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Ojai, California: Thank You For The Love

February 20, 2017 by Shelli

Someone once said to me, “Happiness is a time, not a place.”

I think I had just moved to Winner, South Dakota, from Missoula, Montana, and he was trying to cheer me up. Nothing against Winner, but Missoula had mountains and the kinds of outdoor activities I loved. Winner, on the other hand, was situated in mostly flat, farm country, and would have been awesome if I hunted pheasants. I didn’t.

At any rate, I’ve never forgotten the quote. The words seem wise. If you’re happy, you could be anywhere, and you’ll likely be happy. We ought not to put such a high burden on a place to be the cause of our happiness.

But let’s be honest, some places can really help bring out the happy in us. And Ojai, CA, is one such place. I just returned from a visit to Ojai. It was my first time there, and my purpose for being there was to participate in a 5-day Silent retreat and workshop with Byron Katie, whose Center for Work is in Ojai. (I will be writing pretty personally about my experience in Silence, with no technology and connectivity to family and friends, and much more, at my YourEpicLife.com blog. Please check that if you’re interested in those writings.)

Ojai is a small city in Ventura County, about 1.5 hours northwest of Los Angeles. Set in a valley in the Topatopa Mountains, Ojai has a village-like center that includes many art galleries, good food, and great markets and “new age” shops. On its North edge is the Los Padres National Forest, which is full of trails to explore. Ojai is about the same size as my hometown of Lander, Wyoming – home to only about 7,500 people – so it would not be too hard for me to find my way around, even without the use of technology or words.

I knew my experience was going to be special as soon as I drove into Ojai and arrived at my AirBnB and learned the little guesthouse that would be my refuge for 6 days had a rainbow painted on it. 🙂 My home away from home would be a guesthouse on an organic farm on the outskirts of Ojai, in the Meiners Oaks area. It also didn’t hurt that it is Spring in California. It had rained a lot recently, and everything was green, and the air was rich with smells of flowers and shrubs. I couldn’t inhale enough!

Just 18 hours earlier, I had been in a whiteout blizzard on South Pass while driving to a regional airport to catch my flight to LAX. There were still two feet of snow and a very wintery landscape covering my home state of Wyoming. It is hard to smell much of anything in snowy Wyoming when all evidence of vegetation is covered in deep blankets of snow.

This is a large herd of antelope in a white-out blizzard I drove through in Wyoming to catch my flight to sunny and flowery California one week ago.

A rainbow painted on the side of the guesthouse that would be home for 6 days. (Talk about having my name all over it!) Lol. But seriously.

As I was taking in the smells and the spring-like conditions, I noticed a little “sunset trail” right out my front door that would, as my host, Christopher explained, take me to the top of a hill overlooking the farm and provide me with a great sunset view.

My accommodations, which was a room with a big bed and a private bathroom, attached to a “bamboo kitchen,” were quaint and enchanting. It was a perfect little “refuge” to which I could retreat every evening.

The enchanting bamboo kitchen and living area. I spent a lot of time drinking tea and journaling in this wonderful space, especially during the first full day of my Silent retreat, which was a very rainy one.

I had arrived with a night and one full day to call my own, so I didn’t waste any time in exploring. After getting settled into my guesthouse, I walked up the hill and watched the sun set over the farm and mountains.

“Sunset Hill,” a short walk from my refuge.

Then, I walked one mile for dinner to a place I couldn’t wait to experience, the Farmer and the Cook. The Farmer and the Cook is an organic market and bohemian cafe with a large patio serving vegetarian Mexican fare and salads. Because I would be mostly fasting during my retreat, this would be my first and last real “meal” while here. Oh my God, I was not disappointed! I had a large salad composed of a several organic vegetables and herbs, and a cup of the best black bean soup I’ve ever had. To round out the deliciousness, I had a peanut butter, chocolate chip cookie. Epic yum.

Epic yum. Fresh organic fixins and the best black bean soup I’ve ever had at the Farmer and the Cook.

As if that wasn’t a good enough finish to the day, the almost-full moon lit my way on my walk back. As my good luck would have it, I was going to be in Ojai, in Silence, during the full moon. How special!

The next morning I rose before the sun was up. I am an avid sunrise watcher, and I wanted to be near Meditation Mount for my first sunrise in Ojai. Meditation Mount doesn’t open until 8:30am, but I wanted to be in that area to see the sunrise. As the saying goes, the early bird gets the worm.

