Mal and Lauren

Central Coast, California, USA

September 25, 2025

After the Spanish style buildings of Santa Barbara, Cambria was decidedly western. In fact, it reminded us quite a lot of Winter Park, the small ski town where we met in Colorado.

Our original intent had been to follow the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) all the way up to Carmel, but it has been closed for almost three years, due to a slip and isn’t due to open until March of next year. So we drove as far north as Salmon Creek Falls, where we went for a short hike.

This pretty greenstone (probably serpentinite) would have been ideal for some maori carving.

And then we returned down the coast for lunch at Ragged Point. Along the way, we checked out the dramatic views from the road.

We weren’t staying at Ragged Point but wished we were. Sitting on a high point, there are spectacular views from the guest cottages that line the cliff.

From Ragged Point we drove down out of the misty hills into the sunshine of Hearst Memorial Beach in San Simeon. San Simeon is most famous as the home of Hearst Castle, the palatial hilltop home of William Randolph Hearst, the publishing tycoon. The castle and Hearst’s lifestyle were satirized by Orion Welles in his classic 1941 movie, Citizen Kane. We had been to the castle before so didn’t revisit, opting instead to go for a walk along the beach that was part of the Hearst ranch.

Sitting by the beach is the Hearst Ranch Winery, providing one of the more scenic spots in the world to sit and enjoy and glass of wine.

This little church reminded us of the one at Parkiri Beach in New Zealand. If you look closely, you can see the Hearst Castle behind it, high on the top of the hill.

Our last stop of the day was at the Piedras Blancas elephant seal rookery. A friendly volunteer shared some fascinating information about the seals. Elephant seals spend most of their life at sea but twice a year they come out onto the rookery (a place where animals breed and give birth). For the couple of months they are on land they are very social but at sea they lead mostly solitary lives. The females head out into the middle of the Pacific where they feed on small fish and squid. They can dive as deep as over 5,000 feet (1,700 meters) and can stay under water for up to two hours. The males head up toward Alaska, staying closer to shore, eating rays and crabs and octupuses and other bottom feeders.

Santa Barbara, California, USA

September 24, 2025

Santa Barbara was our first stop on our trip north along the California coast. It is a very pretty city. We started our exploration by walking along the palm lined beach.

And then out onto Stearns Wharf. It was originally built in 1872 but facing a number of disasters, including an earthquake in 1925 and a fire in 1973, it has been through a number of extensive renovations. Currently, it is the home of shops, restaurants and a museum.

There was also this classic Chevrolet Malibu, named for the famous beach town just down the coast.

The views back to town were stunning. The palm lined beach and fog shrouded hills were a little reminiscent of Tahiti.

From the wharf, we walkedtoward the nearby Funk Zone, which includes a number of cool little bars, cafes and boutiques.

And then we made our way up State Street, the city’s main shopping street. Closed to traffic and lined with beautifully maintained Spanish style buildings, it is definitely one of the prettiest shopping streets we’ve walked along in our travels.

If, like us, you are gelato fans, you’ll definitely want to visit Tondi Gelato. The gelato, made in the store, is some of the best that we have ever tasted.

We then walked up through a beautiful park and lovely surrounding neighborhood to the old Mission.

The Mission Santa Barbara was founded on December 4, 1786, the feast day of Saint Barbara, who according to legend was beheaded by her father for following the Christian faith.

In the late afternoon, we headed toward our next stop, Cambria. Along the way, we stopped in the little and decidedly western town of Los Olivos. If you’re in the market for a pair of cowboy boots, then Jedlicka’s might just be the place for you.

We arrived in Cambria just in time for the magnificent sunset.

California Heights, Long Beach, California, USA

September 22, 2025

Our friend Nick is visiting, so we decided to take him on a walk through the neighborhood where we live. California Heights is Long Beach’s largest historic neighborhood with nearly 1,500 homes built in the 1920s and 1930s, predominantly in Spanish Colonial Revival style. Here is a sampling of some of the neighborhood homes.

This home had a pomegranate tree, something we hadn’t seen before

While this homeowner appeared to have a particular antipathy toward female dogs. Apparently, male dogs can pee wherever they like.

Seal Beach, California, USA

September 19, 2025

Seal Beach is in Orange County just south of Long Beach. It is a charming town with one of the widest beaches we have ever seen. So wide that the ships lined up offshore, waiting to get into the Port of Long Beach, appeared to be sitting on the sand.

