Not everyone can be king of the world

Should some things remain a fantasy? When exploring, sometimes what is in your memory is way better than what it actually IS. You wonder then, would it be better left unexplored?

Catalina, for me, was a mysterious place. A place for couples and tandem bikes (they are playing songs of love but not for me...) a place, and I guess I mention it frequently, that was not sold to the US by Porfirio Diaz in that agreement of $1 million and the Brown Berets tried unsuccessfully to occupy in the 70's in the name of Aztlan, because in fact it was owned by no one. (so far from god so close to the united states)

My friend T (interview upcoming) and I bought a Groupon for a half off boat trip and seized our chance to explore this place we both wanted to visit since moving here from our respective places in the middle west. To this place, our fantasy island.

Our boat ride was an hour and forty five minutes, for me a pleasureful journey, because there is nothing I love more than staring into the expanse of the ocean and feeling so insignificant a speck. We passed flotillas of birds, departing planes and were greeted by a Blue Whale who kept us at a safe distance. I missed the fluke w/ my camera. I sat huddled in my hoodie, with a cup of coffee as dolphins welcomed us to the island.

We landed/ported, we walked into town and tried to find a place to eat and we settled on Joe's, where they serve drinks in waxy dixie cups so the tourist population (TP) doesn't cut themselves. I listened as the May-December international romance, tried to decide my nationality. They decided w/o asking that I am Lithuanian and my eyes are green. Curse my amazing hearing.


Next stop, Catalina Conservancy to find tide pool sites (there are none) and other nature goodness we could stumble onto in the short time we were on the Island of Catalina. Our only option was a hike up to the Wrigley Memorial and botanical gardens. A hike where we choked on exhaust from the many golf carts that passed.

I learned many things in this place, like the previous post on what can kill you and what can save your life. What an endemic is and that there is nowhere you can go within walking distance that you can truly feel alone.

In the end Catalina is just a touristy beach town, with its sand dollar key chains, palatable food and a place where you can get a "my boyfriend went to Catalina Island and all he got me was this t-shirt", t-shirt.

Maybe it should have stayed in my memory as this place for lovers and revolutionaries.