It is understandable why California attracts a lot of people. There it is warm and sunny most part of the year, Los Angeles is full of movie stars, rollerblading babes can be found all over the place in Venice Beach. Even if it is exaggerated, this part of the California mystique is real and not very hard to find.



But California has other things too, that are not scripted, sanitized, and broadcast to the mesmerized masses of the world. The glitter and glamour are only the surface of an incredibly diverse state that would be a productive and powerful nation in the event of ever getting separated from the Union. California has it all: redwood forests, an incredibly verdant Central Valley, the Sierra Nevada, deserts, a lot of well-known cities, and hundreds of miles of beautiful coastline.

Despite the crime, pollution, traffic, and earthquakes, which have made California famous as well, people here are still the golden children of the United States, America's spoiled rich kid that is either loved or loathed by everyone. (In Oregon, for example, they sell lots of license-plate rims stating "I hate California.") To be perfectly sincere, people here don't really care. Californians are aware of the fact that they live in one of the most interesting places in the world, and they're proud of their state. Nobody can guarantee you that you'll meet Arnold Schwarzenegger or learn how to surf here, but with a little time, a little money, and an adventurous spirit, you will be guided by us and offered one of the most fulfilling vacations of your life. The four of us do nothing but travel, but we chose to live in California because this place has so much to offer.

While I am no travel advisor or expert on tourist attractions and what have you, I can speak to the beauty and wonder of Half Moon Bay, California, having just lived in the area for fourteen months, and having friends who live, work, and shop there. Between nature and industry, then, the combination, the symbiosis of two styles fitting and working together so beautiful is only bested by the dual joys of an ideal location. In other words, Half Moon Bay, California is a coastal town with residences and businesses both on the shoreline and inland and with farming, produce, supplies, and services both "natural" and technologically and industrially advanced.

The coast of Half Moon Bay, California is a surfers' Valhalla: just a couple of weeks back, for instance, the Mavericks surf competition saw hundreds of fans and viewers taking the day off and hanging on the beaches to witness Grant Twiggy Baker of South Africa take first, and Tyler Smith and Brock Little take second and third, respectively, on waves surprisingly sufficient considering the weather?which was nearing hot?and the area?which is relatively calm in ocean action.

The weather in general in Half Moon Bay, California is some of the most appealing in the nation, temperate for the most part, save the few months of rain and wind storms that take out a power line here and there. But the farmers on their ranches and the growers, of pumpkins, brussel sprouts, and other staple veggies, have back-up generators and three other "seasons" without snow or sleet or ice to threaten crops or livelihoods. Small businesses thrive, from art shops to flower bodegas like Aloha, a shop specializing in orchids?live orchids, glass orchids, and orchid portraits; and large, recognized companies serve the population by way of Safeway, Albertson's, Longs, and banks and gas stations that are accessible but not overbearing in number of prices.

Some of the finest cuisine can be found on the shoreline and a few blocks inland?from fresh seafood to Italian to Asian, and visitors and locals alike can walk down to the pier, to the signed up fishermen on their boats, and buy live crab and/or lobster, which can be brought back to the house and cooked up in lieu of sitting in at the restaurants...which are ambient and amiable and lovely (and reasonable in price, as well).

Numerous hotels, motels, inns, and bed and breakfast sites offer comforts from cozy to chic, and such places as the Farallon Inn (on highway 1 in Moss Beach, five miles north of Half Moon Bay) even come with a small but superbly satisfying fare of Indian food and pizza, which the Faralon's owners cook in and run. The place is so good that locals and tourists alike sign the walls with sharpies, thanking the owners and gushing over the food, which is absolutely perfect?authentic to the Indian owners and surprisingly top notch as "Italian" fare, too.

The weather is perfect, really. The beaches are many and easy to get to. And the people are direct, friendly, and helpful. There is, of course, a public library, a sanitation department, and fairly easy-going but still by-the-book fire and police departments, as well as a chamber of commerce. With these and with the online tour information sites, you will be happy you decide to travel to, pass through, stay for a visit in, or live in Half Moon Bay, California.