Spring Break in Central California Day 2 - 4/7/2014

After a good night's rest we were able to head out for day two of our adventure.

Our first stop was Sebastian's Store (CHL 726).

This building was constructed in the 1852 at Whaling Point (west of the current location). The store was moved in 1878 and is still in use today.

The store has had many owners and many uses. Today it houses the San Simeon Post Office (since 1873), a store, restaurant, and a Hearst Ranch wine tasting room.

Many famous folks are said to have shopped here including William Randolph Hearst, Thomas Edison, Calvin Coolidge, George Bernard Shaw, and Winston Churchill.

I love the nod to their past with their whale weather vane.

From the store you have a great view of our next site, Hearst San Simeon State Historical Monument (CHL 640),

or as it's more commonly known, Hearst Castle!

La Cuesta Encantada (The Enchanted Hill) was built by William Randolph Hearst between the years of 1919 and 1947.

Hearst was an interesting man: a newspaper and movie magnate, the only son of a family who made their fortune from silver and mining operations, and a lover of the Central Coast.

He enlisted architect Julia Morgan to help him execute his vision of a Mediterranean villa on the coast of California.

Together they created "the castle," although neither of them ever called it that-- it is believed the nickname came from locals and passersby who saw the house on a hill and said it looked like a castle!

The home is a showcase for his many treasures-- statues, tapestries, artwork-- all imported from Europe.

Our tour-guide, Bev, was amazing!! She and Libi had an instant connection and spent much of the tour next to each other.

We took the Grand Rooms tour, which is the suggested tour for first time visitors. Ron and I have both been here before, but it was Libi's first time, so we wanted her to get the best introduction.

The tour begins inside the assembly room. Here guests would gather before meals to socialize.

From floor to ceiling, Hearst and Morgan planned every detail.

The room was designed around the tapestries you see hanging from the ceiling-- they even had to expand the room 10 feet so that they would all fit.

These "seats" along the wall were actually choir stalls from a church in Europe.

Next we were off to the dining hall where the flags are used to help draw you attention to the amazing ceiling.

It is also the home to a rare smiling Mary-- she usually is so serious!

Mr. Hearst, or the Chief, sat to the left of the candlestick on the table with his back to this tapestry. Guests were assigned seats, and if you over-stayed your welcome your seat moved farther and farther away from Mr. Hearst each evening.

I have to admit-- I love a fancy table that still includes ketchup! Mr. Hearst wanted his guests to feel welcomed, he even filled the table with Disney figurines when Walt Disney came to visit.

The morning room is undergoing some renovations, so we only spent a moment here.

You can see the renovations here-- the bottom of the photo has been restored and the top is in process. There is a man who has been given 10 years and a million dollars to painstakingly remove hundreds of years of soot, dirt, and grime from the ceiling. He uses Q-tips and scaffolding to carefully restore the ceiling-- a tedious task.

Next we saw the billiard room.

A place for guests to play pool and relax, while surrounded by the stag hunt (the tapestry on the wall).

This ceiling is from before the time of Columbus-- not too shabby!

Here is some of the technology of the day-- a radio and telephone.

Here is the carillon that rings the bells in the tower every day at noon. Hearst bought them for himself as a birthday gift, so the first thing they ever rang here at the Castle was "Happy Birthday."

The final stop of the tour is the theater. The screen retracts down into the basement so that the stage could be used for performances.

Hearst often asked his guests to put on shows for him-- and had an elaborate costume closet.

Here is the man himself, asking citizens to buy American on one of his newsreels.

After the tour we had to get a photo with Bev!

We were then free to roam the grounds to see the gardens, outdoor pool, tennis court, and finally the indoor pool.

We all enjoyed our time here and decided we would come back to try a different tour.

The views alone are worth the price of admission!

We had a little fun with the statuary.

Sadly the Neptune Pool is being renovated, so it looks terrible!

However, my favorite pool still looks amazing!!!

Ever since I was a child, I have wanted to swim in this pool!

Libi was equally impressed with it!

After our bus ride down the hill, we saw the movie about the life of Mr. Hearst.

We made a quick stop to a non-historic site-- but a super cool one if you happen to be near San Simeon.

There is a beach reserved for elephant seals-- and we arrived during nap time!

As far as the eye can see there are seals.

Babies, big daddies, and every size in between swimming and sun bathing to their heart's content-- and it's only about a five minute drive north of Hearst Castle.

Our next stop was Nitt Witt Ridge (CHL 939). This is another twentieth century folk art site, so it's a little strange!

Arthur Harold Beal (also known as der Tinkerpaw or Captain Nitt Witt) lived on this two and a half acre plot of land.

Using hand tools and discarded materials, as well as things he found on the property and nearby beaches, he built the home and grounds over 50 years.

When he died, his ashes were scattered around his favorite tree on the grounds.

This site is now privately owned and they do give tours (we missed the tour by about a half an hour). If you are in Cambria and want to go on the tour, just drive by the house and you will find a clock outside telling you the time of the next tour.

The man loved toilets-- because they are everywhere in the architecture-- you can see one below located on the roof.

Another slight detour from our historical landmarks, but something of a personal landmark to me. My family spent many happy weekends in Cambria when I was growing up and many of them were spent here at the San Simeon Pines Resort. I thought it would be fun to introduce Ron and Libi to this place and to see how much it has changed over the years...

I am pleased to report that not much has changed! It still has a lovely layer of fog in the morning...

A tiny pool that is extremely cold, but perfect if you are 7!!!

The water tower is still there...

as is the private rocky beach...

Libi loved exploring such a different stretch of beach-- as it isn't at all like the sandy beaches we have at home.

The nine hole pitch and putt golf course is still here...

as are the shuffleboard courts...

where we taught Libi how to play.

They still have room keys-- not electronic doors, but actual keys. It was kind of nice to go back to a simpler time. They also don't have wi-fi, so we had to disconnect every evening which was really nice for a few days!