beaches

California is a big state and when I visited in the past I spent most of my time in LA or South or the San Francisco area. A couple weeks ago though I traveled with some friends from Santa Monica to the Central Coast, specifically Avila Beach (closest big city would be San Luis Obispo which isn’t really BIG compared to California standards). This was my first time to the Central Coast and I had no idea what to expect–except for it being somewhat coastal.

About 3 hours North of LA on “the 5 (I-5 for us non-Californians)” and about 4 hrs South of San Fran on the 5, the Central Coast is a mixture of famous sights, small beach towns and wineries that rival the more known Napa Valley. I only had 3 days in this area and I wanted to make the most of it—and of course, I needed more time.

Hearst Castle

Maybe the most famous of the sights on the Central Coast and all of California is the Hearst Castle named for the newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst who died in 1951. Now a state park the Castle is steeped in history. In its heyday it was supposed to be a “bungalow” for Hearst, but soon got a bit bigger and was visited by the most famous of the time (Lindbergh, Cary Grant, various Presidents). The main house is over 60,000 sqft and has 56 bedrooms and 61 bathrooms. Full of antiques and rare books purchased personally by Hearst, this spot has a constant stream of tourists throughout the year.

If you are like me, famous landmarks are worth a visit, but when the beach is calling—I make it a short visit because, well, the beach is calling.

If you’ve heard of Monterey or Big Sur you have heard of the Central Coast, but if you have heard of Avila Beach then you have heard of the REAL Central Coast. A sleepy beach town popular with fisherman put Avila on the map, but the subsequent building boom and desire to live semi-affordably (to California standards anyway) is what made Avila what it is today: a coffee drinking, dog walking, beach strolling, bike riding, fishing town. To say this town is yuppie would be an understatement–but it is Cali and in comparison to some California towns, Avila is a watered down yuppie and a town I could totally see myself living in. With a main street of tee-shirt and flip flop shops, a general market, Mr. Rick’s Sports bar, the very crowded Joe Mamma Coffee (try the hemp milk creamer) and even a couple small wineries, it takes 6 minutes to walk the “strip” before you are hugging the coastline on your run, walk or bike ride on the way to the famous fishing pier to watch your dinner get caught, buy that fresh caught dinner and walk right up to (if you dare) napping Sea Lions on the dock.

Avila Beach

Avila at sunset

up-close and personal with a hungry pelican on the fishing pier

Tide Pools
About a 30 minute drive from Avila are the Montana de Oro State Park and Tide Pools. Here the coastline is comprised of slippery rock (yeah, I fell on my a*s), snails, crabs, sea anemones, shells and steep sand dunes that can be slid down via sled, cardboard box or the seat of your pants (I saw all three). Like the rest of California (even in the summer), the water is powerful and very cold so if the tide is not out it could be a dangerous, cold meander through these tide pools. I went when the tide was nearly out and bonded quite nicely with a turquoise sea anemone. Did you know if you gently touch one it wraps around your finger and tries to suction you to death? It is a cool feeling. Yeah, and messing with that anemone is probably why I fell.

Trail down to the tide pools

me at the tide pools

overlooking the coastline tide pools and sand dunes

Dive Bars–for Wine
As mentioned, wine from the Central Coast rivals Napa Valley and Sonoma and wineries and vineyards are dotted along the coast at every exit. Many have gorgeous views and picturesque grounds like at this place:

But sadly, sometimes the wine suffers and the view turns out to be the best thing about the winery. If you are a true wine-person, this can be frustrating (if you are like me and can barely tell a Pinot from a Merlot it is not as upsetting) especially when you are in the Central Coast and have gorgeous views anyway. Recently an industrial area of blue and government gray buildings in the town of Lompoc (pronounced “Lom-Poke”) behind the Home Depot has become a popular destination for wine tastings and because the area is, ahem, not so picturesque (and it probably doesn’t help that the Home Depot lumber department is in ear shot) the area was affectionately coined as the “Wine Ghetto.”

Most likely overlooked, unless you knew better, this parking lot of single-story metal buildings has become the place to go if you want good wine. Unlike most wineries where you have your tasting, roam the grounds and then responsibly drive to the next vineyard–the Ghetto is a one-stop wine tasting shop with the wineries situated like stores in a cheap strip mall– but, the wine is NOT cheap tasting! Park once–taste all day– but get a car service, please.

