Cannery Row

I had the opportunity to visit Monterey, CA this week. This is a hot spot on the Pacific Coast, some even claim it as the most beautiful part of California. It is most famous for Cannery Row, a once thriving strip of fish canneries back in the early 1900s. John Steinbeck, who is from nearby Salinas, did a lot of writing and walking the street (then known as Ocean View Blvd.) and even wrote a book about it (called Cannery Row, oddly enough...). I am always a sucker for history and so I made the time to take a walk around town.
It is also home to the award-winning Monterey Bay Aquarium. It is built around, using some of, the Portola Sardines cannery, built in 1916 by Knut Hovden. There were a lot of sea life, from plants to shrimp, clams to sea otters, not to mention many fish and birds. You could even pet a bat ray if you wanted (I did not wait for them to swim up close, plus, there were, like 50 kids waiting around the pool. Of course, the views of the bay were absolutely incredible!
I grabbed a cup of coffee from Starbucks at the old Monterey Canning Company warehouse and hit the road back to Fresno. I wanted to make another side trip to Pebble Beach, just a few miles south on CA-101, but I did not make it. So I am going back there this next week. At Pebble Beach there is a beautiful drive, known as 17-Mile Drive, a picturesque drive around some of the most well-known golf courses in the world, not to mention the beautiful coastline. More pictures to come. I really cannot believe I am getting paid to travel and see such beautiful country, but I have been truly blessed!