Your California

Locals Talk

Bob Bussinger

Central Coast


When I took the Hotel Matchmaker test these are the words I selected:
Fun loving/Adventurous/Active, Healthy/Sporty/Creative/Epicurious, Unique/Colorful/Rustic/Comfortable, Natural/Unpretentious/Casual, Dynamic/Vibrant/Visionary.
Now that’s a thesaurus-full for you!
My favorite activities include:
Hiking in the back country of Big Sur, up the Coast Ridge Road to the top-of-the-world, another hike is to the Gorge in Pfeiffer State Park and yet another down to the mouth of the Big Sur River through Andrew Molera State Park. Having owned a bohemian style coffee house I gravitate to the old style places in Big Sur such as Deetjen’s and Nepenthe for a meal or just a hang-out-glass of wine interacting with the owners, staff and visitors. There is so much art in the community; painting, sculpting, writing and poetry that I love to visit the Henry Miller Library for chats or movies, the Coast Gallery for more modern art and the Phoenix shop and Heart Beat for the more ethnic or outrageous; from clothing to accoutrements of all types. With all my years having lived and breathed the Big Sur I couldn’t begin to include all my favorite activities but these are the highlights.
I was born and raised in:
Dayton, Ohio, left for the Navy during the Korean War, returned and immediately married and left for California. Ended up in Carmel/Big Sur in 1962 and have traveled extensively but still find no other place as beautiful, friendly exciting and dramatic as Big Sur.
I currently live:
Carmel Highlands, just 6-miles south of Carmel-by-the-Sea and 20-miles north of Big Sur.
What do I do to make a buck?:
Consult to hotels, spas, resorts and restaurants. Produce a TV Cooking Show with my wife Wendy Brodie and help administer her Cooking Classes and Catering.
5 things I love about the Big Sur Area:
It is difficult to reduce it to just five! At this point I must give some background; having operated the Ventana Resort as Vice President/General Manager for all of 16-years I can attest to hundreds of things that I love in Big Sur. I lived and breathed the area and have experienced the best of Big Sur throughout these years: hired the best for service, administration, maintenance, gardening, cooking/baking, maids, bellmen and on. I also was involved in every level of the operation therefore meeting thousands of guests through the Inn, the restaurant, the store and the campgrounds. We became the lead control central for emergencies in Big Sur from floods, slides and fires. The most wonderful things I love about Big Sur are these five but they just never end.
(1) Peace/quiet of Ventana Inn & Spa relaxing in the hot tubs, receiving a massage, soaking up warmth at the fireplace in the room or at the lobby, relaxing at the restaurant Cielo, with a cool Scotch while warming up to dine.
(2) As one approaches Big Sur from the north you pass through a “gate” of redwoods just prior to the beginning of the “village”. That is magic; all becomes serenity and peacefully relaxed anticipating the spiritual uplifting of the experiences to be had.
(3) The Esalen Institute 14-miles further south is another magical space; massage, hot baths, intriguing/growth-potential workshops and wonderful vegetarian meals from their own gardens.
(4) The Big Sur “center” (there really is none) surrounds one with the intrigue of history from pirates/rum-runners to lumberjacks, explorers, artists, authors and the free movement of the beatniks to hippies. I love to soak up the folklore of characters of the gone-bye era from the old timers while sipping wine or lattes.
(5) The beauty is unsurpassed; the vistas, mountains, beaches, trails and overall wilderness captures you from sunrise to sunset; and each one is so different you can never tire of viewing them.
My favorite local hidden treasure you shouldn't miss:
All of the above! However, one that has always captured my heart is a horseback ride on the Molera beach just as the sun is setting. The ocean sparkles, the wind whips your hair and the horse’s mane, the waves lap lazily on the sand and the Big Sur River ripples into the ocean; total romance of the highest caliber.
My perfect day spent in the Big Sur Area:
Spend the night at the Ventana Inn & Spa with my love, awaken to a lazy sunrise, start a fire in the fireplace, slip into the hot tub. After which a stroll to the Lobby for breakfast of the finest baked goods, coffee and juices; couched in short conversations with other guests.
A short hike up the Coast Ridge Road and back in time for another hot tub soak and massages, maybe even facials. A drive to Nepenthe/Phoenix Shop for some intriguing shopping and a look-in at the Hawthorn Gallery across the road.
Another relaxing pause in the room by that fireplace; reading a book that was brought special for the occasion and of course close presence of my loved companion. Stroll over to the Cielo Restaurant on the Path stopping in the Store for a browse, which inevitably results in the purchase of a special heart-find. Into the restaurant on the deck for a light lunch (thinking of a heavier dinner later). Basking in the sunny overview of the Pacific; viewing 50-miles in either direction with the luscious mountains behind us. A stroll back to the room on the path and a short nap prior wine & cheese in the Lobby. And yet another stroll over the path to the Cielo Restaurant to view the sunset on the patio while enjoying a glass of champagne.
As the sun sizzles into the Pacific we sip and sizzle with the romance of the moment. We are called inside to dine and boy do we do it well. There are so many favorites on the menu that we leave it to the chef to supply us with his creations. After this captivating dinner with fine wines from the extensive list we move over to the fireplace lounge (to give up our table to another lucky couple) and sip a warm brandy. Then as we slowly rise and head back across the path (or should we call for a lift in the van)? Yes, a lift back to the room is warranted. The fire is set again and we have it going while we slip yet into another hot soak and then into bed for the night.
What a day to remember. Another day would have us visiting the Heart Beat for shopping, Nepenthe for lunch and Deetjen’s for dinner. If it is on a Sunday in the Summer stop at the River Inn and sit in a chair in the river while sipping a beer and listening to a great jazz band, the Abalone Stompers, but how much can you cram into a day with the relaxing atmosphere of the Big Sur creeping into your consciousness (or is it unconsciousness).

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