hello all!

this journal entry definitely means a lot to me and is a trip that i think about a ton, and pumped to share the places we hit on our 24 hr road trip!

so to dive into the glamorous salty coast...

we started off this very last minute trip to attend the Pan Pacific Games (PPG) - a stand-up paddleboard (sup) competition by flying out of vancouver (YVR) to los angeles (LAX). us with our sup paddle bag along wth carry-on bags hit the blue sky and landed in sunset. huge shout-out to coast outdoors for being our go-to adventure shop (sup, paddle, bag) thank-you!

LAX and our rental car. i wish that i took a pic of the car that we originally were assigned to because it was soo small. basically a smart car. the size of our paddles alone would never fit and being on foreign grounds… we figured this was not the place to test the legality of shooting the paddles out of the car window. so geordie negotiated a better car and drove away in a hyundai tusan!

insert... geordie (my boyfriend) is the one who organized basically everything on this 
trip and made it a smooth go and so much fun. thanks love!

car - check!
navigation - check!
snacks & coffee - hell yeah!
music - on point!

dana point was next. we got in around 1 am and stayed at an air bnb that was clean, spacious, and had a kitchen that we could make our oatmeal in. perfect! we spent 2 nights here.

insert.. things that happened here.

enjoyed mexican food
met amazing people
experienced one tough sup race (beach break, beach start, current, surf)

24 hr ROAD TRIP was next! seriously amazing. i wish that i could express how much i loved this trip and if you were beside me right now… you would probably feel the vibrations leaving my entire body.

laguna beach was the start of our road trip… well after dana point. the drive up the coast was surreal. after dropping a friend off at LAX airport (5:30 am) geordie ended up grabbing the wheel and i blasted the beats while both fully tuning into the beauty of sunrise amongst concrete skyscrapers. dodging most of the traffic. laguna beach was the most stunning coffee stop ever.

laguna beach felt like a tourist town with a beautiful beach, clean town, safe, and probably a bit of a retiree community. it was nice to be away from the city and on the coast deckled with style and class… probably a bit of an upper class, class. it was a happening place, expensive, manicured, oh!!! and filled with fig trees!

insert... things that happened here.

coffee - double shot espresso over ice please
coast walk - eucalyptus, palms, and stunning flowers on one side and blue ocean on the other
watched surfers, artists, and yogis do their trade and soak up the morning sun
got to do something that i love doing… check out house designs and neat little shops

new port was pretty quick. i’d say that we got slightly turned around- thnx to me ha. we were pumped to get out of this marina town maze and to the next stops!

insert… things that happened here.

got turned around
saw more town rather than coast
got to laugh our butts off at me navigating poorly and geordie being patient

huntington beach was a-maze-balls! gah. we both sooo loved this place. it wasn’t too cluttered with people, buildings, traffic, and litter. it had a business sector, and a classy parade of newness and up and coming-ness! i really appreciated how clean and safe the town felt and was right on a surfing hot spot! could you imagine just grabbing your board for a quick surf before/after work?! #goals. this spot was hot and so much fun to grab a bite and do a bit of browsing. yes i tried on such a stunning dress… thanks, cdn dollar for sucking… that dress did not come home with me. ha.

insert… things that happened here.

fell in love with this cali town
ate at lemonade SO good- had a poke bowl each
grabbed another coffee - double shot espresso over ice, please!
sat outside and chatted about all sorts of things with one stunning beach view to our enjoyment
although there were fewer trees, it was pretty perfect to have the glorious coast and still be able to be close to metropolitan places such as santa monica

venice beach was the next stop and was the place that we both were very jazzed to see. sometimes expectations that are above and beyond anything else can seriously let you down. this was not our favourite place after all. i would say that the extreme case of poverty and class divide was a bit intense for me. i mean i have seen poverty and all, but it seemed to be in a league of its own. i get it. i am this privileged white girl who gets to see a different place… but it’s not that, i would have to say that feeling so overwhelmed with where to look, what to listen to, and so many things coming at me in all sorts of directions kinda taisho geri’d (straight punched) me in the gut. i tapped out when walking into a bathroom that looked like something from the exorcism. yes, we didn’t stay much longer. fun fact about me: i don’t do busy public spaces well… if you know me, you know that places like winners or ikea (as much as i want to look around) really gives me a panic attack. and i am not exaggerating even a bit.

insert… things that happened here.

muscle beach
venice pier
lots of walking
got to see some cool architecture and art
some serious class divide

santa monica was next. we ended up having a bit of a quiet drive up the coast. ha. see the thing is that when i ‘feel’, i really feel and it's like my entire energy gets sucked out of me when i get down or get a bit disappointed. which is so annoying to me because i am always super happy and upbeat and this 24 hr road trip was not a place that i wanted to be quiet. geordie did an amazing job making me feel better again and santa monica was one fabulous place! again, endless salt and endless sun. there were so many wonderful memories that we created here. we did so much walking and beaching… geordie had a nap while i journaled and read. we walked around the beautiful city of stunning shops, restaurants, and art. oh my god, after splorin’ around we were so hungry and ate at the cheesecake factory. holy shit. we ate so much, bread, i had this incredible chicken salad that was just massive, and geordie had a very american dinner with all the gravy, steak, and potatoes. we sat on top of the rooftop patio overlooking the city and beach. sunset happened and took both our breaths away. so, what happens when i eat food? well, as geordie would put it i turn into this hyper little monkey. so everything was funny and everything was a good idea (thank god i don't drink alcohol or red bull). we grabbed our sweaters from the car, walked down to the pier and made our final game plan. cause we had to be at LAX airport for 5:00 am.

insert… things that happened here.

santa monica pier
slept and journaled on the beach
browsed around the shops
ate our faces off
saw one incredible sunset
got to be together
enjoyed the couture fashion

malibu was our final stop before the airport. we were so excited to see malibu, as this was a place that seemed to be smack in the middle of what we just love. beaches and trees. of course it was dark as ever so we couldn’t really see what the beach and greens exactly looked like… but the stars and waves def. made it feel like you were in some sappy movie. ha. we parked, walked around a bit, got a bit lost (let's just say i was distracted by all the nice homes). this was a place that was tucked away in its own community, i fricken would have loved to have spent some time in the shops or gotten to see some of them- i’ve heard that the interior design sector is just incredible. were talking a league of jaw-dropping linens, plants, furniture, rugs, gah probably also a good thing that we couldn’t go into shops…

funny thing. we slept in the car. and you're probably like, “pfft i’ve done that”. but when your car is not the bomb for sleeping a 6’ 4, 215lb guy and a gal who basically is like an external heater at all times. funny is an under exaggeration to this scene. we had a bit of sleep outside of what looked to be malibu’s most luxurious townhouse extravaganza. so no bathroom breaks, rolling around, or talking. as ‘sound’ was something we wanted to mute. around 4:00 am we woke and started on route to LAX.

insert… things that happened here.

felt like the happiest gal alive
experienced life as a scene from a sappy movie
got lost
got found
slept in our car
decided that we have to go back

california. thanks for treating us with your endless coast. cause time is a commodity that can’t be bought, traded, or stockpiled. it’s something that we all have the same of (24 hrs in a day). so why not road trip the shit out of it and create forever memories!