Today we actually slept until 7:00, and I felt great! While eating breakfast, I re-read the tourist magazine Bob had brought to the room and discovered that the Santa Barbara Museum of Art was free Thursday evenings. So we decided to do some wine tasting today and do our cultural stuff tomorrow.
We drove from our hotel to Arroyo Grande through the mountains as directed by Google maps. Although shorter, the route involved a two lane road and a number of long hills. On the way, Bob was trying to give me a heart attack:
Our first stop was Laetitia Winery. The place was lovely.
After the tasting we took a short walk down a marked trail.
Fifteen minutes later found us doing a Santa Barbara style hunt for free parking, but after about 10 minutes, we gave up and paid - $5 for 5 minutes or 24 hours...oh, well.
It took us a little while to find the winery because (1) it wasn't really a winery but a wine shop and (2) it was tucked in among some cute shops.
It's the blue building! This place pulls from various vineyards to create its own label. We tasted 5 wines and bought two.
Avila Beach was lovely, but we discovered that the fall is the best for weather and prices. The Avila Lighthouse Suites looked so charming that I actually looked up the price, but it was too expensive for us. This is the view from the pier.
We then headed for lunch at a place recommended by the guy from Laetitia that was in Pismo Beach.
Ventana Grill literally overlooks the Pacific -- lovely to watch as we ate and drank. I liked the place as soon as I saw the drinks menu...
We thoroughly enjoyed our meals and the view.
Afterwards, we took a walk around the lower deck of the place.
On the rocks were many pelicans that swooped past the restaurant looking for food.
By this time it was near to 4:00, and we decided to head back to Santa Barbara rather than drive through the mountains looking for more wine, since we don't bring it home with us -- we're THOSE people who never check bags (even to Europe!). We drink some during the week and leave the rest for our friends in LA.
We got back at 5:09 and surveyed our purchases.
After resting for a while, we drove back into town looking for a cheese plate or dessert. We walked up and down State Street and ended up at a restaurant across the way from the one we'd eaten at before. And Bob made the mistake of showing me more stuff on the collage app.
And then the one that showed what Bob needs when he reads!
So karma got me on the way back to the car because I tripped on an uneven sidewalk slab and sort of halfway slid into the street. I'm okay -- a few bruises and much mortification. There were at least 5 people who waited until I stood up (which took at least five long minutes) and offered help. Wow. Bed by 10:00.
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