I struck gold! I witnessed a magical sunrise, complete with birds chirping all around me. I know I’m not special; that anyone can watch a sunrise, and that the sun rises every single day, but it still feels like a miracle every time I see the sun first appear. I have seen some Epic sunrises, and this one is right up there near the top of the list. Its beauty moved me to tears, and seemed the perfect start to my days of Silence.

After that terrific start, I went to find a trail to hike. I decided on Lake Casitas, where I hiked for about 5 miles, and was afforded some views of what is a beautiful lake that right now has, by all indications, low water. It was a nice way to stretch my legs and start getting introduced to the area.

Then, I got in the car and set my sights on Foster Park for some more walking. But first, I stopped and indulged in some fresh blueberries and raspberries I bought at a roadside fruit stand.(#notinWyominganymore) Pure deliciousness!

Foster Park is a beautiful park with a series of green hills and lush vegetation. The Ventura River flows through the park. I gained access to the beautiful and wonderful Ojai Valley Trail, a “rails to trail” trail that stretches for 9.3 miles, eventually leading into and through the town of Ojai. (I would come to know various portions of this trail well during my 5-day retreat. I returned to it during most of my lunch breaks during the retreat.)

I walked a few miles out and back before heading into Ojai to register for the retreat.

Meditation Mount’s International Garden of Peace was breathtakingly beautiful.

The almost-full moon rising, as seen from Meditation Mount.

A beautiful plant (an aloe plant?) in the garden at Meditation Mount.

After checking into the retreat, I headed to Meditation Mount, to meditate while watching the sunset. Meditation Mount was founded in 1971 and is a nonprofit meditation center “in service to humanity.” The mission of Meditation Mount is “to promote the building of an enlightened and compassionate world through the power of creative meditation and community-based events that focus on principles right human relations, goodwill, group endeavor, unanimity, spiritual approach and essential divinity.”

I spent about an hour getting my breath taken away by all of the flowers and plants in the International Garden of Peace, with the sun setting over the mountains for a backdrop. Opposite the sunset, was the almost-full moon rising. It was an amazing place from which to meditate, that is for sure.

During the course of the Silent retreat, I got out often to explore Ojai. The people in all of the markets, and places I explored were delightful and generous, even when I was in Silence and couldn’t acknowledge them with words or engage in conversation.

I enjoyed many more hikes, including the Foothill-Pratt Trail, and the Cozy Dell Trail, the latter of which I hiked on two mornings, starting before dark, under a starry sky, and grunting it to the top of the hill right as the sun arrived for the day.

I discovered these two hearts embedded on the Pratt Trail.

I am an avid hiker, adventure and adventure guide. I hike about 1,000 miles a year. While hiking I always have my eyes open for heart rocks, and heart shapes. While in Ojai, I spotted numerous hearts, at least one on every walk I took. In other words, there was a lot love on the trails in Ojai.

By the end of my time in Ojai, I felt a special kinship toward the people in the town and its trails.

While I’ve been to many awe-inspiring, special places, Ojai really worked its magic on me. It won my heart. Thank you for the love, Ojai!

(I will be back. My family is taking a 25-day vacation at the start of summer that will include some of California’s central coast, and I think we’ll take a slight detour so I can show them this special place.)

Munich Day 1: Glockenspiel, Deutsches Museum, Englischer Garten and Beirgarten!

June 3, 2016 by Shelli

Hi again. You’ll recall that my husband, Jerry, and I, and our three sons, Wolf, 16, Hayden, 14 and Finis, 9, are on a 29-day “Epic Europe Family Adventure.” Our itinerary includes London, Munich, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Portugal.

If you’re interested, my two previous trip reports about our time in London are here: From Wyoming to the British Museum and Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew in 24 hours and Big Ben, River Thames, Tower of London and Ice Cream.

We have been so excited to explore Munich, Germany. Jerry and I are each half German, so our three sons also are German, and we were all curious about exploring a part of our heritage. And there were numerous other reasons we wanted to explore Munich. The beer, of course. And the yummy food, including the plate-sized pretzels we heard about — the boys couldn’t wait for those! Also, the Bavarian Alps. And the Glockespiel. And so much more. We couldn’t wait to see it with our own eyes, and to really immerse ourselves in the capital of Bavaria.

While London represents a first in that it was our first destination where we put our feet on the ground in Europe, Munich marks a bunch of additional firsts, including the long train ride it would take for us to get here, being in a country where English isn’t the primary language, and we’d also try out our first ever AirBnB accommodations.

