Independence Day

I spent most of July 4th on the open road. The changing landscapes from California to New Mexico kept me entertained and made the drive pass quickly.

I ate my extra salad for lunch in Petrified Forest National Park, thanks to my second year of having a National Park annual pass! Seriously worth it.

Around happy hour time, I arrived in Albuquerque and met up with my friend and his girlfriend at Marble Brewery. If you’ve never been, Albuquerque has a lot of great breweries surrounded by beautiful pink mountains and a balloon festival that I someday hope to attend.

It’s also extremely hot. It wasn’t too awful for visiting, but I have no idea how anyone would do outdoor exercise or go for a jog there in the summer. My friend Laura and I cooled off with some outrageous hot dogs and gigantic margarita buckets. The next day, I filmed a video to capture my hangover for posterity.

The game was awesome, even though we missed most of the action by showing up after the the first inning when ALB scored 7 runs. Oh well, the stadium itself was impressive, game or no game. On one side, you could watch this incredible sunset; the other side held views of the Sandia mountains.

After an all-American fireworks display, we romped around the city for a bit before calling it a night. We came home to find Baby Zia waiting for us with her own hotdog:

Phoenix

I arrived to my AirBnb in Phoenix around 6pm. I’d been wanting to stay at this place since my first Southwestern road trip way back in the day. It’s a vintage trailer in the back of an artsy coffee shop/collective called The Hive. It looked super cool from the photos, and the trailer did look awesome in person, too. I made a little video tour here.

Unfortunately, the surrounding street seemed a little bit sketchy, and the owner was very clear about keeping the doors locked at all times. I made sure to pop out quickly for dinner and be back before sunset. My body was craving some nutrients besides peanut butter and graham crackers, so I ordered a salad from Flower Child. Someone messed up and accidentally made two of my custom salads, and they brought me the second one FO’ FREE! Thanks Flower Child!

The trailer had a mini-fridge outside so I could store the second one for the next day. And I did made it back in time for a beautiful sunset.

Sleep didn’t come easily (more on that here), but I reminded myself that the owners had gone to some lengths to make sure it was safe, and the space around the trailer was very green and serene.

Since I was up early the next morning, I jumped at the chance to pack up my bags and take a yoga class. I was grateful to Urban Yoga for being open on the Fourth of July and having showers for yogis on the go. I found one of the only open coffee shops and then hit the road.

Cross Country

On the first night at our B&B in Yosemite, I grabbed a book off the bookshelf called, The Prophet. It’s a book of life wisdom about a man, or a prophet, who has lived abroad for years and is about to make his journey back home. It felt wholly appropriate to be reading it in that time and place, as I was about to do the same.

As you know, I drove a lot during the California sister’s trip (ahem, no thanks to my partner-in-travel), and after that I decided to just keep on driving. After Elayne left, I joined my housemates for our last round of Highland Park food truck nights and sold my bed at exactly 8pm. The next day, it was time to drive my fully packed car to Phoenix.

The drive itself would take about 5.5 hours, but I’d been thinking of stopping at an art installation in the desert called Salvation Mountain. I was undecided about going, because it would add almost two hours and take me on a more remote path. However, a friend of mine had done it before on her solo road trip and she agreed that it would be worthwhile. I changed my course and headed southeast of the interstate.

The first scenic viewpoints I passed were of the Salton Sea (pictured above), which is this kind-of-creepy and very isolated body of water that seems very out of place in the desert. I stopped in the nearby town of Bombay Beach—population 295 and apparently the lowest community in the United States. “Community” might be a bit of a stretch because the town seemed to be made up of abandoned trailers spray-painted with anarchist messaging and signs saying “Hipsters go home”. It definitely had a spooky scary movie energy, but the kind you can’t help but keep watching.

I wound a little further past that town and mapped my way to Salvation Mountain. Its bright colors were easy to spot from the rest of the flat, sandy scenery. The air was steaming hot, but I was too impressed by this artist's and community’s dedication to mind.

