But when I return the key to the Bodega Harbor Inn they yell from a back room "you can just leave" and then mumble "and don't come back." They also coughed obnoxiously last night and sprayed air freshener while Jay microwaved our home cooked Indian dinner. It's so so sad to see such bigotry, but Jay says they win when they make you feel bad. We will take care of this when we get back to New York.
Luckily, we have a great tour guide from Tom at the Mar Vista outlining what to eat the way down hwy 1. We first bike inland to Tamales. I have a lemon bar at the Tomales Bakery and Jay has a ginger cookie.
Our next stop is The Marshall Store, which is famous for their oysters. Oysters are harvested in Tomales Bay and shipped to SF. You can also get BBQ oysters, which are a California thing served with garlic bread. I've been interested in oysters since my trip to France, how you squeeze lemon and they sliver down your throat. But alas, I am a vegetarian and Jay is likely allergic to shell fish, so I have a vegetarian panini and he has pulled pork. They are both outstanding. The cheese excellent. It's a shame though because the oysters were $1 each and people were ordering dozens at a time.
Great outdoor eating area
We are in dairy country now, so there are lots of cows and dry grass covering hills. The hills don't stop -- we switch gears constantly from high to low with the downs and ups. Jay is really improving his biking -- we are about the same speed now! We bike along water between two mountain ridges and then turn into the Tomales Bay.
and our seagull friend.
Across the bay is Point Reyes National Seashore. That's where we are going. It looks lush with a variety of different trees, a natural wonderland. On the other side of it is the Pacific Ocean. On our side, there are bald hills dotted with black and white cows, and lots of ups and downs.
We make it to Point Reyes, a hot spot for local-organic foods, and go to the Cowgirl Creamery. For me it's heaven! Jay stays with the bikes (dairy free). There are many cheeses from this area. Another popular one is Point Reyes Blue, which we saw on menus in wine country.
We are going to Inverness, which our guide says "reeks of Berkeley professors." Great. But the Tomales Bay Resort is run down and the guy checking us in is very rude. I wasn't in the mood for it, so we had to leave.
It's tough being stuck on bikes as the sun is setting with no place to go, but every Crenshaw girl knows how to change a hotel room. Staying true to the guide, we call Mankas Inverness Lodge (Renata from Mar Vista was a manager here, and we trust her taste). They have a room for us, the mushroom room, and they give us a discount and a couple glasses of wine upon arrival. Laurie, the lovely woman checking us in, is married to a Jamaican and has 2 daughters studying science.
The room is gorgeous, on par with the Ritz Carlton. Notice the mushrooms, spa music in the background too.
We go to dinner at Saltwater, a local-organic walk down the road. Our waitress is the girlfriend of the head chef. They just moved here from SF. He comes to greet us and explains he uses ingredients from the area, wild fish in the bay, produce from people's gardens, even gives people credit on the menu. He explains food tastes better when it's from people who care.
We agree and feel well cared for in our luxury room. We share a bottle of rose from the Sonoma Coast. I think wine tastes best when it's from an area you've biked.
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