One of my favorite “Ghetto” wineries was the Flying Goat. The husband and wife owners were passionate about their wine, had soil samples that the grapes grew from and a very nice 13 year old chocolate lab. Plus– the lady knew all about Jersey. Represent East Coast!

(picture courtesy of centralcoastuncorked.blogspot.com)

Trip Advisor, an essential website for any traveler regardless of your destination, just put out their “Top 25″ list for different regions of the World listing the locations where people say they want to go.

There are some obvious ones like Banff. Banff was voted #1 for Canada and if you haven’t been to Banff stop everything (after you finish reading this post) and book a trip there. Soon. Winter or summer–it doesn’t matter. There were also some interesting choices… Machu Picchu got #3 on the World list below Cape Town and Sydney? Hmmm, yeah… I’m not sure.

Me and Banff

Of course, I have an opinion on all of the rankings, but thats the point — opinon is what generated this survey. Here I choose to focus on the United States top 25 and rate them based on MY opinion.

Trip Advisor’s #1: New York City
Diana’s #1: New York City

NYC over the Hudson

No argument here. I am biased and if you don’t know of my love of this city please refer to my archives or at seenyc.com, the NYC travel site I write for. I love this city. Anything you want to do, want to see, want to eat, want to BE– NYC is the place. THE place.

Trip Advisor #2: Honolulu, Hawaii
Trip Advisor #3: San Francisco
Trip Advisor #4 Las Vegas
Trip Advisor #5 Lahaina, Hawaii (Maui)

Maui

Spoiler alert: Hawaii appears often in this top 25 list, but personally I would have put Lahaina at #2 behind NYC. Honolulu is nice, but the island of Maui offers less tourism and just as much to do.

I’d also put San Fran above Honolulu. What a fab city SF is and if you catch it on a sunny day as I did this past April, you’d be hard pressed finding another city that can beat the vibe SF gives.

Las Vegas. Well, for me, Vegas would be near the end of the list–if it even made the list. I do think everyone needs to see Vegas once, but there are so many cities in this country that deserve a much more serious look than Vegas.

Trip Advisor #6 Kona, HI
Trip Advisor #7 New Orleans
Trip Advisor # 8 San Diego, CA
Trip Advisor #9 Sedona

Wait — stop right there. I am ok with New Orleans being on the list and even in the top 10, and San Diego–I LOVE the La Jolla neighborhood, but for Sedona to rank lower… I’m not sure about that. Maybe its because I recently spent some time in Sedona and perhaps the beauty still has me hypnotized, but this eccentric town with the captivating scenery is easily in my top 5.

Sedona, AZ

Trip Advisor #10 Seattle
Trip Advisor #11 Anchorage, AK
Trip Advisor #12 Chicago
Trip Advisor #13 Boston

Being a Seattle native I can appreciate the beautiful mountains, the surrounding water and abundant supply of fleece jackets, but I still wonder: “Why do people vacation in Seattle?” The weather is TOO unpredictable and the sights to see can be done in a weekend. IF you have a desire to go to the Seattle area, stay for an afternoon and then head to Vancouver, BC. Trust me.

I am ok with the other 3 being in the top 25. Boston though—should be much higher. The history and walkability of the town is addicting.

Trip Advisor #14 Estes Park, CO
Trip Advisor #15 Washington DC
Trip Advisor #16 Poipu, HI (see—I told you Hawaii was on here a lot)
Trip Advisor #17 Orlando, FL

As we get to the bottom half of the list I think the locations are reaching to be part of the top 25 (I am surprised Portland, Or; Santa Cruz, Ca or Boise, Idaho aren’t on the list).

Colorado is great regardless of the city and I think I would have chosen Boulder for the top 25, but Estes Park is only an hour away and with 345+ sunny days a year how can you NOT want to live visit there? Ski, hike, shop, swim. Colorado is like Seattle, but less natural water and MUCH more sun.

Washington DC is great. History is #1 here but if you escape to the Georgetown area you really get a taste of DC–and in a good way.

Lincoln Memorial in DC

Orlando.
Apparently the top 25 for Trip Advisor was voted on by parents. Yes, Orlando is fun and I say that as a non-parent. But it is all Disney and while Disney is fun, Orlando IS Disney and that only goes so far.

