tourists being bused in on wine tours.

We had lunch at the Los Olivos Cafe where scenes from the movie were shot. Sorry, but here's another food shot. Fresh-baked jalapeno cornmeal bread with tapanade and rosemary olive oil. Followed by baked brie with a cranberry wine sauce and salad. Jealous yet? That pretty much put both of us in a food coma, but I managed to finish the drive to Santa Barbara, which we'll check out tomorrow.

August 5, 2008: Big Sur and San Simeon

In the late 18th century, Spanish colonists named this stretch of land El Pais Grande del Sur, meaning "the big country to the south". The length of Highway 1 running from Carmel to San Simeon is 160 km of breathtaking vistas: mountains, cliffs and surf. There are no large towns, and most of the shoreline is protected by a series of state parks, many established by Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the 1930s as Highway 1 was built.

Carmel was covered in a thick coastal fog when we left early on Tuesday morning, but in true California fashion, the sun came out the minute we hit Highway 1. We popped in the Beach Boys CD (cheesy, I know, but it had to be done) and proceeded to enjoy some of the most stunning views North America has to offer. This drive is not for the faint of stomach. The twists and turns along the coastal cliffs have nauseated lesser souls, but Sarah has a hearty constitution and has experienced/suffered through my driving before. We became compulsive "vista stoppers"; you get worried that by skipping one of the scenic lookouts, you'll miss out on one of the incredible views.

All the guide books recommended a stop at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, so we parked the car and went for a short hike to see the McWay Creek Waterfall (it's featured on just about every postcard and coffee table book on Big Sur out there). The waterfall is about 30 metres high and drops directly onto the sand, where the water seems to just disappear. This property was donated to the state of California in the 1930s and the remains of a private villa overlooking the waterfall are still visible. The owners had planted lots of non-indigenous fruit and palm trees near the edge of the cliff and the smell of eucalyptus and cedar was incredible. Unfortunately, the rest of the hiking trails had been closed due to damage by recent brush fires and floods, so we headed back on the road towards San Simeon.

It happens to be molting season for Elephant seals, so it made sense to check out the Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery, located about 5 km north of San Simeon. It's a stretch of rocky beach that is home to hundreds of Elephant Seals (the ones with the funny noses). Females arrive in December and the babies are born at the end of January (Fun Trivia Fact: baby Elephant seals are called "weaners" once they are left on their own at about four weeks of age). The seals return once or twice in the spring and summer to molt, and there were quite a few in desperate need of exfoliation when we stopped for a look. There was also lots of testosterone on display - I caught a good shot of two of the males barking and lunging at each other.

San Simeon is a tiny fishing village consisting of four motels, a dock and a general store. But it's also world famous as the home of Hearst Castle, the private playground and museum of media tycoon William Randolph Hearst. It was Hearst's lifelong dream to build a European-style castle on this site - the location of many happy childhood holidays. His father had bought 48,000 acres of land in the area in 1865 after making millions through prospecting. As an adult, William Randolph Hearst made his own fortune in magazine and newspaper publishing. When he inherited the land in 1919, he began plans for a magnificent castle in his mother's memory. Construction began in 1922, overseen by architect Julia Morgan, one of the first women to graduate with an engineering degree from Berkeley and the first woman to graduate in architecture from the Ecole Nationale et Speciale des Beaux-Arts in Paris. She and Hearst shared a love of the creative process and collaborated on most of the design elements of the structure.

What boggles the mind is not only the incredible architecture of the complex itself, but the vast collection of European art and furnishings that it houses. Hearst purchased many of his treasures at auctions and designed several of the rooms around elements such as 16th century fireplace mantles, Renaissance paintings, and Belgian tapestries. The grounds are equally magnificent; Hearst had thousands of trees, flowering plants and sculptural elements imported. A big sports fan and avid swimmer, he also oversaw the construction (built and torn out three times until he felt the design was right) of the Neptune Pool, inspired by Greek and Roman architecture. The pool is 32 metres long and 10 feet deep, made out of white marble and has colonnades and a reproduction Greek temple containing actual columns from ancient Rome. Apparently Johnny Weissmuller enjoyed swimming here as a guest.

