Monterey

the next morning i kept on towards Monterey and a few hours later and i was on HWY 1 driving next to the Pacific Ocean.  i pulled over at the first beach i found and just enjoyed watching the waves in the sunshine.

i stopped by Monterey's info center in hopes of getting an area map of campgrounds because the central california office of the Bureau of Land Management sucks. the absolute worst maps i've dealt with. terrible, just terrible.

at the info center i met a delightful woman who asked me about my shirt and where i got it and ... 15 minutes later we were still talking about our different thailand experiences and how much we both miss the street food from there. Pam is awesome. i told her that i was into science education and perhaps looking for employment in the surrounding area. she said i should come back because she used to work at the university and has a few contacts that may be able to help me find something in academia. Pam is awesome.

from Monterey i drove south to one of the most beautiful spots in America:  Big Sur.  somewhere around 5'o'clock i paid my $35 for a campsite at a state park. the price is $35 because of former governor Schwarzenegger. 

fun fact!  two stars from the movie Predator went on to become governors.  this fella above and Jesse "the body" Ventura for the great state of Minnesota.

Hooray for Democracy in Action!

...anyways Big Sur was great and my time there was just a small taste of what's in store for me.  i've been down there several times now and i'm still blown away by the views.

i stayed two nights at the campground and a full day at the beach then drove the 1 up to Monterey so i could meet up with Joel and his friend James (owner of the dive shop).  we got together and immediately Joel and I walked over to the beach for some skim boarding.  i fell in the water several times and couldn't have been happier.