So last night I get a message from my girl asking me to look out for a certain perfume while I’m travelling. I respond that it’s my last day tomorrow, but I’ll have a look at the duty-free and see what I can do. A quick Google shows that there is none available at either LAX or BNE duty-free stores, so I figure it’s not going to happen.
This morning I do a search to see if there’s a store nearby that I could get it. There’s a Walmart about 5 miles from my hotel, in the opposite direction. They have it in stock, but only one bottle. The store opens at 7am, so at 7.20am, I find myself walking a mile to the bus-stop and travelling 11 stops and walking another half mile to get to the store. I go to the aisle, and can’t immediately see the bottle but the assistant assures me they have it, and brings it out from behind the counter. Mission accomplished. I only hope Jordan realises how much I would do to bring a smile to her face!
So the rest of the day was spent cruising the stores at Downtown Disney, riding a few rides. Initially I had reserved to go back to Disneyland for day 3, but halfway through the previous day I realised there was nothing I wanted to do back at Disneyland, and would prefer to spend the day in CA. Ate ice cream from Sally’s Crazy Cone number 4, drank more lemonade, had a cokeslushy, had an American sub (pastrami, salami, ham and cheese) and spent a great deal of time people-watching. I just happened to be at the parks at the same time as the D23 convention, and there was plenty to watch, as there was a plethora of customised t-shirts and Disney-bounding costumes throughout the park.
For those who don’t know what Disney-bounding is, adults can’t wear Disney costumes into the parks (obviously they don’t want regular humans being confused with actual cast members in costume). So people will “bound” as a character. They wear regular clothes that represent the same colours as the character, match hats/accessories etc. So you can tell what character they may be, but they aren’t in an exact costume. It’s fun to look at people and try to guess who they are bounding as. There was a cute little kid in a green shirt and purple pants (the Hulk), whose brother was in Spiderman red and blue. A woman and her boyfriend who were both bounding as Donald Duck, a couple of Leía and Han bounds, a cool Darth Vader - they are really quite cool to see and there are some great unique choices.
Walk back to my hotel, where my shuttle will be picking me up at 5pm. It’s been a really interesting holiday and I’ve had a bit of a chance to think things through.
Some little pearls I saw along the way:
- I saw my first hummingbird in San Francisco. I stood mesmerised for about ten minutes watching it busily working its way around a garden of flowers. It was truly something beautiful to behold
- Alcatraz Island has spectacular gardens along the east side - they were created and tended by inmates and their perfume was so nice to breathe in when I visited the island.
- I loved seeing the generational holidays taken by families - grandparents, children and grandchildren who traditionally spend their holidays each year camping at Yosemite.
- Discovering bears in the wild and sharing space with them (with a good bit of distance in between)
- Camping on the shore of Lake Mead in 35 degree heat at night with a tiny rechargeable fan to circulate air was still a great opportunity, and I wouldn’t change it.
- I had more compliments about my hair in my three days at Disney than for the entirety of the rest of the holiday. I only saw about a dozen other people with brightly coloured hair in my whole trip - very different to last time.
Finally, thanks to everyone who has read my blogs, liked my posts, or commented on my page. This has been a real adventure for me, and has been more than a number of steps out of my comfort zone. Driving in a foreign country, car camping solo in national parks and wilderness areas, staying alone in big cities - these have all been experiences that have been both exciting and anxiety-inducing in equal amounts. When I compare the challenges I felt on my Spanish adventure last year, and the mental health issues I faced, to this year’s adventures, it is a mile apart.
I still had moments of loneliness and worry on this trip. I still got homesick and had a countdown to get me home to my family, but this trip I felt more in control and really enjoyed my time away. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to travel with a buddy (or even my hubby), but sometimes, when that’s not possible, it’s also great to know you can travel alone quite comfortably. I had to be mindful not to disclose my solo travel plans a couple of times (male Uber drivers dropping me back to my hotel in Vegas, random strangers who talk to you in restaurants etc), and I really only felt uncomfortable one night - the third night in Yosemite, I had a neighbouring camper who sat and watched me set up, then pretty much set himself up to watch me coming and going to and from camp. While it may have been innocuous, it made me uncomfortable and I was aware that he was watching. Thankfully it was a busy campground so there was always somewhere around.
To anyone who is thinking of making the jump and doing some solo travelling, do it. It’s scary, it’s exciting and it’s worth every minute.