Trip Advisor # 18 Big Sur, CA
Trip Advisor #19 Bar Harbor, Maine
Trip Advisor #20 Carmel, CA
Trip Advisor #21 Destin, FL

Two in California and Destin is a great getaway. My brother and sister-in-law in Dallas love the driving distance and white sand beaches–so I can see why Destin made the list. And Maine is neat. Just neat. Bar Harbor has been a top vacation spot since the 19th century.

Trip Advisor #22 Savannah, GA
Trip Advisor #23 Gatlinburg, TN
Trip Advisor #24 Miami Beach, FL
Trip Advisor #25 Myrtle Beach, SC

I was happy to see the South represented in the top 25. Savannah and Gatlinburg are NOT to be missed. Here you can get a taste of the real south. Grits anyone?
Miami Beach and Myrtle Beach are known more for their name than the place/experiences, but nonetheless, they do belong in the top 25. You can’t really go wrong with any city that has “beach” in the name.

Whether you agree or not with my comments, below is my ranking of the top 25 (using only cities on Trip Advisor’s top 25).
Let it be known that there are some major cities missing that would be on my Top 25–some I mentioned above but others are Austin, TX, Missoula, MT, Princeton, NJ and Key West.

Diana’s Top 25
1. New York City
2. Lahaina, HI
3. San Francisco
4. Sedona, AZ
5. New Orleans, LA

6. Boston, MA
7. Chicago, IL
8. San Diego, CA
9. Washington DC
10. Honolulu, HI

11. Savannah, GA
12. Estes Park, CO
13. Poipu, HI
14. Kona, HI
15. Big Sur, CA

16. Anchorage, AK
17. Bar Harbor, Maine
18. Destin, FL
19. Carmel, CA
20. Gatlinburg, TN

21. Miami Beach, FL
22. Myrtle Beach, SC
23. Seattle, WA
24. Orlando, FL
25. Las Vegas, NV

Tell me — what are your top cities in the US? Where am I wrong? Where am I right?

Basking in the glow of my first (and successful) mechanical bull ride while in Scottsdale last week I got to thinking about the last two months of my life and the non-stop travel that occurred during that time. New Zealand, Hawaii, Seattle and Arizona kept me very busy for both work and play. The fun times I had at the Saddle Ranch and the bull rides got me thinking of the other options I had that night instead of hitting the bull… and that got me thinking that it is time for another installment of SEE THIS, NOT THAT!

Most places have more than one restaurant/theatre/tourist site/building/event for travelers to choose from when visiting a new place, but the challenge is to find WHICH choice will end up being the best for your tight schedule and/or tight budget. And as we all know, the most popular choice isn’t always the best choice.

So — after the picture of me OWNING the bull (albeit not the most flattering picture of me) check out the latest installment of SEE THIS NOT THAT!

See This: The Road to Kahakuloa
Not That: Road to Hana

The Road to Hana on the island of Maui in Hawaii is gorgeous and very popular with both tour groups and individuals and of course you will enjoy the drive, the black sand beaches, waterfalls and ocean views that will keep you stopping and snapping pictures all day. But, lets be serious…we all want our friends to enjoy hearing the retelling of our adventures as much as we enjoy telling it and unless you only talk to people that have already been to Maui and who have no doubt already SEEN the road to Hana, your pictures and stories will only be given a polite “that is nice” at best.

So instead of doing the same old trip that everyone does, try the lesser known “road” that is similar to the Road to Hana, but much less traveled.

The Road to Kahakuloa

Traveling along Highway 340 on the West Coast of Maui is incredibly scenic, narrow–and a little scary, so go slow.

Narrow road

Pass by blowholes and spot whales congregating in the distance, crystal clear pools, rocky and sandy beaches and virtually no civilization (especially gas stations, so make sure your tank is full) on extremely curvy, narrow roads. Expect the random chicken or cow as your fellow commuter and descend the mountains into the valley and end up in Kahakuloa Village.

one of the scenic beaches on the road

Approach this drive leisurely and stop along the way for fresh pineapple or take a dip in the warm waters before heading on to the next pineapple stand or beach.

one of many roadside pineapple stands

Surfing beach

The road, incredibly, hugs the ocean and mountain at the same time and offers views from all sides.
My favorite sight on the drive, aside from the Kaukini Gallery where over 100 local artists feature their work for reasonable prices, is Kahakuloa Head, a 600+’ mountain shooting out of the ocean. You can climb it, but be careful. This ancient site, familiar ground of Kings from Maui’s past, is very steep and rugged.

