Taylor's creek
Our first Lake Tahoe morning was lovely! The cold fresh air made breathing so easy and yet the sun warmed us up. One of the first things we noticed was the clear blue sky. I have missed that so much about Sweden. In San Jose the sky is always a grayish blue because of all the fumes. It was funny to see Nick's surprised face when he remembered just how blue a sky is supposed to look. It was like his eyes were opened to something wonderful that he is not used to. He has seen it before but it's easy to forget that there is a whole world out there that looks, feels and smells very different than your hometown. One step at a time he realized more and more how San Jose is actually quite a fumed and drug filled city that he does not want to raise his kids in. They had junkies in Tahoe too, but they were seriously just sitting at cafés laughing hysterically... compared to San Jose where they are nothing but creepy. Everyone in Tahoe were beyond friendly. I expected people there to be tired of tourists. But instead they felt such a pride that people wanted to visit this gorgeous place. Me and Nick walked around smiling because everyone's attitudes rubbed off on us.
Despite being sick we readjusted our sleep routine. We are known for being night owls but wanted to make the most of this trip. Not to say that we woke up at 7am ;) lol forget about it. We love the night because that is the only time that we can escape grown up obligations such as bills and running errands. But this weekend we got up around 10 which was perfect. Our hotel had this wonderful little wedding chapel right outside our door. Some of the leaves in Tahoe didn't just look red, orange or yellow... they were pink!!
And giant pine cones of course! On our last day we brought one home with us that now stands on our window sill. A small but nice reminder of what we are fighting for.
First stop of our day was Rojo's to eat lunch. We literally just walked around and took a chance at every place. It always turned out to be great! They really have awesome restaurants. Nick who loves cooking appreciated that of course. The waitress was lovely and just like most places in this city, the restaurant had a cozy cabin feel!
Next we put Nick in the wheelchair so he could rest his leg and took a walk/ride closer to the lake. They had a wonderful little area with a tiny beach, picnic and BBQ areas. Soaking in this view was exactly what we needed.
One of the places that I have been excited to see is Taylor's creek. I follow The Schuerman Show on YouTube and they have visited this place several times. It always looked very nice but I had no idea it was THIS nice! Both of us were blown away by the view. I got a good work out while pushing Nick around on the Rainbow trail. But it was a lovely walk. The area around us felt like a jungle with forest everywhere and the creek traced along next to us. The water is quite shallow and the perfect place for beavers and fish to live. But we were mostly scared of bears! They are so used to humans and have been seen playing and hunting for fish in the creek. It's very common that they show up in back yards to look for food. I have heard stories of people getting one of their car doors ripped off because they forgot food in the car over night, haha! Some bears show up so often to the same houses throughout the years that the people living there give them names. Guess we should start thinking about what our bear should be called! Luckily the most common kind in Tahoe is black bears and they tend to want to stay away from humans just as humans want to stay away from them.
This is what I have missed... the peaceful state of mind you get close to nature. I love the city but I am really not a city girl. I want to live close to the stores and things I need because isolation is not an option either. But everything else around me needs to be spectacular nature that inspires me. I need fresh air to breathe and the option of choosing between a quiet day or a fun night out. Tahoe offers this without a doubt. Lake Tahoe Boulevard is one long road that leads through downtown. It has it all. Grocery stores, clothes stores, hair salons, art, museums, spas, restaurants, cafés, bakeries, hotels, casinos, entertainment, BBQ areas, beaches, forest, camping grounds, gondola to the ski slopes.... all while having an amazing view of the lake and mountains up close. I thought the downtown area would be much smaller and was worried that I would get bored, but nope... it's everything I wanted. It's a very well planned out city! I also noticed a lovely mix of cultures. In most places there are some cultures that are more common. In the east it's mostly African american and in the west I mostly see Indians and Asians. But in Tahoe I saw the perfect blend of European, Asian, Indian, Middle Eastern etc. Everyone got along and were there to enjoy life. It was easy going. If only the rest of the world could act like that.
During our whole trip people kept offering to take pictures of us, when they saw that we had a camera. They were all so lovely and said "Of course you should have a picture together!". Me and Nick were just as shocked every time. Sure, people have offered us that before. But FOUR times in one weekend?? That is seriously so unselfish and sweet.
