At last! I have been dying for time to write this post. Things on the east coast were non stop once we made it back from the west coast, but I haven’t stopped talking about the trip. John and I headed out to Monterey, California in mid-March to visit two dear friends, Anne and Douglas who are currently living in that adorable town. Remember these two? How could you forget?! In fact, we actually planned this trip out to see them before any of us were positive they were moving. Chances were good, but not definite. What would have happened if they hadn’t made the move? Well, Anne and Doug were just going to purchase tickets and head out there with us for a few days of touristy travel. Win, win, huh?

While this trip in no way involved hunting or fishing, John and I really had the best time going to see our pals – from the second they picked us up from the airport, it was as if no time had passed and we began our activities (read: cocktail hour) immediately. John was actually born in Monterey, but hasn’t been back since he was a wee one. That part of the country is so incredible, my camera battery died before the first day was over. Ok, ok, I may have been overzealous – out of the 1200ish photos I took, there are a disproportionately large number of seal, sea otter, & sea lion shots on my computer now. And by “disproportionately,” I’m going to say about 700… Wish I was exaggerating. Anyways. Enough babbling! Let’s get moving and show you how awesome it is.

We spent the few days wandering around Monterey, visiting Carmel, and enjoying the scenic 17-Mile Drive. The fellas got in a little scuba dive one morning, and you know we fit in a few wine tastings.

On the last day, John and I rode bikes to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. If you’re ever in Monterey, definitely check out the aquarium. They have so many cool exhibits, including a tank that hosts the world’s first live kelp forest. Pretty neato for sure. I wish I had taken more photos while we were in there, but most of the ones I took had the heads of about 40 other people covering the majority of the tank I was focusing on. Either way, it was such a fun time.

To sum it up – Monterey and Carmel were ah-mazing and so fun to explore. I think in those first few days we walked about 6 miles/ day just wandering and taking in the sites. Ohh, I seem to have skipped a day in our travels, huh? WELL, my friends, that’s what Wednesday’s post is for – Big Sur. If I ever leave the coast of South Carolina, it will be to live in Big Sur. Fact. Here’s a little preview from our hikes – Stay tuned!