Gorgeous Kahakuloa Head

Regardless of which drive you choose just remember: you are in Maui– so enjoy every palm tree, pineapple/mango drink, fresh seafood and don’t forget the suntan lotion!

I can’t take credit for the title of this post–but I can say there is a lot of truth to it. This statement was repeated many times in the form of bumper stickers throughout the island.

Like most islands off of major cities (Whidbey Island and Bainbridge Island near Seattle or Block Island in RI) the pace is slower, the roads are windier and the international way of telling time goes out the window in favor of “island time”.

Waiheke Island, a 50 minute ferry ride from the Auckland area is no exception. Being in the South Pacific, you can’t get much more islandy than this, but Waiheke doesn’t have the grass skirts or fruity coconut drinks like Hawaii or another tropical island might. Waiheke, although being an island and on island time, is pretty fancy shmancy.

Regardless of your agenda, on Waiheke you can find something to do whether it be hiking, surfing, laying on white sand beaches or visiting the 30 local wineries. As with Auckland, whatever activity you choose to partake in on the island, you will marvel at the cleanliness of the country and the friendliness of the people.

Waiheke (and New Zealand in general) produces vast quantities of wine that is distributed all over the World is and historically and consistently known for producing the best Sauvignon Blanc in the World. Wine is taken very seriously here.

In case I haven’t mentioned it yet in the recent NZ posts, the reason for our trip was to attend the wedding of our dear scuba diving buddies/world traveler/life long friends. After our initial tour around Auckland once arriving in NZ (see my previous posts here and here) we took the car ferry to Waiheke for a few days of beach, wine and relaxation (and a little hiking). NZ is a long way to go to get married — our friends live in California, us on the East Coast — but they were in the same mindset as we were when we got married in sunny Curacao; whoever wants to come can come, if not, thats fine too.

Their wedding was at the most beautiful winery on the island: Mudbrick. The restaurant and gorgeous gardens (complete with Olive orchards that many of the wineries here have) look out to the city of Auckland over the Hauraki Gulf. It was a serene setting for a perfect wedding and a beautiful bride–and the party after was pretty excellent!

Two other wineries we really enjoyed were Cable Bay (looking over the sheep filled countryside and seeing Auckland in the distance over the water offered a modern yet rustic image for us the wine tasters) and Te Whau that offered spectacular architecture and as you guessed–more stunning views. The day we were at Te Whau the grapes were actually being stomped on (is that the right term) and yes, with bare feet–but as we found out from our waitress — you have to be a young, pure woman to stomp the grapes–they don’t want tainted wine (I couldn’t help but think of the I Love Lucy episode… but I didn’t dare bring that up to the waitress).

At Te Whau on a windy day

For the budget traveler, well, I really don’t have too many tips for you at Cable Bay, Mudbrick or Te Whau. The prices were high; but the food, wine and views from the grounds were spectacular and well worth the money.
Click here for a website with all of the island’s wineries complete with pictures and descriptions.

So as far as the “being so far behind we are ahead” saying… I guess that is true about any island, but what I do know is that we felt rested and relaxed each day on Waiheke and I don’t think that was just because of the wine.

More pictures of Waiheke will be in my next post, but I wanted to point out a few things that really stuck out about this island for me, aside from the clean air, nice folks and anything else I have already mentioned prior.

1- The Beachfront Bar and Cafe has a buy 7 get the 8th free punchcard for coffee, beer or wine!? Genius.

2- Sheep are everywhere. This fact would be proven again and again on our trip but here, they seemed to multiple at every turn.

3- But as you can see, Emus and Llamas are also popular. Or are these Alpacas?

4- I don’t think crocodiles are really here… although that took convincing from my husband when we saw this sign after a long hike to a hidden bay (Crocs are in Australia right? And Australia is semi-close to NZ…).
Anyway, what this sign should have been warning people about was: “old man who lives in this remote area walks around at his leisure– naked,” ’cause that was the only thing I saw that was scary.

I am happy to announce (again) and (still) so happy to be a part of the amazing mini-blog website that IS… NOMAD COURIER!!!

Check us out–me and 6 other nomads send our travel postcards to our courier who then tirelessly posts them on this site. Here are my latest entires (click the postcard to see the flip side)!

Thanks for the support!

To complement the NZ posts so far and yet to come here are some pictures that truly deserve a post of their own!

