California on the road in three days from north to south, from San Francisco to Los Angeles through the most beautiful landscapes by car with stops in Monterey and Santa Barbara.
What does it mean to cross the California on the road from North to south ?
Let's find out together on this tour along the freeway 101.
San Francisco is the starting point and Los Angeles, 600 miles away, is the arrival point.
After admiring the last time the Golden Gate, red colossus, shrouded in fog, we head south.
And the first stop, about two hours, is Monterey, a small fishing village, with a beautiful pier overlooking the ocean, narrow streets and a well-kept air.
The coast offers enchanting landscapes, just like those described by Steinbeck (a native of this area) in his books.
There are cliffs overlooking the sea which in spring and summer cover us with a thousand floral colors. It also features Hollywood villas overlooking the sea. The city has two main places to visit: the marina and Cannery Row, the long and quaint oceanfront promenade. The port is well defined by a pier that is always crowded and dotted with souvenir shops and restaurants with seafood. Often some artists perform at the entrance of the pier, but the main attraction are the Sea lions that are stationed on some floating docks attached to the moorings of boats.
Leaving the Monterey bay, our itinerary can continue in the area called Big Sur, a corner of the world to see. White beaches, sheer cliffs, large bridges and the possibility in the distance, in the evening, to see the whale that calmly cross the waters of the Pacific.
The final destination of the first day of travel is Morro Bay a small village nestled in a natural park characterized by a large rock that stands out in front of a marina.
It is strange how after traveling about 330 kilometers the comparisons for the Californian landscapes all come from very European environments, the Tuscan countryside, the clubs on the Irish sea, the high cliffs that recall Scotland.
The California we expect, with its cinematic heritage, made up of long beaches, lifeguards and surfers, is definitely further south.
In fact, when we wake up having breakfast we will notice, from condensation to the pronunciation of each word and from mist on the great rock, that the cold is bitter. This town is incredible, it seems frozen in time, the fishermen who return with their catch in the early morning and the ladies who sell apple pies on the driveway (it's not every day to see scenes like this).
But slowly as the 101 freeway winds its way through rolling hills planted with vines the sky leaves the shades of gray to open up to those of blue.
Intermediate stage will be Santa Barbara with one of the oldest Christian missions in the whole area with its long ocean full of palm trees, the quay teeming with life with fishermen, tourists, locals and a very large community of pelicans (some gulls and some sea lions).
Shortly after, the landscape will change again and we will come to terms with the great Los Angeles traffic and its own 9-lane highways.
Los Angeles develops as far as the eye can see. If you think of the small island of Manathan or the center of San Francisco, here you have to double or triple the distances.
For example from the airport to Hollywood there are 100 minutes of travel and 3 subway lines, but, when you emerge from underground, after passing through the seedy-looking suburbs and the streets of "Fast and the Furious", you are directly at step on the stars of the Walk of fame.
But let's go back on the road and on the coast, because before stopping and dedicating yourself to the rest of the attractions of the city of angels, there are other places to visit.
The climate in this area is simply extraordinary, with 325 days of sunshine a year and almost always pleasant temperatures. The only drawback is the so-called May Gray it consists in the formation of dense mists especially in the early hours of the day and evening in the months of May, June and July.
Here feeling cold in the land of surfers is the last thing you think and instead it is so, there ocean breeze ripples the waves and makes its presence felt at the extremes of the day. Besides flip-flops and bikinis, you always need something to cover up. I know, who would have thought that?
With this premise, the third day can be spent dedicating yourself to the ocean. You can cross the chaos of the Santa Monica beach with a stop at the stalls on the pier where you can buy fish and chips, ride on the Ferris wheel, swim in the ocean waves and village fair games.
Then you can walk through the canals of Venice Beach or on the front Walk, meeting the gym where Schwarzenegger trained, the mariujana sellers, the shops for surfers and the skate Plaza.
The last two stages can be Hermosa Beach, a stretch of coast of light and fine sand, neatly boundless with the classic rescue towers and the Redondo Beach pier with its marina full of small food stalls, pelicans and seagulls that acrobatically dive into the water and a sunset of those that you don't forget easily.
At this point it is up to everyone to continue the journey, continue on the coast and arrive at San Diego, get to know the length and breadth of Los Angeles better or hang out there desert road.
