I have to be honest.  I’m starting to get a bit tired.  I have driven 1215 miles to this point and not very many have been easy miles.  You know the kind-the driving where you put on the cruise and just mosey on down the road.  Not these miles-no, no.  Not today.  Our drive today was to be a short one but one with unparalleled scenery.  I was awoken this morning by the sound of seals coming up from the bay a block away.  I tried to take a shower but our room was on the small side and the shower was cruise ship small.  After a short fight with the water and keeping the California drought in mind, I gave up and got dressed.  Since I am trying to be the perfect group leader this trip I walked down to the bay so the family could sleep a few more minutes.  It was nice having the entire street to myself along with the great views of the rock.  I also stopped in the Sun and Buns Bakery to get the kids a croissant and some coffee for the boss and me.

We only had about 130ish miles to drive today but I knew that it was going to be slow going.  So up Highway 1 we went.  Before we gained too much elevation we stopped at a vista point near San Simeon that had hundreds of elephant seals hanging out on the beach.  These guys were so unbelievably cool.  There were groups sparring in the water, clumps of them lounging on the beach, some flinging sand on themselves, and others bellowing into the sea air.  I think that with the benefit of hindsight, this may have been a favorite for the day.  Now we started to gain elevation and worked our way up and around the tight road with so very many hairpin turns.  At some point you sort of just get tired of saying “wow”.  Every single turn brought some sight that is indescribable.  From San Simeon in the south to Big Sur and finally to Monterey, we took our sweet time and enjoyed ourselves.  We pulled over at vistas, looked in small shops, and really tried to appreciate where we were.

After about 3 and a half hours we made it to the Monterey Peninsula.  The skies were cloudy and the weather cool and this made for perfect walking from our hotel to Cannery Row.  Tonight we’re staying  at the Best Western on Abrego St.  The room is huge and functional.  It will most definitely work for one night.  We walked the mile and a half from the hotel down and stopped for lunch at Ike’s Love and Sandwich.  This place was great.  My sandwich on gluten free bread was safely prepared and wonderful.  I had a sandwich with turkey, red pepper pesto, and cheese.  They had named it the Robert Louis Stevenson.  Since the boss was able to sample everyone’s food she was able to safely say that mine was the best.  Yay for me.

We ventured from there to the Monterey Bay Aquarium via Cannery Row.  We ducked in a few shops as we walked and honestly, I had forgotten how touristy and cheesy Cannery Row is.  It is neat to see and it helps if you’ve read the book by Steinbeck.  Also, a little research and understanding a small bit of the history will make the Row be a little more vibrant.  Otherwise, you’ll be looking at t-shirt shops, candy stores, and chain restaurants.  The row was never the goal, though.  Several months ago I bought tickets to the aquarium.  If you’re going, this is the way to do it.  Buying the tickets online allowed us to skip the huge line waiting to buy tickets and get right on in.

This is a cool place.  While not nearly as big as the Georgia Aquarium, I felt that it was more friendly to the visitor.  All of the volunteers who worked there were great about approaching us and talking to us about their topic of expertise.  The exhibits were also very well laid out and I really feel that we all learned a good bit about the surrounding waters.  We spent several hours here and although it was expensive, I feel it was a must-do for us on this trip and I still feel that it was the right call.  It’s one of those things that you have to do once but then you can do some other things.  If I come back to the peninsula, maybe I’ll do the kayak tour.

It was getting late and I had driven some challenging miles.  Also, I had walked several miles.  We walked back to the hotel and I went to grab some food for the clan.  I ducked into a decidedly old-school store for a bottle of local wine and then hit up Chipotle.  None of us were really in the mood to head out and eat.  When I got back to the room, everyone was clearly in a relaxed state.  This is probably a good thing.  Tomorrow we drive 3 or so hours to Yosemite so we’ll be getting up early.  Relaxing in the room this evening might prove to be the right call.  It is amazing to think that on a “drive day”, I can be this tired.  There is a certain amount of stress that comes with getting your family from one point to another safely.  I have to thank the boss for helping me to navigate our way around.  It’s hard to believe that we’ve been gone almost a week.  Arizona seems like such a long time ago.  One thing that I believe though-driving this country of ours and trying to at least scratch the surface is awe-inspiring.  From the Grand Canyon to the Pacific Coast, our family has seem some truly amazing things.  While we have by no means seen everything, I hope that I continue to plant that seed of wanderlust in my girls that will carry them through the rest of their lives.  Tomorrow-Yosemite!