San Luis Obispo was the third stop on our Amtrak tour. We slept on the train and had very little sleep. Honestly, 24 hours in coach on a train is simply way too much! It was, however, warm when we arrived which I found wonderful! I had not been able to get warm in either Seattle or Portland and I found a brightly shining sun quite welcoming! It was early evening when we arrived and we simply checked into our hotel, ate a light dinner, and decided tomorrow would be good enough for exploring. My husband was especially tired and went to bed quite early. I did the same a few hours later.
I woke up early this morning, made coffee, and impatiently waited for Arnold to wake up so we could get our day started. When he DID wake up, he looked at me and said “My throat hurts and I feel horrible-wake me at noon”. I spent the next few hours planning what we would explore and simultaneously wondering if staying in would be the right thing. Arnold assured me he would be fine so we called an Uber and took off for downtown SLO. The downtown area was relatively compact and quite walkable. Full of shops and boutiques-many of them locally owned. There are plenty of restaurants and bars as well.
The most central point downtown was the Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa. Founded in 1772, the mission actually served as both a jail and a courthouse for a period of time after California achieved statehood. In 1970, the Mission was dedicated as the city center. We started off taking a tour but did sneak away early, preferring to look around ourselves!
Enjoy wine? You might consider visiting wineries or taking a tour. Head on down Highway 277 and cannot miss them!
Tomorrow we are off for Santa Barbara – see you there!
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