There and Back Again - A Road Trip to Dallas: Part 1

Cotton Valley, Texas

There is a thin line between "somewhere" and "nowhere", and we found out recently that much of America flirts with this distinction. Driving endlessly through the desert, passing towns like Seligman, Arizona or Clyde, Texas I began to wonder - where are we? And how much does it really matter?

Our good friends are in the midst of remodeling their townhouse, and asked my contractor hubby, Jordi, to come help with the bathroom. Always up for an adventure - and besides, a subsidized trip to the Southwest and a chance to see our friends was a good package deal - we packed up the car and headed east.
Leaving the smog and fog behind early on a Friday morning, we were almost to Arizona by the time the sun came up. The sunrise was beautiful, the desert was stunning, we could feel freedom in our blood and wide open spaces were making our hearts happy. And then of course, "Why is that cop behind me?" "Is he pulling me over??" Ah yes, welcome to Arizona, land of "Drop the Speed Limit  At The Border and Give Tickets to all the Suckers from California".
So that put a huge damper on the drive, and we couldn't wait to get out of Arizona, even though they apparently have some great fossils you can go see off the freeway (They accept credit cards).

Firework display in New Mexico

The cactus deserts of Arizona gave way to red dirt mesas, and we were in New Mexico.  Their unofficial motto is "it ain't new and ain't Mexico", and no one seemed to care too much about nitpicking speed. One travel stop (these 'travel stops' are like mini towns - gas, bathrooms, food, ceramics, clothes, you name it) had a room full of fireworks with a banner saying "FIREWORKS! Year 'Round Awesomeness". We decided we liked New Mexico. We were even planning on staying in a little city called Las Cruces, next to some mountains, but alas, our exit was blocked off by barricades and before we knew what was happening we were being whisked away down the freeway, with no other exits for miles. Since we refused to backtrack on this endless trip, we just kept going. I wailed a bit because by this time it was dinner time, and we had been driving since 5 a.m.. I desperately wanted to jump in a pool, eat and go to bed. But we were still driving!

What do you do while in El Paso?
Why, get yourself some double dipped
spicy hot wings in a train car!

We drove for about 45 minutes until we realized we were in El Paso, practically able to touch Mexico on the other side of the freeway. We searched our phone internet for a hotel that had an outdoor pool and free breakfast, which led us to the Hampton Inn.
After a refreshing swim, we asked the concierge for the best place to eat. She pointed us in the direction of some double dipped spicy hot wings in this cute, albeit tiny, train car. The wait took forever at this local hotspot, but it was fatteningly delicious!


The next morning we feasted on waffles and coffee before loading up the car again. In front of us was ten more hours of Texas before we would finally reach Dallas. The countryside was dry, with bushes and low hills. Even in March, it was already pretty hot.

If you've ever been on a long car trip, weird things start to happen. For instance, my thumb was actually SORE from using Jordi's phone. Approximately every 45 seconds, I would check the map to see how far we'd come. I'd zoom in to see the exits we were passing, and zoom out to make it look like we were making progress. Then I'd show him our progress, and he'd either groan or smile. Listen to another couple minutes of Bill Bryson on our book on tape, and then excitedly remember to refresh the page and check our progress. I'm pretty sure I dreamed about Google Maps that night. The blue arrow.....

America the vast and beautiful!

After many hours of listening to "The History of Almost Everything" in a British accent, which bordered between Torture and Better Than Nothing for me, but which Jordi quite enjoyed (and since he's the driver...) we fiiiiiinnnnaaaaallllllyyyyyy found ourselves on a freeway. I mean a freeway with many lanes and lots of cars. It was exhilarating. It wasn't long before we pulled up at my best friend's parent's house in a suburb of Dallas. After sweaty hugs, we showered and ate, before following Corrie and Jason back to their place in downtown Dallas. They had just gotten back from a trip to Europe, getting in at the airport only hours before we showed up. So we were all a sorry mess, and headed straight to bed.

In the morning I was pleasantly surprised to find myself in the middle of America's ninth largest city, and all I could hear were the birds chirping. Every so often a plane would fly over. Then I thought of our little apartment near the ocean (but nearer still to the freeway, PCH, a hardware store and three banks) and how ungodly loud it is - and it's not even in a city! Arrrgg! Anyways, that day was spent demolishing the bathroom, and my best friend and I helped our hubbies as best we could (mostly carrying trash out while giggling like annoying schoolgirls. The best thing about a best friend is how hilarious and cool you think eachother is, even when the whole rest of the world is rolling their eyes.) The next few days were spent hanging out in the city while the men toiled away in a little bathroom. Poor Jordi hadn't even seen anything of Dallas, while I was off having cappuccino's, going on walks and being driven around town.

