Early in the morning, Eliza and I decided to split up for the day. She was going to stay by the pool and I wanted to explore Santa Barbara.
My first stop was the beach. My mom wanted to see what the beaches looked like in Santa Barbara and I was happy to oblige. I Facetimed her so she could see it firsthand. These are the shots I got while trying to figure out how to Facetime her.
That's our hotel, right across the street from the beach. I really wanted to stay there forever!
While walking towards State Street, which is definitely the most popular street in downtown, there was a crafts fair all the way down along the beach. It was wonderful window shopping. After the pizza and champagne binge the night before, I needed a little cleanse. I found a natural foods restaurant and ordered a salad, a peach/pineapple smoothie, and some of the best tofu I've ever had.
It was time to move on though. I walked to the town hall, passing along the way just charming Santa Barbara. The architecture is adorable. Look at that bus bench! I mean really?
My main stop of the day was the State Courthouse, which is incredibly beautiful. There were fountains all around, but because of the "drought", they were dry. Walking around the grounds, I stumbled into a silent march against animal cruelty. They were also protesting the judge who ruled over the case. I was given a flier and urged not to vote for him in the next election. I don't even live here and I was getting into the local politics!
One of my last stops was the Morton Bay Fig Tree. I had a really difficult time finding it, thinking it would be in a park or something. Nope, it was next to the Amtrak station. When I say this tree was big, I mean, it was a big, big fig!
On the way back to the hotel, I passed Stearn's Wharf, marked by this cool statue. There was also a sandcastle contest happening on the beach. Santa Barbara, can I keep you? The crafts fair I passed in the morning was still open, so this time I took a closer look at all the tables. I passed a lot of jewelry booths before having my breath taken away by one woman's pieces. The thing that stuck out most to me were her wire rings with natural stones of every color. I don't even wear that much jewelry and I had to have one. Because I have awkwardly sized fingers, she made one for me right there. I even got to pick out the stone I liked best. While waiting for my ring to be finished, another girl looking at the rings asked what one of the stones symbolized. Curious, I asked what the stone I had chosen symbolized. The aquamarine I had chosen promotes courage and safe travels. Well, hells bells.
Like I said in my previous blog, the only information of value given to us at Fess Parker was places to eat. Eliza and I intended to eat there the night before, but because of the rain, we postponed. Not thinking it would be busy on a Sunday at 7 (dumb dumb, I've apparently been out of the restaurant business too long), we didn't make a reservation. Because the sky was being a little temperamental and sprinkling off and on, the patio was empty and the restaurant was packed. We were told to try to sit at the communal table, so when we were told they weren't excepting anyone that didn't have a reservation, I asked it that was an option. I was told that they had started using that for reservations and our best bet was to grab a seat at the bar when it became available.
There was one seat open that we snagged. The guy next to us that was hogging another stool (but standing in front of it) was absolutely hammered and ended up getting removed from the restaurant. Score! Two seats at the bar in a matter of minutes. We got a couple of menus from the bartender, and I thought to myself, Hm, that's weird, that guy looks familiar. We ordered a round of drinks while still deciding what we wanted to eat, and the bartender carded us. "Oh, Connecticut! Me too," he said. Wait a minute! The bartender was a kid I went to high school with at the Academy. We caught up the whole time we were there and he totally hooked us up!
We first ordered delicious deviled eggs and some of the most incredible brussels sprouts I'll ever have. Then, he got a charcuterie board of the most tender, flavorful porchetta. It was definitely more up my alley then Eliza's. I was happy to take it off her hands. Nearly stuffed from all our apps, and spiced popcorn they give at the beginning of the meal, I needed something light and small to finish of my dinner. I got half a dozen oysters and Eliza got an heirloom tomato salad. Everything was amazing!
We had those cupcakes waiting back at the hotel room, so we decided together to pass on dessert. Before I could say anything, the bartender brought out caramel sea salt brownie ice cream sandwich with grilled peaches and a glass of port to wash it all down. Honest to god, everything was amazing from top to bottom. Thank you so much, long lost friend!
Toasting our last night in paradise, we each got a glass of champagne at the hotel to go with our cupcakes. Let's just say, it was a good thing we had dessert already because these cupcakes were less then mediocre. I mean, I don't even like cupcakes. I don't know why I even try...
Stay tuned for more misadventures and debauchery as we head to our last couple stops in California!
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