My Mystery Hosts in Hotlanta

Now that you've heard about the Disappearing Couches of Nashville, you'll understand my apprehension about my arrangements in Atlanta.

When I was preparing for my solo journey to Florida, I considered joining CouchSurfing, but never went through with it because, at the time, I didn't know anyone who used it and I was already a jumble of nerves about moving to begin with. I only wanted to stay with friends or mutual friends.

My arrangements for Atlanta were as such: my longtime Internet friend / pen pal, Sarah, used to work with this guy, Kevin back in San Francisco. Neither of them work at that same place, anymore. Sarah is still in California, but Kevin moved to Atlanta. Sarah got in touch with him and Kevin was totally game to let me stay with him and his girlfriend. We had been in contact via email, and then we spoke on the phone as I was getting ready to leave downtown Nashville. He was very nice and very friendly.

As I was inching toward the Tennessee/Kentucky border, it dawned on me: What if he doesn't know how I know Sarah? Granted, this was late 2010, meeting people on the Internet had been a common practice for many years at this point, but still. Some people are weird about it. Forgetting the time difference between us (especially as I was entering the Eastern time zone), I called Sarah and left a message, explaining my concern. At one of my stops, we exchanged texts. She didn't see any reason for Kevin to be weirded out by the fact that Sarah and I had never actually met, and no, she did not tell him.

I was so happy to arrive at Kevin's house after battling Atlanta traffic. It was past the rush hour time frame when I reached the city limits, but holy hell, that does not matter. Kevin and his girlfriend, Laura were so friendly and welcoming, and their dog was really awesome, too. We exchanged pleasantries, they asked about the trip, got the formalities out of the way. And then Kevin said, "So how long have you known Sarah?"

"Gosh, a few years now."

"Cool. Are you from California?"

"Nope. Never been there, actually."

"Oh. Did you two... go to school together?"

"No."

"So... how do you and Sarah know each other?"

"The Internet."

"Oh, ha ha. That's cool. How many times have you and Sarah hung out?"

"Uh, never."

"Never?!"

"Nope! I've never actually met her in person!"

And then Kevin erupted into laughter and his girlfriend's face carried a shocked-but-amused expression. I explained that, even though Sarah and I haven't actually met in person yet, we're VERY good friends and have been for years (probably 4-5 years at that point). Every time Sarah and I tried to visit the other, something always came up. There was a year where, any time we picked a week in a month, one of us had either a wedding to attend (which always comes with a high cost), a family obligation (non-wedding-related), or some kind of ridiculous medical expense (because getting sick is crazy expensive, with or without insurance).

Anyway, Kevin thought this was hilarious and "SO Sarah!" When I said, "I hope this doesn't weird you two out too much!" he and his girlfriend insisted it was fine. Just really, really funny.

And again, their kindness and warmth and hospitality were beyond appreciated. I'm still so glad that I got to meet those two and make a wonderful new connection in the Atlanta area. Kevin and Laura both had to work in the morning, but Laura had an early day and she and I met up for lunch before I headed down to Florida, where a brand new life awaited me.

PS. I have since gotten over my fear of CouchSurfing.com.

Saying Hasta to the Hostel

My weekend at the Hostel in the Forest was an amazing, liberating, relaxing, beautiful, and delicious time. It was certainly an experience I had never had before, and it is now one that I look forward to having again and again. It was so hard to say goodbye to the beautiful trees and beautiful faces of this place!

So we said "see ya later!" to the hostel and made the bumpy drive down that long dirt path, back out onto the Interstate. Before K & B pressed onward and upward, we stopped at a Starbucks in Brunswick to fuel up for our drives. I spotted some Two Moms in the Raw rawnola, which I've read about in the blogosphere, but never tried before, so I snatched up a package.

This was great! Crunchy, seedy, lightly sweetened to perfection.

After a good hour of sippin' and crunchin' and conversatin', it was time to part ways: K & B to the North, me back to the South. I was excited to get back on the road and make some detours. My first stop was in St. Mary's, Georgia, because the sign that read "National Seashore" along I-95 caught my eye. Turns out, that "National Seashore" is a part of Cumberland Island, which requires a ferry to reach. I didn't have enough time to stick around and catch the next one and spend a couple of hours exploring, so I had to pass this time. Instead, I strolled along a park by the water, sat at the end of a fishing pier, lounged in one of the many bench swings along the boat docks, and enjoyed the sweltering, sultry heat, my ears picking up snippets of perfect Southern accents.

Y'all better watch your dirty damn mouth when you're in Georgia!

After a couple of hours in St. Mary's, I was back in the car and over the border. I already decided on my next stop: Jacksonville Beach. Traffic in Jacksonville was excruciating, but it ended up being worthwhile. I had an amazing time romping on the beach.

Oh, dear Ocean, I am IN LOVE with you!