I could get used to riding trains. :) — I could get used to riding trains. 🙂

Our youngest son, Fin, enjoying the train ride.

Riding trains, but the way, has in itself been a special experience for us. Until now, we have not rode on any major trains. It’s been a marvelous way for us to see the new sights and spend quality time together. The “Chunnel” – our ride from London to Paris – was particularly unforgettable. We enjoyed a delicious breakfast that included almond croissants hot out of the oven. (We are also loving the coffee here. They are smaller servings, but stronger, and steamed and served much hotter than we’re used to. Coffee lovers, Jerry and I are adjusting just fine!)

We arrived to Munich late, at about 9:30pm, and found our way to the Subway, and then found our way to our accommodations. Hatice, the owner, was wonderful. She had provided a lot of helpful information to me and answered many of my questions leading up to our time in Munich. She greeted us outside of the flat, and we quickly collapsed into a deep slumber.

The next morning, we had a free day, which we planned to fill with a 20-minute walk from our flat to Marienplatz, a central square in Munich that has been the central area since 1158.

n the middle of Marientplatz is the Marienpillar, adorned by the gold-plated statue of Mary, which has been at the center of the square since 1638.

Marienplatz is named after the Mariensäule, a Marian column (a religious monument depicting the Virgin Mary on the top) in its centre in 1638 to celebrate the end of Swedish occupation. Today the Marienplatz is dominated by the New City Hall (Neues Rathaus). In the Middle Ages, markets and tournaments were held in this city square. The famous and remarkable Glockenspiel in the tower of the new city hall was inspired by these tournaments, and draws millions of tourists a year.

On our first day in Munich, it was the Corpus Christi holiday, which falls on Thursday, 60 days after Easter Sunday.

When we arrived to Marienplatz, there was a Catholic church service going on, beautiful music and a procession. It was an expected and pleasant surprise for us to stumble into this.

We enjoyed the music and the energy of the Marienplatz, before starting our walk to the Deutsches Museum. The Deustches Museum is the world’s largest museum of science and technology with about 28,000 exhibited objects from 50 fields of science and technology.

We spent about 3 hours barely scratching the surface of the magnificent museum. We especially enjoyed the ships and marine exhibits, as well as the computers and musical instruments and air travel exhibits.

Jerry and the boys, walking to the Deutsches Museum.

"The Maria." A sailing barge used for fishing. One if the last preserved sailing ever of this type. As early as 1882, the sea fisherman A. Bathed and his two sons perished when the Maria sunk in the Elbe estuary. — “The Maria.” A sailing barge used for fishing. One if the last preserved sailing ever of this type. As early as 1882, the sea fisherman A. Bathed and his two sons perished when the Maria sunk in the Elbe estuary.

My guys, in front of Wright Model A "Standard" Biplane, 1909. The Wright brothers designed & built the worlds first mass produced aeroplane. It was a result of systematic improvements made on their first successful powered arrow plane the "Flyer." — My guys, in front of Wright Model A “Standard” Biplane, 1909. The Wright brothers designed & built the worlds first mass produced aeroplane. It was a result of systematic improvements made on their first successful powered arrow plane the “Flyer.”

This hose-less diving suit, 1912, consisted of one bottle containing compressed oxygen and a second bottle filled with compressed air. Using a pressure regulating valve, a gas mix was produced which the diver breathed in. Developed to tether diver to the ship. Divers could dive to 40 meters. — This hose-less diving suit, 1912, consisted of one bottle containing compressed oxygen and a second bottle filled with compressed air. Using a pressure regulating valve, a gas mix was produced which the diver breathed in.
Developed to tether diver to the ship. Divers could dive to 40 meters.

Turret clock. The public clock that gave the population a standard of time. The turret clock was A mechanical clock with weight drives & folkier began spreading throughout Europe in the 14th Century, forerunner of the public mechanical o'clock. The only public clock before this were sundials & large water clocks! — Turret clock. The public clock that gave the population a standard of time. The turret clock was A mechanical clock with weight drives & folkier began spreading throughout Europe in the 14th Century, forerunner of the public mechanical o’clock. The only public clock before this were sundials & large water clocks!

Next up: Hofbrauhaus, our first “biergarten” of the trip. Founded in 1589, Hofbrauhaus is the most popular beer garden in the world.