After about half an hour of sweating in Dr. Seuss-land, I got back on path and continued the journey. Pretty soon, i found myself in the midst of some surprise sand dunes that extreme Star Wars fans probably know more about than me. Nonetheless, I was very excited to park the car again and stop at an overlook.

Later, I had to stop at a border checkpoint and nervously explain my intentions. It went fine, and the terrain kept changing and keeping things interesting. I was well on my way to Phoenix… (to be continued).

Sisters in California: The rest!

I’m sorry to tell you, but most of the glorious highlights of our trip stopped after Yosemite. It was a boring drive back on the 5, however we adjusted the plan and went west to Santa Monica so we could at least enjoy a bit of beach time and our last donuts (some of my all-time favorites). After that, it was hard to keep my mind off the cross-country move that would be taking place TWO DAYS LATER. I forced Elayne to come with me to get my oil changed, which she did not really enjoy, but we did try a yummy coffee shop in Atwater Village. But then we walked over a mile in sweaty summer LA sunshine, so win some, lose some, ya know?

We tried to go bowling, and unfortunately there was a two hour wait, so we could only eat tacos. (Note to self: reserve your spot for the bowling before getting the tacos.) Then that was that. I brought Elayne to the airport and packed my car up to leave the very next day.

What a trip, though! I’m glad we could pack so many awesome activities (and donuts) into our week together. Until next time… maybe in another five years?

Sisters in California: Yosemite!

Anything I have to say about Yosemite seems very minuscule when compared to the beauty of the place itself. Our hostess was a true park expert, and she gave us great advice for planning the day, not to mention preparing a delicious and above-and-beyond breakfast in the morning. The park was crowded, of course, on a Sunday in summer, but it didn’t hinder our explorations at all. We parked at the far end of the village loop, rode the shuttle back in, and started by hiking the Mist Trail.

As we were climbing up the stairs and getting drenched by the waterfall, we saw a lovely little rainbow. iPhones are all waterproof now, right?!

After our hike, we rode the shuttle back to the car and drove up to Glacier Point. The views were breathtaking! I’ve been to Yosemite twice before (once as a baby), but this time felt like a whole new experience.

There was a little bit of traffic, and it takes a while to drive around the park at any time, however with these views we certainly didn’t mind. We added an extra hike in at the end by taking the Sentinel Dome trail. At the end of the day, we were glad to have taken the extra two miles, because it was much less crowded and offered similarly incredible vistas to Glacier Point.

Sisters in California: Day 4

After our few days of fun in LA, it was time to head up the coast for further adventures. Maybe I should have organized the itinerary a little better so that we didn’t do the bulk of our driving on a Friday, but of course, hindsight’s 20-20.

We left early in the morning so that we would have time to make a few stops. First, we checked out Solvang, a sweet little Danish that seems straight out of a storybook.

And you know we had to find more donuts! Nothing to see here…

After a long drive and a bit of traffic delay, we made it to Napa and our tasting reservation slot at Domaine Carneros. Elayne had organized this portion of the trip, but I’m always happy to sit by and sip sparkling wines on any Friday afternoon.

This vineyard ended up being our favorite in Napa.

After the tasting, we checked into our fancy hotel—a little too fancy for the amount of time we were able to spend in it, but still a nice escape from LA. We drove into the nearby town of Yountville for pizza and, obviously, more wine. When in Rome…

Sisters in California: Day 3

It’s nice to have a visitor in LA, so that you can do all sorts of touristy activities that you might not necessarily do on a normal day. Like take a Warner Bros. studio tour:

And hang out around Batmobiles:

I think this was the day we made waffles for breakfast at home using my mini waffle maker. And went to yoga. And were there donuts, too? There probably were.