Hearst enjoyed entertaining and would organize weekend parties in which he brought together people from the worlds of politics, film, academia and grand society. Charlie Chaplin, Carole Lombard, Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Bob and Dolores Hope, George Bernard Shaw, Winston Churchill, Hedda Hopper and Amelia Earhart were all guests at one time. Hearst disliked the over-consumption of alcohol and insisted his guests mix and mingle, which is reflected in the design of the main building and adjacent bungalows. While accommodations were lavish, food and drink were not allowed in the guest rooms, and all meals had to be taken in the large refectory dining room. Staff were instructed never to serve more than two cocktails before dinner. "Sleeping-in" was actively discouraged.

Sarah and I enjoyed the "Part One" tour so much (ground floor and bungalows), we decided to return the next morning to take "Part Two", which includes the upstairs rooms, Hearst's private quarters and the kitchen. I can see why Hearst loved this part of California so much - the landscape is incredible and the sunsets aren't too shabby either :)

August 4, 2008: Monterey and Carmel

Getting up at an insanely early hour to beat the San Francisco rush hour was the plan, and it worked. We sailed over the Golden Gate bridge and made it to Monterey in a little over 3 hours. The weather was mostly cloudy, but whenever there was a bit of sunshine, we pulled over to take pics of the coast (that's me just north of Monterey above).

Monterey is, of course, famous for Steinbeck and Cannery Row. But what made me want to visit it again was the aquarium. I had a chance to tour it during a business trip a few years ago and always hoped I'd get a chance to see it again. Sarah has never been, so we decided to set aside about 3 hours to check it out. It didn't disappoint. The Monterey Aquarium is one of the best I've seen. They've done an incredible job of working with the natural surroundings and designed a space that not only showcases the animals and educates the public, but inspires visitors to think about marine life differently.

Sarah was enthralled by the sea otters, but my favourite display was the "Jellyfish as Art" exhibit. They are striking and the lighting/tanks do make them look like art installations. I took WAY too many photos - the shapes and colours are fascinating. The designers gave a lot of thought to usability and how to best display these types of creatures. One thing I noticed was that despite the large numbers of people in the space, the extended surface area of the displays meant it didn't take long to get to the front for a good view.

Just 5 minutes south of Monterey is the entrance to "17-mile Drive", a scenic route that loops around the peninsula located between Monterey and Carmel. This is also the home of the famous Pebble Beach Golf Club and some incredibly swanky houses. By this point, the weather had really clouded over, but the coastline is still striking, even under moody skies. There are several lookout points along the way and it's easy to spot cormorants, sea lions, pelicans and deer along the way. The exit gate for 17-mile Drive is at Carmel, so it didn't take us long to get to our hotel. This hotel was a trip "splurge"; the Pine Inn is the oldest hotel in Carmel. The inn is incredibly charming, as is the entire town, basically a seaside resort for the very well-heeled. Lots of tony boutiques and cafes (yay!) and pretty Victorian cottages. We filled up on post-dinner lattes and packed it in early for our big drive to Big Sur the next day. If you're interested, I've got lots more pics on Flickr. Click here to take a look.

August 3, 2008: Legion of Honor, Sausalito, Muir Woods

We started the day with a quick stop at the Legion of Honor - a fine art museum with a confusing name. Fragments of the Dead Sea scrolls were on display, thanks to a loan from the Israeli Antiquities division. That was very cool - the amount of scholarship involved in piecing together and interpreting the tiny remnants was impressive.

Most of the regular collection was donated by wealthy local patrons, so things were a bit uneven, but they had an excellent Rodin sculpture hall. Also, because of a partner relationship with the de Young, there were more Chihuly pieces. This is definitely Chihuly city.

Apparently Sunday brunch at the Cliff House is a San Francisco tradition, so that followed our museum visit. The restaurant is in the Presidio district, overlooking the Pacific. It's also the site of the old Sutro baths, used by the upper classes in the late 1800's as a weekend escape. There are lots of historical prints on display of the original bath-house structure and you can tour the ruins. Excellent food, btw :)

We then got in the newly acquired rental car and crossed the Golden Gate. By the time we reached Sausalito, the fog had lifted and the sun was shining. Sausalito features some of the most expensive real estate in the Bay Area and the place was packed with tourists. We didn't hang around very long - our goal was to do some hiking in Muir Woods before nightfall. Muir Woods is a national park just off Highway 1, north of San Francisco. It's famous for its California Redwoods and was dedicated by FDR as a national monument.

