Final Days In California

Somehow five weeks just flew by! My days in California were coming to an end so we checked off the final bucket list items, went to Catalina Island, shipped back my motorcycle, and surfed as much as possible.

Monday. My favorite day in California... we went surfing with all of our friends and then had drinks at Bungalow. We had the perfect weather for surfing, a great group of friends and there was nothing but laughter all day.

Tuesday. A day of rest and errands.

Wednesday. To Catalina Island we go! Stephanie and I woke up around 6:30 am to drive to Newport to hop on the Catalina Flyer, a 75 minute ferry to Catalina Island. Grouchy morning people, we somehow got it together and made it on time to the boat.

After the ferry ride, we jumped off the boat and grabbed some much needed breakfast at the Pancake Cottage. We had a huge southwestern breakfast and a pot of coffee. It was a decent diner meal, no complains but nothing to write home about.

Then we started our island adventure in Avalon, at the Botanical Gardens Center. We set off on a short hike, admiring the shrubbery and then found ourselves at the William Wrigley Jr. Memorial. It's an artfully architected tower built with local materials with views of the gardens and ocean.

We made our way back to the city center of Avalon by hitch hiking with the Stella Artois distributor on the island. I always knew Stella Artois beer was the best. We then walked over to the Descanso Beach Club to lay out and enjoy the beach.

On our way back to the boat, we stopped by Lloyd's of Avalon, a local candy shop. We stocked up on homemade candies and watched the taffy maker in the store window. 75 minutes and a bag of taffy later, we were back on the mainland and ready to head home.

Exhausted from the day, we crashed at home with big bowls of pho and watched surf movies.

Thursday. Crazy winds knocked out the power in the neighborhood, meaning my bike was stuck in the driveway behind the electric gate. So I went to my home-away-from-home, Brentwood Cafe and worked on my trip back to NYC and my upcoming travel plans.

Friday. On my final day in LA, I went for one last ride down Sunset Boulevard and then loaded my bike on a truck to be shipped back to NYC. Then we went for a surf even though it was cold and windy. It was a short lived session, but worth just being on the beach.

We packed up early and went to the Sunset Restaurant near Zuma beach to enjoy a drink, the scenery and my final day. Then we drove home, I packed and somehow zipped my bag as Stephanie and I sat on it trying to keep it closed.

Saturday. New York bound baby.