Jerry enjoyed a pint and I had a half pint and the boys had huge pretzels — one of the biggest things they looked forward to indulging in Germany, and there were not disappointed. We also had the yummy and unique Obazda.

Prost! We have officially arrived in Germany! :) Jerry and I enjoyed beers at Hofbrauhaus — Prost! We have officially arrived in Germany! 🙂 Jerry and I enjoyed beers at Hofbrauhaus

The boys were NOT disappointed in the plate-sized pretzels!

After that, we walked to Englischer Garten, a large a large public park in the center of Munich that is one of Europe’s largest urban public parks. There’s a wonderful path that follows alongside the Isar River. On the day we enjoyed the park, we watched as surfers took their turns surfing at one of the artificial streams flowing through the Englischer Garten. Essentially it’s a standing wave produced by a water pumping mechanism. Surfers line up along the bank taking turns entering the water with their boards. After a minute or so, successful surfers will voluntarily drop out returning to the end of the line allowing the next person in line an opportunity.

Fin dips in his toes in the water in Englischer Garten.

After walking throughout Englischer Garten, we walked back to Marienplatz so we could watch the 5pm Glockenspiel. As we waited, a band played some wonderful music. (see video)

The Glockenspiel happens every day at 11 a.m. (as well as 12 p.m. and 5 p.m. in summer). See my short video capture below.

The Glockenspiel “show” includes the reenactment of two stories from the 16th century. According to my sources, it consists of 43 bells and 32 life-sized figures. The top half of the Glockenspiel tells the story of the marriage of the local Duke Wilhelm V to Renata of Lorraine. In honor of the happy couple, there is a joust with life-sized knights on horseback representing Bavaria (in white and blue) and Lothringen (in red and white). Which knight do you think always wins? 🙂

This is then followed by the bottom half and second story: Schäfflertanz (the coopers’ dance). Wikipedia says this: According to myth, 1517 was a year of plague in Munich. The coopers are said to have danced through the streets to “bring fresh vitality to fearful dispositions.” The coopers remained loyal to the duke, and their dance came to symbolize perseverance and loyalty to authority through difficult times. By tradition, the dance is performed in Munich every seven years. This was described in 1700 as “an age-old custom”, but the current dance was defined only in 1871. The dance can be seen during Fasting (German Carnival): the next one is in 2019.

The whole things lasts about 15 minutes, and its ending occurs after a small golden rooster at the top of the Glockenspiel chirps quietly three times.

We loved watching the Glockenspiel, and it made our first day in Munich feel complete! By the way, my FitBit indicates we walked 29,000 steps today. It was only our first day in Munich, but I’d say we covered a lot of ground, and couldn’t wait for more exploring tomorrow.

Next up: Bike riding in the Bavarian Alps, and exploring Neuschwanstein Castle!

Thanks for reading, and please stay tuned for more posts here as we make continue exploring Munich, Germany, and then head to Lauterbrunnen and Zermatt, Switzerland, Italy’s Cinque Terre National Park, Pisa, Florence and Rome, and Lisbon and Lagos, Portugal.

Conversation with Stranger on Airplane Leads to Love Story

May 2, 2011 by Shelli

NOTE: Sorry for the “bedhead” hair. I got into a rambunctious dog pile with my husband and three young sons at the start of the day. Or, this is just how my hair looks because I live in windy Wyoming. Both are correct.

I challenge you to ask yourself what may happen as a result of connecting with a stranger, or what may be lost as a result of choosing not to?

Living and Working on the Frontier, Part 2

March 16, 2011 by Shelli

In 1994, we founded a business in Wyoming called Yellowstone Journal Corporation. For 15 years we innovated and expanded. It was hard work. It was never easy. Yet it was extremely fulfilling — similar to climbing a mountain. It’s almost all work, but the rewards at the top are worth it. We sold the business to Active Interest Media, the publisher of Backpacker Magazine, Yoga Journal, Climbing, American Cowboy, and other niche magazines, in September 2008.

Now, I’m starting up a new mountain, developing a new business. Here’s that part of the story (Part 2, published in Wyoming Entrepreneur.)

(And, if interested, here is Part 1).

Living and Working on the Frontier

March 12, 2011 by Shelli

I started and operated a business on the frontier of Wyoming for 15 years. It was hard work – similar to exploring the frontier. It was a journey of discovery and promise that at times was harsh and full of hazards. It was epic.

Click here: Part One, published in Wyoming Entrepreneur.