We got there late in the day, which actually worked to our advantage - most of the tourists were just leaving and that made wandering along the trails much easier. I've never seen redwoods before, and they really are impressive. I was fascinated by the "cathedral" section of the park. This is natural feature where a very old tree had been destroyed by lightning some time in the past, but the tree's root system survived to sprout new shoots. A ring of new trees forms around the burned-out trunk of the "parent" tree, creating a circular cathedral-like space. Really magnificent.

August 1 and 2, 2008: San Francisco

We're staying at the King George hotel near Union Square, which (along with being clean and small and charmingly decorated) has the advantage of being next door to a real, vintage Americana diner. And I LOVE diner breakfasts. The kind with enough artery-clogging cholesterol and fat to kill a horse. So that's how we started our day on Friday. In fact, that's how we started the day today, too. Pic at left.

After breakfast yesterday, we decided to explore the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA). Actually, I lie. First we had to head to Nordstroms and go shopping because I foolishly thought it would be blazing hot and left my sweater at home. And nobody can fault me for also trying on this really awesome skirt and jacket combo that Sarah had to coerce me into buying :P

On the way to the SFMOMA, we passed by the Contemporary Jewish Museum, which looks an awful lot like what I suspect the ROM's crystal was supposed to look like before they ran out of money and had to resort to using aluminum siding to finish the project. Similar contrast between the original, older structure and the new addition, but in this case, it really works - the building is part of the newly developed public space with fountains, outdoor cafes and gardens that flow into the Yerba Buena complex just to the south.


The Yerba Buena complex (across the street from SFMOMA) is beautiful, with theatres, recital halls, galleries, a convention centre and public recreation facilities. Lots of outdoor art as well (some of which Sarah is hugging on the left). Yerba Buena was created in part to revitalize an economically depressed part of San Francisco and it works really well. While we were there, the place was packed with people visiting the gardens and cafes during lunch hour. One really cool feature for the architecture buffs (Jesse, that would be you)...the gardens are actually on the roof of the huge underground convention hall. The hall has no columns, just eight steel arches that are linked by cables under the floor. By tightening the cables, the arches exert thrust upwards against the roof.

I won't go into huge detail about the SFMOMA, except to say that I really like their small but well-rounded collection of contemporary photography. And again, a wonderful cafe. With beautiful art. And really good pastries. And no school groups or camps (because they've got their own lunch facilities in the basement. Where they belong :P)

In the afternoon, we headed down to Fisherman's Wharf and had a look at Pier 39, which has been shaped into a huge entertainment complex of the tacky tourist sort. When it was refurbished in 1978, they added a closed-in harbour that proved very attractive to local sea lions who liked the fish drawn to the still water. And the sea lions proved very attractive to the tourists who were standing 10-deep taking photos. We also went on a harbour cruise that took us under the Golden Gate bridge and around Alcatraz. Very cool. Especially watching the sunset behind the bridge.

This morning the weather was too beautiful to spend indoors, so we decided to walk along the beach from the Golden Gate bridge to the Palace of Fine Arts (also the location of the Exploratorium, San Francisco's science centre). I have to say, this was my favorite part of our trip so far - being outdoors on such a gorgeous day with some really incredible scenery. Lots of folks were out and about. It became obvious that San Franciscans really, really, really like their dogs. God knows, there were enough of them. Wearing lots of cute outfits (the dogs AND the owners).

We talked to one older man who was taking part in a "Shiba Inu meet-up" that had no-doubt been organized through some Facebook group. He was looking for the other Shiba Inu owners (that's a type of very cute, miniature Husky-ish looking dog, by the way). The power of social media :)

Stopped for lunch at McCormick's on Ghiardelli Square. Yes, another food photo. I like taking pictures of food. And this one features attractively displayed seafood, too :) Which tasted incredibly good after walking for two hours.

