I've been waiting to write this post, to save it for an epic journey. But I need to keep writing, especially because my next big trip isn't for another month.
To think I've reached 100 posts on here...It's crazy. It started as a way to inform family and friends of how I was doing during my early days in England, but it turned into a fully fledged travel blog. I feel grateful for the advice from others to start a blog because now I can look back, read old posts and feel nostalgic.
This blog has documented a whole year in England and the many adventures of mine throughout Europe. It keeps records of several first-time experiences such as being in a nude photoshoot, playing American football, volunteering far away from home and discovering the unknown joys of meeting total strangers and sleeping on their couch for the night.
It would be fair to say some of my trips and adventures were done with the blog in mind, so I could show others my experiences and hopefully inspire them to do the same, to make their dreams come true as well. In the past year-and-a-half, I've been called a nutter, a real character and incredibly adventurous. I take those as genuine compliments because life just isn't that fun if you're not going to new places, experiencing new things and taking risks. After all, I'm all about collecting memories and fascinating stories.
The definition of an adventure for me has slowly evolved, even since I first arrived in England on Sept. 14, 2014. Then it was going on a trek into an unknown country, far away from home. These days, an adventure can be had right here in Porterville, but I still very much desire to travel far and wide.
With the help of another friend, I recently discovered an application called Geocaching. This is an app that is essentially a map for a huge scavenger hunt. You can find several areas in your own city where a Geocache is hidden, which is like a capsule one can hide in an area and leave notes inside. When another person finds it, they can sign their name, add a note or leave something in it for the next person to find. There are certain hints and directions on the app for finding each cache, and your phone can be used as a compass but it's only accurate to within 30 feet. At that point you're on your own, and that's when you have to really pay attention to everything you see on the ground.
I went to three sites yesterday around Porterville and Strathmore, and I only found one. It was in an alleyway off of Main Street stuck to the side of an electricity meter, but it took me several moments to realize what it actually was. This cache was an old twist cap to a plastic bottle with a magnet on the bottom. It was gray, and it perfectly blended in with the box on which it was stuck. Inside was a couple of little pieces of paper with the names and initials of all of the people who had found it.
These caches can be anything. My friend said she found one in an old chapstick cannister and a bullet casing. This reminds me of portkeys from the world of Harry Potter. I enjoy this because it's the simple pleasure of searching for a tiny trinket and being able to sign your name, though the search can be quite difficult and frustrating. It's cool to be a part of that community.
I've also just finished hosting Monika and Peter through Couchsurfing for two nights. They are from Bavaria in Germany and are traveling through California and Nevada for a couple of weeks. When they left my house, they started their journey towards Death Valley. They took a full day to go around the Sequoia National Park and see some of the things I saw on Sunday, such as Moro Rock. I gave them advice on what they could see on the way to Death Valley, such as Red Rock Canyon State Park.
I cooked them breakfast and was simply a friendly and welcoming host, something the two appreciated. I also told them to pay it forward whenever they have a guest at their place, whenever that may be. It feels good to help fellow travelers during their journey, as other people have done that for me. I guess this blog influenced that.
And speaking of the Sequoia National Park, it was great to explore my own state a little bit more this past weekend. I hiked to the top of Little Baldy and Big Baldy, and climbed the steps of Moro Rock as well. California is such a massive place, and there's no wonder why it's world famous. I should feel lucky to live here and call this state my home. I may call Porterville and the Central Valley a terrible place to live sometimes, but I really am fortunate.
So here's to the 100th post of Adventure Time with Mike (formerly known as American in Bournemouth). The decision to start the blog and fill it with my stories has been life-altering. But I say with hopeful humility that I feel grateful to have had all of these opportunities documented in the previous 99 posts. It didn't turn out quite the way I intended or expected, but this is how life is. I'll just embrace it and roll with it.
Here's to another 100 posts to this blog.
