After the ceremony, Ron and I drove from the courthouse in Santa Ana to the resort we were staying at in Dana Point, just down the road from Laguna Beach.
Our room had a bay window overlooking the ocean.
After we got settled, we decided to wander around a bit, starting with the spa. (We made reservations for the next day. And the day after.) Then we walked around the grounds and eventually made our way upstairs to the bar for much-needed cocktails, then consulted with the concierge (a nice French lady named Maggy) about dinner that night. She told us that the restaurant on the property would be perfect for a wedding-night dinner, so we had her make a reservation for us.
The restaurant exceeded our expectations: the food and wine were both excellent, and Maggy had notified the kitchen that we were newlyweds; we ended up receiving an amuse-bouche, a bowl of lobster bisque, and a plate of scallops in addition to my rack of lamb and Ron’s scallops — pan-seared this time. And a lovely pinot noir.
To top it off, a large group across from us on the patio saved us from the sin of eavesdropping by talking just loudly enough that we couldn’t help but hear. Some of it was fun, but I learned more than I wanted to know about medical malpractice insurance.
When we got back to our room, we found a bottle of champagne and four chocolate-covered strawberries on the bar (thanks, Maggy!), but we were done for the day and ready to go to sleep.