At night, we met a few friends for dinner at Grand Central Market, a good option for visitors since it’s casual and everyone can get something different. We opted for mango beers and Thai food. Elayne rode a Bird scooter for the first time. Then it was time to get home and rest up for our big weekend adventure…

Sisters in California: Day 2

Wednesday had to be one of the best California days I’ve had yet! We woke up early to eat breakfast at my number one neighborhood haunt, Kitchen Mouse. Then we hiked up to a secret swing in Elysian Park.

I think we must have had donuts, too, since that seemed to be the theme of our trip.

After that, it was time to get ready for the wine safari. You heard that right. In Malibu, you can visit a farm/winery where they will drive you around in a safari bus to visit a giraffe, zebras, alpacas, etc.

Of course we paid extra for a meet and greet with Stanley the Giraffe. It was the highlight of our trip.

Look at that tongue! I think the animals are more of the draw than the wine at this particular wine safari, but the grounds are lovely to walk and ride around. And the sun came out exactly at the start of our tour.

When the tour was over, we likely needed something to absorb the booze, so we decided to revisit one of the stops from our first California sister’s road trip five years ago, Neptune’s Net. It was just as good as we remembered, though we probably didn’t need to eat this entire plate of fried seafood right before dinner, but we’re on vacation, right?

We stopped at Point Dume on the way back to take in some gorgeous views of the coast. Then it was back into the city for dinner. I wasn’t doing it intentionally, but I realized I’d added mainly vegan restaurants to the itinerary. My sister and I aren’t vegan, but the options here are just that delicious!

Oh yeah, of course while we were in WeHo, we had to stop and see some more “famous walls of LA”. Here’s the one whose fame shocks me the most. But, when touristing, you gotta do what you gotta do!

Sisters in California: Day 1

My sister, Elayne, landed at 10am last Tuesday, so, most appropriately, I met her at the airport with donuts and immediately brought her to take pictures in front of all the fancy, brightly-colored walls in Los Angeles. Just kidding, but not really…

We ate breakfast at my favorite Venice breakfast place, and I thought we would spend the day at the beach because I forgot it was still June and how LA gets very sad, cloudy, and rainy at this time of year. It was too cold and not exactly sunny vacation weather, but no matter; we strolled around to the Venice canals instead.

Yup. Did you know that Venice has peaceful little canals just like Italy? They don’t have any gondolas to hire, but apparently you can bring your own paddle boat or stand-up paddle board and use it at your leisure.

We walked the boardwalk after that and saw a pretty OK but also pretty drawn out street performance. It was still too chilly to enjoy the beach, so we had a snack and took a pretty nice and necessary yoga class to work off the donuts and said snack before dinner.

Dinner was at THE BEST RESTAURANT, The Butcher’s Daughter. Have you been there yet? They have one on the east coast and the west coast, so New York or California, no excuses. You have to go!

Although it was a little chilly to our liking—especially since Elayne has been working in a hectic veterinary internship all year and hasn’t seen the sun or light of day in a while—we made the most of things and had ourselves a nice west side day. Nevertheless, we were still crossing our fingers for some sunshine later in the trip.

Finding Your Tribe

I was sad to leave El Salvador and all of the adventurous, chill, and fun people I met on the retreat. Lucky for me, a lot of them live in LA, so I was already able to get ice cream with my new friend, Teri, and do more Buti yoga with Pixie. However, I’m a little bummed to feel like I’m finding my tribe in this city right as I’m about to leave again… [*life update here].

It’s been so fulfilling to find other people who want to build their lives into a grand adventure and who aren’t afraid to try something new on their own. I feel complemented and supported by others who aren’t cool with the, “Grow up and settle down” message in our society and who want to grow up and live their dreams while maintaining the playfulness and curiosity of childhood.

When I got back to LA, I spontaneously made a trip down to San Diego to see my friend Sara. We spent Saturday night singing karaoke songs in her living room and Sunday at the beach testing out our surf skills. We got tumbled by some waves, but that was OK. We were doing what we’ve always wanted to do and having a great time doing it.

