My First Road Trip!

This past weekend, I went on my first road trip sans parents.  My friend Emily and I headed down to the Bay Area to see Panic! at the Disco play in Oakland.  We decided to get a head start, hitting the road about 8 am and arriving in Berkeley around 1:30.  After a little food and shopping, we decided to visit the botanical gardens at UC Berkeley.

Then, we continued to head up the mountain and got completely lost in the search for steam trains in Tilden Park.  We eventually arrived at the closed building but we were rewarded with an amazing view of the Bay Area. It was absolutely spectacular.  We could see everything from downtown Berkeley to the Golden Gate Bridge. 

Once the sun set, we headed over to Oakland for the concert.  The Fox Theater was packed.  Panic! at the Disco definitely pulled out all the stops.  Brendon Urie's high notes were amazing and the atmosphere was just fantastic.  I absolutely love seeing a band perform.  Unlike listening to a CD or watching a movie, at a concert or show, you are sharing an experience with the artist rather than just enjoying what they made.  When Panic! played 'I Write Sins Not Tragedies', the joy on the band's face as we sang louder than them was fantastic.  Brendon actually stopped singing and just listened to us.  It was so wonderful to see us, the viewer, make the band as happy as they make us.  

I am incredibly happy that I was able to take this trip.  It was really exciting to be both without my parents and outside of my normal environment.  This was my first trip entirely independent and without much of a plan.  The fact that it went so well makes me more confident about the rest of the new experiences coming up this year.  Also, I'm already planning to go back in late July to see the Neighborhood! 

Trinidad, California // Car Adventures

The other day my friends and I went on a drive and found this wonderful vista point.  We were driving along the coast in Trinidad and just decided to park at this random turnout.  It had a little path which lead from the turnout to  a rock that jetted about 500ft into the ocean. It was really cool to be up so high and have waves crashing all around you.  Plus it was absolutely gorgeous even with the misty rain coming down.

I really love finding places like this in my own backyard.  No one has to travel hundreds of miles to find something exciting or beautiful.  If you look hard enough or just travel outside of you're comfort zone, you'll find something amazing. I used to be frustrated by living three hours from a decent mall or movie theatre but recently I've accepted that certain entertainments are not available where I live and I need to appreciate the ones I do have, namely nature.  

Now that I'm looking at where I will live next year for college, the idea of being away from the ocean worries me.  I go to the beach at least twice a month and drive past the bay every single day.  Living in a non-coastal town will be different, to say the least, but I want to make sure I appreciate the ocean while I have it.

 

Ocean World // Car Adventures

Yesterday, I went on a road trip with some friends up to Crescent City.  My friend Dana had never visited the aquarium up there called Ocean World, so we decided to head up there!

The highlight of the trip was definitely the seal/sea lion show. Everyone had broad grins and the girls definitely squeed a few times.

Look at how cute that is! You can't say no to those faces.

This is the laziest seal I have ever seen.  I swear she only moved a foot the entire time we were there.

There was also a tide pool.  Growing up on the coast, we were all very familiar with tide pools. However, I don't think there I will ever not want to hold a starfish in my hand.

Velvet Starfish.  This is my favorite Starfish ever they're just so soft!

The underside of a starfish, in case you were wondering.

Now onto the actual aquarium part.  It's rather small but stuffed full of sharks and stingrays.  Our tour guide scared the crap out of us by explaining how many sharks live in our local ocean.  Apparently there are quite a few Great Whites! I'm not surfing anytime soon.  The small ones were pretty cute though.

Leopard Shark

Stingray! Aren't they cute! The also feel awesome if you ever have that opportunity.

 Finally, we were able to touch some sharks! Weirdly enough these sharks actually wanted to be petted.  The two leopard sharks, the long ones along the edge, kept coming up to us.  The sharks felt like sandpaper if sandpaper was alive.  I always thought they would be soft and kinda velvety like velvet starfish but nope.

 Ocean World was definitely worth the almost 4 hour round trip drive. Amazingly it only cost us $10 to do all of this!  Next time you happen to be on the northcoast of California, ahahahaha never, I'd suggest a stop.  The whole trip took about 45 min.

Car Adventures: Ferndale Cemetery

I used to hate this place as a child.  It didn't help that I usually went with my grandmother who would point out her recently deceased friends to me.  The trip always ended in tears for me.  This time was better.  Though still melancholy, I walked through the entire park and left with a reinstated vigor for life.

View From The Top

Infant Death one of many

She's just Sleeping

Beautiful flowers planted on a grave

I'm really glad I decided to stop by the cemetery today. It helped to calm me down and put everything in a different perspective.  Yes, school and smarts are important but so is living.  I am alive and so many more are dead.  I better not waste it.

Car Adventures

I live in the middle of nowhere.  Okay, I'm slightly exaggerating, but the town I live in is as boring as the middle of nowhere.  There are three tiny towns where the pinnacle of excitement is the movie theater. Though I love movies, it can get old quickly.  Therefore, I've decided to start exploring my county.  My goal is to find new campsites, hiking trails, beaches and, ultimately, places that make me love where I live.  A couple days ago, I started this endeavor.  Two friends and I took a 30 min car trip up into the hills that surround the bay that our town is located on.

Driving a mom van up the hills was a little terrifying for the two
of us not driving but we made it safely!

Once we were there it was beautiful.  It was a 'warm' winter day (about
50-55° F) but there was still a ton of snow. 

By the ocean, it never snows, so we reveled in this rarity.           

We also spent a lot of time cow gazing.  There was the cutest baby
but it was too far away to get a picture.

All three of us can't wait to go back. It was so peaceful.  We saw a sign
for a town 30 more miles down the road and we plan to visit it soon!

Do you ever search for new places near home?  What have you found? How do you suggest finding places?