This was followed by "the walk that will cause my knees to be in extreme pain tomorrow"- instead of taking the cable car, we decided to head up Hyde Street on foot (with its crazy steep incline) so we could see the famous Lombard Street drive that twists its way down the side of a hill. I couldn't get over how well flowers of all types do in this climate. And the city has certainly made a showpiece of Lombard Street. The neighbouring homes are pretty spectacular, and no doubt pricey, as well.

Finally, we managed to squeeze in a show at the Geary Theatre tonight. Roger Rees is doing a one-man show about Shakespeare, interweaving performances of various soliloquies with anecdotes from his theatre days and readings about Shakespeare. I really enjoyed it. He was energetic and fun, and it made for a great way to end this part of our trip. Tomorrow we're of to Point Reyes and San Rafael. If we can find our way out of San Francisco with the rental car.

July 31, 2008: San Francisco

While in theory, getting up at 3:00 am to catch a 7:00 am flight sounds practical and sound (at least to me), the reality is that Sarah and I were dead on our feet by dinnertime. But we managed to pack a lot in on our first day - once you add in the time difference, we were checked in and wandering the streets of San Francisco by 9:30 am local time.

I'll forgo my usual "I hate flying and Air Canada in particular" rant, except for: $25 for an extra piece of luggage? $7 for a sandwich? $3 for a little mini bag of Reeses Pieces? (And my personal favorite...) $2 for a pillow?! The only thing that was free was the coffee, and that managed to reach new levels of crappiness. Okay, I'll stop now.

I made Sarah stop in Union Square so I could inhale a recovery latte, and then we headed off to Golden Gate park. It's an absolutely beautiful stretch of parkland that runs from centre of town all the way to the ocean; the park is home to the San Francisco Botanical Gardens and Strybing Arboretum, the California Academy of Sciences (closed for renovations), and the de Young Museum.

We totally lucked out at the de Young. They're currently hosting a large Dale Chihuly exhibition. Sarah and I are huge fans of his glass works and the de Young had some of his best pieces on display. You can see the de Young entrance in the pic above - the museum houses one of the best art collections in San Francisco and was founded in 1895. In 1989, it was pretty much flattened by an earthquake; after a complete re-design, it opened again in 2005. It's got a kind of post-apocalyptic Road Warrior look going for it - very dramatic. One of Chihuly's pieces (the tall yellow thing in the pic) is located in a lily pond by the entrance doors.

The exhibition itself was stunning. A few comments from Sarah: "It's incredible - glass is the perfect medium for playing with really intense, luminous colours. I like the way he uses shapes and forms from nature to inspire his work. And the panel copy was excellent - really insightful commentary on his background and inspirations. Wish the AGO would get it." I took A LOT of photos. (If you'd like to see more, go to my flickr page.) Just so you get a sense of scale, in the photo on the right, the rowboat holding the glass pieces is about 3 metres long.

We had a lovely lunch in the de Young cafeteria, which, as so many American museum cafeterias do, puts the OSC's to shame. It was all VERY California-esque: signs explained how the catering company didn't use endangered or high mercury-level fish, vegetables had to be locally sourced and they didn't use beef or cheeses unless absolutely necessary (to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions and grain consumption). I was kind of wondering what that actually left to eat, but the salads were very yummy :)

After lunch, we toured the Japanese Tea Garden (right next to the de Young), which was designed for the Midwinter Fair in 1894. You can have tea in a small tea house and then walk through the ornate and beautifully maintained grounds.

It was at this point that we got the bright idea to catch one of the double-decker buses that zoom through the park every 30 minutes. We'd bought a 2-day "hop-on, hop-off" pass, which covers most of San Francisco. The weather was really nice, so it seemed like a good idea to grab seats up top - the views were great, but it was so windy, we both looked like we'd been undergoing wind tunnel experiments by the end. I did manage to get my first (somewhat blurry) shot of the Golden Gate bridge however, which we plan to visit again today.

Just biding blog time until the trip starts.

I took this photo the last time I was in L.A.

They were having doggie dress-up day at the L.A. Farmer's Market. The dog was better dressed than me. This made me bitter and sad. Not as bitter and sad as Sarah when she discovered that Yankee Candle had discontinued her favourite scent last month, but still... pretty bitter and sad.

I love the collar. I don't think the dog was quite as enthusiastic. Trop de tristesse.