Food weekend in Laguna Beach

Every beach town has its own personality, and Laguna’s is laid back, health-conscious, and well-to-do. Seriously, I have never seen so many obscenely expensive cars and surgically altered women. Even without the plastic surgery, California is just full of attractive people that make you hate your life, but to top it off, they don’t just have the genetics, they have the money, too. So that naturally wind-blown-curl look was actually painstakingly styled at one of the city’s many “Blow out” salons, which does nothing except styling (not cuts or color or anything else…because apparently you can make a living having a salon that does nothing except perfectly blow dry people’s hair).

Despite clearly caring too much about appearances, this town wins everyone over. Seriously, everyone who visits Laguna wants to move there. I want to move there.

My friends already DID move there after visiting, and subsequently getting married there. Now Maci and Jeff live an amazing life of dog parks, beaches, ubiquitous amazing food and almost perpetually perfect weather.

(This makes me ponder why we humans insist on living in climates where the only way we can survive is by conquering nature? We are clearly not biologically designed to occupy northern Europe. If we all lived on a beach we’d be living off avocados and oranges that we didn’t buy because it just grew next to our little hut, which is the only shelter we need because it’s between 60 and 80⁰ F year-round. What the hell is wrong with people?)

What really distinguishes this coast from other beach areas you can visit, in my opinion, is the food. It’s glormazing (which is what happens when something is so glorious and amazing it needs its own adjective). And, as a vegetarian, it is one of the friendliest places I’ve ever been. I have no trouble finding vegetarian food in most of the US, however having not one, but dozens of purely vegetarian and vegan restaurants to walk into almost puts me into a joy coma. Only someone with big dietary restrictions can understand the euphoria of walking into an eating establishment and realizing “Wait…I can order anything…ANYTHING on the menu???” Thankfully my hosts knew how great this novelty would be, and took me to as many vegetarian and veggie-friendly places as possible, and there are many others we could have patronized with enough time.

Our first stop was Veggie Grill, a more or less fast food joint that focused on whole foods, but had enough deep fried comfort food on the menu. I had a Grilled Chickin sandwich while the mister ordered the “fish” tacos.  And let me tell you, tacos are where it’s at on the west coast. The mister successfully negotiated for tacos every single day during our stay, and we weren’t event in town for Taco Tuesday (which is totally a thing and every restaurant advertises it and I’m devastated I have never experienced)!

Los Tacos had really decent veggie tacos, as does Coyote Grill, but La Sirena, the Mexeco Eatery, was disappointing. The ingredients were fresh, sure, and they did put fresh cabbage on the taco, which I love, but there was no sauce, no cheese, no flavor. Fell short of delicious.

But one taco place exceeded all expectations. Anyone in Orange County must must must must try the Taco Asylum. Novelty and traditional street tacos made from healthy ingredients (whole foods, no preservatives, all the fresh avocado you can stomach). The mushroom and brie were our favorites, though the meat eaters informed us the PB&J (where B stands for bacon) was the best.

We found this gem at The Camp (also called the “anti-mall” and the “Lab” which got very confusing so you might hear it referred to as any one of those). All the restaurants and shops emphasized eco-friendly, ethical and sustainable food and fashion choices. It was heaven. Pretty much every chocolate bar in the bakery was fair trade, there were at least two entirely vegan restaurants, and they have a Wine Lab. They have a lab. For wine.

At the Wine Lab, the tastings come in test tubes and are mostly organic wines from California. The cheesecake also deserves honorable mention, but is the only dessert we tried there, so I can’t say whether or not the rest of the menu will blow your mind.

In Laguna itself, two gelato places stand out: Gelato Paradiso, which is high quality and the largest variety, but Dolce Gelato has – I kid you not – Jameson-flavored gelato.

Another trend that is taking off in California and sure to make its way inland is the Acai Bowl or Banzai Bowl. It’s basically a parfait with smoothie. The smoothie has an acai base, and from there it’s topped with granola and whatever the heck else you want to throw on top. Again, fresh fruit, whole ingredients play a big role in this dish.

