I had the kind of trip that made me hate where I live. Everything about my week was amazing from start to finish. I've been living and loving Los Angeles County for 3+ years and for the first time since I have moved here, I was not looking forward to coming home. I think that means the first adventure was a success.
First of all, let me say that driving up the 5 loses its charm after the 50th winery/artichoke farm, etcetera. I started getting a little bit loopy after 2.5 hours because the road was eerily similar to driving on the 90 in Ohio. The difference is there are no rest stops in California, so I can't stop and play Crazy Taxi when I start getting road weary. Mr. Governor, please take note of this blog and make it happen somehow. I would really appreciate it!
I got to my girl Liz's house and ventured out to Luka's to meet some friends of hers. We walked in and I was immediately thrilled because of the quality reggae the DJ was playing. I don't have much to say about the bar itself, but it was a nice place with good food and a really calm vibe. The crowd was really diverse which is not something you really see in LA. There was no attitude or pretension and I had a great time. That was a nice first night out in Oakland.
The next day Liz and I went to brunch in a cute little neighborhood near Liz's house. We ended up at Lakeshore Cafe in their cute little back patio. I am a sucker for being able to eat outside so I was instantly happy. The neighborhood itself is too precious for words. Restaurants of every cuisine imaginable, bookstores, clothing stores and cafes. I could have spent hours walking around but we had something really stupid to do so we hit the road.
Years ago I used to do Phish tour for reasons I will not even get into right now. It was a great experience though because I met a lot of truly amazing people in every part of the country, including Liz. We hadn't been to a show in a long time and weren't really looking forward to it. We were both excited to hang out with old friends, but have never been huge fans of the music. So we went to the show because the tickets are free and we like our friends and that is basically all we will say about that. Shoreline is a cool venue when it doesn't smell like hippies, and fanny packs with sequins are fucking awesome. Moving on.
The next few days in Oakland consisted of exploring, shopping and friends. I fell in love with The Town in a major way. There are so many cute little neighborhoods and so much culture. We saw Goapele and Souls Of Mischief in a park where there was live art going on, all for free. I ate the most delicious vegan pizza I have ever had in my life even though I wasn't hungry. Everything is affordable, including rent, and adorable. I loved it.
The San Fransisco portion of the trip lasted a few hours on Thursday night. We went to the most insane neighborhood to see my cousin Mark DJ at a tiki lounge called The Bamboo Hut. The neighborhood had dozens of bright neon signs for strip clubs, but was also the Italian neighborhood. I don't get it either. I saw my cousin and his lady friend, and my friend Byron I hadn't seen in 10+ years. Byron and I were friends when I lived in Louisiana and he happened to be in the neighborhood for work. After some quality time with some good people, we left to meet some of Liz's friends at a speakeasy to be fancy. It was a really nice place that we probably sucked all the class out of because we can't have nice things. The drinks were delicious and the conversation was confusingly hilarious.
By the time I left Oakland I had no desire to be anywhere else. It pained me to think I was going back to Los Angeles. If it weren't for the fact that I had a ton of fun still ahead of me before I went home, I would probably still be there. I'd be sitting on Liz's couch yelling at her dog and looking for an apartment.
Next up, roller derby, camping, hot springs and disappointing beach communities.
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