Adventures by the Sea - not for me.

I had high hopes. I knew it was not the Italian Riviera, but something in me thought it might be a good runner up. The fact that it was in California was truly a bonus. Then we pulled up to the building and I knew I would not be happy doing 'it' there.

The 'it' of course is our wedding, and the location of said wedding has truly become my nemesis as I continue to struggle to find us the perfect spot.

Adventures by the Sea is in the Fisherman's Wharf area of Monterrey. It seemed to provide all the amenties for the beach ceremony we were looking for, but the concern I had was on the venue itself, as the photos on their website showed a lot more casual environment then we wanted for our reception. However, after chatting with the event manager Rob (who is totally fabulous by the way), I thought there might be a possibility of spending more moolah and making it look a little more upscale. So Chris and I drove down to Monterey yesterday to check it out personally.

I was wrong. Trying to make this place 'prettier' would not only cost us an arm and a leg, but I think it would look downright silly. It is meant to be left as it is.

Of course, as I am standing there hemming and hawing and trying to figure out if I really can make it work, Chris immediately reminds me of my post where I compare our wedding wish list and mine clearly stated a 'beach party with a pig roast'. I try to explain my wish list had not changed, but that I always imagined the Four Seasons (or something similar) behind us - not a sea foam green rectangle. And I never imagined there would be surfboards on the walls or a pool table a couple feet from the head table. Yes I want a party environment, but I want a little more glam in my party.

I will say this is a great spot for a super duper low key beach party and/or team building event (one of their specialities) - so I will keep them on my radar.

Needless to say, we are going back to the drawing board. What I need is to win the lottery. And win big. That way we can have the Italian wedding we long for and could afford flying all of our friends to Italy - even during high season.

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