A Place To Call Home
It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for (all three of you, that is)... our big decision on where we are moving.
Drum roll please.
Emily and Nick will soon be residents of sunny Oakland, CA. “Oakland?” you ask. Yes, Oakland. But don’t worry, we aren’t planning to get shot. Despite it’s bad reputation, Oakland has lots to offer.
We knew we liked the Bay Area, and even bought diamonds there to prove it. And just about when we had almost decided that the East Bay would be our new home, Nick’s old company offered him a new position in Berkeley — and that was the golden ticket to the Wonka land.
We are excited to live in a place with better weather, some of our city necessities (like vegetarian restaurants and art), and a “green” culture that is second to none. Our first (temporary) apartment is 2 blocks from a Trader Joe’s, 3 blocks from a farmer’s market, and 4 blocks from a Whole Foods (not to mention lots of other non-food things to do).
So, come early January, we pack up all our boxes (again), and drive another 3,000 miles across the country. And when we get there, we hope that every single one of you that hosted or befriended us, or just followed along with our blog, comes out to visit us and stays on our couch.
See you in Oakland.
Tour de USA
We saw so many beautiful things, met so many incredible people, reconnected with distant friends and family, and kind of fell in love with the diverse regions, people, food, and natural wonders of this country. We really want to thank everyone who let us stay on their couch, floor, bed, etc. We couldn’t have done this trip without our new Couchsurfing.com friends and family members who let us stay with them and munch on their food.
Here are some highlights from our trip.
By The Numbers
- Days Traveling: 98
- Miles Driven: around 15,000 miles (the oil change shop reset our odometer!)
- Hubcaps Lost: 1
- Hot Tubs Dipped In: 5
- States Passed Through: 35
- Provinces Passed Through: 4
- Couchsurfs: 9
- National Parks: 9
- BK Veggies: 4
- Breweries Visited: 5
- Food Co-ops Visited: 14 (and one that had closed down)
- Diamonds Purchased: 1 big one, 6 little ones, and a giant fake one
- Times We Forgot We Were Changing Time Zones: 6 (Did you know there is an Atlantic Time Zone in Canada, and that Arizona doesn’t follow day light savings?)
- Deers Hit: none (but one hit us)
- Days Spent Farming: 6
- Vegetarian Reubens Eaten: 5
- Pizzas Tasted: 18
Our Favs
- Pizza: Wells Brothers in Racine, WI — yum!
- Beer: New Belgium Brewery, we tried them all (even secret ones)
- National Park: It’s a tie! Both Yellowstone and Carlsbad Caverns were amazing.
- Small City: Portland, OR
- Large City/Metro Area: The Bay Area is for lovers
- State To Visit: New Mexico
- Favorite Host: You were all amazing
