California At It's Best

In 2004, as you all know, I packed my (enormous) bags and flew into adventure and glamour to teach in England. I vowed that I would never again live in California. After all, who wants to live in such a crowded, too-hot-in-summer, not-cold-enough-in-winter, superficial place? The state is home to Hollywood--'nuff said, right?

Well, we all know what happened. After a year in England and a year in Washington, I found myself, in 2006, back in the Golden State. I certainly wasn't thrilled to be here (aside from being near my friends again) but I wasn't completely horrified, either. I think the word bewildered suits.

I've struggled since then to come to grips with the fact that I will probably spend at least a good portion of the rest of my life living in California...and you know what? That's not so horrible.

Yesterday, after a week of planning and map-reading, I decided to fill up Rosie's gas tank and head off to the coast. If I'm going to live in California, then hallelujah for the Pacific, right?

I made the somewhat-lengthy drive to Stinson Beach, Point Reyes National Park, and then swung through San Francisco on the way home. It turned out to be a lovely day.

The beauty of the Northern California coast is that it is pretty rugged. There are a few white-sand beaches, but mostly the coastline is rocky and wild. I like this--it's dramatic.

Because of this, building a coastal highway, of course, becomes a challenge. Therefore, we have California's Highway 1--at this point in California, known as the Shoreline Highway.

I took this twisty, winding, crazy little road to Stinson Beach, stopping along the way at an overlook far above Muir Beach.









Looking straight out at the Pacific:




My next stop was Stinson Beach, a small town with a lovely little beach.







After Stinson Beach, Highway 1 goes inland a little bit, and through Point Reyes National Seashore. I made the long, slow, winding drive to South Beach, to enjoy some very dramatic, very dangerous wave action.







Here's a short video I took of the action:


After all of this, I wanted to head back to civilization. I was driving along and the thought of going to San Francisco suddenly seemed very good. So I took U.S. 101 south across the Golden Gate Bridge, and drove into one of the lovliest cities in the world.

I stopped at Pier 39 to do some touristy stuff, like seeing the famous sea lions, and then I did something I've never done in all the times I've been to San Francisco: I took a boat tour of the bay. It was about an hour long, and I got some terrific pictures.

First, a video of the sea lions (noisy little guys, eh?):




The boat tour:








Approaching the Golden Gate:


Looking back towards the Bay Bridge:




Under the Golden Gate:








Angel Island:


The Bay Bridge:


Alcatraz:




After the tour, I wandered around Pier 39, having a quick meal and taking some pictures before heading back to Antiyuck.

Carousel:




Of course, I got lost on the way home. I got from Interstate 80 to 580 without problem, but then I forgot--until about 5 miles after passing the exit--that I was supposed to take 24 to get to Concord. Oops! I corrected the mistake and made it home without any further incidents.

It was a gorgeous day for sight-seeing, and it reminded me that maybe, just maybe, being a California Girl isn't such a bad thing.