Whew! Yesterday I was in AZ and now am in CA. Let’s backtrack, eh? Get cozy. Seriously. You’re about to read two days’ worth of stories.
Yesterday after I woke up and ate a marvelous plate of eggs, I debated between staying home and going out. I chose the latter, though it did cost me ten dollars to take a taxi one mile or so down the road to the shopping mall. The weather was fantastic and I wore a sundress which felt fabulous. Nobody was home except the dogs and I wanted to bust the cabin fever, so I did what every girl likes to do…shop. After an hour or so, Jake’s friend Anna picked me up and we cruised to Scottsdale so meet Jake at work. I got to see more scenic passes through the valley and the sun felt fantastic. Scottsdale, I learned, is a big city, but it is big in length. Going through the towns is quite lovely. It’s just awesome to see how different things are. Anna and I had lunch at Chik-Fil-A (first time ever) and then we parted ways. Poor girl was in a tizzy about not having her paycheck, and by tizzy I mean ready to deck someone in the face. I do hope she got it, otherwise I feel very sorry for anyone who was responsible.
You may be wondering, “Oh Naseem, why ever did you go meet Jake at work?” Well, you see, yesterday we commuted to San Diego, so we rented a car, and I needed to drive the rental car back to Jake’s while Jake drove home in his car. No big deal, right? Not until I saw Jake whip the car around the corner and pull next to his Civic. No big deal that we drove a frickin 2010 silver Mustang to California. Awww yeah ladies and gentlemen, we rode in style, and this girl got to breeze down AZ freeways behind that wheel with the radio blasting and the biggest shit-eating grin on my face. I. Felt. Fabulous.
We got home, packed, changed, got directions to Bengt and Bitta’s (Theresa, if you will) place (friends of Jake and Kate), then left almost as soon as we came. Despite a few holdups earlier, we made great time in getting ready and hit the road between 5:30 and 6:00 p.m. From the Phoenix area, it’s about a six hour drive to San Diego, but the trip was made bearable by good company and even better conversation. We peeled out of the valley area and drove through Maricopa before we hit I-85 W, and it was here that I really saw the desert, even asking Jake to pull over so I could photograph the mountains and cacti, completely disregarding my open toed sandals and the possibility of snakes and other creatures. By the time we got on the open stretch of road that would carry us into California, the sun was beginning to set, the mountains were turning purple and hazy, and I experienced a sliver of the otherwise vast sensation of what it might have felt like to be a cowboy or a New Englander in the 19th century meandering Westward into the vast depths of our nation. After a while, we pulled into a rest stop for bathroom purposes, and I wandered around photographing the sun actually lowering herself over the desert, finally tucking away beneath the horizon line so all that was left in sight were blue and violet washes in the sky kissed with streaks of glimmering copper clouds. By this time, it was dark, and I felt content with the desert photos I had. We piled in the car and continued Westward. We stopped again in Yuma, AZ to eat and stretch, and it was here the drive got interesting.
The road we took (85 W) grazes the U.S./Mexico border by about five miles or so. Yuma is about, oh, approximately thirty minutes from the AZ/CA border. Jake and I stopped at a gas station and ate at Jack In The Box, which was good but oh so greasy. We felt refreshed after the food and I bought myself a too-sweet hot chocolate, but hey, it’s vacation. We then piled back into the car and continued. Shortly after leaving Yuma, we came to a check point of sorts, indicating that we approached the state border. It wasn’t much of a check. We went through a toll lane and the gentleman at the booth asked us where we were coming from. We answered “Phoenix” and he waved us on, wishing us a good night. All was dandy and then about fifteen minutes later, we noticed that traffic started getting slightly backed up. Then we noticed the bright ass lights rigged up alongside the road. Another check point, although it looked makeshift. Patrolmen were walking along the shoulder with drug-sniffing dogs. No speaking was involved here, you simply drove by very, very slowly, the dog would sniff the vehicle as it passed, and if old Fido didn’t start barking up a storm, you were waved on. At first it seemed like it was a rather epic event but ended up being a little disappointing. We did, however, see ATVs cruising around to our left, shining lights into the bushes, and Jake explained to me that Border Patrol ride ATVs at night looking for illegal crossers sleeping in the shrubs. On our left we saw nothing but vast blackness and occasionally, bright lights indicating the country border check points.
