Carmel-By-The-Sea: Europe of California
The last few weeks have been amazing. I got to live my favorite life: of jet lag, rental cars, bus tickets, Airbnb reservations and of exploring new places with the person I love! This spring I took a trip across the Atlantic, so this blog post is coming to you from California :)
2022 started off slow for me professionally, and it has already shown me that I can’t control everything that happens in my life, specially in my PhD. When I feel like I’m not in control of my life, I look for something I can in fact control. So I packed my bags and traveled across the world to meet my partner. I got lucky because my trip braved several obstacles: the pandemic, major strikes at German airports and the Visa application process. But I made it! This is the farthest I have ever been from home and yet this is the happiest I’ve been this year!
Less than a week into my trip, I missed the countryside landscape, the half-timbered houses and the German bakeries. Thankfully, I had planned this trip keeping in mind my interest of exploring quaint towns as compared to big cities (I did go to SF later, but explored some little towns first). Some photos in this post have been clicked by my partner. Thanks Rahul for letting me borrow them :)
My first experience of California countryside was our visit to Carmel-by-the-Sea. It is a small beach town around 95 miles away from where I am staying (miles, a reminder that we’re in the US now :P). It is known for several unusual laws, like prohibition on wearing high heel shoes without permit (to prevent lawsuits arising from tripping accidents caused by irregular pavement1) :o
We started our day with a walk on the Carmel beach. This is one of the lesser-known beaches on this coast, and it was very quiet and clean. One of the first things I noticed about Carmel was that it was very dog-friendly and a trip to the Carmel beach was heaven for a dog-lover. The lanes along the beach had a string of beautiful little cottages which assured me that we had chosen a beautiful European style town to explore.
Carmel Beach
Our next adventure at Carmel was the 17-mile drive, which was (without a doubt) the most scenic drive I have taken in my life. It spanned across 17 points of interest along the Pebble beach and we stopped at most these points to enjoy the view, click photos and just soak in all the beauty. The weather Gods were generous and that added to the whole experience. To say it was surreal would be an understatement, and I don’t even think I can describe in words how calm I felt even in front of the restless Pacific Ocean!
Ocean Views along 17-Mile Drive
We stayed at the Pebble beach till the ocean gulped down the sun. I was still getting used to the new timezone but I soon realised that the sun we saw setting was just rising at home (India)! It was an oddly comforting feeling, and I felt like I was sending some light into my people’s lives. After so many uncertainties about my trip, I was just happy to be here: it was my favorite weather, my favorite time of the day and I got to experience it with my favorite person. It was nothing short of magical, and was the perfect end to our day.
Sunset at Pebble Beach
You may be wondering why I call Carmel the “Europe of California”! The next morning we explored the little town and I felt like I was in a quaint little town of Europe. The bakeries were as amazing as European bakeries (those who have lived in Europe know that this is a huge compliment). We explored these beautiful lanes with artistic houses on foot and admired the beautiful architecture all around. This is the trip where I transitioned from looking for India in Europe to looking for Europe in the US, and I found it in this beautiful little place curled up alongside the largest ocean in the world!
“Carmel by the Sea” Town
This was the first among the many trips we will make as we travel the world together. Traveling will in fact be how we stay afloat and well in this journey of life, for we now have homes in three continents, each as special as the others!