San Luis Obispo to San Diego

San Luis Obispo

It's RV day!!  Great to finally meet Rudi and Gladys (Highway Campers) who Allen has been liaising with over the past couple of months. The RV is only a year old and in pristine condition. After a general briefing of the do's and dont's of motorhome living, we drove our new abode away, on the wrong side of the road!!! aarrgghhh

That evening we went to the Farmer's Market in town, it's a weekly event which turns Higuera Street into a festive street party with live music, street stalls and delicious local produce.  Awesome atmosphere even though it was freezing cold.

Our first night in the RV was spent at Ocean Canyon Resort in Avila (Pronounced Aveela) Beach. We had only ventured approximately 5 miles - didn't want to go too far from Rudi and Gladys in case we had problems. We need not have worried as everything was perfect.  Really love our new life style.

Avila Beach to Morro Bay

Stopped for lunch at this trendy place and decided to try the local Californian brew, "Firestone".  It was very easy to drink and it complimented the Mahi Mahi (fish dish) beautifully - thought we were in heaven. We travelled only a little way down the road and we had to stop for a nana nap. Pulled off the road at the first convenient place and into a large car park....oh my god....it's a prison!!

Morro Bay is a delightful little fishing town, it has a volcanic peak sticking out of the ocean and 3 smokestacks for all to see.  Shame about the icy wind blowing across the Pacific.  We consumed copious amounts of clam chowder to keep warm.

We met a great guy at the camp site called Andy. He was a tour guide at Hearst Castle (San Simeon) and kindly arranged for us to go on his tour. What a magical place. I don't think I can describe how amazing this hilltop castle really is with it's European architecture, antiques, lush gardens and statues. I'll let Allen's photographs tell the story.

Andy

Hearst Castle

After the castle we discovered a place called Vista Point that is home to an enormous elephant-seal colony. We saw hundreds of big fat seals sprawled out on the beach. The smell was unbelievable. I was almost glad it wasn't a hot day!!

Came back through a beautiful place called Cambria, a quaint little village of boutique shops, Tudor style accommodation, colourful flowers and white picket fences. The best car wash I have ever seen. Love it.

 

Carmel-by-the-Sea to Los Angeles

A breath taking rocky, winding coastline to Carmel and once you arrive you are not disappointed. Unfortunately we couldn't stay long as we were on a mission to get to Los Angeles to meet Daniel. He was arriving in LA to spend 3 days with the "oldies" before meeting up with friends in Las Vegas for a Bucks Party.  

Los Angeles to San Diego

We introduced Daniel to the RV and he thought it was great. We settled down for the 3 hour drive to San Diego. Stopped at Long Beach to see the Queen Mary.

  

Next stop, Sea Port Village where Allen wanted to investigate the Aircraft Carrier USS Midway. Daniel and I went to Downtown San Diego for some retail therapy. 

Our journey continued into San Diego Old Village and we stopped for lunch at the oldest (and best) Mexican Restaurant. It was called La Pinata and we sat outside in the courtyard and the staff wore traditional costume. I struggled with the Menu and asked Daniel for guidance - ended up with Chicken Tostada Grande....bigger than Ben Hur.

Went to the Museum of Old Town San Diego it was an original Indian reservation turned into a tourist attraction. We decided to take a 1 hour guided tour with Dick (mistake number one) who was a retired Park Ranger and could only talk at one speed  S.…L….O….W!!  Daniel disappeared within the first 10 minutes, we lasted 12 minutes, it was painful.   Such a shame as the grounds were steeped in history. 

Checked out the surf beach at La Jolla, pretty spectacular. More smelly seals posing for photographs. In the evening Daniel dragged us around the Gaslamp area which is the hub of nightclubs and restaurants. We had a mighty night at an Irish pub entertained by Eamon Carroll who sang Danny Boy just for us.  Memories are made of this......if only we could remember them!

This little fella came to visit our campsite, so we invited him to dinner!