Now back to the (sur)real world...
Jul. 16th, 2004 12:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
madbakerWe had originally planned to visit Mendocino this week (and possibly ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
loupnoir), but they're holding a Music Festival. We wanted unstructured peace and quiet, so we drove down to Cambria for a couple days instead.
We stayed at the J. Patrick House. We've had a thing for B&B's since our wedding, when we stayed at The Victorian Inn on the Park. It was fine; on the solely personal and unbiased madbaker B&B scale, I'd rate the J. Patrick 2 1/2 stars. A decent experience, but I'd try others in the area before going back. Nothing wrong with the owners or the rooms, and the breakfast was excellent. It was just... fine.
For reference, I'd rate the Victorian Inn 3 1/2 stars. My scale is somewhat corrupted, though -- I expect everything to rank up with my four-star stay at the Bissell House in Pasadena. There, we felt like we were honored guests in a wealthy couple's home. Ah well, that's why we keep trying these places.
We did succumb to the usual tourist thang, and visited Hearst Castle. It had been about six years since we went. They've made quite a bit of progress restoring tiles, gilding, and friezes since then. We didn't do the standard tour, but took the garden tour (which they only do in spring and summer, for obvious reasons) and a tour of the North wing. Both were excellent - we had knowledgeable guides, and our tour groups were quite small (4 of us on the wing tour). Maybe because they doubled the admission prices, so most tourists just want to do the main building. Oh well, better for us.
The wife took many pictures. I may post some of them, if we get them scanned. We also walked along the beach as the sun went down. Lovely.
The B&B made very nice breakfasts - fresh fruit, homemade granola and yogurt. Berry blintzes on our last day, too. We had dinner at a casual, yet formal-ish restaurant - by that I mean that the atmosphere was fairly formal, but I didn't feel uncomfortable wearing jeans. Nice CA-type cuisine.
I have persistent and obvious bags under my eyes. It's not a lack of sleep issue (although my East Coast hours certainly don't help there!). I'm constantly congested and have to take Zyrtec daily.
Last time we went down to Cambria was the last time that the bags went away. We only stayed down there for two days, so I couldn't really tell this time -- although I did note that I didn't have to take the decongestant to be able to breathe. Dunno if it's pollution or pollen; either way, Cambria is the only place I've found that doesn't have it. I can't say that I'd consider retiring there, but the environmental factor certainly appeals.
What I'm reading: nothing, as I just finished C.S. Friedman's The Wilding.
loupnoir), but they're holding a Music Festival. We wanted unstructured peace and quiet, so we drove down to Cambria for a couple days instead.We stayed at the J. Patrick House. We've had a thing for B&B's since our wedding, when we stayed at The Victorian Inn on the Park. It was fine; on the solely personal and unbiased madbaker B&B scale, I'd rate the J. Patrick 2 1/2 stars. A decent experience, but I'd try others in the area before going back. Nothing wrong with the owners or the rooms, and the breakfast was excellent. It was just... fine.
For reference, I'd rate the Victorian Inn 3 1/2 stars. My scale is somewhat corrupted, though -- I expect everything to rank up with my four-star stay at the Bissell House in Pasadena. There, we felt like we were honored guests in a wealthy couple's home. Ah well, that's why we keep trying these places.
We did succumb to the usual tourist thang, and visited Hearst Castle. It had been about six years since we went. They've made quite a bit of progress restoring tiles, gilding, and friezes since then. We didn't do the standard tour, but took the garden tour (which they only do in spring and summer, for obvious reasons) and a tour of the North wing. Both were excellent - we had knowledgeable guides, and our tour groups were quite small (4 of us on the wing tour). Maybe because they doubled the admission prices, so most tourists just want to do the main building. Oh well, better for us.
The wife took many pictures. I may post some of them, if we get them scanned. We also walked along the beach as the sun went down. Lovely.
The B&B made very nice breakfasts - fresh fruit, homemade granola and yogurt. Berry blintzes on our last day, too. We had dinner at a casual, yet formal-ish restaurant - by that I mean that the atmosphere was fairly formal, but I didn't feel uncomfortable wearing jeans. Nice CA-type cuisine.
I have persistent and obvious bags under my eyes. It's not a lack of sleep issue (although my East Coast hours certainly don't help there!). I'm constantly congested and have to take Zyrtec daily.
Last time we went down to Cambria was the last time that the bags went away. We only stayed down there for two days, so I couldn't really tell this time -- although I did note that I didn't have to take the decongestant to be able to breathe. Dunno if it's pollution or pollen; either way, Cambria is the only place I've found that doesn't have it. I can't say that I'd consider retiring there, but the environmental factor certainly appeals.
What I'm reading: nothing, as I just finished C.S. Friedman's The Wilding.