I am in love with your salt that soaks into my lips
I am in love with your seaweed that slithers around my legs
I am in love with your thunderous waves that knock me off my feet

I love the way you rush in and gently push me

I love the way you rush out and almost pull me in with you

I played in the waves for an hour, then laid on the sand and read for another hour. I didn't ever want to leave, but I knew I had to. Real life was waiting for me. The rest of the drive that day was fairly smooth. I made a quick stop in Orlando to grab a late dinner at Whole Foods, and didn't hit a drop of rain the entire weekend until I rolled into O-town. I came home deliciously tired and dreamy with my heart extra-full of love for everything. Best weekend ever.

I found sand in my car and my bags for the rest of the week.

Drifting Away at the Driftwood Beach

When someone says to you, "Oh, you've GOT to check out the driftwood beach! It's awesome! It's FULL of GIANT driftwood!" does that excite you? I admit, when I was told those very words, I just smiled and shrugged and said, "Sure!" Because quite frankly, that's the approach I tend to have about most things in life, especially when I hear there is an element of excitement and beauty. (But that's silly to say, because EVERYTHING has an element of beauty and excitement.)

The driftwood beach is part of Jekyll Island, which is about 20-ish minutes from the hostel. Jekyll Island itself is kind of "meh" -- there's golf, classy-ish restaurants, little shops, touristy stuff, etc. But the driftwood beach definitely steals the show. After walking through some trees along a dirt path, the beauty of this place sneaks up on you, slaps you in the face as soon as you step onto the sand.

This is some Tim Burton-esque stuff right here, folks. Well, with more sunshine. (That Tim Burton, he's so GLOOMY!)

So listen, guys! There's this AWESOME beach that is FULL of GIANT driftwood!...

Vegan Dining, Tree Hostel-Style

As if the Hostel in the Forest wasn't amazing enough, they're also very vegan-friendly, offering a mostly-vegan communal dinner every night, fresh out of their Soul Kitchen. Everything is homemade with love and as many homegrown and local ingredients as possible.

We ate outside each night on picnic tables by string- and candle- and torch-light.

It was late and dark when we ate, though, so be prepared for some flashy pictures.

Dinner the first night consisted of a giant salad and these amazing corn cakes with a chunky salsa-relish-chutney. I really want to recreate these and eat them every day until I'm sick of them.

The vegan chili was also delicious.

After ya dun scrape ya plate, ya help out in the kitchen.

I don't have any pictures of this, but I'll just say that that first night, I never had so much fun washing dishes before. Madonna's "Like a Virgin" will always bring images of dancing with dish towels and singing loudly over the sounds of sprayers and the clangs of pots and dishes.

My friend Brandon helped prepare the salad the second night. He's a chef and showed off his mad "I'm a chef" knife skills.

Another amazing salad with broccoli leaves, tomato, and grapefruit, along with jasmine rice and sesame broccoli, and a most heavenly tomato-basil-topped lentil loaf.

To say that the food at the hostel was amazing and comforting and delicious would be an understatement. Eating with the other guests was fun, too. Always good conversation, often interrupted with random enthusiastic compliments about the food.

I want all of my dinners to be like this.

The Hostel in the Forest

My magical weekend was a three day stretch that I won't soon forget. It was so full of beauty and happiness that a part of me doesn't want to share it. I want to keep these warm, happy feelings inside my heart, and these warm, happy memories inside my mind, and lock them inside of me, hoarding them all to myself. A delicious secret.

But that wouldn't be very nice. Sharing is caring, after all, and once in a great while, something that is "too good to be true," really is too good, and really is true. Something like that is worth sharing. So I present to you... The Hostel in the Forest.

I arrived at the hostel just a few minutes after my best friend, Kate and her hubby, Brandon. We were meeting here as a fun little get-away/vacation before they pressed on to Maine. The magic began just after narrowly missing the entrance. We both got a kick out of the extremely bumpy ride down the long, winding driveway. As I bumped along, I rolled down the windows for the first time that day and listened and marveled at the tall trees and the warm sunshine beaming through their leafy branches.

Kate & Brandon were set up in a hut with no walls, just screens.

My first night was spent in the Collaboratorium, which is much more hostel-like. The bottom floor is filled with bunk beds and funky paint EVERYWHERE.

The top floor has an art studio that we were told we could play in, but we never had the time.

There was also a hammock, which I successfully conquered.

I realize that doesn't look quite "successful," but I swear I made it all the way in! It was snug.

Once our bags were dropped, we set off to explore the grounds.

We had a lot of fun around the lake.

This place is about as earth-friendly as it gets, from recycling to composting.

(this includes - colorful! - composting toilets)

As colorful and cheery as these are, it was a little creepy (for me) to go to them in the middle of the night, even with a flashlight.

They also grow much of their own veggies, but you'll be reading more about the food in a later entry.

The showering situation is pretty nice. Freeing, even! It uses filtered sulfur water, so there's that eggy smell, but being able to shower in the fresh forest air pretty much makes up for that.

So there is your introductory tour of the hostel in the forest. Coming soon: dinner at the hostel, where I slept the second night, CHICKENS!, and Jekyll Island.