The beach is lined with large homes.

The houses not on the beachfront aren’t quite as elaborate. Some maintain that old beach town feel.

The Main Street is very quaint.

With a local navy base and a number of evangelical churches, the town is unsurprisingly conservative. All of the stores we went into were playing country music and one store had the following sign outside.

Any doubts we have had over the political inclinations of the town were removed by the merchandise in this store.

Here is the classic car of the day.

Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden, Long Beach, California, USA

September 11, 2025

On the campus of California State University Long Beach, this pretty Japanese garden was opened in 1981. It has everything you’d expect from a traditional Japanese garden, including a beautiful pond

With bridges and viewing platforms

It is stocked with over a thousand koi

There were also waterfalls and fountains

a tea house

A zen garden

and bonsai trees

Crystal Cove, California, USA

August 28, 2025

Located between Newport Beach to the north and Laguna Beach to the south, Crystal Cove State Park stretches for just over three miles along the coast. Sitting below cliffs, it is for the most part not visible from the Pacific Coast Highway (locally known as the PCH) that runs along next to it. The Park includes a historic district where over forty 1920s beach cottages have been preserved and can be rented (demand is high, however, so you first need to win a lottery). Many of the cottages reminded us of classic New Zealand baches. There is also a restaurant on the beach called Beachcomber which has excellent food in a fantastic location.

One thing that we hadn’t realized about California until spending more time here is that on any given night you can head to the beach and be treated to a spectacular sunset.

And if the sunset is not entertaining enough, you can also watch a movie on the beach.

Manhattan Beach, Los Angeles, California, USA

August 24, 2025

Manhattan Beach may not resemble its namesake in New York but they do have, at least, one thing in common. They are both expensive places to live. In fact, more homes exceeding $1 million were sold in Manhattan Beach than any other city in California, including such famous places as Malibu, Beverly Hills and Bel-Air. Not surpisingly then, it is a very pristine place, with little of the homelessness and trash that you find in other parts of Los Angeles.

Huntington Beach, California, USA

August 21, 2015

At Huntington and Malibu, they’re shootin’ the pier

(Surfin’ Safari, The Beach Boys)

Apart from Hawaii, perhaps no place is more associated with surfing than Southern California. And in California, Huntington Beach is the center of surf culture. Each year, it is the site of the World surfing championships and has earned its nickname of “Surf City”. People have been surfing there since 1914 when George Freeth first paddled out along side the iconic pier. On a hot summer day, we headed to the beach.

Point of Interest: At one time an encyclopedia company gave away free parcels of land (with the purchase of a complete set for $126) in the Huntington Beach area. The lucky buyers got more than they had bargained for when oil was discovered in the area, and enormous development of the reserves followed. Although many of the old reserves are depleted, you can still spot skip jacks bobbing up and down at various spots. In fact, the Chevron corporation remains a major land owner in the city.

Rancho Los Cerritos, Long Beach, California, USA

August 20, 2025

California Heights, where we live, was once part of a massive ranch. In 1784, the King of Spain granted 300,000 acres to a former soldier named Manuel Nieto as a reward for his military service and to encourage Spanish settlement in California. On his death, his children inherited the property and his daughter Manuela Cota received the 27,000 acres known as Rancho Los Cerritos (Ranch of the little hills). In 1842, Manuela’s heirs sold the property to Massachusetts-born John Temple. Temple built a two-story Monterey-style adobe house that still exists and is now a museum. We decided to pay the nearby Rancho a visit.

The inside has been furnished like it was back when the house was first built. On a very hot day it was surprisingly cool inside even with no air conditioning.

We were surprised to see in the library a copy of Peter McIntyre’s West. McIntyre was perhaps New Zealand’s most popular artist of the twentieth century. In the 1960s he produced a number of books of his paintings that were popular in New Zealand including one covering New Zealand and one the Pacific Islands. In 1970, an American publisher produced Peter McIntyre’s West which contained scenes that McIntyre had painted across the western states.

Orange County Fair, Costa Mesa, California, USA

August 13, 2025

The Orange County Fair has been going since 1890. It is now one of the biggest fairs in the world with an attendance of over 1 million visitors during the 23 days it is open each year. There are the traditional farm animals and vegetable competitions.