General Patton Memorial Museum

I found this spot by accident (I don't remember how); it's in the middle of nowhere. It's in the Chiriaco Summit, about an hour from the Arizona border. This is another place for military vehicles. But the cool part is it's mostly tanks, trucks, amphibious vehicles, and various things I can't identify. 

Monterey Bay

I've always wanted to visit here, so last summer I finally did. turned out it isn't one of my favorite spots. It really depends on exploring the surrounding areas, which are much more interesting than Monterey Bay's downtown. The area with the aquarium, etc., is extremely touristy — actually, really crowded with tourists. I stayed at a hotel right on the beach, thinking that being on the main strip would be fun. But it’s just not very interesting. It's a sea of souvenir shops, packed with people. None of it really inspired me to go out and draw or paint. I always say if you don't see anything to sketch, it's on you — it’s up to you as an artist to make it interesting. So, I broke my own rule. But when I drove around, I found some fun stuff. Just driving through the neighborhoods is fun. Old Fisherman's Wharf is cool, but again, touristy.

The drive up is worth it if you've never done the Pacific Coast Highway drive before. That was also why I wanted to go here. It's fun to do when you haven't in a while. Although I'm not much for the beach scenes (I know, what a buzzkill). I'd rather hit San Pedro and the Port of Los Angeles. I like the industrial scenes. More on that later.

You do see some really great scenery on the way up though.

The aquarium is cool. It could be a really interesting sketch spot.

I did like the mellow vibe around the area, off the main strip.