Brunch is another high point in Laguna. Many places have it, and you can eat it waterfront, but obviously for a price. Las Brisas is well-known but a bit out of our budget, so we went to C'est La Vie. It was perhaps a little overpriced for what it was, but I have not a single complaint about the Eggs Oscar (an avocado-based take on Eggs Benedict) and a champagne or mimosa comes free with your meal.

The ethnic food other than Mexican is the only thing that disappointed a bit. The Thai was more or less tasteless, and the Indian food, while tasty, did not blow me away. I’ve had better of both in Kansas City pretty much any time I’ve ordered.

Clearly I could not hit all the vegetarian-friendly places or do all the wine tastings, or taste all the gelato in four days, so I would go back to Laguna in a heartbeat, budgeting much more for eating out. Totally worth it.

From Hotter-than-Hades Agra to Relaxing Rishikesh

I have taken advantage of most of my weekends here in India by traveling. The first weekend I went to Agra to visit the wonder of the world on everyone’s bucket list: the Taj Mahal. I went with 9 other students from AIIS by hired car. We spent 7 hours on treacherous Indian highways. Not many fatalities happen within the cities, despite chaotic driving, but on the highways vehicles hit speeds high enough to do serious damage. Riding in a car in India is a special kind of thrill. Dodging cows and goats and wedding processions on the highway adds a whole new element.

I insisted on going to Taj Mahal at dawn, because the heat in Agra during the summer is legendary, and everyone says the Taj is beautiful at dawn. So we slept not even four hours before hauling ourselves out of Siddarth Hotel at 5 AM and down the road to buy our tickets. Our guide, Ali, was an energetic little man who was eager to get us the best views in the best light. He called me his sister and talked about how well I spoke Hindi. (Everyone does that. You say two broken sentences in Hindi and they proclaim that you speak it like a native!)

We saw sunrise over the Taj Mahal and the river that runs beside it. The marble shone pink and different colors in the stonework glowed. It is a beautiful, magical place. It was smaller than I expected, but also more intricate. There are meters and meters of ornate Arabic script surrounding the doors that are all carved out of Belgian onyx. There are flowers formed by different precious stones such as tourmaline and lapis lazuli and jade.

By 8 AM, my linen shirt was soaked through with sweat. Ali took us to a good, inexpensive local restaurant called Joney’s where we ate the cheapest, tastiest breakfast I’ve ever had.

We decided to nap the heat of the afternoon away, siesta style. Unfortunately our rooms were not air conditioned. Around 2 PM I finally went down to the front desk and asked if they had AC rooms. They said yes, but for a charge. Desperation born of sleeping (or attempting to) in my own sweat for two hours led me to grit out: “How much?” I have made every effort to do India on the cheap, with the most basic of living necessities. But there comes a point when AC is a basic living necessity. July in Agra is one of these points. Thankfully, my roomie Tori had no objection to paying a bit more (250 rupees) in exchange for physical comfort. My only regret is that I did not make this decision hours sooner.

That evening we went to the Agra Fort which is awesome. It’s a mix of red sandstone and white marble. It has great views of the Taj. The next morning we were supposed to go to Fatapoor Sikri, but rain and a tired group voted down those of us who really wanted to see it.

We drove back to Lucknow, stopping for lunch along the way. I fell into a classic tourist trap. I saw a man with a basket with a snake in it and got all excited. My first snake charmer! I started snapping photos instantly. His charming skills, however, extended to holding up his defanged and completely disinterested cobra while grinning at me toothlessly. One of the Indian men standing by finally yelled at him to play something, so the snake charmer put the snake back in the basket and proceeded to play about 6 bars of music. Because we had taken pictures, he expected us to pay him. I parted with my ten rupees bitterly.

If Agra was a whirlwind of heat, touts, a tight schedules, the following weekend was exactly the opposite. We had a long weekend for American Independence Day, and I had many travel-buddy offers. When I thought about what I really wanted to do, however, peace and quiet were the two big words that came to mind. I decided to travel to Rishikesh alone.

