We knew it was time for another vacation when my mother-in-law was talking about all of the men she is meeting online. Imagine the awkwardness for my husband and me when she incisively gives us details about these men. Let’s just say, wayyyyyy too much detail. Who wants to hear these details after you are about 16 anyway? And then coming from your mother-in-law/mother? TOOO MUCH INFO, lady. Have you ever heard of a filter?
Anyways, to escape this time, we decided to take a 3-day weekend to a small quaint city called Montecito, California. I had never been there before, but had heard Oprah owns a home there, so I thought, what the heck, let’s check this place out! This small city is the perfect getaway from a large metropolis because it is small (roughly 10,000 residents), calm and serene. It is located east of the city of Santa Barbara and in the foothills of the Santa Ynez Mountains.
Since my husband was recently laid off, we needed a reasonably priced room. So, we scoured Craigslist to find a weekend rental. Hubby found a place immediately and he had a gut feeling, it was “the one”. I was a little apprehensive of what kind of place he found because the pictures were a tad bit blurry. But, since I was ready for a retreat, I agreed to this adventure and after we packed our bags, we were off!
As we traveled to our destination, we noticed how different this part of Southern California is. It was green, lush and almost lavish. Some of the other parts of the state seem almost desert-like, so this was refreshing! Once we arrived in Montecito, we decided to find the place we were staying at and check in. On the way to the final destination, I noticed how beautiful the homes appeared to be within the city. It is quite apparent they take pride in their homes there (or perhaps it has something to do with how wealthy the people are who live there!). Gorgeous landscape and billowing palm trees really made up most of the city.
We drove another few minutes on windy hilly roads and arrived at the address we were given and to our delight, my husband hit the jackpot with the place he found! Our destination was in a tranquil residential neighborhood. The dwelling was a small studio apartment addition to the main home (a large mansion!). It was great! It had its own separate entrance, a small kitchenette, a queen-sized bed, a small spa-like bathroom with a shower and a wood-burning fire place! Score! We immediately unpacked the car and peeled out to check out the sites and in search of some groceries and firewood.
The homeowner told us a few points of interest, so we decided to check one of them out—it was the Mediterranean Biltmore Hotel. When we arrived, we could not believe it! It was an absolutely incredible oasis of a hotel! It had amazing little adobe cabins, a tantalizing restaurant and amazing beachfront views. Now, this was paradise! Since we were not staying there, we just toured the place, walked on the peaceful beach and then left. If we had not just eaten before we arrived, we would have totally indulged on a meal there!
Since it was getting to be around our baby’s bedtime, we decided to get some groceries, wine and head back to the rental. Once in the town square, we found the main shopping area. It had a few quaint shops and a grocery store. As we were loading our cart full of goodies for the weekend, we saw the movie star Rob Lowe in the grocery store (by the way, he is just as handsome in person as he is on film!).
After we loaded the car with our new found goodies for the weekend, we enjoyed the uneventful drive back to our retreat and nestled in for a weekend of relaxing, hiking and much needed peace and quiet from our busy, noisy lives with my mother-in-law.
We enjoyed our time in Montecito, California and would recommend if you need a tranquil place to hang your head for a few days, you should venture there!
Get Away From Her! 