Before heading north we had an early lunch at the Sandbar and Grill – needing a bit of protein after my foray into Carmel wine tasting, I opted for the “Chicken Sandwich Monterey” which was beyond delicious and just what I needed. Then, the most magical thing happened… a sea lion SWAM right by our window following a little dingy out of the harbor! It was so amazing and great way to start off the day.

We then started our (longer than I realized) drive to wine country. We went through Napa, Sonoma, and Petaluma. 

 

We reconnected on Highway 1 in Tomales Bay where our gas light came on. We pulled in to a “town” and were told that the nearest gas station was about 20 minutes south along our route, while the gas meter said we had 15 miles before empty. Nervously, we started heading south – unable to totally enjoy the beautiful scenery because we were both worried about our car dying on the bending, dipping, rising, winding Highway 1. Not to mention that the bending, dipping, rising, and winding road wasn’t giving us a totally accurate read on our gas meter. The miles clicked down faster and faster and the lack of cell phone signal wasn’t giving us indication of the nearest gas station. We pulled over to let someone behind us go by and by a stroke of luck I was able to pick up enough signal to see that the gas station was 7 miles away, and our current gas meter read was 9 miles to empty, so we went for it… With the AC turned off…. We pulled into a small gas station in Point Reyes with two miles to spare! Whew! Finally we set off again, able to enjoy the beauty of Highway 1 and the quaint little towns along the way. I would love to do a “small towns of Highway 1” on my next trip to the west coast.

One of the main points of our route was to enter San Francisco via the Golden Gate Bridge – which was very cool 😉

Hotel: the Motel Capri was in an amazing location within walking distance to some great restaurants! It was recently remodeled on the inside and clean. There was also a parking lot on premises which was a big selling point. I don’t think the spread at the “Continental Breakfast” could really be considered a “Continental Breakfast” – but if you crave a sugary pastry before walking around all day then it’s “fine”. Also, the location felt very “safe” – we went for a morning run and it was very pleasant. Though we were technically in the “Russian Hill” neighborhood, we were right on the cusp of “Pacific Heights”, “Marina”, and “Fisherman’s Wharf”.

For dinner we went to the Balboa Cafe which was only 2 blocks from our hotel. They had all the sliding doors open to let the breeze in and it was very pleasant. The food was good – not a reinvention of the wheel, but simple and well executed.

Top: Plum Pretty Sugar
Capris: Wild Souls
Shoes: Free People
Cardigan: Thrift store find 😉

Lenny & Eva Piece of the day: “Tell me, what it is you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” with Turquoise Necklace Foundation.