Old friends

I love those old friends that you only see once a year who always can bring a smile to your face. Thank you, friends, for a fantastic holiday party!

Of warm sand and warm baths

Encinitas is lovely. Just lovely! When I drive around I can't believe how fast I forgot how lovely it is! It may be December 22nd and many people are shoveling snow and huddled around fireplaces, but us San Diegoians are sitting at the beach in bikinis and eating lunch. Well, not me. I read a book while my toes were submerged in the wa
rm top sand. Warm breezes floated by, muffling the sounds of annoying children. This is the part I love about coming 'home.' The part I don't love? It has changed so much! I wanted to visitmy elementary school and I got lost on the roads because roads have been added, houses been built, and entire neighborhoods are standing where there used to just be greenhouses. I did visit my pre-school, and thankfully that hasn't changed.

My favorite record store has moved into the the smallest space and no longer carries as much 'new' music. Maybe if I go eat a burrito my outlook on life will cheer up.

I did take a bath. That helped my outlook on life, despite my overly pink childhood bathroom.

I have not seen many people yet. I did see Amanda, Justin, Ryan, and an awesome a girl named Bri. We went to a 'bar' in Del Mar that was supposed to be 'off the hook.' Instead we got a mostly empty sports bar with a bitchy waitress. We chatted but soon fled to Amanda's Grandmother's house in the Del Mar hills. More talking ensued and I finally got home around 1:30am. The whole drinking with friends then having to drive home thing stinks. I like being able to walk home, take a bus, or a 20$ cab from almost anywhere to get to my bed at night. But until San Diego gets smaller and easier to navigate it looks like I'll be drinking in moderation and spending hours in the car driving.

If you squint your eyes you should be able to tell who is who.

Suburbia

I basically woke up to the sound of a lawnmower. That's a sound I forgot about long ago.

Another journey

I haven't posted since 1/2 way through coming back home from the UK? All my fans never got a decompression post about my reflections and how I grew up in those 7 weeks traveling alone? Sorry. I guess you'll never get it now. Just know that I had a great time filled with lots of highs and a handful of lows. I made great memories and can positively say that I have been bitten by the travel bug.

So here I am. True it's not a very exciting travel adventure I am embarking on, but it is still a journey none-the-less. I just got home in Encinitas at my parent's house. I am typing this from my childhood room and bed. Strange.

Recap? Sure! Work, Dasha drove me to the airport, I got on a plane, sat next to a guy with a dog, read, de-planed, got rental car, drove to ENC. Much to my joy I see that my parents put up Christmas lights all over the juniper and along the balcony. Here is a photo to prove it. I love it.



I walk in at 11:30PM, the front door is unlocked, and my father is sleeping on the couch while Mom is watching TV. I get hugs. And kisses. Offerings of food. Water. Dad brings my suitcase upstairs. I quick chat and everybody is ready for bed. They even outfitted my bed with an electric blanket. And it was turned on all ready for my cold toes.

Tomorrow is going to yoga with my Mom. My parents just joined a gym and I have a day pass to go with them. I'm dragging my Mom to her first yoga class and I think she'll like it a lot. Dad'll do cardio. I'll also take lots of photos and post. It's nice to be back, even if it is much too quiet at nighttime. I almost miss the 21-Hayes bus going past every 15 minutes.

OOOHHHH OH! I'm half way there

A long day of travel and I'm only half way done. After getting little sleep in london because somebody in my hostel room had to take each plastic bag they owned, look through it in depth then transfer it to another piece of luggage for 25 minutes at 1am. WHY?!?

Shuttle, crowded Heathrow, strong latte, seven hour flight. I watched Limitless, Kung Fu Panda 2, and Arthur. Read. No sleep. Coughed a lot while sitting bitch (in between two other people). Chatted with an awesome Irish lady.

Got to JFK and waited for six hours. Too long. So long. Nice part is that I see an alum from work and her parents. I finally get a lovely chat with someone I know and realize how one-sided it was. Whoops.

DELAY FOR ANOTHER HOUR. Will I ever get home? My sleep schedule is in your hands Virgin America. Be kind.

One more night

It is my last night in London. My last night in the UK. I haven't updated as much as I originally wanted to and I apologize for that. I thought poking words into my iphone wouldn't be that annoying but it was. I did not update or email as often as I should. Good thing to remember for my next trip: bring something to type on with two hands.

I will do a quick re-cap of my last days since I last posted from Wales. I went to Bath and got in somewhat late but thanks to the crazy sunshine out here I had plenty of hours to walk around in daylight. Bath is so serene and one of my more favorite cities in England. It was relaxed. Nobody was rushing anywhere. The buildings were amazing beautiful. The air was warm with just enough breeze. I would happily go back there in an instant. There were a lot of green spaces that were just begging for me to sit in them and read but I could only do so much. After my first day of wandering about it was time to go to bed. It didn't go as well as planned. My first attempt of sleep ended up in a coughing fit and I found myself sitting in the common room watching "Angels & Demons" with a creepy local Bath resident who wanted to talk to me about the different ways of spelling and pronouncing yogurt (yoghurt). I tried to go back to bed again but that didn't last long because I didn't want to keep those around me up all night so it was back to the common room again. I fell asleep on the couch, sitting up, while the TV showed reruns of Friends. It was a pathetic sight but the weird Bath resident pointed me in the direction of the local health clinic. I went there the next morning.

