Santa Barbara

On Tuesday we took the 3 hour drive north to Santa Barbara.It was intended to be a base for touring as far as Big Sur, but we underestimated the distance involved, so we decided to enjoy Sta Barbara and forget about stressing ourselves with more driving, especially as we'd be turning around almost immediately and driving back in the dark! Big Sur, got its name from the Mexicans who called it El Sur Grande which means the Big South, or probably more poetically  the 'magnificent South' (of San Fran). Some other time! It isn't going anywhere - unless there's an earthquake!
Our hotel in Sta Barbara was the Mason Beach Inn, 5 minutes walk from the beach, very comfortable with all we needed for a one night stopover:

Evening at the Mason Beach!



Here are a few photos of the beach. As you can see it's sheltered by the mountains behind, so it's a very peaceful cove - no surf, for a change.

The mountains kep the clouds out!

The pier is called Stearns Wharf

The marina

Paddleboarding s the new surfing!

 Later, as the sun was going down, we walked out to the end of Stearns Wharf. Not as glitzy as Santa Monica etc, but all the better for that:

Fish n chips on the wharf!

I love these timber buildings!

Yes, it's breezy!!!

End of the pier!

As we walked along in the evening, I took a few more photos, just to give you a feel for the place. It was so laid-back and friendly. All the buildings were low, and the gardens were beautifully set out. The ubiquitous palm trees just added to that California feeling!

A bit scary - but obiously not for one Foxy sticker poster!

I loved the village feel.



Mostly food stalls.



Later we explored the main street, State St, which has all the usual high end label shops as well as a few interesting bars, O'Malley's & the James Joyce among them. The Old King's Rd had an unusual street number and door sign!

Took the next one just because of the name:

There's a fair bit of Union Jackery around, because of the Olympics, and the tourists of course! But, we haven't been in a town yet (anywhere) that doesn't have an Irish pub!

Later, we went for a meal at Brophy Brothers down on the marina. It was recommended by Kevin & Cathy and didn't disappoint. www.brophybros.com This place is a victim of its own success - we had a 45 minute wait for a table, but that's to be expected by all accounts. The food was delish! Aidan had giant scampi and I opted for crab cakes. There was a choice of salad, chowder, chips or rice as sides (2 of) and the menu was huge - you'll have to look at the website for more info, because the battery died in the camera (again!) (no wonder!!) The only downside of the place was that it was packed, like sardines (pardon the pun) and so noisy!
After that, we wandered back to State St, for a look at the night life. Some of the bars were jumpin'. We saw the seedier side of the place though as we walked north, with a few approaches for cigarette, money etc, before we turned back. And finally, in the Blue Agave, www.blueagavesb.com we saw how bartender and locals put themselves out to care for a young girl who had obviously had too much to drink and had been robbed of her bag and phone and lost her friends. All in all, a very positive exerience in Santa Barbara!