Fashion District Family Outing in Carmel, California by Ruth Paget
My husband Laurent and I went out for a fashion district family outing in Carmel, California.
We started out at the Lafayette Bakery in the Barnyard Shopping Center. I drank a strong Costa Rican coffee with cream ($3.50) while Laurent bought two baguettes ($5 each). I consider those prices to be very reasonable for high quality products.
The restaurant above Lafayette is available for lease. A focaccia restaurant and wine bar (emotes style) might be nice there for after shopping light meals.
The Barnyard offers nice clothing stores, home décor, and lovely restaurants like Lugano for Swiss food, Robata for Japanese food, and Bagel Bakery for cool New York charm.
The Crossroads Shopping Center is located next to the Barnyard, which has many consignment shops with designer clothing deals and shops run by local charities with fashion and home décor featuring unique finds at affordable prices. You can teach young people a lot about fashion by evaluating finds in stores like the ones in the Crossroads.
(Ocean Drive in Carmel-by-the-Sea has upscale shops like Tiffany and Kate Spade and Burberry’s for pricier purchases.)
The Palo Corona Regional Park is located right behind these malls on Carmel Valley Road. The Park features the Palo Corona Discovery Center, which documents the ecosystems the park is conserving. (Open Friday – Sunday) Combining a fashion stroll with an educational outing is a nice way to learn two things at once.
For fall home décor, families can buy miniature pumpkins at Earthbound Farms just down the road in Carmel Valley or drive over the Laureles Grade like we did to visit the Farm.
We stopped at The Farm outside Salinas. Several schools from Salinas were on field trips to learn about sustainable organic farming and eat a picnic lunch in the countryside. I always liked fall field trips to the farm as a student in Detroit (Michigan), which always included a trip to a cider mill for a snack with donuts.
At home, I read The Sandpiper, the Carmel High School student newspaper we picked up at The Barnyard. I read through it and liked:
-the advertisements
-the coverage of the Model United Nations Club
-the coverage about three Carmel students who showed films at the Carmel International Film Festival
-the coverage about the film appreciation club, where students learn to critique films as well as watch them.
I thought these student clubs at Carmel High School were very fashionable.
All in all, this was another nice vacation day that is a short drive from Salinas, California to Carmel’s fashion district.
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks, Marrying France, and Europe’s Lessons written during overseas duty in Germany + 5 other Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games + 8 Classical Western Civilization War Games
-developer of food and beverage knowledge games
-creator of online exhibits about San Miguel Arcangel Mission, French baguette making, and the Carmel Valley History Center
-creator of French travel and culture games
-writer of 2000+ Central Coast California lifestyle blogs
-family genealogist
-developer of 9 music theory games
