Monterey

Monterey

Today I went on a weekend-get-away to Monterey and Carmel. Instead of driving 2.5 hours down there myself, I went with a tour group. It was nice to be able to just sit back and relax because someone else was paying attention to the road. :-) Driving is definitely not one of my favorite pastimes.

Anyhow, the trip down there took around 3 hours because we took the scenic route down south on Highway 1 along the coast of California. Some tourists from Wisconsin were quite impressed with the views of the Pacific and the awesome waves crashing against the rocky shores. When we arrived in Monterey, we were dropped off at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. We had only 1.5 hours in Monterey to explore, take pictures, buy souvenirs and take a bathroom break. Actually that wasn't enough time especially since I really like to make many photo and bathroom stops! The weather along the coast was really pleasant. The sun was warm, but the breeze from the Pacific created a nice cooling effect. In the picture above you see a building in Monterey's Cannery Row. It's similar in nature to San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf.

After everyone was herded back onto the tour bus, we made our way along the 17 mile drive, which snaked through private grounds where expensive and exclusive golf greens are located. To play at Pebble Beach for instance, golfers have to pay approximately $400 for a round of golf, assuming the tour guide was telling the truth and I heard correctly. I also photographed the lone Cypress tree that is famous.

The 17 mile drive led us to the quaint little town of Carmel-by-the-Sea. I really wanted to see the old mission in Carmel, but there wasn't enough time to walk there and get back to the bus on time. Carmel is mostly an artist colony with art gallery and little boutiques. I was really positively struck by how clean and peaceful Carmel was. There was no garbage on the streets, no graffiti and no urine smells! The little cottages in Carmel had an English flair to them. It was all quite quaint and pretty.

My theory is that Carmel is really nice and clean because the community is small and everyone knows everyone else, so they feel ownership over their city. No one litters because it would be like littering in their own home. In San Francisco however, everyone and everything is so anonymous. If Joe Schmoe spits on the street or sprays graffiti on a public building, it doesn't matter to him because SF doesn't belong to him. No one knows him in the city. No one will catch him. I wonder what it would be like to live in a small community where your neighbors are helpful and you can walk around without constantly having to look over your shoulder to see if any bad guys or weirdos are lurking in the alleyways.