Norcal Trip Pt 2: Monterey
If you haven’t already, make sure to check out my previous blog post on my visit to the Winchester Mystery House.
Welcome back to The Leslie Life!
Today’s post is all about my visit to Monterey and the Monterey Bay Aquarium. This was both Jenny and I’s first time visiting the area and I’m happy to say that everything went smoothly!
As I wrote last week, we stayed in an Airbnb in San Jose and also got a rental. Thus, our excursion to Monterey was merely a day trip. It took us less than an hour and a half to get from San Jose to Monterey by car.
My first impressions were that it was cold AF and reminded me a lot of Laguna beach!
Nonetheless, I gotta say I was pretty happy to be near water. San Jose is NOT a beach town and I cannot express how weird it feels for me to be landlocked.
The main reason for our visit was the Monterey Bay Aquarium. It was Jenny who made the call to go. She loves aquariums and I’ve heard nothing but good things about the one in Monterey. Also, I am a fan of Big Little Lies 😉.
View from outside the Monterey Bay Aquarium
I gotta say that I was immediately taken aback by the size of the aquarium. As soon as we walked in, I could tell that it was massive. It was sensory overload; there were people everywhere and a bluish tint from the water tanks permeated the entire area.
Me observing some of the fishies
Quite honestly, I think Jenny and I were overwhelmed and didn’t even know where to start! We first ventured outside to check out the amazing view we were definitely not disappointed.
There was a LOT and I mean a LOT to see. Besides fishes, there were otters, birds, jellyfish and so much more.
Art was also displayed throughout. All of it was made with recycled materials in the form of animals, making the statement that we should all reuse, recycle, and overall, not be a** holes to the ocean.
Jellyfish tank
Jenny and I spent 3 full hours walking around and exploring. My personal favorite was seeing all the octopi. They are incredibly intelligent animals and a little scary if we are being honest.
A school of fish
We finished our visit by going to the gift shops (yes, there’s 2!) and by taking it all in. I would say that this place is amazing for kids. There’s plenty for them to see and do, including interactive games and playgrounds.
For more photos, check out the gallery below!
We had worked up an appetite after walking around the aquarium for so long. Thus, we headed to El Cantaro, a vegan Mexican restaurant that I had heard about from Tik Tok and is actually listed on Google as one of the top vegan Mexican restaurants in the country.
Guys, I cannot reiterate enough how good this place was! As you can see above, the portions are large and it was pretty inexpensive. I have to give it a 10/10 and wish I could eat here again 😩.
Cannery Row, Monterey
When lunch was over, we walked around and did some shopping to end our visit. A friend of mine had recommended the Cannery Row Antique Mall (pictured below) and I knew I had to pop in to do some browsing.
My one regret is that I was unable to thoroughly walk around the antique mall. We had to drive back to San Jose and we wanted to make sure it wasn’t too dark.
Overall, we had a really good day exploring Monterey but I do think we needed more time to see it all. I also wish we could have gone to Carmel (which is nearby) but perhaps next time! I will definitely be back again 😌.
Know before you go:
Tickets for the aquarium are $50 and can be purchased here
You need to show proof of vaccination or proof of a negative Covid test upon entering
Parking is off-site and is located at 601 Foam St
It’s $20 for the entire day
Jenny and I at the aquarium
