How I Can Afford To Travel!

My most REVEALING post to date! If you've been wondering how the hell I've been able to last traveling this long, well here it is! All secrets are out in the open! This post tells you how I do it, and how YOU can do it too!

Read More

Working On A Cruise Ship

I somehow managed to get myself a job working at a Cruise Ship. This post is an inside look on what it's really like to live and work below deck. You never know... You might be enticed to work for one too, and travel the whole world like me! Read on to find out more...

Read More

Scotland: My Favorite Country In The World

I've been to many places in several different continents, and have seen spectacular beauty... But every time I visit Scotland, every other country pales in comparison. Read this post to find out why at this point, Scotland was and still is, in my opinion, the most beautiful place on Earth...

Read More

On Finding My Bliss In Italy

When you go on big trips like this, however cheesy it sounds, you always do end up 'finding yourself'. And there are moments... difinitive moments when you achieve clarity, contentment, and pure happiness. This all happened to me in Italy. Read my most soulful post to date, inspired by the full moon in Italia...

Read More

On Being Featured In A Documentary

I somehow managed to get myself featured in an upcoming documentary about "Voluntourism". This may be the big break I've been waiting for! The trailer is out - and I'm in it! It looks so good, I'm so excited! See for yourself... watch it here!

Read More

An Epiphany At Cinque Terre

The Cinque Terre is one of my favorite places in Italy. We hiked 5 villages in one day, and it was breathtaking! But something completely unexpected happened on the hike... An encounter with a complete stranger made me realize possibly one of the most important things I need to do with my life...

Read More

My Ayahuasca Experience

Ayahuasca, is by far, the most INTENSE thing I have ever experienced in my life. I died and was reborn. It is both horrific and beautiful at the same time... I can't explain it in a few words. You HAVE to read my story to believe... I promise it will be worth your while...

Read More

Search

Showing posts with label Los Angeles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Los Angeles. Show all posts

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Leaving Los Angeles :(




On Saturday, March 9... I'm gonna hop on a plane at LAX with a dream and a cardigan. I’m so hormonal right now, I could be pregnant. The past few weeks wore me out like an over-used tire. My treads are deteriorated, and I am bald. O_O
You know it's bad when I start off quoting a Miley Cyrus song and end with a weird emoticon.

About 3 weeks before my last day at work (here in Beverly Hills), I had to train my replacement, Maui. She also happens to be a good friend of mine, so basically our days consisted of heavy hard core training during the day, and heavy hard core touring at night. I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this, but I am a pretty awesome Los Angeles tour guide. My guided tours have won several awards (given by me) and I have made a lot of tourists (who are friends) extremely happy and satisfied! I probably take that job even more seriously than my work at Bosley. So you can imagine how jam-packed our days were, trying to see and experience as much as we could in between training sessions. It was insane! (Photo on the left is my first ever Hollywood Sign photo after living here for almost 7 years!)



Then came Friday, which was my last working day here (before continuing Maui’s training in the Philippines). People at work threw me a goodbye thing with cards and cake and speeches, which of course, unleashed the “Ugly Cry”. 
 I’m never going to be one of those people that could cry with poise. Once I get started, you see my nostrils inflate to three times its size, my eyes puff up like I’ve been punched, and you constantly see my tonsils from the wailing. That is pretty much how I looked like the whole day on Friday.




Goodbyes make me crazy.

I’ve learned a lot, working at Bosley. Six and a half years is the longest I’ve ever been working anywhere, and I only have good things to say about that company. I’ve grown so much, gained so many friends, and made so many great memories over there… saying goodbye to everyone who’s made a difference in my life was a little heartbreaking, but it makes me feel good knowing I’ve made a difference there too, and that they all fully support me in quest to travel the world.



I gave myself a full week to prepare for my departure. I’m headed to the Philippines to continue Maui’s training for 3 more weeks, and only after then will I really have the time to relax and fully prepare for the big RTW trip. So right now, I’m packing for the stuff I’ll need for Manila, and at the same time going through another process of “letting go”.  After giving away and selling most of my stuff last October, I STILL have a TON of stuff I need to dispose of! It’s so unnerving! How the heck do we accumulate all this crap? I’m tired of fixing and sorting through stuff and trying to decide which ones to keep and which ones to let go!

Although… I have had a lot of practice. This is my second round after all… so I suppose it is a little easier.

#endbipolarrant

In Other News...

I SOLD MY CAR! Remember how I said it was the biggest cause of stress last time? Well I didn’t realize how stressed I was until the day I finally sold it, and I felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders! (By the way, to all the Angelenos, if you want to sell your car, I totally recommend Trade In Solutions. They are amazing! Super fair, no lowballing, and completely up front and honest. They saved my life.) Now I don’t have to worry about payments or insurance or traffic citations! Halleluiah!!!

P.S. I miss you, Banksy :’(

I was driving a rental for the past week (because in Los Angeles, you need to have a car!) and I’ve just returned it the other day. Currently, I am car-less for the first time since I was 17… It’s weird. I don’t really know what to do with myself, but it’s quite liberating. :)

Just thinking about the things I’ve done this past month alone is exhausting. I remember there were moments at work a couple weeks ago where I would just randomly burst into tears for no apparent reason. I think it might have been a combination of both sadness and fatigue.