Rishikesh is the birthplace of yoga, and known for its outdoor activities, meditational atmosphere and spas. I stayed in a yoga resort called Narayana Palace. I recommend this spot to anyone traveling to Rishikesh. My agenda consisted of the following:

yoga at sunrise, Indian breakfast, read, massage, buy fruit at the market for lunch, nap, shower, sunset yoga, paneer butter masala for dinner, watch some Hindi television, sleep.

I did this for three days. And Letitia was happy. I am hoping to actually return to this spot with my friend Garima in September, when rafting and hiking will be available. Monsoon season puts a cramp in most outdoor activities (and train schedules, but we’ll talk about that later) but it also makes things much cheaper in the off-season. My only concern is that I think I might receive a proposal or two for marriage if I go back. I became quite endeared to the staff at Narayana.

My train ride back to Lucknow was a fun little adventure I will relate later. In the end, I reached Char Bagh train station exactly an hour before my first class. I snagged a cycle rickshaw, rode it to Wazir Hasan Road, grabbed some bread pakora from a street vendor, and settled in to another week of Urdu. Everyone commented on how refreshed I looked, despite the fact that I had come straight from a sleeper train, so that retreat in Rishikesh obviously did some good!

Sickness and kind people

We all knew it could happen. All you have to see is the street vendors selling fruit covered in flies, the fresh meat sitting in open stalls and crawling with bugs. There's no freezing and very little refrigeration in Nepal. So my poor, sterilized American immune system caved.

I had grand plans for the weekend: I was supposed to go to the Bhote Kosi gorge to canyon and white water raft. On Friday, my body made other plans. Namely: purging.

All day Friday my body faithfully emptied its contents in the manner of a malicious geyser. Unable to camp out in the common bathrooms, I clutched a small rubbish bin close to my chest and tried, multiple times, to keep down the drugs I was told to take. As a frame of reference, I probably have better medical care here than most Nepali hospitals. I live with a number of doctors, nurses, and pre-med students, all of whom are eager to offer their expertise.

New in a strange country, I felt weirdly isolated and worried. What if this wasn't just a one day thing? What if I was truly, truly sick, not just food poisoned? I hadn't made any close friends yet, and it felt lonely to be so sick and surrounded by more or less strangers.

Again, I am overwhelmed by kindness. A young student here, Hayley Poy, who will be a nurse when she finishes college, not only expressed concern and sympathy, but EMPTIED AND CLEANED OUT MY VOMIT BUCKET. I don't think I have to explain why this taboo of handling a non-family member's body fluids struck me by surprise. So much surprise, that I wept. A person who barely knew me just decided she would take care of me. And did so without any hesitation or pride. I am humbled.

I wonder again: am I in Nepal because there is any good I can do? I sincerely doubt it. It seems to me as though I am being blessed immensely, but have so few resources with which to bless people in ways that truly matter.

As an update, I am not still sick. I have developed the cough that most people do because of the pollution. I sneeze black stuff. I have bought one of the masks that locals wear over their nose and mouth because the poor air quality is so unbearable. Apart from that, I am strong, I am well, I am eating (and loving it!). I am sure I shall return home in one piece...with perhaps a few extra parasites.

Kara Newcombe tells me about Nepal

I recently found out that my friend Kara Newcombe (who is a world traveler and ESL teacher) went on a trekking trip with her dad and sister to Nepal about five years ago. She brought her photos and memories to church and we chatted about her experience and what to expect.

Some highlights:

• Nepali people are incredibly warm and willing to accept you. This might be the most heartening thing she told me. Going to a place I know next to nothing about, I am always concerned about how I will be received, especially as a westerner.
• Monkeys just run around the holy places in Kathmandu like pigeons. That must be what my shots are for :-D
• Modesty levels are slightly more strict, especially outside the city, where they are used to tourists. I will need to wear skirts or pants that cover my knees, and shirts that cover my shoulders.
• Most signs are in both Nepali and English. Phew!
• There were many times when Kara and her family were welcomed into local festivities or religious celebrations. There does not seem to be a sense of exclusivity in their communities. What a lovely thing to know! I hope I serendipitously drop into a wedding or something.
• Nepal is too gorgeous for words.
• Nepali men are also too gorgeous for words. Nathan is very concerned.