August 16, 2011 Carmel

What a night!  We slept under blankets and comforters with the balcony door wide open and it was FABulous!  We were lucky enough to awake to a lovely marine layer this morning so after a hearty breakfast, jackets were required.  Mid-August and jackets!  Sounds great!

Today was the Carmel Concours on the Avenue - Ocean Avenue for those who know Carmel.  This is a fairly new event so it's not overly crowded as the other events are.  We ran into some friends from years past and saw some lovely vintage cars:

We arrived around 9:30 a.m., grabbed coffee and toured Ocean Avenue for a couple of hours. The most amazing thing about Carmel is the plant life that is so abundant.  There are flowering plants everywhere but the succulents just thrive here.  Here are just a few examples:

After the Concours, we went over to Seaside just up the coast a few miles, so that Jay could shop an Automobilia Show.  I read a couple chapters of Save Me and was quite happy doing so.  He bought a couple of old California racing posters for the garage.

Again we tried the hot dog stand at Lover's Point in Pacific Grove and again the flag did not fly.  We're not giving up and will try again.

We drove out to Carmel Valley and thought about stopping for a bite to eat but by this time it was nearly 2:30 and we had dinner plans and didn't want to spoil our appetites.  So, we headed back to The Tickle Pink where we'd been moved to our home - Room 10.  Oh so good to be home.  I unpacked and put all things in their proper places while Jay read on the edge of the deck.

We joined Bob and Jan again on the deck for Wine Hour but left rather early to go to the Mission Ranch for dinner.  This place used to be a working creamery and now there are sheep in the meadow but no cows anywhere.

On the other side of this meadow is Carmel Bay.  And they say California cows are happy.  Don't try and tell me these sheep aren't ecstatic!

I ordered my favorite - filet with fresh shredded horseradish on top.

Sweet mother of pearl, this was good.  My plate was nearly clean, leaving most of the potatoes.  We tried to stay until the sheep were herded but it got too dark and they were gone by the time we got outside.

So after a wonderful meal with wonderful people . . .

we headed back to The Tickle Pink to rest up for another day in paradise.

We've not got much planned for tomorrow [Wednesday], so I might not post an entry.  However, if anything exciting happens, I'll let you know.  I forgot to bring my tennies so may run over to Macy's in Monterey to get a pair.  Sandals are NOT recommended on Sunday as we must trek through the pine forest to get the Pebble Beach for the Concours d'Elegance.  I've experienced pine needles in the toe and it's not fun.  Shoes are recommended.

So, until I post again . . . in a day or two.

Hugs!