Anyways, we found a nice cafe and worked on our computers this morning. Bought their healthy sandwiches to take for a picnic lunch, and headed up to Hearst Castle. Now this was a man who had too much money, and a passion for art collection. This castle on the mountain top was phenomenal! I don't know if I could have actually spent time hanging out in these rooms, they were so excessively decorated in the Mediterranean styles--many styles all musched together. But, what a great visit and tour of the castle, pools, and gardens. It was very impressive. William Hearst even had a zoo there, in its heyday, and some of the zebras still roam the hills.
I particularly liked the Neptune Pool, a Roman pool, complete with columns and statues. I also liked the indoor pool. The water was so clear, you could see the amazing, colored mosaic tiles on the bottom very clearly. After the tour, we ate our picnic lunch, then watched a movie showing the history and construction of the castle and grounds. Very interesting.
We drove up a few miles north on Highway 1 to the Elephant Seal Rookery. This is a long stretch of beach where the elephant seals congregate. Hundreds of them were lying on the sand, or cavorting in and out of the water. There is a boardwalk along the shore, above the seals, we walked on to watch the seals, many birds, and the sunset. The seals are very interesting creatures to watch. They are a big blog of blubber, with flippers, a face with a huge nose, and make a lot of noise. It's fun to watch them move out of the water--slide, slide, slide, drop onto the sand and lay still. Slide, slide, slide and drop onto the sand and lay still. They are much more graceful in the water.
We stopped at an overlook of the ocean, just in time for the wonderful west coast sunset. Went back to the RV, had dinner, and made a campfire to sit by. Delightful.
Hearst Castle photos:
No comments:
Post a Comment