Santa Barbara, California

11/6:

Zen and I woke up at 5:30 AM and got ready to leave Culebra. When we were about to go to the airport we realized we had locked the keys in the rental car... So luckily our next-door neighbor was nice enough to give us a ride in his golf cart (it was only 5 minutes away). He told us more about the culture there and he said the locals just don't care... their main philosophy is "mañana". Both our suitcases were overweight a few pounds, so we had to transfer some stuff to our carry-on luggage to avoid the $100 fee (geez!). I was happy to get away from the mosquitoes - I had so many itchy bites!

Both our flights were with American Airlines and departed almost the same time, so we could check in together. The process was very slow and we made it just in time to board.

On my way to go see my bestie, Nicole! I had an earache the whole flight to Philadelphia - I think I got water in my ear or something... They didn't show any movies, so I worked on my needle-point.
 

After the 4-hour flight, I had a very short layover but the flight to L.A. was delayed... I was concerned I wouldn't make it with the Airbus to Santa Barbara. No entertainment either, only on your own personal devices through the WiFi, so I started re-reading one of my favorite books, "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. The flight was about 5.5 hours. My ear was really bothering me the whole trip. We actually landed early so I had plenty of time to make it with the bus! It was a lot warmer than I expected. Check out this girl's cool outfit - only in L.A.!

 The Airbus was 30 minutes late and the ride was about three hours, and I didn't do anything except nod off a few times. I'd been traveling for about 14 hours... Nicole came and picked me up around 9:30 PM and she had made me dinner and I got to meet her cats, Oliver and Bella for the first time. Her couch was super comfortable to sleep on! There was a 3-hour time difference, so not too bad.

11/7:

We woke up early and meditated for 20 minutes and went for a morning walk. Nicole had to drop off her car at 10 AM for repairs, so while we were waiting we had lunch at "Savoy  Café & Deli", where they had an excellent salad bar.

Santa Barbara is nice!! The weather is so warm and pleasant. I went from extreme humidity to dry desert climate. My skin dried up, but my hair responded very well. I loved how classy everything was and the relaxed vibe. 

We strolled around town and checked out all the trendy shops and I couldn't resist buying this sparkly water bottle and rhinestone cat ears at "Francesca's Collections".

When I have my Arabic mansion I will buy this huge, incredible blue chandelier:

My ear was still bothering me... it felt like I had an earplug in my right ear and was half-deaf. Super annoying. So I went to the Pharmacy and got some Auro Dri (ear drying drops) for swimmer's ears.

We had frozen vanilla almond milk at "Paseo - Pressed Juicery" and at 1:30 PM we got a private voice lesson from Nicole's teacher, Karen Lytle. She teaches the SLS method (Speech Level Singing), just like my voice teacher in Maui.

When Nicole's car was ready we stopped at her boyfriend's house so I could meet him and then went over to her mom's for dinner.

When we came home we sang karaoke and recorded goofy videos of us cracking up hysterically.

11/8:

Nicole went to the gym in the morning so I had some time to myself (which I always love). When she came back she did a pretend 30-min therapy session with me because she's getting her Master's in counseling and it was an assignment and then we painted our nails. At 4 PM we went to the Farmer's Market and had dinner at Savoy with her boyfriend.

Then we all went to the Granada Theatre to watch the election. Happy Doomsday. ;) We are in this together.

To lighten things up, we went to her boyfriend's house afterward and sang Disney songs until 10 PM.

My ear had not gotten any better, so I tried taking a decongestant and an ibuprofen. My friend who has had this in the past said it might drain on its own if the swelling goes down from the ibuprofen, but recommended I see a doctor. It's been three days and it's supposed to get better after 48 hours. The ear drops only seemed to make it worse. 

11/9:
We started the day by doing Kundalini yoga for 30 minutes to this video:
https://youtu.be/gdZgRcIvzzI

I called Kaiser to get some advice about my ear and they suggested waiting a couple more days before I see a doctor, unless I get a fever or discharge from the ear, and just keep doing ibuprofen 3x a day and try anti-histamine.

We took a nap and I did my breathing exercises. It was 92°F outside! We went to a really good "Dakini Dance" class taught by Lisa Beck. I would say the style was Indian fusion and I learned a lot because it was different for me. Afterward we went to Nicole's singing lesson and this time the students performed for the group, so Nicole and I sang a couple songs together and we did solos as well. Here is a video of me singing one of my favorite jazz standards:

11/10:

We had a pretty mellow day. Started off meditating for 20 minutes, we sang, went to the grocery store, uploaded videos to our new YouTube channel "Weirdo Goofballs", and in the late afternoon Nicole's boyfriend came over and we watched Disney's "Oliver & Company". Still no improvement with my ear... At this point I was starting to get used to it... I started taking Mucinex today.

11/11:

We meditated for 20 minutes in the morning. I felt worse than yesterday and a bit wobbly, so since nothing I was doing was helping, I decided to go to the doctor. The nearest Kaiser clinic was 1.5 hours away, so we went to the urgent care nearby instead, after we had lunch at Savoy. Turns out it's an ear infection and I have to take antibiotics for 10 days. That's a lot of antibiotics for me lately (with the pneumonia)!

In the evening Nicole's boyfriend got us free tickets to this incredible spiritual and inspiring concert/seminar with top class and unique talent.

11/12:
My last day in Santa Barbara so we were a bit sad... Our paths will meet again... We started the day doing Kundalini yoga for 30 minutes  and had lunch at Savoy again. We could've tried a different place, but we love it so much! Then we visited Nicole's school, "Pacifica".

We went for a walk on Butterfly Beach. Out of all the beaches I've been to so far on this trip (Madeira, Culebra & California), the nature on Maui has the most special energy.

In the evening Nicole's boyfriend came over and we watched "Clueless". I pulled these Isis cards:

I started to get my hearing back just a tad in my right ear!


11/13:
Nicole and I went for a nice walk in the morning.

We did another one of her practice 30 min-therapy sessions (homework for her school). It was a good way for me to verbally summarize my trip, insights and thoughts about returning home and set intentions.

We ate at Savoy one last time before she dropped me off at the Airbus at 12:20 PM. It was nice to sit and reflect on the 3-hour bus ride and listen to music while enjoying the view of the ocean. Nicole was such an inspiration and support for me in quitting my job and going on this journey before I left Maui, so it felt right to finish the journey with her.

Everything went smooth and was on time and I got to the airport early. My flight to Maui left at 5:50 PM.

I was happy to fly with Delta. I get miles, they had blankets and pillows, entertainment, they served a lot of water, it wasn't too cold and the seats next to me were empty... I was apprehensive about my ears during the 5-hour flight, but luckily they were fine! I chewed gum since I heard it helps relieve the pressure.

I felt ready to go home after this almost 5-month journey (144 days to be exact!) and sleep in my own bed, have my personal belongings, be with my husband, see my cats again, drive my own car, work on new projects in my recording studio and dance space, swim in the ocean, get away from the dryness of California and back to the tropical humidity of Hawaii.

I was picked up by my dear friends Celeste & Jon because my hubby had to work. Maui's so nice... It felt surreal being back and everything was familiar but new. Maui hadn't changed, but I felt different.