I’m finally getting around to posting about our one-year anniversary celebration. You know, nearly in time to celebrate our second. Better late than never? 

We decided that instead of giving any gifts we would take a trip. Nothing elaborate. I used to love going on vacations in big cities and any other destinations with promises of exploring around every corner, requiring weeks of planning, and leaving you happily exhausted at the end of each day. But, since moving to San Francisco I’ve found that I crave the exact opposite. I think it’s because every day is like the best kind of vacation where you’re constantly discovering new things that come time for vacation, I’m ready to not do a thing. The thought of quietly unwinding, sitting aimlessly on a beautiful deck, cocktail in hand, and warm sun on my cheeks makes me giddy. And that’s exactly what we did for our first anniversary. 

It was a bit unconventional. Having lived in San Francisco for less than a year and only having one proper job between the two of us we were thinking economically. Luckily that aligned beautifully with what we wanted.

We drove four hours south for a long weekend to stay in what some call “California’s last true beach town,” Cayucos, CA. It’s the kind of beach town where no matter the time of day, you can tell everyone you see at the grocery store has come straight from the beach, the sand barely washed away, hair still salty and windblown.

Winding along the 1 all the way there, we stopped in Monterey to eat a seafood lunch, and pulled over at nearly all the turnouts to take in every last little bit of beauty the West Coast has to offer even spotting some whales along the way. We spent our days lounging on the beach, surfing (Xan…), sitting on the deck looking out over the golden hills of California’s central coast, and grilling pizzas for dinner. It was so perfect, and so refreshing.   

We stayed in a renovated airstream where our Airbnb hosts left us fresh eggs from their chickens and homemade muffins. We spent most of our time on the deck taking in the view, making dinner, and talking until we saw nothing but an inky sky dotted with sparkling stars while snuggled up in cozy wool blankets.