Often the best moments of travelling are the unexpected bits, the serendipitous moments where planning and expectation fall to the wayside. Finding a new store, wandering aimlessly and discovering a great piece of art, discovering a hole-in-the-wall bookstore. I had many of these moments on my travels, here are some of them...

...spotting the wild parrots in North Beach and running after them in the park.

...running along the ocean and jumping up and down on the "squishy plants".

...experiencing Glide with Andrea (crying through most of it). The music was so amazing, and the sermon better than therapy (I am not a religious person, but they have a special thing going on there.) Going for Dim Sum with friends afterwards. (I love not knowing what you are about to eat, that feeling of surprise when it hits your tongue. Though we did steer clear of the chicken feet.)

...doing a lot of research for my new book. San Francisco is a hotbed for found art and street art. Seeing an artist who decorates the city with natural materials (leaves, branches, strung through chain-link fences.) Or the artist who decorates discarded bike frames with wool. Beauty found in the most mundane of places.

...browsing lazily in City Lights and finding the perfect book. Contemplating reading Proust with J. Will we do it in our lifetime?

...discovering Twig & Fig in Berkeley, a papershop that specializes in letterpress cards and stationery. The had an old Heidleberg press in the back. I got some lovely cards and the cutest bookplates from Egg Press. There is nothing like the feeling of indented type. Sadly it is a dying art.

...sitting in my favourite Pub sipping Guinness, watching the fire, smelling tobacco and remembering my grandfather who smoked a pipe.

...sipping really good tea and eating fancy treats at the Ritz.

...flipping through Andrea's old journals. So much colour and life. It's so amazing to look back at our lives and see who we've become.

...Being introduced to a new kind of tape that does not wrinkle.

...reading the story of John Kennedy Toole in the lost soul companion, (while perusing A's bookshelf for good books.)

...wandering through Berkeley with J, sitting in Live Oak park sipping Oolong, talking about life and experiencing love.

...reading the book Mundane Journeys (found on Andrea's coffee table) and getting excited. Wanting to do my own versions for Toronto. You must check out this site, you probably already have many of your own journeys you can record.

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Happy Birthday to my beautiful husband!

Posted by kerismith at December 03, 2004 11:27 AM