The Ackerman house is situated in the Carmel hills. Built in the Victorian style, it is the loveliest house in the neighborhood.
History[]
The house was initially built in 1849 as a boarding house. It had quite a little reputation in its day. Gunfights over card games and women had taken place in the front parlor.
Appearance[]
The house is painted blue and white and cream, and is surrounded by big, shady pine trees, and sprawling, flowering shrubs. Three stories high, constructed entirely from wood, it is the most tasteful house in the neighborhood. When you stand on the front porch, you can see all of Carmel beneath you, the village, the valley, the beach, the sea.
The inside is just as beautiful -- all shiny maple and cheerful blues and yellows. There are baby pictures of Suze, Jake, Brad and David hanging on the wall in the living room. The house is filled with plants standing on wooden stands, hanging in front of the stained-glass windows, perched on top of the newel post at the end of the stairs. The den consists of a wide-screen TV incongruously rucked into a fireplace and Helen's books are stocked in the built-in shelves in the den.
Suze's Room[]
Suze's room is upstairs, just above the roof of the front porch. The bay windows in her room looked out over the same view as the porch, giving her room with the best view in the whole house.
Her room is covered with cream colored wallpaper, dotted with blue forget-me-nots, all along the top of the intricate white wainscoting that lined the walls. The same wallpaper covers the walls of her personal adjoining bathroom. She has a four-poster bed with a lace canopy. There is also a seat installed in the bay window, so she can enjoy the view outside.