California Hikin'

After a morning full-o-yoga on Saturday, we took advantage of the cool California temps and set out to enjoy some of God's green earth at Castle Rock State Park. Lacy and Cliff have really gotten into hiking recently, and Lace was eager to share their new love with me.

So we zoomed off from the yoga studio in the little Smart Car and met Cliff at the park. I love riding in the Smart Car. I always feel the need to giggle and beep my horn.

See that nature behind me? I'm about to be all up in that. My husband would be oh-so-proud. And yes, I'm wearing my yoga clothes still. I figured, eh, why change? Needless to say I was one of the most brightly attired people on the trail. Oh yes, and with the tightest spandex on.

 Watch out Castle Rock! Here we come...

We decided on the Saratoga Gap trail. I was of course wanting to know all the details. How long is it? What are we going to see? Are there bathrooms? (Ha!)

Lacy and Cliff's answers... No clue how long it is. We'll walk until we feel like turning around. And we're going to see a lot of trees. And no, stupid, there are no bathrooms.

Okey dokey!

Guess what we saw? Lot's of cool stuff!! Like these rocks that Lacy felt I needed to climb...which I begrudgingly did. And then promptly realized how much fun climbing rocks is!

The view from the third wheel.  Just kidding, I always have a blast with Lacy and Cliff. But I was wishing Brian was here. He would have LOVED this hike and I think he would have been even more amused at me doing it.

Hello heaven! Well, actually it's Monterrey Bay out there to the top left where you can see water. Felt like heaven.

Let it be noted that we are friendly, helpful hikers. We passed this group of friends hiking together and I said "Look! How cute that is with them all sunning on that rock. They should have a photo of that!" So Lacy marched up to them, asked if anyone had a camera and took their happy little photo while I took her photo taking their photo.

Lacy and I used to love blowing on dandelions as children. Every time we see one we think of each other. So of course she couldn't resist!

Hello from the trail! Lacy carried the Camel Back for the group and we'd all yell out when we needed a drink and she'd have to stop and cozy up to us so we could access the straw. Except you kind of have to bite it before you drink, so Lacy would check in every so often and say "Does anyone need to bite me?" It was both hilarious and endearing that she cared about our hydration.

This week has been all about love. Loving each other. Loving ourselves. And loving that we got this time together. All you need is love! (cue The Beatles)

On our way back, the sunbathers had left the rock, so we took our own little photo shoot. 

Sisters!  <3

We ended up hiking 5 miles. Hooray us! And I felt every mile of that. On top of the TWO yoga classes that morning, I had a feeling I was going to be ridiculously sore. And I was right. But it was oh-so-fun in the process!

I love sunny beautiful California! And I love it even more with Lacy and Cliff!!

She Can Fly!

While I'm visiting Lacy in California this week, I've had the fun fortune of taking advantage of her fabulous yoga studio, Breathe Los Gatos. Saturday I came to work with her with intentions of only taking a Yin class, which is all about deep stretching and holding poses for a looooong time. But I kept peeking into the other studio and curiously eye-balling the gorgeous purple slings hanging from the ceiling for the flight class...

And I thought, what the hell?! When in Rome! Or California! So I jumped right in and gave it a whirl.

And unbeknownst to me, Lacy meanwhile jumped right in my purse and got my camera out. It was a classic big sister, little sister moment where she's all waving and cheering and telling me how she thinks I should be doing the poses, and I'm laughing and turning red with embarrassment. I was glad she was there though because I don't think I would have realized how cool what I was doing actually is unless I had seen the photos of me doing it!

Trying to flip myself over for suspended plow pose and not having much luck by the 5th attempt...

So I got a little nudge from the instructor Amber and.... ta da!

I was giddy with excitement by the time I was done, and I'm planning to go back tonight for another class. And I DID end up taking the Yin class right after! So it was the best of both worlds.  :)

California Beachin'

I am basking in the glow of my big sister for the week, and it has been such a fabulous, cleansing, rejuvenating, joyful visit so far. (Can I think of anymore uplifting adjectives?)  I arrived Wednesday and have already had quite the adventurous visit. From the beach in Capitola and flying yoga at Breathe to an impromptu giggling run across the street to the movies and a hike on Castle Rock, we are definitely living in the moment.

Here are a few highlights from our beach trip yesterday....

