So I am writing to you now from my homegirl Sam Conrad’s lovely apartment on Dwight and Telegraph Avenue, in the heart of Berkeley, CA. While my pretext for this visit was a wonderful football game (which I did enjoy attending), this visit was needed for many other reasons. Berkeley is a special place for me, because some of my best friends go to school at UC Berkeley. And I miss them! This weekend was the perfect excuse and getaway for me to see them. I started my journey from McClintock, outside of Webb Tower yesterday. A prime time shuttle drove me and my roommate Jessie to LAX, where we caught a flight to Oakland, and then used a a bus, the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transport), another bus, and a small stroll to land at my friend’s apartment. My best friend Samantha Salis and Sam Conrad, my host, were waiting to greet me and my roommate. After a long and warm embrace, we had to be on the move once more. We grabbed a giant slice of pizza at Fat Slice (warning, most of this post involves food, one of the best parts of of Berkeley and NorCal in general) and we were on our way to SF Giants Stadium. 3 trains later we were at the stadium in San Francisco. Me and Jessie had tickets next to our good friends Kevin and Alden and met them at the game. It was weird to see football played in a baseball stadium, because everything felt so small! We got some good shots of Kiffin and the other players from where we were sitting. It was also strange being mixed in with so many Cal fans. But we held our own in the cheering department:)
Obviously the game went well, and me, Jessie, Sam, and Kevin headed back to Berkeley. We walked a lot of the way now that we didn’t have any luggage to haul and it was beautiful! After regrouping, we strolled around Berk, and just wandered. We stopped at Creme, another fave spot of the locals. For $2, we got an ice cream sandwich made with two large cookies of our choice, and a large slab of ice cream in between. It was delicious. At that point, I accepted I was going to get “hella” fat this weekend. But with all the walking and hills I’ve been climbing, things might just balance out. After some more walking and visiting people, Jessie and Kevin decided to try Top Dog, a famous hot dog eatery that has been around since the 1960’s. I was beyond full and couldn’t participate, but the franks did look delicious. Today I have more visits with friends lined up, and tomorrow I will be venturing into San Francisco once more to be a total tourist! The people and places here are making me beyond happy. I couldn’t have asked for a more fun, relaxed, and exciting weekend. I’m stoked for all the adventure to come, but not quite looking forward to all the catchup I will be playing with work. Sunday might not be quite as fun when I get back…
But until then, Fight on!