The clinic was helpful with no wait. The nurse listened to my lungs and said 'ick'. It was pretty bad. She told me I should have come in much much sooner. I never learn. I was prescribed Amoxocillin for seven days to clear up the widespread infection in my lungs. Four days later it has helped me falling asleep but my lungs still feel heavy. Looks like I'll be visiting my doctor when I get back into town. I'm dubbing this the 'hobo cough'. If you ask nicely I'll tell you how I think I got this hobo cough but I'd rather not write about it online. It's embarrassing and gross.

The rest of Bath contained the Roman Baths for me which were fantastic. And HUGE. I thought I'd see a couple of old rectangular pits with dirty water in them and I was sorely wrong. It was a fantastic sight.

Then I went to Oxford and WOW. I thought the buildings in Bath were neat but these were neater. Old large buildings and a big university. I would gladly live in Oxford for a year. It was humming with energy but surrounded by gardens and old buildings. Plus there was a river flowing through the middle which means in my future canalboat holiday I could pull up anchor there for a bit.

The next day I got a fancy hotel room to myself so I could pack my bag and get a good nights rest. When I unpacked my bag, to repack, I couldn't find my pants. In a span of 12 hours I lost my only pair of jeans. Where I have no idea. Maybe my hostel in Oxford. Maybe they fell out of my bag on the train when I got my sweater out. Now I'm pantsless.

My fancy hotel had a swimming pool and it was so warm outside I couldn't contain my excitement. I gathered up my items, book and towel and camera and a snack and antibiotic, but the elevator said to get to the pool go to level '-1'. Bwah? It was a small indoor pool next to a steam room with an old lady watching over it. I felt like she was judging my every move in the water. Weird. Hotel pools should be outside in the sunshine. Always.

Now it is my last night in London. I didn't do much besides sit in a park and read. I walked by a flower market but they were closing up. I ate some ice cream. I made my last microwaved dinner for a long time at the hostel. The bus to the airport comes to get me in 8 hours. I should get some sleep but I'm too excited and nervous. Heathrow to JKF to SFO. It is going to be a long day but it will pay off when I get to hug two friends at the airport. It's been a long time since I hugged a good friend. It's the little things you end up missing. Oh and Ness. I'll see you soon. You better remember who buys your food.

A whale of a time in Wales

After two group trips and so many hostels sleeping in rooms with more strangers than I can count I treated myself to something special in Cardiff, Wales. I got my own hotel room for THREE NIGHTS. I paid a pretty penny/pound for it but it was worth it the moment I walked into that room.

I had left my hostel in Dublin early, 9.30am, to find the ferry to Wales. My plan was simple, put all my stuff on my back and walk towards the water. It wasn't that easy. I walked for two and a half hours sweating out whatever water my body felt like retaining while I coughed out the rest in globs. I wasn't a pretty sight when I rolled up to the ticket counter. Next ferry was at 2.30pm so I fell asleep in the terminal unable to buy any food because they only took euros and I spent my last one the night before on dinner I didn't eat. I had 12 pounds in change but they didn't care, so I slept. Then ferry. Then two trains. Then finally I got into Cardiff to check in at 11pm.

I was so happy I put my bag down to take photos then tripped over my bag as I ran across the room to look at my view. It wasn't worth the faceplant. King sized bed. Unnecessary couch. Kettle. TV. Hairdryer. Then I thought about the bathroom, and maybe I'd finally get my bath. In cruel, but hilarious, twist of fate I was in a disabled room and had a shower with a seat in it. But none the less it was all MINE. For three days. I went NPP and watched TV for too long. The best show in the world is by children's BBC called 'Horrible Histories'. YouTube it. It should be there. I watched hours of it. When I wasn't hacking my lungs up. I bought more meds. But never did I had a nice restful night. The last night there was the worst. At 1.30am I woke myself up by coughing so hard. I couldn't get a breath in. It felt like asthma, TB, and tonsillitis all at once. I had tears from my eyes and snot from my nose. Not a pretty picture. I'm glad I was alone. I sort of fell asleep sitting up right after drinking some hot honey water. Another near death experience avoided. When I woke up I felt much better. My sore throat was gone. And I trained over to Bath trying not to freak out the lady next to me with my deep throaty voice.

Cardiff was gorgeous. I wish I felt better to have experienced it. There was this park attached to the Cardiff Castle that was so serene you never knew you were in the middle of a city. There were big meadows just like Golden Gate Park but this was flat and was dotted with trees in the middle. You heard the rustling of leaves and not the sound of that screaming kid who got punched by their older sibling. I would have loved to have stayed there longer if the sun kept being warm and that one guy didn't creep me out (sitting to close to me and following me around when I walked somewhere). Also the signs were always in Welsh first and everything was extremely difficult to pronounce. I didn't talk enough to people to get a good/bad vibe off of them but I can tell you I love BBC TV. They are hilarious and get away with showing some very naughty stuff on TV.

Now I'm in Bath. Tomorrow is stonehenge. There is a Spaniard intensely watching Angels & Demons on DVD while two French girls giggle while on their phones. I miss my single room already. I'm coming home soon Ness, put some pants on and get those RSVPs back for my welcome home party.