The author that reigns on the Monterey Peninsula is John Steinbeck, as he should. John Steinbeck lived in this area for a long time, and last Saturday I visited his former house in Salinas, California. On a side note, Salinas is also the "Salad Bowl of America" because somewhere along the lines of 80% of all produce comes from Salinas, especially lettuce. Gilroy, California is the Garlic Capital and Watsonville is known for strawberries. Anyways, 
I went to the Steinbeck House and it was very nice. The tour is very short and the house has been restored by a historical society and now most of the rooms have been converted to tea rooms to raise money for the historical society. However, I think most of the renovations were unnecessary, given that the house is less than 100 years old. Nonetheless, it is very charming and doesn't take much time to tour. Overall, it is very interesting to see and the tour guides gave very informative information about John Steinbeck. I didn't realize that so much of Steinbeck's work was influenced by this area. For example, Cannery Row refers to Cannery Row in Monterey and Tortilla Flats is an area that still exists in downtown Monterey. It was interesting and worthwhile and I recommend it to anyone who is near Monterey/Salinas and has a free afternoon.
I went to the Steinbeck House and it was very nice. The tour is very short and the house has been restored by a historical society and now most of the rooms have been converted to tea rooms to raise money for the historical society. However, I think most of the renovations were unnecessary, given that the house is less than 100 years old. Nonetheless, it is very charming and doesn't take much time to tour. Overall, it is very interesting to see and the tour guides gave very informative information about John Steinbeck. I didn't realize that so much of Steinbeck's work was influenced by this area. For example, Cannery Row refers to Cannery Row in Monterey and Tortilla Flats is an area that still exists in downtown Monterey. It was interesting and worthwhile and I recommend it to anyone who is near Monterey/Salinas and has a free afternoon.