Impressions from the Road: I peed in a jar.

Wow, it feels like an eternity since I last wrote. So many great things have happened in the past week, so if you wish to read this post, grab some coffee because it is going to be long! If you are all out, scroll down for some great pictures.
I left Chico, Ca on Saturday, headed to San Francisco, then San Luis Obispo, followed by Huntington Beach (Orange County) and now I am in Norwalk. I’ve spent a lot of time in California, but it has been necessary as there are so many parts worth visiting, each unique in their own way. There have been bumps, highs, lows, numerous surprises, educational experiences about myself, others and places, and most importantly, I am having an amazing time.
My last day in Chico was difficult, as I knew I would soon have to say goodbye to my grandmother. I am finally old enough to where I can appreciate learning about her life and the wonderful things that she has done with it, especially as a public school teacher. We bonded more than we ever had before and for that, I am thankful. After one last busy day exploring the town, my grandmother and I took my mom to the train station and said our farewells. I stayed the night, we enjoyed a wonderful pancake and omelet breakfast the next morning and then it was time for me to make my way to San Francisco.
San Francisco, which I can proudly say I can now spell correctly after 22.5 years of spelling it as San Fransisco, was awesome and totally opposite of what I expected. Before I left Chico I received a text message from my friend Erik who said that his girlfriend and also my friend, Heather, was in San Francisco with her art club and that he was in LA visiting his dad. So, I was lucky enough to see a familiar face in the enormous city of San Francisco that, quite honestly, is much too big and crowded for my liking. This is not to say that my experience there was unpleasant, but I prefer two-lane as opposed to five to six-lane freeways full of aggressive and sometimes angry drivers. Nonetheless, the city has some wonderful sites worth visiting. Unfortunately, my stay was much too short to experience even a tenth of them. Heather, who had been there for a week, had the chance to get to know the area pretty well, which was helpful for me. Without her, the city would have eaten me alive. So, thank you Heather!
To San Francisco, I was unable to take highway 1 (the bi-way along the coast of California), as it would have doubled my time of travel. I was, however, able to take it southward to San Luis Obispo. The drive was absolutely amazing, that is until after sunset. Before, though, I witnessed miles and miles of untouched beaches that changed colors as the sun changed positions in the sky. The drive took a bit longer than I had expected which provided for a bit of a scary drive. The sun set at about 7:30pm, but I still had plenty more driving to do, driving that was along windy, unpopulated roads where to the right, the rocky cliffs drop straight down to the ocean. As you might imagine this was intimidating, but what was worse, I had to worry about making my 10:00pm check in deadline at the hostel I was staing in that night. At one point, I was literally about to pee my pants, but was too scared to get out into the night and find a bush (rest stops do not exist along highway 1, nor do many cities), so I stopped and peed in a jar. I still have the jar, emptied of course, if the need should ever again arise. At exactly 9:58, I safely arrived at the hostel. Whew, right?
Yes, but I did not have cash which was required. So, the nice woman that ran the hostel allowed me to trek to the nearest ATM. Of course, I was quite flustered by this point, so I ended up leaving my debit card in the machine. The next day, when I went to fill up on gas, I realized my mistake, but by the time I went to retrieve it, it had been shredded since it did not belong to the bank whose ATM I had used. Luckily, my bank was able to issue me a temporary for the rest of my trip. Despite the mishap, the peaceful city of San Luis Obispo was exactly what I needed after San Francisco AKA insanity.
My travels to Huntington Beach introduced me to more of Southern California’s horrific five to six-lane freeways, but also brought me into contact with Erik, who then introduced me to the many glories of the area. Not only was the weather perfect, the food swell, and the activities fun, but also, I was in good company and I felt like Erik and I became better friends during my stay. I wouldn’t have minded staying longer, but I had a second cousin, which I had never met, to find in Norwalk, CA (my current location). I will talk about my time here in my next post as this one has already reached essay length.

Highlights:

Lower Bidwell Park, Chico, CA. To the left is my grandmother and mom walking the Lower Bidewell Park trail. Because of the thick canopy of trees, the area is spectacular. The founder of Chico had an interest in trees and so he planted the seeds of various non-native species throughout. This, I assume, is the reason for the diverse tree-life that exists today.