What are big sisters for? Teaching little sisters of course. Here Lace is teaching me the art of the pina colada. I have never seen someone so giddy about a pina colada. I have to admit it was a great lesson, but I did have to take it twice to get the full gist.  ;)

The weather here is UNBELIEVABLE...well, at least for a Texas gal who hasn't seen a day below 100 degrees in a while. It was probably 75 degrees and a wee bit chilly when the sun went behind the clouds. It reminds me of so many sunny days spent on the Barcelona beach in the cool Spanish breeze with Brian.

Zelda's (pictured above) is where we enjoyed our seaside libations and nibbles. There were a handful of kids playing just on the beach next to our table who had an absolute adoration for a dog named Caleb. Needless to say I thought 8-year-olds were calling my name all afternoon. But at least it was all "you're so sweet" and "oh, yes, good job Caleb" and whatnot. I felt encouraged and loved.

It looks like a mini Barceloneta, right?!

The beach was beyond packed when we arrived, but as the afternoon wore on all the moms and dads packed up their broods. It was at this point that we learned oh-so-much about the beach. As worn down parents fruitlessly tried to herd their offspring we heard the yelling refrains of so many new beach lessons.

Apparently the beach is NOT for sticking your face in the sand. It is most certainly NOT about mom carrying everything. And in case I hadn't mentioned it, sand is NOT for your eyes. It was probably one of those you-had-to-be-there moments, but we could NOT stop hysterically laughing. 

Some of the rogue children in the background behind Cliff and Lacy. As you can see, they are appropriately weighted down with beach crap because mom was NOT going to carry everything.

Enjoying the sunshine and the brisk ocean breeze. I was wrapped up in that towel by the time we decided to call it.

Angel trumpets!!!

Another Lacy lesson for the little sis. These berries will apparently not kill you. Hopefully. Because she made me eat one.

Just another happy Friday at the beach! Today we spent our Saturday afternoon hiking, and I'm too exhausted to say much more than that. Photos to come!

Summer School

Brian and I have been back in the country for, well, an annoyingly long time it feels like. The Spanish adventure whirled by in the swipe of a debit card, and I feel confident there are picturesque Mediterranean beaches all along the coast of España crying out my name in longing even as I type this. I set my intention to return to Spain the moment I left after those 7 months in 2002, so after nine years of pining, planning and finally pulling the trigger, you could say I'm having a wee dose of cold reality that Spain 2.0 is all over.

Poof. Just like that.

Since returning from our fairytale journey, we've spent our summer as nomads, me reveling in my unemployment, Brian cursing his. We feel like we've been kicked, stretched, slung around and diced up all in the midst of being checked on, built up, cared for and even doted over. Thanks to friends and family we're still alive and scheming, but it's been quite the test for two culture-shocked adventurers trying desperately to figure out what comes next all while trying to surrender to the fact that maybe we're not supposed to be doing all the figuring. Confusing, right?

And amidst the laughter through tears, I've started to realize that maybe I've learned a thing or seven in the discomfort we've chosen this summer in the name of being truly happy in life.

1. Two cars are always better than one. Although zero car payments are of course better than any. So one paid off car should be better than two cars and a car payment. But somehow that logic always fails me on days like today when I feel naked without the car. And as a woman you reserve the right to be irritated if there is a car payment, and pouty if the lack of one means you have to share a car temporarily. (Pout.) Now I'm exhausted and confused. (Pout.)

2. I can live on approximately 5% of my wardrobe. Who knew?

3. Yoga a few times a week does not mean wine calories are miraculously null and void. (The nerve, right?!) But it does mean you can wear stretchy clothes which have magical powers when it comes to growing curves.

4. All pools were not created equal. There's something to be said for the condo complex seemingly packed to the gills with senior citizens. Cleanest. Pool. Ever.

5. Flopping around in said pool as you heave yourself up on the kindly-provided, high-dollar float unfortunately does not constitute a workout. (I swear my heart rate was elevated for a minute there.) However running up three flights of stairs to the condo to pee (because who would want to be the heathen who pollutes this crystal oasis) should, in all fairness, get to count as a workout.

6. It's more exciting to struggle in a foreign country with gorgeous beaches and exotic sounding people who say your name like they're making love to it. 'Kay-eee-la' in Texan and 'Kyyyy-laaaa' in Spanish just don't compare.

7. Tan-orexia is a very real and formidable condition. (Thank you Abby for giving name to this silent killer.) Oh no! I think I might be losing my tan at this very moment. WHERE IS THE NEAREST POOL?!

So, at least I'm growing, right? Oh and I almost forgot #8....

