Finding Fall

Though I guess I can still be considered a newbie here, it's been more than 3 months now! I’ve hit some major milestones:

• I had an in-person job interview
• I saw my first forest fire, in the Santa Cruz mountains not too far from us
• It rained in San Jose for the first time since I’ve moved here and of course I did a celebratory rain dance
• I heard Owen use the word ‘hella’ in conversation- we're becoming real live Californians!

Forest fire burning off in the distance

No crazy traveling the past two weeks, but I did manage to have a few notable adventures:

I found a doctor here! Nothing exciting about that, but said doc is in downtown San Jose so I finally got to explore the city. Though we technically live in San Jose, we’re in the suburbs and I’ve only ever driven through downtown. So I spent the morning exploring some cute restaurants and shops, a college campus, and an awesome park.

San Jose State University

Two weekends ago, I did my last long run before my trail marathon on the Skyline to the Sea Trail. Like we’d done before, Owen dropped me off in the mountains and I ran to the ocean. Afterwards, my body hurt so good so I welcomed the chilling numbness of the Pacific Ocean to mute the pain in my knees and legs. We feasted on a picnic of smoked gouda cheese and salami. Now I’m brainstorming what I want Owen to load in our cooler for after the race this Saturday. My first choices are a Rita’s Gelati and a Mexican bagel from Ithaca, NY though I may need to settle for something else.

On a day off last week, I rode my bike to the end of the Los Gatos Creek Trail, something I’ve been wanting to do since I moved here. After a nasty hill climb, I was rewarded with this amazing view of the Lexington Reservoir and the surrounding mountains. The only hill where we live is the staircase leading up to our second floor apartment, so I was definitely grateful to make it to the mountains powered by my own two feet. 

Lexington Reservoir

Last Sunday, Owen and I had a self-declared Fall Day. As much as I love it here, the fall colors are barely existent and I’ve been missing the apple orchards and pumpkin patches I grew so fond of in the Northeast. So, I figured we’d see what this state had to offer. We started the morning off with a trip to the farmer’s market in Campbell (the small town near us which I absolutely love). It did not disappoint. Vendors had everything from peaches and sweet corn to apples and squash. Summer and fall produce at the same time?! I'm taking advantage of that. Next we were off to the only U-pick apple orchard I could find within the Bay Area. It was a little odd going apple picking near the ocean, but we still did have fun and got a decent haul. Last, we drove along the coast north and stopped at the first pumpkin patch we saw, where we purchased a few gourds that look like pumpkins since we don’t have space for a full size pumpkin. We joke that it's our tiny pumpkin for our tiny house. 

 

Driving Highway 1

Shenanigans at the apple orchard

Pretending we have space for one of these big boys

Now that it gets dark earlier, Owen and I have gone into slight hibernation mode (he went to bed at 7:30pm earlier this week), but I’m going to make a conscious effort for us to have some weekday adventures. Having more friends would definitely help, which, speaking of, my friend Dave from Cornell just moved out here for grad school. We met up with him one night for dinner and drinks in Mountain View, this cute town in the Peninsula (aka the west side of the Bay). 

One thing we fully embrace during our hibernation period: cooking! Normally I would never post food pictures but this is a bangin prosciutto fig pizza we made with some help from Plated, a service that delivers recipes and all the ingredients you need. (Thanks to my aunt for the gift card.) Our meal actually looks like the picture! Full disclaimer: we didn't even know what prosciutto was before we made this. 

Up next: trail marathon this weekend. My goal is to finish the race with a smile on my face and to swim in the Pacific Ocean afterwards!