Day #1 -- To Santa Barbara

We left the house at 5:45 and got to the airport in plenty of time to have some coffee before getting on the plane. Bob found this penny on the table when he sat down.

We took Virgin America this time, and the experience was great! We arrived on time at LAX, and it took less than 10 minutes to get our car at Avis -- we were really impressed!

Google map navigation got us to Gjelina in Venice in good time. On our way there, we saw corn growing in the space between the sidewalk and the street!

 We decided to order some small plates for lunch. First, we had figs and prosciutto - tasty.

Then we enjoyed a diverse cheese platter.

We also split some succulent lamb chops and pork meatballs.

And we topped this fabulous meal off with panna cotta with berries and ginger cookies.

Then it was off to Santa Barbara. We took the fast way (not the Pacific Coast Highway) and arrived at around 3:00. 

After checking in, we opened our complimentary sparkling wine and then went down to the lobby to have some cheese and crackers. We chatted with a woman from Walnut Creek, CA, who was a former elementary school teacher. Then we walked to the harbor and had some hearty clam chowder at Brophy's while engaging in some serious people watching.

We arrived back at the hotel at 7:30 -- I'm a wee bit tired...