Day 8: San Francisco to Monterey

Departed SF today from Briana's apartment (which, coincidentally, is also pink).



It was 45 minutes out of my way and $11 in tolls, but I just had to drive over the Golden Gate while in town. I really should walk it next time, the view was awesome but way too brief.


Stopped in Pacifica for lunch, it was a nice small beach town although a little depressed perhaps. I snapped this photo on my way to Santa Cruz at Pescadero State Beach.


I visited the Santa Cruz boardwalk but didn't stay long. The rides and games just didn't seem worth the cost. And I was just getting strange vibes from the place. So I continued on to Castroville to try the fried artichoke hearts at the Giant Artichoke Restaurant. They were underwhelming, all I could taste was the breading.


Got into Monterey earlier than expected to I checked into the youth hostel (which is in a great location) and wandered down to cannery row. There are a lot of informative plaques explaining the history of the place and its relationship to Steinbeck and other nice touches like the painting above. The tourist traps are cheesey for sure but feel less stupid than the ones at Fisherman's Wharf for some reason.

Tomorrow: Monterey Bay Aquarium, a little bit of Big Sur maybe, and San Simeon.