A Recipe For Relaxation….
Receiving treatment at Monterey Bay IVF can and should be a relaxing experience as well. It is important to be in the right frame of mind when going through infertility treatments and we encourage our out-of-town as well as local patients to do a little unwinding while they are seeing us. There are many lovely road trips, short or long, that you can take before or after your appointment with us….
We are lucky to be located near some of the prettiest cities and most beautiful scenery in Northern California! A drive down Highway 1 can include a stop in Monterey or Pacific Grove, both filled with charming restaurants and walking paths that encompass most of Monterey Bay. A little further south lies the village of Carmel-By-The-Sea, famous for its unique shops and art galleries, cozy restaurants (like Casanova’s, one of our favorites) and it’s stunning white sand beach. Pebble Beach, with its many great golf courses (most of which are open to the public) is right next door. If time allows, we highly recommend taking a drive down to Big Sur after your appointment. A slow, meandering drive down Highway One about 45 minutes in length takes you past what must be the most stunning coastline in the United States. On a sunny day (and most of them are!) a stop at Point Lobos or Julia Pfeiffer State Parks with a picnic lunch or dinner would be a perfect way to calm your nerves. Stopping and dining at the Nepenthe in Big Sur is another excellent place to unwind while enjoying unparalleled views of the blue Pacific and the green, forested rugged coastline directly below this iconic restaurant. The sunsets there are spectacular!
If you are more in the mood for wine tasting, Salinas Valley is one of the most important wine making regions in California. Even though one of you may not be able to imbibe during your cycle….you can always purchase a nice bottle to take home for the future. A nice place to start might be in Salinas, after visiting the John Steinbeck Museum and Center (the author was born in Salinas) and lunching at one of Old Town Salinas’ restaurants. From there use this link to map your visit to some of our famous wineries: “Monterey County Wine Tour”. There are many small and large boutique wineries dotted along miles of vineyards on both River Road and Highway 101.
See the Monterey County Visitors & Convention Bureau for more information on our beautiful region.
If you are from out of town or state and have never visited our northern jewel, San Francisco, this could be an option for one of your pre or post retrieval days. It takes approximately 2 hours to get to the City by the Bay and there are many charming hotels there if you wish to make it into an overnight escape. The city is small enough to visit in a day or two. A cable car ride from Union Square to Fisherman’s Wharf may be just the right ingredient for this recipe for relaxation. Once at Fisherman’s Wharf, be sure and have some of the cracked, California Dungeness crab they serve straight out of the cookers!
