Now that I’m still close to the beach I want to take advantage of that and go for a long run at the beach in the morning. It’s a challenging run, because it’s high tide and there is only a narrow piece of sand to run on. While running I ask myself if I really like running, but I come to the conclusion that I like it, even though it’s unpleasant or challenging at times. I think that not everything that you like doing needs to be easy or comfortable. You can also enjoy challenging things.
After the run I go back home for breakfast and work. One of my new Starbucks barista friends, Mai, asks me to hang out in the afternoon and since I don’t have any plans yet for today, I like that idea. We go to the beach and watch some surfers and then go to Belmont Park. It’s basically an old wooden rollercoaster and some other rides. I saw it this morning while running at mission beach and thought it might be fun to ride the rollercoaster. It turns out that it’s quite a lot of fun indeed. The ride goes faster than I expected and is quite bumpy, because it’s a very old rollercoaster. We walk around a bit more and then go to Balboa Park, which is also very nice on a bright sunny day like today. The afternoon goes by very quickly and around 4.30pm Mai drops me off again at Hertz where I can pick up my rental car. At Hertz I get a warm greeting from the staff. “Welcome back!”, they say before they give me the keys of the same car I had last time. The hertz employee tells me that no one has rented it since I dropped it off on Monday and the number of miles on the dashboard confirms that. I’m happy to have the same car again, because I really liked it. I drive back home without navigation, because I don’t have internet and also because I know the roads now quite well. While driving I feel like a fish in the water, it’s nice to have a car again. I make a quick stop at a supermarket for some groceries and then head home. I still have to pack my bags so I’m ready for the road trip tomorrow morning. I’m not completely sure of where to go yet, but I’m thinking about taking the long drive to Zion National Park.