On the drive home, I got a message from my friend inviting me to a PRIDE dinner party at her house. Everyone was requested to bring rainbow foods or drink to celebrate the opportunity to be oneself and the gift of love for everyone. I wasn’t planning to go home or to the grocery store; I had brunch plans with another friend. What do you know, during brunch that friend told me she had a collection of rainbow superfood powders and we could definitely put together a rainbow menu item. We spent the afternoon making colorful tie-dye waffles (she also happened to have a peace sign mini waffle maker!) and I had the perfect thing to bring to the party.

I’m going to miss all of these people so much! But if there’s anything I’ve learned from living in different places, it’s that your tribe doesn’t die when you leave. Sometimes it gets even stronger as it spreads out and new members are added. And then you end up feeling like you can land anywhere and find a sense of belonging.

Coming Home

Since I’ve gotten older and started traveling on more global adventures of my own, I am always trying to see how I can prolong the transformative effects of travel by making mini changes in my life when I get back home. As you can see, I’ve already started attempting to recreate the Covana Kitchen menu from our hotel. I did a pretty good job of replicating the fruit and chia pudding that was my favorite breakfast each morning.

But beyond copying the hotel breakfasts, the event that had the biggest impact for me during the trip was definitely our beach cleanup. Perhaps it was being in an a country that is so untouched and underdeveloped, but I felt that you could really see the impact that our American consumerism and wastefulness has on other places. I’ve started making lists (and following them) of how I can make my own small changes.

Some things I do to be kinder to the Earth:

• Carry reusable bags in the car- this one’s easy for me, since I’ve now lived in two cities that don’t offer plastic bags unless you pay for them. I wish all cities could be like this.

• Bring a reusable cup- I use this one, but you can find them everywhere. I keep one in my car and one in my backpack so I’m never without. Living in LA, I often find myself grabbing coffee on the run, which usually comes in a paper cup with a plastic lid, and don’t forget the sleeve, which is sometimes also made of non-recyclable materials.

• Ditch the plastic water bottles- This one is so simple in 2019. There are so many choices of cute bottles to choose from—even ones that keep your drink cold all day. No more buying plastic bottles that don’t last long and create a whole bunch of waste.

New habits I plan to change to make a difference:

• 5-minute beach cleanups- I am going to start doing this during every beach visit. When we looked around during surf lessons in El Salvador, you could see a lot of trash lining the shores. And a beach day in the US usually holds the same views. Picking up trash while we’re enjoying the ocean will help keep plastic out of the sea and instill the message in our minds that we need to make sure it doesn’t come close in the first place.

• Ditch all plastic- So, I’m good at brining my reusable mug and bag everywhere I go, but when I order a cold drink or I need silverware for my takeout and need a container, I’m pretty quick to forget my concerns about the environment. I don’t know why it happens so easily, but convenience often trumps what we know is right. The only solution, for me, is to make it more convenient to use my own reusable products. I’ve started putting hard limits on myself— I will not order something if it comes wrapped in plastic (sorry, favorite madeleine cookies from Starbucks) and skip silverware if I haven’t brought my own.

• No new clothes!- I’ve learned a ton about sustainable fashion this year, thanks to the owners of GFCLA, the jiu-jitsu studio I taught at in Chinatown. Erin and Dennys also run an awesome vintage clothing store, where they salvage clothing that would normally be thrown into a landfill and create cool new designs. Fast fashion is NOT good for the environment, and I’m certainly guilty of wanting more clothes for cheap (Hi, Target and H&M) than quality clothing for expensive. I did the no new clothes rule once for a year, but I cheated by letting my mom buy me things and restock my wardrobe. This year, I want to do it for real. It’s totally possible, thanks to the array of consignment stores, vintage shops, or even hosting your own clothing swap like my friend Suzie did a few weeks ago. Some of my favorite pieces have been hand me downs from old roommates or similar swaps in Austin!

