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Day 2 – Carmel, California
Morning
- Beach walk on Monterey beach - We were ready to start another exciting day at Carmel. Gave our adios to the Monterey beach next to Best Western Plus Beach Resort. The downside of last night sleep was from a periodic mysterious noise audible anywhere in the resort. The noise sounded like a large ship blowing horns. Well, no complaint. Lesson learned. Bye Best Western.
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| Morning beach walk |
- Brunch at Del Monte Cafe, Seaside - We walked about one mile from Best Western to dine at local Del Monte Cafe, rated one "$". Although we felt like outcasts at the beginning because everyone inside except two of us looked like Mexicans and speaking Spanish, we like to give our thumbs up to the service and food quality.
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| Yum, spinach sausage omelette |
Afternoon
- Embassy Suites by Hilton Monterey Bay - Seaside - earlier I received $200 Hilton credit from a promotional stay at Las Vegas. Because real cash is used, not Hilton HHonor points, booking early is important as room prices do increase as the time approaches closer to your hotel stay dates. On the other hand, Hilton HHonor points requirement would stay the same. (How I earned 300K Hilton HHonor points). We dropped our luggage at the reception desk for hold (why leave luggage inside our car, right?). Embassy offers free self-parking among ample parking spaces. Note: the hotel is only 0.5 miles from the beach.
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| Embassy Suites Monterey Hotel Plaza |
- Spa and Massage at Elysium, Monterey - why not picking a spa and massage place in Carmel? Elysium received high reviews from plenty of customers, and we spent a lot of time at Carmel last time. This was our first couple massage, total bill was $200 including tips and service. Isa received massage from Melanie, and rated her service superb. Mine was ok; I do not blame my massager. My body probably has been spoiled by Chinese or Thai deep-tissue massage. In fact, I felt sorry to hear her bone-cracking noise while she worked on my body. Elysium also inspired us about how we should decorate our bedroom. Elysium's relax room is cozy.
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| The Relax, not the massage, room |
- 17-miles Drive in Carmel - one word. Nice view.
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| Carmel Pebble Beach |
- Carmel Beach - at the end of 17-miles Drive is the Carmel Beach. We landed a parking space right away. Although weather turned to cloudy quite early that day, we were contended with the day.
Evening
- Dinner at Basil Carmel - several blocks away from Carmel beach, we landed a parking space easily again. Dinner was perfect with smiles from Isa.
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| Basil sauce |
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| Duck liver |
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| Black squid linguine |
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| Grass-fed roasted beef |
- Check-in at Embassy Suites by Hilton Monterey Bay - Seaside - one bedroom studio at the tenth floor with Bay view. Embassy looks like an old hotel. But coming from Best Western Plus Beach Resort the day before, everything seemed to look right here. Hilton Gold membership would also come with free Wi-Fi, unlimited soft drinks or bottled water.
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| Monterey Bay night view from our balcony |
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| Living room with balcony and Bay view |
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| Our king-size bed |
We slept very well that night ....finally ... zzz ...
Day 3 – Point Lobos State Reserve
Morning
- Hiking at Point Lobos, south of Carmel - after a simple free brunch at Embassy Suites, we left for Point Lobos and hiked about 5 miles. Scenic hiking trail, fresh air, orchestra of ocean waves sound completed our objectives of this Monterey-Carmel getaways as planned two months ago. We finished only half of the trails, leaving the other half for next Carmel visit, and ready to drive back to San Francisco Bay Area.
- Strawberry and cherry - we stopped by to pick up some good harvests. The vendor said, "try this one [piece], sweeter than you can imagine". Darn! He was right. We bought one box and one large bag of cherry for total $20 only The fruits taste sweeter than any we ever bought from Costco or Safeway or anywhere else.
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| Strawberry and Cherry |
Take-away:
Sleep well is a luxury. Tomorrow's worry is tomorrow business.
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