In hindsight, I think having Maui around and giving her the ultimate LA tour weeks before my departure was quite fitting. It gave me the chance to go to all of my favorite spots one last time, to remind me of all the reasons why I love it here to begin with. And I do love it here… I do.

It’s funny.. LA is hardly the city of angels, but l couldn’t help but love everything about it. We have the best weather, the most amazing and accessible beaches, all the celebrities within reach, and – I don’t care what the New Yorkers say – but the people over here really are friendly, not phony, friendly. It’s 'cause the sun makes us happy!

I don’t know what’s going to happen in a year, but I do know that I will always consider Los Angeles my home. I’m going to miss so many things about living here...but I'll always have a reason to go back. I know I technically haven't left yet, but I'm looking forward to the day I get on a plane and sing at the top of my lungs, "California here we come, right back where we started from... Californiaaaaaaaaaa.... Here we cooooooooommme!"


Goodbye for now, Los Angeles. I love you. :)


******
Hi There! Have we met before? You look familiar! Those shoes look great on you, by the way! I’m Eartha and I recently decided to quit my job to travel the worrrrld! Join me in my adventures by checking back on my blog, and leaving me a comment or two!
  • Subscribe to my blog and get updated every time I post here!
  • Add me to your feed reader here!
  • Wanna be Facebook friends? Like my page here!
  • Are you as epigramatic as I am? Tweet me @earth2eartha
  • Do you have cool photos on Instagram? Check mine out too @earth2eartha
  • Or if you want to leave me a message or a limerick, email me here!

Come and visit me again soon! :)
*****




Thursday, November 8, 2012

The Color Run San Diego





On Saturday, November 3, I participated in The Color Run in San Diego!

The Color Run is basically just a fun 5K run where you get blasted with color powder. I personally am not a runner. I suck at it. I have poor endurance and I itch. That’s right. I itch. I think it might be an allergic reaction to sweat. In fact the only reason why I signed up for it is because of the colors! I wanted to be doused and saturated and smothered with color! I wanted to come out of it looking like a tie dyed shirt! There are zombie runs where you get chased by zombies, and there are mud runs where you toss and tumble and gooey mud. Not my cuppa tea. I’m more of a colored woman so to speak. Bring on the rainbow!!!

It doesn’t say it anywhere on their website – but I have a feeling they got the idea from India’s Day of Holi – or the Festival of Colors! From what I understand, this is a celebration of the coming of Spring, and they throw scented colored powder to each other! I saw this in a movie a long time ago, and I remember wishing we did something like that here in the States… And now – VOILA! The Color Run! Another dream come true! Whoopeee!

A photo from the Indian Color Festival - The Day of Holi

OK. It’s really easy to participate. Just register online (I paid cheap because I registered early) and you will be given instructions, which is basically just – wear white. The more white you have on you, the better and more colorful you’re going to look at the end! People came in wearing white afro wigs, white boa’s, white tutu’s, white tube socks, the works!

(Click on the photos to enlarge)

New friends with White Boa's

Creative white costumes!

They also give you tips about washing yourself and your clothes after. For example – smothering your hair with olive oil or leave-on conditioner at the beginning will make it easier for you to wash the color off. I didn’t bother because I wanted the colors to stain my hair. :)

I didn’t want to have to worry about ruining my fave clothes, so I bought a 4 dollar white shirt specifically for the event, so I can feel free to color it however I want!

You can run as an individual, or you can run as a team. I put a team together and I called ourselves – “The Pigments of Your Imagination!”
I know! Really smart, right? 

My Team - The Pigments of Your Imagination


Right. OK I will stop talking now – and just show you my awesome multihued photos.


Orange really is my color...
Bumped into my friend, Amy and her team!

My sister - the photographer for the day!
Look at them! They're my favorite Couple!


So every kilometer, you go through what they call a “Color Zone”. It functions as a marker to let you know how far you’ve gone, but also – and this is my favorite – it is an opportunity for you to get colorized! A group of volunteers literally throw a pail of color powder over you! It’s the funnest part of the run because each color zone has a different color assigned, and they have blaring music to accompany the fun color drenching! So you’re there in the blue zone, screaming at the volunteers to blast you with powder, jumping up and down to One Direction’s What Makes You Beautiful! Seriously, if you’re going to look like a dork rocking out to that song, might as well be in a cloud of blue smoke!

Blue Zone!
And at the end, right at the Finish Line, you run towards the Color Run After Party! Every few minutes, a burst of color erupts from every corner... so if you hadn't satisfied your color fix yet, there's your chance!

Colors Colors Colors!

Color Run After Party!

My Team

Don’t the photos look amazing? I totally recommend The Color Run to anyone who's looking to have some good clean (well, sort of) fun! Do it! I’ve never had so much fun running in my life --- and I hate running! It truly is the Happiest 5K on the planet!

While I am waiting to leave for my big trip next year, there's no reason why I should stop living like a tourist in my home in California, right? I will do anything and everything in the name of merriment and pleasure. And you should too!

They are expanding and adding more locations --- including Australia! Take a look at their schedule here.
They actually have another one coming up in Los Angeles this February!So If you live in SoCal – I’ll see you there!!!

Mandatory Jump Shot