I saw this shop in Auckland. I think there was a small mistake in the translation or proof of a horrible cliche.

Love the street art.

Bon Jovi continues to be a constant presence in my daily life — check the license plate!!

Only a $1?

Mrs. Merlot — the resident cat at Te Whau Vineyard on Waiheke

As I write, this is my current view:

It is from our flat on Waiheke, an island off the coast of Auckland.
Waiheke is sometimes referred to as Wineheke for the amount of Vineyards and Wineries (a total of 30) scattered across the island. Before I get to the subject of this current paradise I am surrounded by, let me finish our adventures in Auckland.

We pretty extensively and without really stopping, toured the city by foot for nearly 3 full days. There were touristy must-do’s including heading to the top of the Sky Tower (think Space Needle) where we had the option to either:
1) embrace the adventurous spirit New Zealand is known for and bungee JUMP off

2) WALK the fenceless perimeter of the tower for a little less intense adventure with only a harness attaching you to the building or,

3) Safely stay inside behind the safety glass and look out at the 360-degree views like all of the other scaredy cats… and MAN were those some 360 degree views (you can guess which option we chose. I may be adventurous but I have my limits!)

As seen from the Sky Tower, Auckland has it all—mountains, the bay, the ocean, the city.
After seeing city sights from above we decided to head out again on foot to see these same sights up close.

Albert Park, a lush green oasis in the center of town is where the city campus of Auckland University is located; Queen St. is the main part of town with tons of shopping; the waterfront claims the largest marina in NZ (actually one of the largest in all of the Southern Hemisphere) and has some of the most luxurious private sailboats I’ve ever seen including the America’s Cup yachts and the factory that builds them; the Auckland Museum with extensive material on the Maori people and culture that is native to New Zealand; and great bars and restaurants all along Quay (pronounced “Key”) Street. Quay St. was also the starting point for my daily “urban runs” that took me through many of these same areas before I met my husband at our “regular” coffee shop (the girl at the coffee shop thought we lived in Auckland since I seemed so casual (read: sweaty) about stopping by after running. You know you made it when you’re mistaken for a local.

an Americas Cup sailboat

Because we are still messed up on time (by the way—thanks day light savings for coming while we were gone—it is easier to “spring ahead” on holiday) and since time seems to actually go slower here, we had sufficient time to tour Auckland and add it to the “Yeah, I could live here” list.

After Auckland we were off to the outer limits we decided to head outside of the city limits.

Like most cities, when you leave the metro area it feels like you are in a different country, which is exactly how we felt when we hopped in the car and headed south of Auckland City. The terrain went from reminding me of Vancouver to reminding me of Hawaii. Dormant volcanoes covered in various types of trees, red lava sand beaches (Piha is gorgeous) and narrow winding roads through cow and sheep pastures had us in disbelief that we were really only 40 min away from Auckland.

Piha

We had about three hours to roam this country before catching the car ferry to Wahike for even more scenery changes…

to be continued…

Ahhhhhhhh the beach, or as we say here, the shore. I can’t wait to be down the shore this summer and on days like today, where I once again see flurries floating from the sky, it seems like summer may never come.

This picture was taken on a hazy humid day in Pt. Pleasant, New Jersey

To celebrate this Travel Tuesday I am attaching a video I created on my mac for my group of friends (and me) that went on a fabulous trip to Panama in December. See the scenery, the locals and underwater dive shots.

Turn on your sound, enjoy and hopefully be taken away to Panama! Happy Travel Tuesday!

Travel Tuesday is upon us again and this time I am taking us to the Oregon Coast; Cannon Beach to be exact.
This beach town is quiet and quaint with eccentric art and glass blowing galleries, surf shops and an extremely walkable beach, especially when the tide is out.

The Pacific Ocean is cold though — not much swimming goes on here, even on warm days, but its hard to resist wading in and looking for the many starfish and sand dollars.

Seaside and Astoria are nearby towns that cannot be missed if traveling the Oregon Coast. Seaside has the arcade games, the rides and tourist shops that don’t quite fit the higher end theme Cannon Beach represents. Astoria is a logging town, very blue collar, but touristy in its own right as it is where much of the movie Goonies was filmed.

Cannon Beach is recognized instantly by images of the picture I am attaching: Haystack Rock.
In the old days you could climb on it, or even in it when the tide was way out. Now climbing is prohibited but just getting close to the rock is an experience not easy to duplicate.