Visit From Rachel; Hearst Castle

A few weekends ago, my good friend Rachel from Atlanta came to visit and we explored a few places I had seen before, and saw some things I had not seen before.

Our big adventure during the week was to bike across the Golden Gate Bridge. This was my second ride from Fisherman's wharf to Saulsalito and by far the most beautiful. The air was crystal clear with not even a wisp of fog, haze or smog.



This time we had time to wander around the little shops of Saulsalito and choose the ferry that delivered us just a few blocks from where we could turn in the bikes. Last time we took a ferry that required a harrowing bike ride down Embarcadero with the tourists and traffic and trolley tracks that threatened to make roadkill of me. While I enjoyed the crystal clear views provided by this outstanding day- I'm also grateful that I had the chance to bike the bridge in the fog as well.

After two days of the city, my friend was ready to see other parts of California. As she does not drink wine, and I felt Yosemite was too much of a trip for just one day, we headed south to revisit an area I had seen on my way into California.



We headed south on Pacific Hwy 1 and made plans to stay the night at the Best Western in San Simeon that had the firepits on the beach. Just 10 minutes up the road was Hearst Castle which I had been told was "worth seeing".

I had see Biltmore Estate on the East Coast, and I preferred the free wandering that the Biltmore Estate allows, but that did not diminish the sheer admiration for the Hearst Castle. I'd visit again to see at least one more of the 4 available tours. We chose tour #1- the "Welcome" tour that introduces visitors to the castle grounds, a guest house, and a few of the main rooms of the house.




There are 56 bedrooms, 61 bathrooms, 19 sitting rooms, a couple of pools, and various other rooms. The pools were outstanding- the outside one looked like something I'd imagine Greek emperors sitting around after an exciting day of watching people battle lions. The inside one had a diving plateform whose height made my stomach cringe.



On the Hearst Castle grounds, I saw my first real live in-the-wild tarantula!



That night as I stared into the firepit and watched the pulsating of the hot embers, I brainstormed ways to become rich as a Speech Language Pathologist so I could also build a little house on a hill. I decided that my profession cannot honestly result in such riches, and I really don't have any interest in any profession that would result in purchasing power for such a place. Maybe I can marry well? Any billionaires reading the blog right now, thinking, "gee, who needs a trophy wife- this girl seems like marriage material!"? At least as a traveling Speech Therapist I can sit on a pacific beach after driving down a highway of breathtaking views and touring a mansion- and still have a job Monday morning to support my wandering!

The next morning we revisited the elephant seals and I learned from the rangers that were present this visit that the seals are actually teenagers. They come out of the water to get out of the way for the adult males to woo the females. The poor adolescents sit on the beach for up to 3 months without eating before going back into the ocean- no wonder they look dead! The adults are actually much much larger.



It's always enjoyable to take a roadtrip, and even more enjoyable to bring a friend along. Having another viewpoint present reveals the beauty of the scenery because you are constantly trying to guess what they would enjoy seeing. Rachel wasn't as blown away by the ocean as I was, but even she had to admit the fog rolling in over the ocean was really cool.