While Hopland is small, it does feature a surprisingly number of good restaurants. Here are a few we have visited to date: Blubird Cafe has been located in downtown Hopland for years and is our go to restaurant when we find ourselves in town. The service is friendly, the food delicious. Recommended items include the elk burger and the Tuscan salad with the addition of ahi tuna on top. Many ingredients are sourced locally including local beef … [Read more...]
Monterey, CA – Wine Tasting
Monterey wineries often focus on a number of lighter style varietals including their well-known Pinot Noir (especially from the Santa Lucia Highlands - above the Salinas Valley) and Chardonnay. One can find wines made from numerous other varietals. At last count, over 42 unique wine grape varietals were being commercially grown in Monterey County. Rather then dominated by winery tasting rooms, much of Monterey County is dominated by stand … [Read more...]
Monterey, CA – Monterey Hotels
The prices listed below range from the lowest (the off season rates/single person - 1 room) to the highest (holidays and weekends /double person - one room). 'Motel Row' is situated along part of Munras Ave where motels are stacked up like houses, one after the other. These tend to be smaller one or two story older but well maintained properties, (unlike for instance, "Motel Row" in Tahoe's South Shore). Most are not immediately within a short … [Read more...]
Monterey, CA – Carmel Hotels
The prices listed below range from the lowest (the off season rates/single person - 1 room) to the highest (holidays and weekends /double person - one room). Properties in Carmel tend to be a bit more expensive then those in Monterey. Make sure you ask if a minimum stay is required as most of these hotels do require that you stay at their place a minimum number of days. Carmel is generally a pet friendly town - with a number of the hotels … [Read more...]
Monterey, CA – More Info
The Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce is located at 380 Alvarado St in Monterey, CA 93940. They can also be reached at Phone Number (408) 649-1770. | www.mpcc.com The Carmel Business Association is located at San Carlos between 5th and 6th Streets. P.O. Box 4444, Carmel CA 93921. Their Phone Number is (408) 624-2522. | www.carmelcalifornia.org Pacific Grove is not written about in this article but we have included their Chamber of … [Read more...]
Oaxaca, Mexico – Restaurants
There are many restaurants in Oaxaca, perhaps on average, they are a little more expensive then comparable restaurants in other cities in Mexico. This can be attributed to the fact that Oaxaca is a popular tourism destination. Years ago I heard that visitors were afraid to eat in Oaxaca's restaurants for fear of becoming sick from food poisoning. This has completely changed as the standards of food health have improved significantly including … [Read more...]
Gold Country, CA
The California 49ers of 1849 had one thing on their mind; find gold and get rich! The land from the southern Sierra to the northern Sierra was picked over and well searched for that precious golden metal. Today, there is still gold in the hills but there is also much more. A number of the old mining towns have seen an increase in prosperity because of the increase in tourism. The mines have long since been shut down and now quaint and … [Read more...]
Gold Country, CA – Ironstone Vineyards
Ironstone Vineyards is located 1.5 miles from the town of Murphys. The road to the winery starts about halfway through the town (take the road directly next to Murphy's Hotel (a prominent historical landmark in town). As you get close to the winery you will see a number of vineyards. Ironstone grows not only grapes but also other crops such as apples. The owners have spent a significant amount of money and effort into building this into a major … [Read more...]
Gold Country, CA – Jamestown
Jamestown is located about 3 miles south of Sonora on Highway 108. This mining town has had its share of history. It is named after a Colonel, George James. Nearby Wood's Creek was extremely rich and provided some sizable nuggets over the years. This creek is named after an Oregon miner Benjamin Wood who first discovered gold in the area in 1848 (one of the earliest gold mining related settlements in this part of California). The town has a … [Read more...]
Gold Country, CA – Murphys
Murphys is a quaint tourist town that today is much loved all year round by locals and visitor's alike. There is a lot of gold mining history contained on these streets - young Irish immigrants (and brothers) John and Daniel Murphy were among the early California gold miners and struck it rich near here in 1848 taking out an estimated 2 million dollars in gold ore from the nearby diggings. This was one of California's richest most concentrated … [Read more...]