All that said, the last day we were there we took care of some important stuff. We got to see the grassy knoll where Kennedy was shot, visit some fun restaurants and neighborhoods, and of course walk on the Katy Trail - a dirt nature path that winds through the city. We then had drinks at the Katy Trail Ice House - who's genius idea was it to put a bar on the running trail? It was so nice to see all the healthy young Texans run by as we sipped our beer. They have games like corn hole and darts you can play too, but we just sat on the picnic tables under the twinkly lights in the early evening on a Gorgeous spring day in Texas. We had amazing weather the whole time we were there. Kinda made us want to move there - nice people, adorable (and affordable) houses, cool city - what's not to like?? But the reason my bf and her hubby are moving is it gets crazy hot, and there is not much to do outside the city. No other towns, lakes, oceans or mountains to visit and explore - just Texas for days. We should know!

Katy Trail Ice House with Corrie and Jason

Gloria a Dios Ferretería de Paz

We wanted to go to El Salvador to get away, and that we did. We got to drink coffee and chat for hours, surf in the warm water, eat pupusas and desayunos típicos. But perhaps one of the most relaxing aspects of our trip was being around the Salvadoran people and culture. After a couple weeks of random observations, I began to see a new way of living. Although American culture and society may not allow for some things I think are awesome (loud, crowded, musical colorful busses) I realized there are ways we can apply this new perspective in our everyday life.

Random Observations:
The huge sign advertising the Praise the Lord Hardware Store of Peace
The restaurant we ate at every day where people could not only smoke but drop their cigarette butts onto the sand, while swinging  in hammocks
The construction workers tromping around in flip-flops
A friendly teenager who paddled past me in the water while surfing, wondering how old I was and if I had kids yet

It doesn't take long to realize that things are different here. The people don't stress out, they roll with it. They're hard working, but unhurried. If you're offended at the store name, that's your problem. If there are burning embers on the ground, you need to watch where you're going. It's not judgmental, simply curiosity when asking about one's age, family planning, etc. Their whole culture allows them to be unapologetic, which is so refreshing to be around.

For me, getting away from the litigious, paranoid about stepping on anyone's toes, annoyingly PC world we live in, it was heaven to be around people who assume you're capable enough to handle life. (Even the dogs are allowed to look out for themselves.)

We tend to stress ourselves out by focusing so much attention on things that don't really matter, as well as forcing things to happen instead of rolling with the punches.
One of the places we stayed had a popular wave, which inevitably means swarms of Brazilians. Brazilians are the only culture in our experience that travel in packs of 20. So after a few days of being in a what felt like a Portuguese frat house, but was actually the line-up, we were excited to meet some Americans. Until they started talking.... "The chef cannot get it through his head that I'm vegan! How many times do I have to say, 'No kay-so'?" or "Could I get the fried fish, but not fried?" or the tourist watching a local lady make pupusas, but when asked if she wants one responds, "oh, nooooooo, i'm gluten intolerant."
But instead of catering to the picky Americans, Salvadorans view pickiness as the problem of the picky person.
The chef doesn't care if you don't eat cheese and the pupusa lady doesn't care if you're gluten intolerant.
I like this way of living, because it reinforces the notion that things don't actually matter as much as we let them. Like when a kid runs into something and looks at you to see if they should cry or not. If you fuss, they'll scream; if you ignore the incident, so will they. We live in a fussy screamy society, and it's become exhausting. I can't change society, but I can live my own life without being a fusser or screamer - there is too much life to live to worry about the kind of milk someone puts in my coffee.

Likewise, instead of fretting about unessential matters, Jordi and I should instead know who and what matters to us, focus on that, and not apologize if our decisions don't align with the world's figurative dietary restrictions.

Our new deliberate and hopefully slower lifestyle ensues... ;)

Kids fishing on the river

Riding the bus

Enjoying the beautiful beaches

Enjoying the beautiful sunset

What Wonders Await the Homebodies

West coast of France, central coast of California, plot of land on the beach in El Salvador - these are just some of the places Jordi and I dream about living someday. Those times when our crazy neighbor is calling the cops/city/property management company about our trashcans being visible or Jordi's trailer  parked on the street for more than the lawful five hours, or when we're woken up by leaf blowers and trash trucks in the morning, or when we can't drive anywhere without being caught in hours of thick traffic, we get this claustrophobic feeling like we have to escape the crazy. But then there are times like a lazy, rainy Sunday in April when it seems like all our wildest dreams can be met in just one place - home. Home for us at the time is San Clemente, California, a little town by the beach in south Orange County.

Enjoying the day in France

On this particular lazy, rainy Sunday in April, we woke up to the light rain and complete quiet except some chipper birds. Sunday is the only day of the week we have respite from the leaf blowers and hardware store noise (we live next to a Denault's). A couple hours later, we walked downtown in the light rain for the weekly Farmer's Market. After sampling apples and candied nuts, purchasing farm eggs, fresh fish and produce we went across the street to Mimosa, one of our favorite café's, to get cappuccinos and the homemade chocolate croissants they offer on Sundays. Smattering of French spoken (it's a French restaurant, after all), a drizzly day, crowded cafe, Farmers Market outside - all set the stage for a perfect morning in France. As Monsieur with the Mustache handed us our steaming cappuccinos and croissants wrapped at the bottom in paper, we made our way back outside, the buttery warmth seeping through the paper onto our hands. It reminded me of outdoor markets, bustling cafes and the joy of eating amazing things that comes with being in France.

