Out West 2018 - Part 1

Besides my night stint in a 80's decorated motel off of I-80, I stayed with my friends Megan and Lukas at their farmstead, Bohemian Alps Farm.  Despite staying there for three days, time with them is never enough.  They indulged me in a plethora of activities: winery by their house, crystal stores in Lincoln, great barbecue and pizza, blues bars, guitar sessions, hang outs with chickens, and an overall beautiful resting spot to reset.
You see, I had essentially wrapped up my life in Ann Arbor in a whirlwind.  In a matter of a week, I had several going away parties, my last day of work, said goodbye to friends, coworkers, and students as well as the city I've lived in for the past 10 years.  I rolled into Garland, Nebraska needing a reset of body, soul, and mind.  Where I found cleansing was pulling weeds in their beautiful, organic garden.  Something about dirt underneath your fingers, air of greenery, and sun on your neck that resets a lady well.

Thanks for all the love Megan, Lukas, Fern, Suzy, Toast, Forrest and Bohemian Alps Farm xx

Pura Vida

The best vacations for me always involve some combination of the following:

-Sunset watching

-Time to read a few books that have been collecting dust in my bedroom

-Eating local food

-Lazy moments + adventure and discovering

My latest trip to Costa Rica satisfied all of these things happily.  It was not only my spring break, but also the ten days of seeing my boyfriend in the middle of our long distance separation. 

In Jaco, we road are bikes to the beach and the city everyday.  I forgot how fun it is to ride a bike under the stars, wearing a dress.  We also saw the sunset every night and ate the traditional Costa Rican casado everyday (a plate of meat, salad, plantains, beans, and rice) for lunch.  My boyfriend has the biggest appetite for fruit more than anyone I know, so consequently lots of mango, pineapple, passion fruit and watermelon was consumed. 

For the second half of the trip, we stayed in a small mountain town called Santa Elena.  Here, we hiked the cloud forests, watched more sunsets, made large breakfasts every morning, played mountain "tennis", and chatted with our quirky but charming air bnb host, Larry.  

Until next time, Costa Rica.

Kansas City eh?

Last weekend I trapezed around with this lovely lady.

We became friends in such a random, indirect way through roommates and ex boyfriends and have stayed friends despite me living in Michigan and her in Nebraska.  She convinced me to give Kansas City a try. So I did. And I joined her for a weekend of exploring neighborhoods, drinking hipster coffee, sipping good cocktails and doing all of the good girl friend activities of my heart (buying crystals, checking out the local bookstores, and bakeries of course).

We went to a speakeasy.

We relished in our likeness. We got mistaken as sisters and didn’t both to correct them.
Mostly it was good to just be in her presence, hear her thoughts through organic conversation rather than through a string of texts.   But I suppose the best thing about friends like her is that the friendship is enjoyable and life giving no matter the form. 

Paris Magic

A list of Paris magic:
1) Waking up early one morning, putting on my best Parisian outfit to walk the neighborhood and buy crossaints for breakfast
2) My favorite neighborhoods are Montmartre and Le Marais (18th, 3rd & 4th arrondissement)
3) The plants are lush.  The buildings, beautiful.  The people are stylish.  A hint of je ne sais quoi in the air.
4) There is no such thing as a sophomore slump when visiting Paris.  It delivered an even deeper, richer experience the second time around.  
5) Late dinner culture- sipping wine, eating a salad of frisee, and perhaps a savory crepe.  Perhaps this overall ties into my love of defined mornings and evenings.   



Thoughts from my journal 7/15/16:
"Sad to have left Paris.  Its charm and beauty is a hard thing to capture in one's mind permanently.  You think you've had enough time to take it all in, study it, to keep its legacy going when you return home- only to find it quickly slips through your fingers".  

Paris has remained my quintessential favorite city.  The fresh breath of air.  This time around we stayed in an apartment with a view of the Eiffel tower.  Since we've done the tourist stuff, we watched around neighborhoods, took the metro, lounged in parks and indulged in long meals. My favorite time of the entire trip- it really is unfair to all the other cities that I play favorites this badly. 

Small Towns in Spain