And it is amazing!! The beaches are stunning and the weather is perfect. We will spend a few days in Monterey and then make our way to Santa Cruz.
We spent our first night in an airport hotel (after travelling for a long time from Ireland we were in no fit state to drive any distance). We had a small plate of sushi and slept from 8pm.......but then of course were awake early with the jet lag. I was awake from 4am and Ciaran finally got up at 6am. Luckily breakfast was served from 6am in this particular hotel. We then hit the gym for a stretch and a small core session. After all of that we chilled out by the pool for a little - after the bad Summer in Ireland you can't believe how good it felt to have some sun on the skin!!
And then we got on the way to Monterey in our rented Toyota Yaris (the sales agent in the car rental tried to get us to upgrade by calling us out on the size of car we reserved "You guys need to enjoy your vacation with a bigger car" - we laughed and we were like "Yeah, we're cool, we drive a Smart Car at home!!". In fairness, with all of our luggage (Ciaran has loads of rackets and sports gear for his squash tournament) the car is pretty full. We needed to put the seats down in the back to get everything in. It is definitely only a car for two!
Currently it is 6am and we are in the local Starbucks in Pacific Grove (largest one in Monterey). Breakfast is served at 8am in our Bed and Breakfast. After brekkie we plan to go to the beach and then go on a Whale Watching Trip at lunch time. Although warm we have been advised to wear warm clothes on the boat as it can be cold on the water. Once the sun is shining it is warm but currently I am in jeans and a heavy jumper. All of the locals are in full clothes but we are in shorts and tshirts to try and get as much exposure as possible!! I need my vitamin D fix ;-)
How similar does this Starbucks on Lighthouse & David look to the Starbucks at home in Dublin on Waterloo Road?!
It looks very new to me and seemingly it was a former KFC - it has a drive thru to get your coffee on the go.
For snacks and drinks we shopped in Nob Hill. It is pretty cool from the outside (kind of reminded me of Faustos in Key West) but insides is a regular supermarket. I'll take a picture later during the week and will post it.
I will probably post intermittently but do look out for a few more pics of our trip over the next short while.
