Today was one of those travel days that makes you stop checking the clock.
We started around Monterey and made our way toward Big Sur, with the Pacific beside us and the kind of scenery that keeps making you reach for your phone even when you know the camera won’t quite capture it.
The sea lions at Cannery Row were an absolute highlight. There was something ridiculously entertaining about watching them pile onto the rocks, bark at each other, stretch out in the sun and generally carry on like they owned the place. Keanah was fascinated, and honestly, so were we. We could have stayed there much longer just watching them.
Then came Big Sur.
We had seen plenty of pictures before this trip, but standing there with the cliffs dropping into the Pacific and the coastline stretching into the distance was something else. The scale of it is hard to explain. Every turn seemed to open up another view that was somehow better than the last. Big Sur took our breath away.
The drive itself became part of the experience. There were moments when we simply pulled over, got out of the car and stood there looking at the ocean. The road, the cliffs, the blue water and the rugged coastline felt like a perfect combination.
We later met a friend and his family for dinner in Carmel, which made the day even more special. Travel has a funny way of bringing people together, and sharing a meal with friends while we’re thousands of miles from home was one of those moments we’ll remember.
And because apparently we hadn’t had enough of the sea lions, we went back to Cannery Row afterward.
They were still there.
Still barking. Still lounging around. Still completely unbothered by the crowds watching them.
We stood there for a while, watching them as the evening settled in. It felt like a fitting end to a day that had given us a little bit of everything: wildlife, an incredible coastline, old friends and plenty of moments where we simply stopped and took it all in.
Big Sur was spectacular. The sea lions were hilarious. Dinner with friends made it personal.
Today was one for the memory book.
Kenrick Vaz 