If I was to return as an animal, I'd want to be a duck:  They fly, walk on land, float on water and dive beneath it.  What else is there?  They mate for life, and they have cute families; they're not aggressive, they're humorous and they get along well with others.  They naturally attract children.




And should I find myself to be a duck, the estuary in Monterey is where I'd live.  It's located adjacent to Monterey Bay, near downtown.

The estuary, or El Estero, collects the runoff from the north slope of Carmel Hill.

Looking to the south, toward Carmel Hill.

Looking north toward Dennis the Menace Park.

There was a time that I could readily identify the tree in the foreground of this picture of Dennis the Menace Park across the estuary from its distinctive bark, but it took me about ten minutes of perusing my plant identification books and online images to remember the species being Melaleuca linariifolia, or Narrow-leafed Paperbark (or Snow-in-Summer).  It is an Australian native, and can also be found in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, as it adapts well to relatively sheltered foggy Central Coastal marine environments.  More importantly, it seems, the species tolerates poor drainage and occasional inundation.

Looking north, towards San Carlos cemetery, where my Baha'i friends Marvin Newport, Inez Greeven and India Haggarty are buried.