Roadtripping with My Dad
When I was a junior in high school, my dad and I took a college touring trip to California. We visited eight schools between San Diego and Santa Barbara over the course of a week taking a break mid-week for a quick visit to Disneyland (I had never been). I'll never forget taking The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ride while we waited for our Indiana Jones Adventure Fastpass time. The attendant looked my dad and me in the eyes while securing our lap bar and said with complete sincerity, "Enjoy your adventure!" before our cart crawled off at 4mph into the Hundred Acre Wood. Out of all the roller coasters and sing-a-long rides at Disneyland, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ended up being my favorite simply because it tickled me that the workers consistently and enthusiastically said, "Enjoy your adventure!" to every person on the ride, whether it was a four year old, or a high schooler and her dad.
Fast forward 10 years, and I still think of my dad and that trip anytime I encounter something we saw together that I had never seen before. If I pass things like Santa Claus Lane while driving through Carpenteria, CA, I remember that the first time I saw it was on our father/daughter road trip in high school.
My dad recently came to San Francisco, a stop over on his way to LA for work, and we had the chance from some quality father/daughter time again. He found the destinations through TripAdvisor and I found the hotel and restaurants. We explored the turquoise blue waters of Point Lobos and hiked beneath giant redwoods at Big Basin Redwood State Park. We ate croissants for breakfast at Lafayette Bakery & Cafe in Carmel, smiling at the owners chic outfit and wedges beneath her white bakery coat (ah, the French!) and savored burgers at the Salinas In & Out amongst a sea of green and yellow clad high schoolers post wrestling match.
The first time I ever went to an In & Out in California was with my dad, outside of UCLA, on our road trip together over a decade before. Although this trip was only a weekend instead of a week, it was enough time to create more memories together. Now, whenever I go back to Point Lobos or Big Basin Redwood State Park, I'll think back to this trip with my dad.
In honor of Father's Day, we want to say thanks to all the dads that take the time to travel with their daughters (and sons). It means the world to us.
