A return to Pacific Grove: less touristy, quite unique
woke one morning and realized it has been at least 20 years since I’ve been to Carmel. So after breakfast I packed a lunch for later sightseeing and drove to Highway 1 — over Highway 68 — and past Asilomar and the outskirts of Pacific Grove.
Traffic on Highway 1 was more than I had been accustomed to in quiet Pacific Grove. A right turn took me by the lovely homes of Carmel and into the Village — and into hordes of cars and people. As I began to remember, this charming village has been more than busy for years which I understand because it has a unique vibe all its own.
Lucky to find a parking spot a few blocks from downtown, I decided first to walk down to the beach. That was a grand decision because it is one of the better beaches on the Monterey Peninsula. Stretching probably a mile, the beach had few people — maybe because it was a bit cool! Didn’t bother to go down to it as I have my own beach close to my lodging.
Then it was into town and busyness. Many tourists were foreign including a large group of Chinese who were buying and enjoying. I preferred side streets to see the less traveled areas. A lovely spot was the Church of the Wayfarer, United Methodist. It was open and peaceful after the crowds. Fortunately, it was noon, so as I ingested the total atmosphere, the bell was manually pulled 12 times. Unfortunately, the bell puller left so fast I couldn’t interview him. Back on the busy thoroughfare I enjoyed the rest of Carmel then decided to return to less busy Pacific Grove. Traffic was heavy going south and because it was an area I saw only five years ago I didn’t need to return. Is Pacific Grove really peaceful? My walk from my lodging to the town provided a “yes” to that question. First thing that has fascinated me about the town is the lack of sidewalks. Not until I got almost into the downtown area did I have a sidewalk. Walking in the street might sound frightening but because of the paucity of vehicle traffic it’s safe, plus I feel the residents are aware of walkers.
The homes I passed go back to the 1920s and ’30s. Some are small stucco with red tile roofs. Others are clapboard or wood, and now painted bright colors of blue or green. As you enter downtown from the west two homes from the late 1800’s stand out. One is a tea room and the other a bed and breakfast. Both are beautifully restored. Pacific Grove started as a campsite for the Episcopal Church in San Francisco. Five hundred acres were turned over for the site with prospective campers able to buy a site for $50. Thus, the town began.
The downtown is five blocks with many buildings remaining from the ’20s and ’30s. There’s a variety —- regular shops, antique shops, art galleries, several banks, and coffee shops, delis and bakeries. Obviously, something for any taste. One owner told me he’d been in San Juan Baptista for 25 years. When the rent doubled, he came to Pacific Grove, finding over half his customers were from the area. Weekends are busy, but this day was quiet with the few visitors enjoying the lack of crowds. The walk back included a look at the Monarch Butterfly Preserve. They now are gone but will return in October and stay until February — a great place to visit. Yes, it has been a good rest — and a scenic bonanza.
••• Another set of comments from the little book of my Grandfather’s, “The Greatest Thing in the World.”
“You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments that stand out, the moments when you have really lived, are the moments when you have done things in a spirit of love. As memory scans the past, above and beyond all the transitory pleasures of life, there leap forward those supreme hours when you have been enabled to do unnoticed kindnesses to those round about you, things too trifling to speak about, but which you feel have entered into your eternal life. I have seen almost all the beautiful things God has made; I have enjoyed almost every pleasure that He has planned for man; and yet as I look back I see standing out above all the life that has gone, four or five short experiences when the love of God reflected itself in some poor imitation, some small act of love of mine, and these seem to be the things which alone of all one’s life abide.”
Have a fun week living life in love.