Toadfrogs

A Castle, a Beach, and a Wrong Turn

I think I mentioned that Wade and I ended up with a PT Cruiser from the rental company. The only problem we have found with the car is a little light on the dash that won’t go away and dings for about 15 minutes every time you start the car. I tried to call the rental company and ask them about it, but they wanted to send me back to the rental location, which wasn’t really an option.
Wade and I started the day with a drive north. On our way to our destination, we happened upon Morro Bay. We stopped in this quaint town looking for lunch and found a street festival. I ended up buying tile coasters and a new vase. Wade and I both admired the creativity of the locals (read into that what you will). We then walked down to the water to have fish and chips. There is a fantastic view with a huge rock (Morro Rock) in the middle of the water!

Then we were on our way to Hearst Castle, which is similar to the Biltmore in North Carolina. William Randolph Hearst built the castle and continued work on it until his death. The castle is amazing, but it is obvious there were grand plans left uncompleted. Hearst ran out of money and then died before he could complete the work. The house was built to look like a Spanish Cathedral and has a lot of Spanish influence. My favorite part was the ceilings. Hearst collected antique ceilings and had them placed all over the house – they were amazing!

After the tour of the castle, we made a stop on the rocky beach of San Simeon. There was no path down to the beach, but it was worth the slipping and sliding (me in a skirt and flip-flops).

Then we were on our way to a bed and breakfast for the next two nights. We knew they were expecting us between 9 and 10, which should have been exactly right. However, I was engrossed in my book and not paying attention to the directions I was giving Wade. We ended up backtracking a little before we were headed in the right direction, but we made it.

  1. Hollywood – you didn’t tell me this weekend that you went to Hearst Castle! I was there in the late 60’s (a young 17 year old) and could not believe that people actually would live in such a place! It is beautiful and the grounds, at the time, were used for an animal santuary. Was that the case when you were there? There were zebras, giraffe’s, all kinds of animals running all over the place. What fun! Thanks for bringing back a fond memory for me!

  2. Carol – I should have mentioned it! The area around the castle is no longer an animal sanctuary. We were told me might see a zebra or too, but most of the animals have found new homes at zoos. The castle was amazing. I can’t imagine that being my home and a second home at that!

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