I’m curious, are there any other changes you’ve made to your lifestyle to be more environmentally-friendly?

Playas and Pupusas

I’m back home in LA and missing our sweet retreat apartment—complete with bunkbed slumber parties and epic patio views— so much! Our last couple days in El Salvador were when we finally had a chance to kick back and relax. We had really front loaded the trip, because some retreaters were only able to stay for three days or five days, so a few people left on Wednesday after ziplining. Our end of the week was spent hanging by the pool, ordering massages, surfing, and doing yoga some more. I was a little tired for the fourth and final surf lesson, because we had just taken one of Pixie’s Buti Yoga classes. If you haven’t heard of it before, it’s this new, tribal dance style of yoga that is really popular among women, especially in the middle of the US. I LOVE it! It’s spreading its way out to the coasts, so if you’re looking to try something wild and new, see if there’s a class near you.

On our last night, we went back into the town of El Tunco to dance at the bar and eat pupusas. If you need one reason above all others to visit El Salvador, this would be it! Pupusas are these little corn tortilla pockets filled with whatever you like—beans, meet, veggies, cheese, etc.—and topped with a yummy tomato salsa and spicy cabbage slaw. Think quesadilla, but even better! They’re about 75 cents a piece in the town, so we had no trouble filling our bellies. 11/10 would recommend!

Braving the Sea

I have to admit, of all the activities on the trip, surfing was the one I was looking forward to the least. Growing up, I always wanted to be a surfer chick, back when I was shopping at Pacific Sunwear and wearing puka shell necklaces. Then I got older and actually tried a lesson. Turns out, surfing was way harder than it looked on TV! It wasn’t as easy as snowboarding, which I’d picked up in about a day or two. Surfing hurt. The first lesson I took was on a real fiberglass board, so I ended up with a lot of scratches and bumps from getting tumbled around underwater. Oh well, I’d just have to choose another life path besides surfing.

Another issue: when I was younger, I liked swimming in the ocean. I’d body surf and boogie board without any concerns for safety, but somewhere along the way, I lost that fearlessness and began to prefer staying closer the shore. Sometimes I’ll swim out farther, but I’m usually very cautious to go underneath the waves and, when it’s time to come in, I’ll swim or walk quickly to shore without letting any of them interfere.

I left for El Salvador feeling excited about the yoga and the waterfall jumping but pretty half-hearted about the prospect of catching waves. I thought might be able to stand up once or twice, but I probably wasn’t going to enjoy it. I was teaching on the retreat, though, so of course I would still join in and set a good example.

Two days later, we were lined up on the beach getting our first lesson from Marcelo, the founder of Puro Surf and the head instructor of their Academy Program. He led us in a breathing and stretching warmup that felt a lot like yoga. He broke down each of the steps in a simple way that we could repeat every time.

Something about his instruction must have stuck with us, because we all stood up in the water on the first day, and the next, and the next. The ocean was crazy warm, and the waves were small but powerful—perfectly manageable for beginners, which the majority of us were. By day three, I was really getting the hang of it. I noticed that when I was out in the water, I didn’t think about anything else besides reading the wave, feeling it push me, and following the steps to get up onto the board. My mind felt completely clear for the first time in a while. Surfing was a lot like yoga.

If the weather was sketchy or the waves too big, we would have our instruction in the hotel gym, just to make sure we were prepared for what we would see on the beach. One day, we even learned how to turn by riding skateboards outside the gym. I certainly never expected that at 31 years old I’d be rolling around a skatepark in El Salvador, but I guess there’s a time and a place for everything.

By the end of the trip, I had fallen in love with surfing. I wasn’t getting tumbled as often as the first two days, but I liked Marcelo’s main message. We were all going to get tumbled by the ocean at some point, so we had two choices. Choice number one: freak out! Choice number two: relax, stay calm, enjoy a little massage, and keep surfing. You can guess which option we all chose.