Lower Bidwell Park. Pictured is my grandmother and mom, who I am proud to say that I look, talk and act just like.

Upper Bidwell Park. This area has a flatter, more open terrain and is inhabited by a large population of deer, which don't seem to mind the company of people. To the right is Horseshoe Lake, also located in the park.

Chico, CA. My mom and I borrowed my grandma and uncles bikes and took an evening stroll.

Upper Bidwell Park. Recently the Chico Community Observatory: Shoemaker Open Sky Planetarim was added to the park, which we were able to visit on our last night in town. To the left is my grandmother looking a Siris, the brightest visible star shining in the sky. It was amazing to view as we could actually see it twinkling. To the right is another image we were able to view through the telescopes which is of M1 (Crab Nebula). The observatory was neat because it is run strictly by volunteers, most of which are children. Of course they would know the most about our galaxy!

San Francisco Downtown Hostel. My first hostel experience! Here I had a roommate from New Zealand traveling to London. Heather and her art club were also staying two floors up from me.

San Francisco, CA. Heather, her fellow art club members and I headed out for dinner on a downtown cable car.

San Francisco, CA. Entire street of adult stores. Why exactly do we not have this in Portland?

San Francisco, CA. The picture does the explaining.

Coit Tower, San Francisco, CA. In the center is a view of the city from the top of the tower. San Francisco=the 13th most populated and the 2nd most densely populated city in the country. Not surprising by the looks of this photograph, ay?

At the bottom level of the Coit Tower there exists walls of carefully painted murals depicting historic themes of the area. This one was my favorite.

WWII Museum, Fishermans Wharf, San Francisco. Pictured here is the Panito, the most accurately restored WWII submarine. Also seemed to be the resting ground for a whole lot of sea gulls.

San Francisco, Golden Gate Bridge. I made the 6 mile trek across and back, which upped my opinion of San Francisco as finally, I was able to feel at ease. I strongly suggest enlarging the second picture because you will see the hundreds of sail boats that were afloat the Golden Gate waters beyond the bridge. Quite peaceful, if you ask me.

On the other hand, I did some research after my visit and found that there is at least one suicide attempt/2 weeks here, making it the location of the highest suicide rates in the world, and still, the city has refused a suicide barrier. Finally, it sounds like, in 2008, a suicide net below has been agreed upon. To me, the period of time the decision took is unacceptable. One lost life should have been enough of a call for action. And still, the net has yet to be created. I suggest, for anyone interested, in watched The Bridge, a movie I plan on watching as soon as I get the chance. http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/40/7/21

Pescadero Beach, along highway 1 from San Francisco to San Luis Obispo. Hands down the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. Miles and Miles of rocks for climbing also made this a wonderful stop. Even the sea gulls seemed the happiest here. It was insanely windy and the birds were gliding along with each gust of wind.

Pigeon Point Lighthouse. Here is the location of a hostel that I want to stay in sometime in the future. The lighthouse is open to climb, but unfortunately, I did not have time to do so.

Sunset along Highway 1 on my way to San Luis Obispo. ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS. I could not help but stop at every view point along the road (most likely the reason for me running so late).

The bluest of waters that I have seen thus far.

Obviously these windy roads were scary to travel along after sunset.

Hostel Obispo, San Luis Obispo, CA. I stayed here during my time in San Luis Obispo. The owners were very kind and my room, adorable.

Bubble Gum Alley, San Luis Obispo, CA. An entire alley covered in gum. Disgusting in a sense, but it is fun to walk through because of how fruity it smells. I also appreciated how many peace signs had been created out of the gum.

These palm trees are in San Luis Obispo, but I love that they are everywhere throughout all of Southern California. San Luis Obispo, though, also has various other trees and plants which make the city smell sweet. Or perhaps it is the permeating scent of bubble gum alley? Either way, the air smells tasty.

Huntington Beach, CA. Erik and I went to a restaurant called Fred's (or Dave's as we later called it) and had a delicious dinner and margaritas.

We then visited the Huntington Beach Brewery Company and ordered two Irish Stouts. Very tasty! Not pictured: our relay races which followed where I, of course, won every round and our Uno game that I also won. If he tells you otherwise, don't believe a word he says.