Travel Writing

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California, an ode to the unexpected

 It was a rainy September morning back in London and for once we didn't moan about the weather. We were going away to warmer latitudes for over four weeks. Our hearts full of joy. It was happening. The plane rounded a sharp turn, the view opened unexpectedly and scenic Point Reyes spread out beneath us.

 In the short time that the landing lasted, all the reasons I had gathered along the years to make California my dream destination flashed before my eyes. My first love was basketball and my hero Kobe Bryant and his LA Lakers. Then it came Kerouac, Steinbeck and Joan Didion. Of Mice and Men reminded me of a story my grandmother told me about. Post civil war rural Spain wasn't overly different to that California superbly described by Steinbeck. Summers were spent around the Cantabrian sea, in Asturias, dreaming of Big Sur and its wild landscapes, thinking of the day when I could drive down Highway 1to the sound of the Grateful Dead.

 In my first year of university I became absolutely obsessed with the Yosemite captured by Ansel Adams’ lens. Furthermore, every time I went to the mountains –which was regularly- Muir’s quote from My First Summer in the Sierra echoed, “exhilarated with the mountain air, I feel like shouting this morning with excess of wild animal joy”. San Francisco’s counter-culture movement and the West Coast music scene associated with it has fascinated me since my early twenties. But what I was most curious about was the food. Would Chez Panisse live up to its legend? Would Tartine’s morning buns be as delicious as I imagined? Would the farmers markets make me consider relocating?

 And there we were in San Francisco. To fight the inescapable familiarity with the city even before stepping foot there, we decided to surrender to the beauty of unplanned travelling. Being my companion a transport planner professional, it took a while to convince him of the charms of wandering without a particular purpose, but when he agreed, he never looked back.

To see more of my California on this 10-page story, packed with off-the-radar recommendations, anecdotes and illustrated with analogue photography buy your copy of In Clover here.

 
California road trip - Monica R. Goya
California road trip - Monica R. Goya
California road trip - Monica R. Goya

** See more on the print edition here **

 

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A Return to the Past for Lodestars Anthology

February 1, 2016

A return to the past

If there is a European country where heritage and everyday life coexist in a perfect combination that is Italy.
The Borghi -Italian word for villages- define themselves as the most beautiful villages in Italy. And likely they are. For a Borgo to be accepted in the Club, they need to meet strict requirements, like the need of architectonic harmony within the urban fabric and building heritage, or high standards of quality of life for those who live there.  However, for us the wandering travellers, the Borghi offer among many delights a haven of peace wrapped with delicious food. Here you are a small selection of the most picturesque villages in Italy and what to see when you get there.
 


Apricale, Liguria
 
Apricale is a dream hill borgo surrounded by lusciously green mountains and olive groves in northern Italy, less than 20 miles away from the French border. With statues dating back to 1267, it was the first village to become independent in the whole Liguria region. Apricale has a rich history and boasting Italian small village charm, life happens around the small piazza with a Gothic fountain. Never has a name been more appropriate, as Apricale derives from the Latin word “Apricus”, that means “sunny, exposed to the sun”.  And similar to centuries ago when the name was first coined, the privileged setting where it is settle, on top of a hill, allows that the sun’s rays filter through the narrow medieval streets all day long. The historic centre is admirably well preserved and if you can avoid the signs of our contemporary society, like the inviting cafes, you can truly transport yourself to medieval times

Read more and buy your copy here.

Lodestars Anthology Issue 5, A Return to the Past by M�nica R. Goya

See more here.