United at last, we jumped in Justin’s car and we were guided by the best tour guide ever to the Santa Monica Pier. At that moment, it was surreal to be walking down the Pier. I felt as if I was living in a movie scene where something dramatic was about to happen. So many amazing movies were filmed right where we were walking. So much history and so much beauty. We walked all around the Third Street Promenade in downtown Santa Monica. Just to see so many amazing musicians was super inspiring. Any person that has the guts to live their dreams are an inspiration. And Kalyde was doing exactly this (video below)! Just jamming and loving life!!
The daylight was coming to an end and we needed to catch the sun set on the west coast so we ventured over to Venus Beach!! The vibe at Venus Beach was unmatched to any place I had ever been before. The creativity and artistic vision of its people truly manifested its streets. This partnered with the beautiful backdrop of sunset created pure magic.
We woke up on Day 2 and decided to do some hiking at Topanga Canyon in Calabasas. I never realized how desert like parts of the Los Angeles area were and it was really cool to see the diversity in this sense. This particular hike was more intense then any of us anticipated because the majority of the trail was a very steep hill and it was a very humid day. We didn’t make it very far …..but you didn’t have to go far to be blown away by the views. To the west we could see past the Santa Monica Mountains to the Malibu coast and to the east the Pacific Palisades. The name Topanga was given to the area by the Native American tribe at the time of discovery, meaning “a place above”. And this name held true.
That evening we spent time drinking some delicious brews and celebrated my birthday….again! This group of people (in the photo below) are beautiful. Inside and out. Good friends are few and far between and it was so wonderful to enjoy just being together!
So today was the day, the last day of our journey. We strategically scheduled a red eye flight which made it nice because we got to enjoy our entire last day in full! It was hard to believe such a beautiful time was coming to an end, but we tried to not think about this and appreciate every last moment we could until our departure…
The day began driving through Beverly Hills before we connected with our friends to walk around Marina del Rey. This spot was so peaceful. Beautiful homes were settled along the marina and it was pure paradise. Boat after Boat just sailing along without a worry in the world. We watched the boats pass for awhile and then made our way south towards Manhattan Beach.
Manhattan Beach was love at first sight. It started as an instant crush and then grew into real love as we explored around this perfect little beach town. I actually believe it was a sign that I must one day live there, because its called Manahttan Beach (and I live in Manhattan)….I mean, come on!!! Destiny once again hit me in the face like a brick wall saying HELLO you belong here. This is the part of the story where it is hard to write because this is where our journey comes to its end. And breaking up with California entirely was brutal. The only thing that got me through this heartbreak was knowing that one day, I would return and love it all over again.
