ROAD TRIP!

This was supposed to be a quiet weekend for me. No money... nothing to do, etc. That didn't happen. :o) My co-worker, Erica and I went to dinner on Friday night and she mentioned she has a cousin that lives in Santa Barbara, CA. She was tossing around the idea of driving down for the weekend. Well, I have heard wonderful things about driving that highway. So, we talked about it, considered how crazy it would be and then decided we would leave Saturday morning!!! So, after a good night's sleep and breakfast, we hit the road.

Santa Barbara is about 5 hours South of us but the drive was beautiful. It was along the famous Pacific Coast Highway...

It never felt like we drove 5 hours because we enjoyed the scenery so much. It was so beautiful. Every mile seemed different than the one before. Rolling green hills, beautiful mountains (some with snow on top!), vineyards and the coast. We oohed and aahed the whole time.

It just wasn't what either of expected California to be like. Just as people have stereotypes of Texas, we had some of California. Never did we expect this!! Plus, we have had rain almost non-stop since we have been here, so we were so excited to see the blue sky.



We didn't get to see the coast right away- it took us several hours until we saw the water. And it came out of no where!! Erica was driving and I was looking down messing with my camera. I just happened to look out my window and there it was... the Pacific Ocean. I was so excited, I couldn't get the words out! I just started tapping my window and making weird noises... it actually scared Erica. Then she saw it and we both shrieked! We had arrived in Pismo Beach.

We pulled over at the first chance we could find, jumped out and took some pictures. The area we found was on top of a high cliff and the overlook was gorgeous. (By the way, the fact that we BOTH wore Texas shirts was a total coincidence we discovered that morning over breakfast. Oh well, we are proud of our state!)

Feeling re-energized, we got back in the car and finished our drive to Santa Barbara. Erica had told her cousin (Brittany) that she MIGHT come down but never got back to her. So, our plan was to show up where she worked and surprise her. With a few calls to Brittany's Mom, we knew what time she would be getting off and with the help of GPS, we found our way to The Brewhouse where she waits tables. We would be arriving just as her shift was over.

We walked in and Erica didn't see her anywhere. We decided to run to the restroom and then ask around. As we walked into the bathroom, there was a woman washing her hands. She looked up at me and saw my Texas shirt and started to comment... but then she saw Erica and started screaming. I figured we had found Brittany!! She hugged Erica and was so excited to see us. She told us that she was about to strike up a conversation with me about being from Texas and then she recognized Erica. It was really funny.

We hung around and ate lunch while Brittany finished work. Then when she was off she took us to one of her favorite hang-outs. It was a cute bar along the marina called "Endless Summer". There is just something so relaxing about enjoying a locally brewed ale and looking out at the mountains, boats and the ocean. I thought... I could get used to this California way of life!!

Later, Brittany's boyfriend joined us and we went to dinner on State Street and then to a comedy show. We had a lot of great laughs and then headed to Brittany's house to sleep. She shares a really cool house with several of her co-workers. It is high in the hills and the view from her living room was amazing.

The next morning we hit the road again. We were exhausted but again, the beautiful scenery made the trip fly by. To end a perfect California weekend, we drove through In and Out Burgers for lunch! Thanks Erica for a great weekend... we got to see so much of the California coast and it was so fun!