California coast

San this, san the other … San Diego, Santa Barbara, San Francisco. I finally found out why there are so many Spanish influenced place names, and to all with any knowledge of US history its probably obvious, but it was a light bulb moment for me! Mexico used to rule California. So, you can find yourself in completely Mexican looking and speaking towns like Guadalupe, then in the ultra posh gated communities like Beverley Hills.

We headed North for once, rather than West (which seems to be our natural direction) up Hwy 1 – this is one of the great drives of the world, according to all the brochures. San Diego was a big old bustling, working city, with fantastic bits like Coronado and its spectacular bridge linking it to the mainland, the fact that fighter jets buzz the beach, and of course San Diego zoo. 125 up the coast is the insane LA, or la la land. Now, I had loved LA when I spent a few days there at a conference was back in 1996 or something – Venice Beach was way cool, and hot, and downtown was surprisingly laid back – I was really looking forward to showing it to the family.

But the best laid plans … LA was just grim. The weather was grim, we stayed in a grim place, and we saw only the seedy bits. Its just one of those things. We turned left out of our motel in Santa Monica, and ended up going into a more dodgy neighbourhood with nothing but hot dogs to eat. Had we turned right, we’d have probably ended up in the main, touristy bit and had a totally different experience. We didn’t make it to Venice, mainly because the weather was so grimbo. We went for a drive to see more of LA, but only caught glimpses of the Hollywood hills sign, and though the street names are all so familiar, Wilshire, Hollywood Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard, the reality is less than glamorous. I was so disappointed that a place can be so fab in one experience, and so drab in another (especially when you’ve built it up somewhat!)
Still, we headed up through Beverley Hills, Bel Air and Malibu, but still couldn’t see why the super rich would want to live there. It was a relief to get a couple of hours north to the wild coast, and then to Santa Barbara. Now, we really COULD see why the super rich would live here! OK so when you win the lottery, you would probably be better investing a few million in a Santa Barbara beachfront or hill property than even Coronado. Palm trees, beautiful beaches, lovely climate, good restaurants and a superb harbour frequented by dolphins and sea otters in which to park the yacht. We spent a very luxurious afternoon aboard a huge catamaran, the double dolphin, going out to seek – yup – dolphins. Alas, no dolphins, but very genial hosts and the bliss of just cruising up the coast in the sun, like millionaires ourselves. Rhys chatted up the female sailor, regaling her solemnly with all his capitals (and fair play, she listened!) while Rowan decided she loved sailing and now wants a boat, while Jenna made herself a little bed out on deck and fell asleep.

Next stop was Morro Bay, with sea otters lazing in the harbour and superb breakers around the volcanic rock, then up the coast via the most spectacular bit – Big Sur.

Big Sur is where the redwoods meet the sea, and where hairpins cling to cliffs on one side with sheer drops into the surf on the other. I drove this bit, mainly because I get the screaming heebie jeebies if anyone else, even a driver as good as Joe, is behind the wheel on this type of road. I suppose I’m just a control freak! After an extortionate lunch at the Whale Watchers café (did we see whales? Oh come on, you know our track record with wildlife by now, of course we didn’t!), drove leisurely through Clint Eastwood’s home Carmel and down to Monterey, home to Cannery Row, John Steinbeck, 17 mile drive and the world-famous Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Yup, we did the aquarium, and it was good, but embarrassingly full of stupidity. “What’s that Dad?” we heard a little boy say. “It’s a fish, son.” Well no sh*t Sherlock, this is an aquarium. Then there was the discussion of whether the thing on a rock was a ‘pretend seal’. I had to intervene and point out there were three of them, and they were definitely alive, and in the bay rather than within the aquarium. The standard response to any display was “oh aren’t they cute!” which I honestly don’t think is the deepest response anyone could have to, say, giant octopi.

Perhaps we are getting weary of America? Maybe. We find it really odd to have major cities on the beach, it’s just not something we have much of in the UK, or indeed in a lot of Europe (OK don’t say Venice in Italy, it’s a pretty unique exception!!). We like our coast a bit wild and with pretty little villages, rather than with a backdrop of skyscrapers. We are also discovering just how much freedom we have in the UK, rather than here where the lists of don’t necessitates a mammoth sign at every beach entrance! No nudity at all (don’t strip your kids to put on their swimming cosies), no drinking, no smoking, no loitering, $1,000 fine for littering, no access after 10pm … and the police do drive up and down checking! The gated communities also seem a bit extreme, and it’s all so darned CLEAN. We could also whinge a bit about the weather, but that just seems churlish in mid October, when its mid sixties, but we actually saw RAIN at one point which wasn’t part of the trip plan at all! Not so jealous.com now, eh?

Now this is not going to turn into a mighty whinge, because California has so very much going for it. Any state that can boast Yosemite, the Sierra Nevada, Joshua Tree, such beautiful coast, Death Valley and the giant sequoias is world-class amazing. But we’re itching for something a bit wilder, a bit free-er, and a bit less, sorry, American.

Costa Rica, in less than a week – tee, hee!