Love riding bikes in SLO

In the afternoon we went on a bike ride to a local brewery. While on the central coast we would probably be wine tasting instead of beer tasting, we would be riding our bikes all the same. An overcast afternoon, biking up the hills with views of the yellow wildflowers, stopping in at a local establishment that doesn't care how you're dressed or your mode of transportation, but wants you to enjoy the fruits of their labor - well, we almost could have been on the central coast!

Papusas and beer in El Salvador

Later, as we were expecting company for dinner, we decided to go to the Mexican market to get some supplies. It's a small store but with lots packed in: Fresh guacamole, pico de gallo and salsas, long rows of fresh or dried peppers, tortillas still steaming in the bags, cotija cheese cut and sold by the pound. But the best part is the house-made pork rump, fried and brewing for hours in lard and spices, only available on Saturdays and Sundays. We got the meat, perfect for carnitas, and all the other delicious makings of an authentic latin meal. As we sat on the porch drinking Tecate and eating chips, it felt like we could have been in El Salvador (if only it was a little warmer and there was surf...)
So although we don't as yet own houses in three different countries, we live in a place where we can order cappuccino's and croissants in French, buy fresh carnitas and guacamole in Spanish and bike around the hills, almost as well as in the central coast. And if we can do all that in one day, and in one town, we have it pretty good. (Sorry neighbor, you're stuck with us for awhile...)

What Weddings Await the Wandering Ones

     So I haven't written in a few months. I'm sure you must be on the edge of your seat wondering, Have they found any new hiking trails? A great, cheap date we must try? A new culinary experience to embark on? An awesome little town, exciting day trip or quiet camping spots? I apologize profusely for keeping you waiting. While I'm glad to report that we have indeed found new hikes, camping spots, interesting foods and little towns, they haven't been "Adventures" so much as "Wedding Weekends".

     An interesting thing has happened - although we usually have a few weddings to attend here and there, this year we will have attended 8 weddings, from San Diego to the Central Coast, in the span of 9 months! Who needs vacation plans when you get a built-in weekend away per month for a whole year? In fact, I'm thinking of starting a Calendar. It will feature Jordi and I in our wedding attire, each month. Here's a preview:

August

October

November

December

August saw Jordi's youngest brother get married, the event being held in his grandparents awesome backyard in the hills of Encinitas (north county San Diego). Our culinary experience here was taco carts. I don't know exactly where they found them, perhaps off the street in Michoacan, because they were incredibly authentic and soooo delicious! If you have yet to experience street food or food trucks, I highly recommend finding some. 

As for San Clemente, street food comes in the form of a grocery truck that pulls up on our street every evening at 6. You can get produce, roasted corn with mayo, cheese and chile, or fried pork skins. And our little town even has food trucks! Every Monday night at the San Clemente High School, as a fundraiser for the band, you can find 4-6 food trucks ranging from lobster to BBQ or crepes. Check out  the schedule here.

From 9-2 every Saturday at the OC Mart Mix in Costa Mesa, not only can you enjoy the Farmer's Market, but also a selection of awesome food trucks. Definitely worth the drive one of these weekends! Plus check out the OC Mart Mix while you're there! Portola Coffee Lab is worth the drive itself, and Local Fare sells Roney Macaroni cards! :) 

(And the taco carts mentioned earlier are actually from the catering company in San Diego, Taquizas El Unico)

In October we attended a wedding in Paso Robles. On our way home we stopped through Los Olivos, north of Santa Barbara off the gorgeous 154 pass. If you've never been here, you definitely owe it to yourself to stop next time you drive past. Even if you only have an hour to spare, you can have a truly romantic date. Park anywhere, walk through the quaint town, taste wine at one of the many small and friendly tasting rooms, get a giant sandwich at the Deli, lay in the park, poke around the shops, and there you have it! We always love a little stop here - feels like spending a weekend when it's just an afternoon. 

In November, we were honored to be a part of a gorgeous wedding in Balboa Park, San Diego. Beautiful architecture and stunning gardens made for quite the experience. If you've never been to Balboa Park, I wrote about it here on a trip we took there last year.

December we attended a winter wedding in Morro Bay. The rain didn't keep anyone from enjoying some homemade brews and steaming Mexican food. We stayed in Cayucos, one of our favorite little enclaves on the whole coast of California.

I wrote about Cayucos on my blog a while ago, entitled Small Town Bliss and mentioned it once again about a year ago, called Taste of the Central Coast.

And then, to top it all off, we got to meet our new nephew this winter as well. Here we are with precious Zachary. He loves drinking water out of glasses, and is eying that one on the table very intently....

Cheers to 2013 and all the adventures it will bring!

(On that note, we actually already went on our first adventure of the year, up to Big Bear, so a new blog post is SOON to come!!)