After these escapades, we started ascending into the mountains. The pressure change was annoying at first. We climbed 4ooo feet just zooming along on these roads. There was nothing but utter blackness and I could see every star in the sky. I craned my neck at odd angles to gaze upon them. Seeing the silhouettes of the mountains against the velvety blue of the night sky made me feel small and insignificant and filled me with admiration and reverence.
When we came out of the mountains, we had about thirty minutes left of the drive, and oh what a lovely thirty minutes, as we had descended into the San Diego valleys and the lights just glittered as we drove on. We reached our destination in the Del Mar neighborhood shortly after 11:00 p.m., where we were greeted by Bengt and the chipper puppy, Rossi. He showed us around and we had brief conversation before all three of us retired. What a lovely home in a lovely neighborhood. The best part? The comfy bed. I fell asleep almost immediately after hitting the sheets.
This morning we woke up shortly after 9:00 a.m. and sauntered downstairs where I met Bitta, a sweet woman with pretty eyes and the nicest disposition. She insisted we make ourselves at home and help ourselves to whatever we fancied. Wishing us a good day, she departed for work and we set about making eggs and toast and coffee. Rossi jumped at our ankles and we had a lovely morning. After breakfast, we washed the dishes, cleaned up, and got ready for THE BEACH THE BEACH THE BEACH. A trip to Target was required and Bitta lent us her GPS, TomTom (Watson, we call him, for he has a mild British accent), who led us in a loopdeloop around several highways and local streets, unnecessarily complicating the commute to Target. By the time we were ready to actually go to the beach, it was nearly noon.
The day was spent at Mission Beach, about fifteen minutes away from the B & B resort. Primarily a college beach with white sand, tan skin, and clear water, it was probably the most beautiful one I have been to. There was a rollercoaster on the boardwalk too and some shops, but different from other boardwalk shops I’ve seen on the East Coast. Also, this was a monumental first trip to the Pacific Ocean for me! The parking gods blessed us too, as we found a spot in a public lot right across from the main street that divides the parking from the ocean, and we secured a spot right near the entrance. The beach gods also smiled upon us, because not only was it a clean beach (minus all the washed up seaweed, miscellaneous oceanic flora, and buzzing creatures above said flora), but it was not busy at all. We found a good spot to hunker down, and after slathering on sunscreen, I ran into the waves much like a child. They were cold, but I didn’t care. The seaside is my holy place, its waves my deities, and I always feel so calm and content whenever I am near them. Temperature does not faze me and I felt so lucky to be splashing around in clear water. Many seashells and rocks were collected and many photographs snapped. We stayed on the shore for a few hours, then packed up and sauntered along the gorgeous boardwalk, with its marvelous properties and beautiful people. We ended up exploring on top of a jetty but I felt slightly nerve wracked hopping from rock to rock. I kept thinking I was going to slip, fall, bust my knees, bust my camera, misstep and tumble, but it was fine. Slow going (barefoot at times), but great actually. I got some splendid photos.
Around 5:00 we left the beach and got a taste of California rush hour. After getting back to the B & B resort, we showered quick and departed shortly thereafter to University Heights to visit my Aunt Victoria. What an adorable neighborhood, really old and battered with a charm of its owns that no hoitey toitey neighborhood can match. Auntoria was cooking away in the kitchen and her house, though tiny in size, was big in warmth and attitude. The three of us schmoozed and drank wine and feasted on her fabulous appetizers. Eventually I ended up taking her headshots for her business cards and we had fun deviating from this track and taking silly pictures. Auntoria is a licensed acupuncturist and a shaman so she showed me and Jake her new “toys,” which include a moya drum and tuning forks tuned to planetary frequencies. Her new dig is sound healing and we had a blast being zenned-out by her forks, so much so that we ended up getting sleepy. After a great evening with lots of hugs and laughing, she sent us on our way. Jake and I stopped in Normal Heights, the adjacent hood, to a funky coffee shop so we should buy beans for Bitta and Bengt as a thanks-for-lettings-us-chill-here gift. We got home, oh, around 11:00 ish, and I started writing this at 11:15. It’s now 12:05.
Tomorrow is our last day here. We plan on taking a trip to the Meditation Gardens in Escondido and spending another day on the beach before departing this beautiful city at 6:00 p.m. or so. We had entertained the idea of taking a day trip to Los Angeles to visit friends and see the city, but that would require getting up in five hours to avoid traffic. Yeah not happening.
Thanks for sitting tight and reading! If you went through this whole thing, you deserve a high five. Vacation ends Saturday, but look for a new post Friday-ish.
xoxo,
n
P.S.: 12:10
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