California

There has been a lot of talk recently about then end of the NASA space exploration program and the introduction of Virgin Galactic to soon take non-astronauts into outer space. All of these dreams of exploring distant stars have been around for generations; but few know that there is an otherworldly experience right here on planet Earth. Mono Lake (pronounced mō′- nō, like the Spanish for “monkey”) in Mono County, California is an ethereal wonderland of beauty surrounded by majestic mountains and amazing flora and fauna.

Although the United States has never been a monarchy, there have been some truly royal residents. Among the most renowned was the media tycoon, William Randolph Hearst. Although he died nearly six decades ago, the impact he left is still being felt today. One of his biggest and most beautiful imprints is on the central coast of California. The amazingly ornate Hearst Castle was constructed over a period of nearly 30 years (from 1919 to 1947) and was the pinnacle of social invitations even before it was finished. Also known as La Cuesta Encantada (The Enchanted Slope) and San Simeon (after the area in California it’s located in) Hearst Castle easily rivals the grandest palaces of Europe. Among its many attributes, some of the original features were fifty six bedrooms, sixty one bathrooms, nineteen sitting rooms, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, tennis courts, 127 acres of gardens, a movie theater, airfield and the at one time world’s largest private zoo.