Beach Cleanup

Although we were busy enjoying the surf lessons and the ocean view from the yoga studio, we couldn’t forget the third part of the Surf Sweat Serve mission. On Tuesday afternoon, we joined students from the local school and a group of girls from the Medusas surf program to clean up the beach areas around the hotel. We brought our own reusable bags from home and gave a short presentation on how to make more conscious choices about using less plastic, recycling whenever possible, and reducing our overall impact on the environment.

I was impressed to find that most of the kids were already aware of what they could do to help stop pollution of our oceans and that most had done beach cleanups before . They were eager to get their hands dirty, and seeing their enthusiasm made me want to do more to make the earth a better place for them and future generations.

Over the weekend, we celebrated World Ocean’s Day. After our surf lesson, we did a quick, five-minute sweep of the beach, and all 15 or so of us were able to fill our arms with plastic trash, including silverware, bottle caps, and soles of shoes. I couldn’t help but feel depressed looking at our piles of garbage, knowing that it would probably still end up in a landfill just like the massive ones I’d seen in Nicaragua. The only real way to prevent plastic from destroying our environment is to use less of them.

Oftentimes, travel is not only about the fun you have on the trip, but what you can take away from it when you come back home. I am going to be making a more dedicated effort to observe my consumption habits and figure out changes I can make.

Zipline Time

The last time I was in Central America, I skipped ziplining because I was too evolved beyond the lures of zipling (and also poor), then I wrote about how the act of ziplining doesn’t matter and how it’s ok to walk down the hill instead. This time I decided walking down the hill while your friends are ziplining is PRETTY LAME (but still ok, if you’re intentional about it), so on Wednesday, we ziplined.

After a two hour van drive, we donned our helmets and harnesses and rode in the open-air truck up to the top of a mountain or hillside or whatever it was we would be zipping off of. I love how gung-ho everyone in our group was about activities. Of course everyone would be hitting the cables; there was no doubt about it.

We set off from about 15 different platforms and lines on the way down. The first few were tiny puddle jumpers, but they eventually led up to the longer main events. As we got further down, the clouds broke open into light rain. We had to switch out our leather gloves for waterproof versions, but a little water couldn’t stop us.

It started raining a lot harder once we were back in town. It was no concern to us, since we found a coffee shop/artesian store that served paninis with the greatest chimichurri of all time along with any variation of coffee brewing technique your heart might desire. Who knew a little town in El Salvador would have the latest espresso machines, Chem X, V60, and french presses? I can’t tell the difference, but I can recognize a master barista when I see one.

To our delight, the rain ceased when we finished our lunch, and we were able to explore the town of Apaneca. I always love getting out of the resort and seeing what the actual country is like. This is one of the best I’ve seen. The people are very welcoming and the little streets have so much character—there were so many adorable paintings on the walls and telephone poles; I couldn’t resist photographing all the bright colors and intricate doorways.

We could’ve easily spent the whole day here, venturing down side streets and picking up on even more details. I know many countries have their dangers and that we should always be careful when in a new environment, but I truly have not found where all the warning messages about El Salvador come from. We’ve been in a big group with knowledgable guides, but the locals have all been friendly, well-educated, and kind.

Getting out into the town makes me feel even more that El Salvador is a gem of a country and should not be missed.

Chasing Waterfalls in Tamanique

Although it’s tempting to spend every possible moment basking in the sun and infinity pool at the hotel, we’ve managed to be very active during our time here. On Monday, we drove away from the resort to explore more of the countryside. We were dropped off in the town of Tamanique, and our guide led us down a dirt path to hike to a waterfall.

It’s the end of the rainy season, so the scenery is lush and vibrant. We hiked for about an hour, winding down the hillside and listening to the sounds of the rushing waters below us.

