Google's Take

It's Over

Dan: I think the best travel stories are those where the main characters describe transforming experiences – where they learn something deep about themselves. I think this was a transformational experience for us both. We agreed from the start to a “No Judgment Zone” and that really made the trip work well. It gave us room to drop the usual masks and to share feelings and opinions with a peer. I don’t think men do that very often – at least I don’t. We learned about ourselves as we traveled across the country and shared stories; we talked about our dreams, fears, regrets, memories, careers, kids, families. There were lots of dad jokes and 6th grade humor (“that’s what she said”). There were also some pretty significant moments. I won’t share those moments, but I will say that I never felt self-conscious when I broke down and cried while talking about my mom’s recent cancer diagnosis. To quote Alan, who quoted a Clint Black song that we listened to, with this trip we each “ended up a better man.” But the trip, with all of its photo opportunities, sights, surprises, and experiences, was draining and did take a lot out of us. As we drank our last coffee this morning at Steve’s apartment, we agreed that 1 week was perfect, but 2 would have been too much. I dropped Alan off at the airport Sunday morning and then I headed east to my new life in Sacramento. I’m sure we’ll stay in touch.

The End

The end for Alan.  I just want to say "Thank you, Dan, for allowing me to accompany you on this grand adventure!"

A lot of the most important stuff didn't make it in to this blog.  We are both traveling through unique and changing personal/occupational situations, and we spent time examining all that stuff.

This experience was substantial, and not just a trivial jaunt.

Thanks, Dan.

Saturday

Dan: It only took a few hours to drive from Gilroy to Tiburon, where we would spend the night with Steve, a fraternity brother from Bradley University. He was very gracious, willing to host us even on Friday night only a few hours after emergency dental surgery for a cracked tooth. As we described in an earlier post, however, we didn’t make it all the way to San Francisco on Friday, so Steve had an extra night to recuperate before we descended. Saturday afternoon, the three of us went to the Golden Gate Recreational Area and hiked to a spot overlooking the Bridge. It’s a popular photo location, with a graduate getting her pictures taken there, a somewhat risque photoshoot off in the bushes, and even an amateur producer filming a commercial with a drone. The weather was great and the views, of course, were exceptional. We later had a couple of drinks in town and picked up accoutrements for dinner.  Although Alan and I typically spend the time after dinner blogging, checking email, etc., this time the three of us just hung out and talked through the evening.

San Francisco

Here are some final shots from California 1 and San Francisco.  We stayed with Dan's college buddy in Tiburon.

Elephant seals along Rt 1.  They come ashore to birth and molt.  Evidently they have such limited blood flow to their skin, once a year it dies off.

Elephant seals are solitary for the 10-11 months they are at sea.

In California you can get a random fine

This is the view looking west from Steve's apartment. BTW, check out SpiritualWorkout.com, that's his website.

Final route

This was our final jaunt.  Tomorrow I fly back to Lancaster, and Dan starts his new life in California.

Saturday Morning

Dan: This morning Alan is running and I did some Tai Chi in the parking lot. We typically stop by the motel’s free breakfast before leaving, but I’m sick of the ubiquitous biscuits and gravy, so we’re going to walk across the parking lot for a real breakfast, diner style. We should get into San Francisco by mid-morning, hook up with Steve and we’ll play for the day, staying overnight at Steve’s. Tomorrow I’ll drop Alan off at the San Francisco airport for his flight back to Lancaster PA, and I’ll drive on to Sacramento.