I had started writing this post yesterday morning but then Firefox decided to be stupid and freeze and I lost the whole thing. Anyway, Tuesday afternoon I got back from spending the weekend with Steph. We had an amazing time and I’m so thankful I got to be with her before she spends 6 weeks in Africa. Matt was supposed to join us but complications arose at the last minute and he was unable to come. Sad day.
Day 1 (Friday)
It began at 4 in the morning when I had to wake up for my 6 o’clock flight. Dad drove me and pretty much kicked me off at the curb (and I was too tired to function, let alone be bothered by that). Thanks to carry on I was checked in and in line for security within 5 minutes. After they made me throw away my lotion and shaving cream, I made my way to the gate and was on my way in no time. The flight was smooth and I even made it to San Diego a little ahead of schedule.
Steph met me at the curb and we headed over to a Japanese market only to find out that it didn’t open for another hour. We headed back downtown intending on parking and walking along the water to admire all the pretty ships docked there. Unfortunately we couldn’t find any free parking so we ended up just driving around until the market opened. We grabbed a lot of Japanese chewy candies and by the time we arrived at the house it was still too early to eat lunch.
We wanted to have Japanese curry and rice so we went to the store and got all the ingredients needed. After chopping all the vegetables and cooking the meat, we began to prepare the rice. Unfortunately on the back burner was a styrofoam container with tortilla chips and a piece of paper hanging out. When Steph lit the front burner, it caught the paper on fire which spread to the styrofoam. We tried to put the flame out by blowing and dumping water on it. Eventually we put it out but it left quite a sight. Never a dull moment…
The rest of the day was spent just lounging around and hanging out. Good times.
Day 2 (Saturday)
Finally being able to sleep a full night after about a month of restless nights was heaven. And I didn’t get up until 11. We had lunch eventually and then headed to the beach with her sister Melissa and Melissa’s friend. Having decided not to enter the water, the four of us laid on the beach and I myself dozed a bit, the weather was perfect and just lying there was very peaceful. It was another day of just hanging around.
Day 3 (Sunday…yeah, I know)
Six Flags Magic Mountain. Boo yah. Goliath, Scream, Batman, Riddler’s Revenge, Viper. Oh I love roller coasters. And pizza. We had pizza for dinner that night and it was delicious.
Day 4 (Monday)
Since we didn’t have transportation at our disposal, we were dropped off at the new train station and reminded what it was like to live in Japan. It was a really nice ride and when we got off we had to do a bit of exploring to get to the beach. We ended up going over train tracks (heh) because construction was being done on the trail we were taking. When we reached the shore, we realized that the pier was down the beach a ways and that’s where we wanted to be since we were hungry and the area we were in was residential. We arrived at the pier ready for food but decided against the expensive diner in favor of McDonald’s where we could enjoy the outdoors. We probably only spent half an hour laying in the sun but it was again relaxing and I found myself dozing off.
After we got back to Steph’s, one of her church friends came to pick us up for college group. It was an amazing time of fellowship and digging into The Word. I’m really thankful we were able to go and I loved the dynamics of their group; it made me anxious to get involved in such a group in my area. After the official meeting ended, we stayed and chatted with people, finally leaving around 9:45.
Day 5 (Tuesday)
Leaving day. My flight was scheduled to take off at 11:30 but wasn’t able to until about noon due to weather conditions in San Francisco. I finally made it back home at 2, an hour later than was originally scheduled. I was very sad to leave Steph and San Diego but I’m so glad we were able to spend quality time together. Hopefully we’ll continue to have annual get togethers and I’m hoping next time Matt will be able to join us. Nothing bonds people like living in a foreign country together. I’ve been truly blessed by their friendship.