Day 9:  Let's Get the Hell Outta Here! 

Ava's Take

I woke up and did not stall for a second. We did not make coffee or tea, just shot up out of the tent and started packing. We got coffee at Starbucks and then headed to a gas station outside of Lake Havasu to figure out our route into California. We hopped onto Highway 63 and within minutes we crossed the state line. Obviously we had to pull over and take a picture! It felt great to just know that I was in California (finally! says my heart). Even though we were hours from Encinitas, it didn’t matter. The sunshine and air all felt different and beyond than that, I felt like I was where I was supposed to be. Or at least getting closer to it.

In search for a place for lunch I came across the filter in Yelp that allows you to know whether or not a restaurant is dog friendly. (#winning). I entered my search and it came back with a ton of places! We chose Palms Green Cafe in Palm Springs - all organic, great shaded outdoor seating area with misters and the best green juice I have ever had. We told the waiter about our journey to California. He had lived in San Diego for years and recently relocated to Palm Springs. He looked at my yoga capris, cosmic graphic tee with a cutdown neckline and beachy flip flops, and assured me I looked like I’d lived in Encinitas for years and I’d never need another outfit. Little did he know that was a huge relief since outfits like that one are about all I brought with me.

While in route from Palm Springs to Encinitas, I booked us a room for the evening at the Portofino Beach Inn which, as it turned out, landed us right where we needed to be. On the drive we wrapped up Brendon Berchard’s Millionaire Messenger and finished the last disc of Wayne Dyer’s Making the Shift, just before we arrived in Encinitas. As we faced the intersection to turn onto the 101, I caught a glimpse the sun setting over the ocean and felt my whole body start glowing. (Remember I am a mermaid)

We checked in at Portofino Beach Inn and had dinner at the restaurant next door, Hapifish. Since we both love sushi so much and that was the meal we had on our first date, we thought it would be fitting for our first dinner in our new homeland. Hapifish is awesome. I highly recommend it, not just for the sushi (although the sushi is amazing) but for the overall atmosphere and happiness vibe.

I feel relieved that we are here and ready for the next phase. Specifically, like day-to-day, I don’t know what I will do while I’m in California, aside from the obvious of paddle boarding, yoga and, my two loves combined, paddle board yoga. Oh yeah and paddle surfing, cannot forget the paddle surfing….

Other than that I am wide open. My car is paid off and my bills are taken care of through January; it is now October 12th. I will not be getting a job. I have a lot of ideas but I want to take some time to reflect. Time to, very intentionally, design my life so that it looks just like my dreams. And while it may not look like I have much right now, I do have the courage to follow my heart which I am willing to bet, is all that anyone really needs.   

Dylan's Take

Thank god we are out of AZ!  We left this morning and it was 90 degrees.  I felt instantly uplifted as we traveled along and even more uplifted as we got into CA.  A sort of relief that comes when you take something for indigestion or heartburn, the burning was gone aside from the heat.  We took the road that leads to Twenty Nine Palms and stopped to grab some Cokes.  They were very tasty and refreshing or at least the ones we bought with the real cane sugar.  After some time we reach Palm Springs for some lunch at this organic eatery.  It was amazing and just being in CA was great and felt natural to be there and interacting with the surroundings. 

I didn’t feel like a tourist, because we weren’t.  I had a fresh look at things, one that was I am going to try this and possibly come here again, or I am going to try this place and see if this was one that I could come to again.  That was a feeling I had never felt before. On the other had feelings of trembling fear because now we were in CA and now had to start again so to speak. 

We took the scenic route over the mountains south of Palm Springs and into Anza and finally to Encinitas.  We came as the sun was setting which seemed appropriately as we ended our travels at our destination as the sun set.  We stayed at a hotel for the first night as we had camped the past three nights and felt it was time for a cleanup.  HA.  We ate sushi and dressed well or at least not in camping clothes; and everywhere that we went felt natural and with ease.  I welcome the breath of ocean air and the crisp breeze and I wait for the new day to greet me with openness and excitement!