Once we got to the waterfall, don’t tell my mom and dad, but we jumped off the 20 ft. cliffs into the waters below. Our group of 12 was finally all together, after a few late arrivals due to varying travel plans and work schedules. There were a few different heights, but everyone ended up jumping off one of the cliffs! It’s been a blast to be with such an adventuresome crew.

We could hear the sounds of an afternoon thunderstorm rumbling in the distance, and our guide urged us to get dressed quickly so we’d have time to visit the second, lower waterfall. We hiked a little further down, and jumped in to swim underneath the cascading streams.

I almost didn’t go in on the bottom level, because I’d dried off and didn’t want to get wet again. That would have been a mistake, because it started raining heavily while we were all in the water. The guide rushed us out and warned that the waters could rise quickly. We scrambled to put on our clothes and shoes, then slid over the muddy rocks to pull ourselves out. After a fast and breathless hike up the trail, we were back in the town, soaking wet but smiling. It was a sticky and soggy ride home in the van, but we all made it back safe and sound to Puro Surf to dry off.

Enchanting El Salvador

We’ve been here since Friday, but it already feels like we’ve moved in and might be staying down here forever. The world is feeling peaceful, complete with perfect patio views, enriching connections, and new surroundings. We’ve experienced a few yoga classes, a couple of surf lessons, and a cultural visit into the town of El Tunco.

I can’t say I’ve seen a better yoga studio view in my time as a student or teacher:

It’s always a little intimidating to teach a new group of people, but I’m glad everyone has been keeping an open mind and showing up for class, whether they’ve done yoga a bunch of times or only once or twice. I’m so appreciative that they’ve created space and trust to have me as an instructor.

We’ve had two surf lessons so far. The waves right in front of our hotel are too difficult for beginners, so we’ve been driving about 20 minutes away to another beach. We learned and practiced techniques in the sand before heading into the water. I’d had one surfing lesson before coming here, but the lessons here have been a lot more structured and easy to pick up. Everyone stood up on the boards on their first days! The second day waves were more forceful, but we all rode some, and I’m getting more comfortable being tumbled and feeling less afraid of the ocean.

I think the hotel vistas speak for themselves! Puro Surf is a sweet hideaway surrounded by black sand beaches and little hidden caves. They consciously collect rainwater from the thatched roof and use reusable straws/silverware for all of their drinks and dishes. The surf instructors are some of the best (and best-looking :P ) around!

On Sunday night, we went into the nearby town of El Tunco for drinks by the beach and to celebrate one of the retreater’s birthdays. It’s been a treat to get to know everyone who came from as close as LA and as far as Hong Kong and Australia.

We’re having an awesome time and the days are jam-packed and flying by! I’ll be sharing more adventures as the week goes on.

We made it to El Salvador!

We made it to El Salvador this morning, and things are looking bright! I’m going to be here for the week teaching yoga on a retreat with Surf Sweat Serve. Today we’re finalizing the details of the itinerary, getting settled in, and eating lots of yummy fruit for second breakfast.

I’ve already seen chickens wandering in the road and a mid-day parade featuring fireworks, because what else would one expect in Central America? It’s the perfect mix of sun and clouds, humid (how I like it), and gorgeously green!

i can’t wait to see what surf lessons have in store for me!

My Favorite Things About Savannah, GA

1. My mom lives there

   We just passed Mother’s Day, so this has to be a big one! If Savannah didn’t already have enough to offer, this makes it an easy choice for a favorite city. I missed posting on the actual Mom’s day (has it really been almost a month since the last post? Yikes, sorry about that!), but I spent Easter Weekend in Georgia with my mom... and at the community clubhouse eating all the shrimp cocktail at the brunch buffet.

2. It’s green everywhere

Savannah is known for its lush garden squares and Spanish moss hanging from all the trees. It’s Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil brought to life; a little spooky and mysterious at night, but perfectly enchanting during the day. I haven’t taken a ghost tour yet, but it’s sure to be on the list someday.

