There's a suspicious lack of greyhound bus I'm supposed to be boarding any minute now, but on the other hand Santa Cruz is a place I wouldn't mind being stranded in.
cruz (3 out of 3)
Santa Cruz 02
Following my stay in Linda's Seabreeze Cafe, I accidentally walked ten miles. Around beaches, through parks, to Twin Lakes and along traintracks back to the Boardwalk; entertaining an idea of going on the Sky Gliders, but they were closed. I also entertained the idea of a toffeeapple (available in great and exciting variety) as I wandered through the evening buzz of the funfair. I resisted. $7 pricing helped. I did google taffy to see if it's vegan though (unlikely, butter).
Having neglected to eat I stumbled with relief into Saturn Cafe and downed a BBQ ranch not-chicken burger and fries. I also got a berry apple pie with mint chip ice cream but suddenly the burger caught up with me and only managed a bite of pie. Food was average veggie-diner style, prices higher than average. They had a wide choice though, so it's possible I just happened to pick a particularly uninspiring sandwich.
Absolutely stuffed, I stumbled back to the trailer with vague intentions of heading out to Wholefoods for lunch supplies for the next day (so I wouldn't have to eat only old bagels). Instead I napped, woke back up just long enough to watch Perfect Sense on my laptop, then went back to sleep. My hands and forearms and face are tanned, my shoulders glowing red.
Santa Cruz 01
I'm in Linda's Seabreeze Cafe in Santa Cruz. Feels like it's full of locals. Coffee is nice, in a large mug. Staff are friendly, reporting back from time to time as they discover things in their kitchen which are vegan. They have a few things on the menu, but only big meals, so I enquired after smaller things. I'm not hungry anyway, I only wanted coffee. The sun came out since I've been in here. It was grey when I walked. I'll finish my coffee, then continue walking to Twin Lakes. Oh that might be a while, I just got an impromptu refill.
Santa Cruz so far feels pleasant and friendly. The Boardwalk is tacky... fairground rides, candyfloss, toffee apples... but somehow still charming. I walked around as the sun was setting last night and everywhere felt quiet and calm. Until I made it to the end of the wharf, which, underneath, is populated by noisy sealions. They bark and snort and sneeze and groan. I found a spot that was lit well enough to see a heap of them and watched them sleeping in piles, climbing over each other, awkwardly hauling themselves in and out of the water and over and around their buddies.
I'm staying in an AirBnB, an adorable trailer in someone's backyard. It's tiny, only has a bed and some shelving inside. The bathroom is across the yard. A tiny space to myself in a quiet town is exactly what I need for a few days post-conference.
I might go on the cablecars (Sky Glider) on the Boardwalk later. And maybe swim in the sea. Tomorrow I'm thinking about hiking in Big Basin all day. I need to look out for somewhere I can pick up lunch to take so I'm not eating week old bagels all day.