There's nothing better than a trip to the coast in Marin County, California to give you a sense of calm and satisfaction from the simplest of pleasures. When low, seek out your highs from nature, good friends and great food. I'm always in best form when I find myself by the ocean. When I was last in Galicia, Spain, I was taken on a trip to a place once believed to be "The End of The World", or Finisterre, its Spanish name. Cape Finisterre is a rock-bound peninsula on the west coast of Galicia that faces the Atlantic where you see nothing but blue skies and water. The first settlers of this peninsula believed it to be the westernmost edge of the world--to them it was literally where the Earth ended. The Romans called it the Sea of the Dead as it was, and still is, the end point of many journeys. It is indeed one of the most captivating places I have ever been to, and not only because of its breathtaking beauty (we stayed to watch the most stunning sunset), but also because of its place in history and its spiritual symbolism to travelers and pilgrims everywhere.
Access to the ocean is so important to me. It probably comes from a combination of growing up in the Philippines, spending countless summers in the South coast of Spain, and having lived in coastal cities almost my entire life. It does feel like it comes from deeper than that though--that the magnetic pull of the ocean speaks to something beyond my own experiences and travels. It has the power to silence all ill will in an instant, and to sweep me away from all of my self-imposed burdens.
my photo, Stinson Beach, Marin County, March 2010
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