Santa Cruzin'

Since the days of Lost Boys and Santa Cruz skateboards, I have always been interested in visiting the place of origin. So on our way to San Francisco we decided stop by and visit the town. We awoke at the break of dawn and headed out, but we didn’t get far since we were starving! We planned on stopping for a quick eat at McDonald’s and then reneged on the thought. Somewhere in Downtown SLO would suffice; we thought about a great place that we had breakfast during our previous stopover. Then the pink sign appeared and it immediately became apparent that we must eat breakfast at the Madonna Inn, for this would represent the nature of our vacation.

Faith having tea from real china

The Gaudy Copper Cafe All Done!!!

We hadn’t been to the Madonna Inn since our Honeymoon! The place was still gaudy and beautiful. My breakfast though a little pricey was the best I’ve had it quite some time. The “pick and shovel” bacon was incredible! Faith was super excited because when she went potty they had a very small toilet she could use (she hasn’t seen one of those since our Disney Days); it made her morning! I suppose we lingered about a little too long, but it was fun to hang out, take pictures, and reminisce about the early days of our marriage.

In the Dining Room.Sink FaucetThe thrilling men's waterfall urinal

Haning out in the garden.Pink is the new black! And you thought the tasteless singer owned the place.

Then we stopped in Salinas. There were a couple of odd things I wanted to see and get snap shots of, but I was never able to locate them. Then I saw a billboard advertising The Steinbeck Museum and was salivating to take a stroll. Kellee was of the opposite opinion and stated that she had no desire to see the place. She was right in the respect that this was not on our agenda and we were on a tight schedule. So I relented and promised myself that with a couple more of his books under my belt, I would make my way back up to visit the Museum and town.

The best part about a road trip is getting lost, enjoying the drive. This is what I have been told at least- it’s a lie. We got off in Salinas, but the town would not let us leave; one way streets, railroads, and hidden freeway on ramps were only some of the adversities that lead to my frustration of this town. After we found the freeway I began to rethink my commitment to return.

One of few surprises that delighted my soul and eased my annoyance of Salinas’ bad road planning was being able to stop at Castroville. I wanted to drive through this little farming community but did not see on the map how this would be possible. However, I was looking at the big picture map and not the actual driving directions that Kellee had printed out. Elation exploded onto my face and I could not help but to smile from ear to ear when I saw the sign that Castroville was just ahead.

Castroville is the Artichoke capital of the world and they have a giant artichoke located at a restaurant by the same name. So we briefly stopped (highway traffic delayed us and we had to hurry to make our Santa Cruz appointment) and got a deep-fried artichoke to go.

Taste just like french fries!!!

We made it to Santa Cruz by 11:30, and had to rush!!!! We were stopping for two reasons: The Moscow Circus and the Mystery Spot. The circus was starting at noon, so we were cutting it close. The board walk was filled with people and the parking lots were packed, but we managed to find a spot right away. We jumped out of the truck and practically ran to see the show.

The show was outside on the beach. Kellee being the ever-good mom that she is made sure that we put on suntan lotion. However, I forgot to apply it on cul-de sacs on the top of my forehead and so I walked around the rest of the week looking like I had big red horns on the top of my head. I noticed while walking around SF that there were a couple of times mothers would cringe in horror and turn their strollers with crying babies in the opposite direction I was walking and break out into a brisk run…I’m not quite sure but this might have had something to do with the horns.

Anyhow, we watched the Moscow Circus on the Board walk of Santa Cruz. Faith was not impressed or interested; she just wanted to watch the bright colored ski lift above our heads. The costumes were a little risqué; I liked them, kellee did not. The best part of the show was the girl with the hula hoops. I suppose more than all the other performers this was the most amazing to watch because it hit closest to home. Somewhere in my adulthood I have lost the ability to get the hoops to circulate around my torso, so to see this young girl not only do one but dozens and on different limbs at the same time was quite a sight to see. The clowns as always were stupid. The two old guys that could balance each other on their heads was pretty fantastic as well. Overall, it was a fun show to watch and a great way to spend the afternoon on the Santa Cruz boardwalk. Did I mention it was Free! That always adds an increase in fun.

Quite a Crowd for a sunny Sunday

Silly, Scary Clown

Two-heads are better than one!

The notorious Boardwalk that those ill-fated Lost boys made their stomping grounds was not as exciting as I thought it would be. We walked around, but the rides and food were ridiculously over priced (the rides were around $4 and up per person). To be honest it just looked like a Boomers on steroids. I suppose if you lived there and had a pass it would be a grand time, but I wasn’t interested. So we moved on.