3. Food in all forms

Since my mom and stepdad started living down here, over ten years ago, the food scene seems to have evolved a bit. Of course, we can and do still find our favorites—southern fried chicken and mashed potatoes at the Pink House, classic sandwiches from Zunzi’s (though I miss the old food truck), or mini chocolate chip cookies from Byrd. This time, we added some new kids on the block. Grilled cheese with curried tomato soup served in a Warhol-esque Campbell’s can at Atlantic—they were playing Dark Side of the Moon to accompany Wizard of Oz on a projector screen. Very hip; very youthful! Aussie fare from Collin’s Quarters that took me back to two months earlier at Bondi Beach. And one of the tastiest vegan restaurants I’ve tried yet. In the middle of Georgia! Can you believe it?! I guess it’s not that surprising when you consider the fact that Savannah’s also home to SCAD (Savannah College of Art & Design), one of the country’s best art schools, which brings me to #4…

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4. The arts

It turns out, Savannah is not only a city for brunching, drinking, visiting my mom, and walking around fancy squares, though you could occupy quite a bit of your time with all of that. It also has a very fulfilling cultural scene and a continuous supply of youthful energy from incoming college students. Every year, there’s the huge Savannah Music Festival and the Savannah Book Festival featuring well-known artists and authors from all around. In day-to-day life, there is an impressive amount of museums, galleries, and artsy shops to keep you inspired and your creative well full.

5. Nature

Believe it or not, some of my wildest natural sightings have occurred while visiting my mom in Savannah. There’s usually an alligator or two sunning themselves along the banks of the ponds or the edges of golf courses. And there are often cute little turtles basking on the rocks nearby. I’ve seen a few owls up in the trees while out on my trail runs. One time, I even saw the biggest snake of my life sneaking around the outside of the house! My mom lives a bit outside of downtown, so I never know what to expect.

Can’t wait for the next visit back down here.

Penguin Parade

I hadn’t quite gotten my fill of animal sightings, even after our Sydney zoo tour featuring the koala breakfast, so I rallied Mike for another one-day bus tour, and we took a voyage down to Phillip Island to see the parade of penguins. Every night (I think) at this point about 2 hours from Melbourne, a number of tiny penguins waddle in from the sea and make their way up to their wooden nest boxes on the coast to sleep or feed their kids or mate (very noisy) or whatever else penguins do in their nests. I was told there would be hundreds of penguins to view, so it sounded like a sight worth seeing. Count us in.

But first, we needed to find more kangaroos, so we were taken to a stop at an animal sanctuary where they had koalas, emus, and a dingo for viewing and a bunch of kangaroos for feeding.

The kangaroos were very relaxed and open to being fed, but the whole feeding event really was a testament to the ridiculousness of human behavior when new animals are present. Everyone was crowding, poking, and generally bothering the very calm kangaroos, so it was a little disheartening.

After the sanctuary, we visited the beach and ordered iced coffee, which is actually either coffee with ice cream or with a whole bunch of sugar. I should’ve just gotten a Golden Gaytime like everyone else was doing.

We stayed in our habit of not listening to the time we were supposed to be back on the bus and then arriving to find we were the last ones on the bus. Then it was time for a stop at a place called the Nobbies, which held excellent seascape views and the Seal Rocks where, unfortunately, the seals are too far away for the naked eye to see.

Finally, onto the much awaited final destination. We arrived at the penguin march around 7 and entertained ourselves with a light dinner and sunset vistas while waiting for the penguin migration.

They started coming in around eight o’clock and, I must say, there were far fewer penguins than we were expecting. Like, we saw 8 when we were expecting hundreds. Still cool to see I suppose, but also a bit anticlimactic after all the hype of waiting. However, when we turned around to walk back to the van, we did see at least tens, if not hundreds of the tiny birds. The trip was saved, either by the viewing of the penguins or by the hot chocolate that was waiting for us when we got back.