Waking up just before the sun rose on Thursday Feb. 18, we packed our stuff up as quickly as we could, not taking our time to stretch out, warm our bones in the rising sun, munch on some granola, and for me, drink a cup of fresh instant coffee (Mel that starbucks instant is actually quite amazing) as we gotten into the routine of doing in Baja California. Instead, we had decided over the past couple days to try and get riding as quickly as possible so we could enjoy the morning briskness. The farther south we traveled, the hotter and drier the days were getting, and by knocking out a good twenty five miles by 9:30in the am, we were putting ourselves in a much better situation to sink into some shade and take some much needed siestas when the sun was highest and the day hottest without worrying about not covering ground during those daylight hours.
This Thursday morning was a special one for Laurel and I. The only thing that stood between us and the ocean was another fifty miles of road. The night before we had stumbled upon a campsite off a dirt road leading surprisingly to both of us to the Pacific Ocean, on the west of coast of Baja. We had made it to a narrow point on the Baja California Sur peninsula where we could watch a beautiful sunset over the big blue sea to our west. If only we had been a little higher, I think we easily could have seen the Bay of La Paz as well, to our east. Our excitement got us through the incessant and annoying ups and downs of hills and dips for the first thirty or so miles before we had to finally stop and munch on some granola. I ordered a coffee from this little store in the middle of nowhere, and watched as the store owners son played with his toys in the dirt just outside the front door. His toys, by the way, consisted of an old plastic toy car, a bigger piece of styrofoam, and about fifty cigarette butts. If only he knew how in his innocence he was doing the world such a good by reusing others´waste as toys...
Now that I had my coffee in me (i´m actually a bit startled about my habit forming around this morning ritual now - I don´t know how much of it is some much needed stimulant, and how much of it is the feeling of being civilized, but either way I never drank coffee so much before), I was amped to get to the coast and La Paz. Pedalling another mile or two around a bend and past a microwave tower (these towers are pointed out on the map I have and actually make decent landmarks - also, you know you´ve reached a top elevation when you hit a tower because they only build them on certain key peaks) the Bay of La Paz came into site. Its light blue waters looking so clean and refreshing compelled me to pedal faster than I had in a long time. The next twenty miles flew by and we rode into La Paz triumphantly around noon.
For me, this city signaled the end of my trip down California - Alta California, Baja California Norte, and Baja California Sur. After seeing all of it the way I have, I am still pretty convinced that the north bay area is one of the most beautiful in California. Sure, I have now seen amazing beaches up and down this coast, but nothing compares to those beaches sitting next to mountains lush with trees and lakes filled with fresh water and rivers flowing into the ocean abundant with fish. Baja California carries on the rich tradition of Southern California - it is a desert. Not to take anything away from the desert. It is absolutely quiet at night. No crickets. You can see just about every star you would ever want to at night. There are no city lights to dull the beauty of the heavens. And the plants and animals that do live there are quite amazing living things. But the desert is no place to live, at least not for an animal made up of two thirds water.
That day was also the last ride that I would share with Laurel, and I felt pretty good about that as well. For having met Laurel two and a half weeks earlier online and spending every minute of our days together since in pretty extreme circumstances, I could not have asked for a better traveling partner. She was respectful. She was knowledgeable. She could name almost every bird we saw and tell me a little bit about the species. She shared my love for the earth and the world. She spoke decent Spanish. She did not fuss over camping in the desert, using holes for bathrooms, and not showering for a week. And she knew how to ride a bike - well. But for the last week or so, I had been getting a bit irritated by having a partner. I had been feeling like it was time to move on on my own, and create my own personal experiences. As great as she was, when she arrived at a store before I did, the people there already had some feeling as to who I might be, and this bothered me. I was ready to experience on my own. She was a bit more needy to stay with me, as she felt uncomfortable camping alone in the places we did at night, so I had made a tough decision to stay with her till we got to La Paz. So it was a bit freeing for me to ride into La Paz, knowing that my next rides would be by myself. I am sure I will miss having someone to talk to at night sometimes, but when you are by yourself you sure do learn to listen to yourself. Laurel will continue on down to the cabos, and then fly back up to California, where she will pick up her car and head back to Oregon to start work the beginning of March.
I have been welcomed here in La Paz by a young women named Azareth, who a couch surfing host. She lives with her sister (who is out of town doing ecotourism), and her three year old son, Cesar. Azareth is a law student, and is also trying to convert her place into a daycare center. Her home is certainly a work in progress, but there is plenty of space for people such as myself to hold up for a few days. Cesar is a bundle of cuteness and joy. I was surprised to see Azareth give Cesar a cup of coffee in the morning when he saw us drinking ours and asked for our own. Responding to my inquiries about whether or not this young child needs any more stimulants than he already has in his life, Azareth simply says: "This is Mexico." I love it. I don´t think Cesar is smoking cigarettes yet, but apparently he is no stranger to tequila, even though he hates the stuff. In his mothers opinion, if you keep something away from a child, that fuels his desire to get at it even more, and so by giving it to him he is tempered and never gets the wrong idea. I appreciate this little rule of thumb, as I feel that many young people in the U.S. that are kept away from alcohol for so long often go wild once away from home, finally free enough to get their hands on whatever it is, but not having the experience to know how to handle the responsibility and liability that comes with it.
Also staying here is Laurel for the time being, and another couch surfer named Damien who is orignally from Atlanta, GA, but has spent the last couple years traveling through Mexico. He buys and sells online, which gives him the security financially to fuel his habit of seeing the world. He is definitely a character and adds a lot of flavor to the household. Since last night the four of us have had many interesting talks, as Cesar runs around playing and sitting on laps and Azareth cooks us food and serves us Tea de Jamaica. Azareth seems very knowledgeable about the history of Mexico and the current economic and societal situation it is, and it is interesting to bounce preconceptions that I have off of her to see what her response is.
I have taken care of a few things here. For starters, I visited a bike shop and got a new tire lever, a new spare tire with extra long stem for my back tire, and a new pump. I feel pretty good about my bike sitch now. Secondly, I visited a local marina and tried to schmooze with the gringo sailors that lounged about driking coffee and smokinbg cigarettes. I am not a good schmoozer. I am no good at making senseless conversation and trying to rub elbows when all I really want is a ride on your yacht to get over the mainland. I ended up writing a note, posting it on the bulletin, and going on my way. Tomorrow I will see about hopping aboard the cargo ferry that takes truckers and their cargo from here to Mazatlan. Hopefully I will board the ship as some type of worker, and be able to work my across the sea. Other than that, I finally was able to spend some time on a gorgeous beach and refresh myself in that crystal clear light blue water that had been calling my name from the desert. The water is just cold enough to be refreshing, but does not take more than a minute to acclimate to. Who knows, maybe I´ll stay here just a couple more days...
oh yeah. got a new camera too. so expect some picture soon. and i´ll eventually get the ones taken on laurel´s camera of baja california so i can show those as well. i think about everyone who might be reading this often, and hope you are all doing well.
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