8. There's nothing like a blog post to procrastinate from what you should be doing. Working on your book!

April in Alicante, Part 2

After I recovered from the blissful shock of spending the afternoon at Loly and Jose's, it was time to roll our happy tummies out of their kitchen and subir (climb) the castle. So we headed out for the walk back downtown.

There is an elevator on the seaside of El Castillo de Santa Barbara that costs a couple euro and deposits you sweat-free at the top. But that route is for sissies, and we are no sissies. The long climb up the back for us!

The one noticeable difference about the hike up the mountain was the fancy new walkway. I can't remember exactly what the first half of the journey was like 9 years ago, but I know for sure it didn't include this newly minted staircase with life support rail for leaning and gasping.

The castle is REALLY old. Like really, really old. The actual fortress was built by the Moors in the 9th century, but artifacts in Mount Benacantil (the mountain the castle sits on) have been found dating back to the Bronze Age (couple thousand years BC).

I absolutely adored the wise, majestic feel of the castle during my time in Alicante as a student. I would climb to the top at least a few times a week, either solo or with friends, to take in the view, write in my journal, and basically revel in the fact that I actually lived in this unbelievable place.

The stairs eventually spit you out on a winding road for the rest of the climb. I was so excited to get to the top that I kept leaving Dana and Brian a wee bit behind. Can you blame me?!

Success!! The memories poured in all at once and suddenly it felt like no time had passed at all. The only thing that was missing were my crazy study abroad friends, a bottle of wine and a bocadillo (sandwich).

It turned out that there was a huge festival in Alicante that weekend. (Claro! When was there not a huge festival in Alicante?)

It was welcoming the coming of spring and celebrating the end of winter and also kicking off some kind of countdown to Las Cruces de Mayo. I reserve the right to be wrong, but apparently it is a sort of debutante ball as well because dotted all over the castle grounds were young girls dressed in colorful ornamental gowns posing for photographs. Among the mix were girls in extravagant white gowns too.

It was definitely a neat sight but a little odd at the same time. Some of those girls were awfully young, and their photographers seemed to encourage the face-the-wall-and-turn-around-and-give-me-a-coy-sexy-little-smile pose. Gross. Ew.

Dana and Brian genuinely enjoyed the castle, which made me happy seeing as I'd talked it up for the last 9 years of my life, 8 of those with Brian. I think they were, however, a little less than thrilled at the continued uphill climb involved in enjoying said beauty, but I have to say that I was impressed with their patience on our Alicante day down memory lane.

The photo above is of the old city, the "barrio", where we were staying. The large red splotch right in the middle is a stage they were setting up at the little chapel just up from our place. We had no idea at this time that we'd end up being part of the festivities planned for later that night...
 

Above is the beach where I spent the majority of my time in 2002. It didn't matter if it was cold or hot, sunny or cloudy, I was on that beach, swimsuit layered under whatever clothes I needed to match the weather.

Below is the port where all the late-night clubs are. After bar hopping in the Barrio until 3am, we would all head to the port where the discos stayed open all night long. I don't even pretend to have that kind of stamina these days. But by God I was going to hit the port on this trip!

The population of Alicante is about 330,000 today. When I lived there it was closer to 275,000. It is one of the fastest growing cities in Spain, and its main economic driver is tourism. The city has an indescribable electricity, and everywhere you look you see young people. It reminds me a lot of my other favorite city - Austin!

See the huge white building above the bull ring? That's the atrocity that was built where the open-air market used to be.

These kids cracked us up the whole time we wandered the castle grounds. They had to be teenagers, and they were all but having sex up there on that lookout point. I couldn't help but snap a photo. Voyeuristic, I know, but I always think it's so hilarious how open the Spaniards are about PDA, like hard-core PDA. In no time this kid had the girl's bra off and was taking heavy petting to whole new levels.

Give me sultry 10-year-old.... Weird right? At least she's facing forward.

I didn't think things could get much better after that chance lunch with Loly, but I was practically floating as we explored and relaxed at the top of the castle. Something about me and Alicante just works really well.

We decided to take an alternate route down because Brian wanted to check out this hillside restaurant we could see from above. He was on a mission while we were in Spain to find restaurants with great views. Dana and I swore it was a different direction, but Brian stuck to his guns and led us down this path. Guess who was right? You've got to listen to the ladies.

The up side to our chosen path was that it literally dumped us out about 2 blocks from our apartment in the Barrio.  After the castle extravaganza, we were sweaty and exhausted, so we decided to head back to the piso to get cleaned up before a Saturday night on the town. Unbeknownst to us, Alicante had other plans for us....