The Return Home: Elephant seal sex and government warnings

Acrobats from America's Got Talent, really really talented

Day 1:

•  Free circus show at Circus Circus! Also some arcade games. I discovered that I suck pitifully at motorcycle racing games and Guitar Hero but that I am Supreme Champion of the World in Air Hockey.
  
  
• Alien Jerky Store
  
  
• 'Ghost Town': We wanted to see it, but we ended up getting there circa 4pm and it closed at 5pm. Also it cost $8/adult to get in and since we figured it's something super touristy and rather gimmicky, we opted to avoid it. 

• World's Largest Thermometer
  
  
• Failed Mitchell Caves: Wanted to see these so bad! But didn't get a chance too because roadtrippers gave the wrong location and in fact the caves were 109 miles (2.5 hrs) inland. And we just didn't have 5 hrs round trip + 2-3 hrs of exploring there to kill.

So. Much. Emptiness.

Day 2:

Picture from the internet of the plane. We couldn't actually
see it.

Slept in the car (didn't want to pay for a motel), stopped by Grace Bible Church because my bladder was exploding in the morning and nothing nearby was open.

Ended up being surprised by meeting Joann, one of the kindest and most genuinely awesome people I've ever met.
She not only showed us where the bathroom was, but also gave us coffee/tea, pastries and sun chips. Also wifi and a place to sit down and eat/get our bearings/deal with real life stuff that we've neglected with the lack of internet over these past few weeks.
We talked about the interesting lifestyles of people in Helendale (where the church is located). On top of being absurdly kind, Joanne also has an incredibly colorful and interesting history. (She's 50 but I swear she looks no more than 35).
Overall, superb start to the day.

Also met the Youth Coordinator of the church, very cool guy.

Helendale = one of the most "remote towns in all of the US"



Moral of the story: Talk to people. Throughout all of my journeys I just keep learning how important this is to making an experience more enriching. Talk to people. Be friendly, even if they're grumpy. Don't be afraid to say 'Hi' or just smile. Don't be shy. If they reject you, so be it. The possibility of them being awesome and friendly greatly outweighs any detriment you'd derive from them being jerks.


After Helendale we visited the very very cool Bottle Tree Ranch.
Definitely worth a look-see if you ever find yourself near Helendale on Route 66. The man who built the whole thing has been collecting stuffy essentially his whole life. Very kind and warm fella, certainly a lovely addition to our trip home.

Elmer (the owner of the ranch) even had his own facebook page!

Casual ex-missile

Also casual car.

https://www.facebook.com/ElmersBottleTreeRanch

Oil rigs right on the freeway?!

Then we tried to get to Snoopy, an old abandoned aircraft but when we drove (2 hours off the road) there and finally arrived, there was a big sign that essentially said "US GOVERNMENT PROPERTY. DO NOT ENTER."

It was very very tempting to just go anyways. But we figured it was best not to trespass on US Government property...I kind of like my life.

The rest of the day was just driving to the coast, we slept in the car again. Hurray for church parking lots. Also apparently hospitals and Walmart allows you to sleep in their parking lots (thanks to Joann for the tip!!)

Day 3:

Driving up the beautiful California coast.

Nitt Witt Ridge: A house built completely from trash

Lawn decorations at Nitt Witt

A ZEBRA FARM IN CA?!
Found out it was part of Hearst Castle later

Mating season for Elephant Seals!
So noisy but very cool too see them fighting and interacting.
Saw a male almost kill/suffocate a baby seal because he
accidentally rolled on top of it and the baby couldn't get
out. The massive male couldn't even feel the baby underneath
him because of all his blubber.
All was good in the end :) Mama seal helped save the baby

Most delicious Kombucha I've ever had. And
I've had quite a few.

Started the morning at Nitt Witt Ridge, a house built entirely out of trash. Then headed to the Hearst Castle which was very very touristy. But the exhibits were incredibly interesting nonetheless.



After Hearst Castle we went to see the elephant seals mating.

Big Sur

Sunset at Carmel

Then drove through Big Sur and stopped at Carmel (so quaint and cottage-y) for lunch/dinner/the sunset.


Day 4:
Eating all the finest foods of Berkeley.

At last we are back!

Icis = best gelato I've ever had in my life (including those I had in Italy. Second best would be this one place in Florence where we ended up paying $5 euros per ice cream -_- . That's about $6.80 USD for one ice cream.)

Why is this a thing.

Sliver = best pizza ever (again, including pizza I had in Italy, although to be honest, I only ate pizza once there. And yeah it was delicious, but nothing really novel like
Sliver/Cheeseboard's flavors).
Cinnaholic = Delicious, but meh, wouldn't go back.