At 0845H we went to look for a gas station near Cambria and filled the almost bottomed down tank. The regular gas cost $5.35 per gallon which is more expensive than the ones in Los Angeles. From there we headed to the castle and stopped by the entrance to take a picture of the entrance caption for our own souvenir to document our trip there.Then we continued to drive inside until we reached the visiting center. We have to park our car there because there will be buses provided to haul and bring people up the hill at the castle.
When we got in the center we went ahead and asked the amiable old lady volunteer what to do and she instructed us to buy a ticket for the tour and chose among the three tours they offered. I asked her what will she recommend and she told us to chose the grand rooms tour which we eventually chose to go per her guidance.
We lined up ourselves at the ticketing station and bought two tickets for the grand rooms tour then we lined up to get a picture at a make shift studio by the exit door adorned with a green screen background before they let us queue outside for the bus pick up. Fifteen minutes later they let us board the bus and then it left after ten minutes after everybody had boarded.
The climb at the hill was very steep and we were entertained by the voice of Alex Trebek of Jeopardy from the overhead pager introducing the castle to us and what they expect for us to do when we were there. It's kind of giving us a heads up on what to expect in coming or going there. He told us the hills other name which is "La Cuesta Encantada" also better known as "The Enchanted Hill".
Listening to Alex was very informative and educational. I learned a little history of the castle from him starting from its inception, creation, and how it ended up the hands of the State of California from that fifteen minute bus ride snaking the brown and arid hill of San Simeon. It was very soothing to listen to his voice spoonfeeding us information about the luxurious and famous castle.
When we arrived at the castle's entrance we alighted from the bus and we were greeted by this very amiable old blonde lady guide and briefed us a little bit about the tour's rules and regulations then she started telling us stories about the castle and then started touring us the grand rooms after.
After touring the grand rooms we went to tour the lush and beautiful mediterranean gardens with intricate sculptures placed everywhere. We also checked the posh guest houses as well as the incomparable and enormous bluish hued Neptune pool. I was tongue-tied of the opulence that enveloped me there. I just shook my head giddily feeling it's majestic and luxurious presence. It seems like I was living in a world of magical creation during that time.
When we finished our interesting and dreamlike tour we went to check the beautiful Roman pool at the basement and the tennis court at the backyard. After that we took the bus back at the visitor's center and checked out.
We bought the pictures which they had took lately from that green screen background studio then decided to eat first before leaving San Simeon heading to Big Sur, CA looking for more unexplored lighthouses.
We passed by the Piedras Blancas lighthouse again for me to get more clearer pictures to be added for my online album which was very blurry yesterday because we took it at almost a foggy dusk. Then we continued driving Highway 1 going north taking the curving and treacherous California coastal roads.
We took the coastal roads going north and enjoyed the sceneries highlighting the Pacific Ocean. While John was driving I also took pictures of the roads we passed by documenting this very memorable road trip. We winded the narrow roads, climbed up the steep ascent as well as climbed down the tricky descent, and enjoyed the beauty that nature abounds into our sight. It was a very long trip from San Simeon to Big Sur but very unforgettable.
When we got to Big Sur, CA we looked for the Big Sur lighthouse but we were told at the hotel we passed by that it was close right now because it is off season. If we go there we will just probably be wasting our precious time and expensive gas. We decided to skip the lighthouse and continued driving to Carmel going to Pacific Grove, CA to look for the second lighthose on our list.
We headed to Pacific Grove to visit the Point Pinos lighthouse. The estate was closed to public because of the reconstruction and renovations they're doing for the lighthouse but the public can still able to get a picture of it nearby because they put the wire fence close by the lighthouse. I was able to snap a lot of pictures of it for my online album.
When we left Pacific Grove we decided to go back to Carmel and look for the Mission Church. We found it right away but the church was also on renovation. There were scaffolds on the roof and construction people were seen working on it. The gate was also close and we were devastated because we can't see it.
When we turned around the gift shop we saw an entrance sign leading us to the church's backyard and there we found out that it was still open to the public even though the church is under renovation. At least our efforts to go back to Carmel was not futile.
We grabbed the opportunity to roam around the place taking as much pictures as we like. We roamed around the interior of the church and the convent juxtapositioned near it as well as we explored the huge backyard and playground at the back of the convent. It was very quiet there and very spiritual as well.
It was almost 1600H when we left Carmel. We then decided to head to Monterrey and look for the famous Cannery Row. We didn't know what to expect at the cannery row because I myself doesn't know what it is. We thought we got lost at first because the GPS brought us to a shopping and eating center.
We were wondering how come it was named as Cannery Row but apparently John found out when he traced back the town's history, it had lead him to the staple industry of Monterey long time ago which was the canning industry as seen by the bridges along and across the streets with the names of the famous cannery companies that was and had been established in Monterey before. Now it is a sprawling and huge shopping and eating center. It still looked the same as before as what the folks had claimed.
It was almost dark so we decided to culminate our trip at the Monterey Harbor and the Old Fisherman's Wharf. At the harbor we feasted our eyes with various colorful yachts bouying at the shoreline and also strolled at the pier watching folks or locals fishing and also surfers surfing at a nearby beach in this cold northern Californian afternoon.
We ended our stroll at the Old Fisherman's Wharf and decided to grab something to eat for dinner. We decided to eat at Isabella's where I ate Penne Shrimp Alfredo and John ordered a sirloin steak on rice topped with sauteed fresh and organic veggies.
After dinner we went to look for a hoteln to stay for the night. We got a room at Travelodge Hotel near Highway 1. There John retired immediately because he got tired during the whole day's road trip while I watched the second Presidential debate held in Hempstead, New York.
I went to sleep close to midnight thinking of our activities the next day. Hopefully, it will be another fun-filled day of long and interesting driving and also of an unpredictable adventures awaiting for us the next day. I am very excited about it!
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