Italian Honeymooners at the Custom House Plaza

Emiliano and Katarina, honeymooners from Italy, paused for an embrace at the Custom House Plaza,  California State Historic Landmark #1.

It was 11 p.m., and they’d had a delicious dinner at Schooners Coastal Kitchen, then finished off the night by enjoying more time on the Monterey Bay Coastal Trail.  They made a detour down Old Fisherman’s Wharf, where they chatted in Sicilian with a gracious employee of Domenico’s on the Wharf.

They then cut through Custom House Plaza to reach their downtown Monterey lodging.

What were these happy visitors planning for tomorrow? They were thinking of breakfast at Wild Plum Cafe, then a visit to more history spots.  They’d been to Colton Hall today.  Tomorrow they wanted to see Robert Louis Stevenson House, and I let them know that tours inside the RLS House are not available on Fridays right now, but gardens can still be enjoyed.  (See  history spots section for details.)

They looked forward to visiting the Monterey Bay Aquarium too, before heading down the coast. They thought Pfeiffer Beach and Nepenthe sounded especially attractive in Big Sur, and they were also thinking of stopping in Carmel along the way.

What about John Steinbeck?

They asked about Steinbeck, and no one had yet suggested that they include  Salinas in the Monterey County portion of their extensive U.S. itinerary. Shucks!

They were disappointed they hadn’t allowed time to visit the National Steinbeck Center, as well as to have lunch or tea at the Steinbeck House (Steinbeck’s birthplace and boyhood home).

Exploring the heart of Steinbeck Country is a good reason to come back.

Ciao!

So that’s the Custom House Plaza at night.  Want to see it and other City of Monterey plazas by daylight? Click here.