A Journey Called Life …

We all have a favorite place: a place to go back, a place to cry an ocean, a place to sit and ponder, a place to have the regular milky tea, a place to wander. For some of us that place is somewhere near Mom’s kitchen, in anticipation of a lovely childhood that comes back each time we go home. For some of us, it’s that corner of nostalgia that every camera and every piece of paper forgot to capture. For some of us, it’s that beach where we walk miles even with an injured leg and a cured heart. For some of us, it’s that regular shop where we discuss family matters for the past 40 years and enjoy fleeting nirvana.

See, favorite is such a surreal word. Sometimes it does not change after a catastrophe. Sometimes it changes color to compete with the changing notions of seasons. Most of the times it does not follow any rule. The heart wants what it wants.

In an hour or so, Friday will end officially; I can finally start a long weekend that will put a full stop on Monday and its regularities. I’m grateful when Monday does not behave appropriately, when it does not start at 7 AM and make me run around chasing a sleepy morning.

I don’t have any plan for this long weekend. I am worse without plans. I am happier when I have everything chalked out on paper. For such unplanned long weekends, I have listed a favorite place to pause life, to sit for hours, to grab a cup of coffee and fries and ambrosia burgers, to fall in love deeply once again with Santa Lucia Mountains hugging the wild Pacific ocean.

Nepenthe. It’s a restaurant in Big Sur, California. Not really close to where I live, but not too far to miss. In Greek, “Nepenthe” means medicine for sorrow, literally an anti-depressant. I don’t know if I ever went there to cure any sorrow, but I know for sure everything has a healing effect there. Food is really not the main reason to visit that place. There are deeper explanations that words won’t be able to define. Did they ever make sense while defining “Favorites”? I love Nepenthe for its rustic appeal. I hardly get mobile connection, so those precious hours of disconnection are to die for. The ocean wind blows all worries away, and the stillness of the ocean soothes every corner of my heart, stopping all the clocks.  Also this restaurant is in Big Sur. That covers up all reasons I mentioned. If you visit/visited Big Sur ever you’d know why!

We all have that favorite place that our heart chose, most of the times without giving any reasons.

Have a happy weekend, people!