Yogurt Harmony saved my life...well, my elbows...

First surprise on arrival at San Fran airport: there are sharps containers in the bathroom. I don't think those are for insulin injections...

ANYWAYS...I needed to get from the airport in South SF to Berkeley, which is in East Bay. You would think the hard part would be figuring out which train to get on, what stop to get off, etc. Actually, that was the easy part...the real trouble started once I arrived at my destination.

Berkeley is a beautiful city. The down town features tree-lined streets, and is buzzing with the energy of a college town, with restaurants of every ethnic food you could want and shops interspersed between. Yogurt and/or coffee joints are ubiquitous, with at least one every 2 blocks or so. My directions were to get off the BART and head North on Shattuck, towards Andronico's (the high-end grocery store of Berkeley). I was staying at my friends Stef and Knut's place for the week while they were on vacation, and they had given me very detailed directions. They had told me to ask someone which way I should go towards Andronico's, since it was confusing. The first lady I asked gave me a blank stare. A kind hipster overheard my questioning, and volunteered his opinion that he "thinks" Andronico's is to the right. My gut told me to go left, because I felt that was north, but since he was a local, I figured he must know best. So right I went.

Stef had told me it was about 1 mile until I got to Cedar St., so I was expecting a hike. Although there were a few taxis waiting by the BART, and despite the fact that I had 60+ lbs of luggage, I decided I was tough, needed some exercise, and wanted to save money for important things like wine and vintage boots. So I would walk it out.

The first few blocks weren't bad. But after a while, wheeling those suitcases over rough sidewalks while dodging pedestrians was starting to wear on my arms a bit. After what I thought was a mile, and still no sign of Cedar, I decided to consult Google Maps (which I should have done in the first place). Damn it. I, in fact, should have gone left. Thanks hipster. Trying to stay positive, I told myself I was just getting to see more of the city, it was a beautiful day, and even though my back was soaked in sweat and my elbows felt like two people had grabbed me by the arms and tried to play tug-of-war with my body, I was going to make the best of it. So I did an about-face, this time crossing the street so I could see what the other side had to offer and sparing myself the embarrassment of passing people wondering why this sweaty disheveled girl was wandering the streets of Berkeley with her luggage.

But then, I saw it...YOGURT HARMONY.  ahhhhhh :) As I sat deliriously happy slowly spooning pomegranate yogurt in my mouth and watching another homeless dude with bleached hair and dark roots (since when do the homeless dye their hair?) get arrested by bike cops, I couldn't be more content.

3 miles and one helluva steep hill later, I arrived :) Now onto another adventure: apartment hunting on Craigslist. ...

BLISS IN A BOWL!!!