MUST SEE in Cabo San Lucas- Mt. Solmar

Every time I venture on a new hike and return home to tell my loved ones about it, I tend to always use the same elementary adjectives like "fun, cool, kinda hard at some parts, but TOTALLY worth it" to describe my trek. Hiking Mount Solmar qualified for the very same descriptors I just listed above and then some. I would also have to add "life changing" to my description about Mt. Solmar in order to really give my honest opinion. By life changing I don't mean it in the sense that the summit views were so amazing that it changed my life, but rather the hike itself and the entire experience left me with a life long memory.

The question "What is real?" was asked to a group of people (myself included) at the base of Mt. Solmar in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico before embarking on a short, yet steep hike. As I tried to quietly think of an answer to the question, others shouted out "love," "God," and "ourselves," before our hiking guide Enrique, revealed that the only thing that is real in life, is this present moment. He goes on these hikes daily and says people are usually caught up with worries of yesterday, anxiety for tomorrow, and forget entirely about the present and the beauty of now. He encouraged everyone to focus, be present, feel the energy from Earth's magnetic frequency, release deep breaths, and feel gratitude for life and inner peace. Here as we stood together listening to his words of wisdom, breathing in the ocean breeze and warming our skin with the hot Tropic of Cancer sun, I was enlightened by what was real.

Hiking Info

Aside from my connections with Earth and spirit on this mountain, I recommend this hike to everyone who visits Cabo because of a few other reasons including: it's free, you hike with dogs, and of course the views are amazing. To embark on this hike, you'll meet with a man named Enrique at his animal rescue center in Medano Beach. Don't quote me on this since I just did some quick research, Enrique leaves for two hikes a day one at 8:15am and 4:15pm. The hike takes about 1.5-2 hours. It is a little difficult as there are parts of the hike where you climb rocks to get to the summit. Another reason I rave about this hike is because while you hike, you have about 8-10 fur friends who join you for the adventure! Enrique runs an animal rescue center at the base of the hike and allows the very animals he nurtures to join in on the fun. My favorite girlie was this small white poodle lady with the most precious purple bows filled with heart tugging purpose. As soon as you walk towards the gate you see and hear all the dogs he takes care of. Although the hike is free of charge and the experience is priceless, Enrique does accept donations at the end that he probably uses to help take care of more four legged friends.

Recommendations for the Hike

Mt. Solmar is very near the Tropic of Cancer where the sun shines directly overhead at local noon! Because of this fun little fact, it's important to be prepared for your hike in the SUN. Whether you are leaving for the morning or the afternoon hike, make sure to lather on the sunscreen. There is no shade along the hike and don't let the uv rays damage your skin and age you! Although the hike isn't extremely difficult or strenuous, it is important to wear comfortable and shoes that will secure your feet as you journey to the top. I wore my go to Chacos for the hike and thought they were perfect for the job. I'd also recommend bringing a camera/phone to take awesome pics along the hike and some water with you because duh. When you reach the top of Mt. Solmar, Enrique lets you hang out, soak in the views and take as many pictures and videos as you wish for about 30 minutes before leading the group back down.

Basically

In case the post was too long and you weren't feeling the read, but you're here anyway, go on this hike if you ever find yourself searching for a memorable experience and profound energy exchange. It's free, furry, and fomo-inspiring. :)

Hudson House for Date Night

Osman and I had a chance to go for a date night on Thursday and had dinner at the Hudson House in Highland Park. We've had this place on our list for a while now and finally made plans to go and I'm so glad we did because we had such a good time! We got there right around 7:00 and the small restaurant was full which is always a good sign. The hostess informed us that it would be an hour wait but we luckily found two seats at their full service bar. We were greeted quickly and decided to get drinks since it was in fact date night for us ☺️. I ordered the John Daly's Driver which was basically a spiked Arnold Palmer with Ketel One Orange Vodka. The drink was strong, and the orange flavor was very subtle and complimented the drink with just a hint of orange. Osman ordered the Fresh Grapefruit Paloma and said it was very strong! I'm not a fan of grapefruit so I didn't give it a try, but he finished it all so it must've been tasty. 

New Orleans

Last month, I was able to travel to New Orleans for the day on a last minute trip with my good friend, Jessica! We flew in before noon and had the chance to just spend the day exploring the French Quarter and eating traditional cajun dishes and some new dessert also! The first thing we did when we got to the French Quarter was walk around to see some of the Mardi Gras decorations. Jessica and I have both traveled here before, but never during the Mardi Gras time. New Orleans during Mardi Gras is probably on a ton of people's bucket list, but for me I prefer New Orleans on a mild, sunny day--which was exactly what we got when we went.

Nori Handroll Bar

I had the chance to attend the soft opening of Nori Handroll Bar, a trendy and new sushi restaurant located in Deep Ellum. I've passed by their closed doors a few times and read the "coming soon" sign and anxiously waited for the opening. Fortunately, my awesome and handsome boyfriend Osman, followed them on instagram and saw that the soft opening was this weekend and we knew we had to go for date night and check this place out.

Upon arriving and entering through the doors, you notice there is a small host stand on the right, a small bar on the left and a millennial must- a neon sign up top. The host said the wait for a spot for two at the bar would be about 30-45 minutes so Osman went ahead and grabbed a beer from the bar and some complimentary edamame to munch on while we waited for our seat. We ended up only waiting about 10 minutes and walked through to the bar. As we were being seated we were welcomed by all the staff as our host shouted our arrival. This was a little strange but also very fun and memorable. Usually when I'm waiting to be seated or while i'm waiting on my food, I like to take in the decor and what the restaurant has to offer in addition to the food to create the entire dining experience. Nori is a minimalist dream. With subtle accents and sleek design, you really can't be distracted from the main feature which was awesome food made in front of you. They had a really great playlist that made the atmosphere very chill and relaxed. You know how to go to a really fancy steakhouse where you know you have to dress a certain way and if you drop your silverware you basically can never show your face again? Well Nori is the complete opposite.

The Pacific Northwest and my Jordan Year

This post is supposed to be somewhat of an overview of the trip because I wanted to blog about some of the specific places I visited in detail in their own posts. My friends and I made the expensive leap from birthday dinners to birthday trips this year and for my birthday a few of my closest friends traveled with me to Seattle and Portland for a week. I originally thought it was just going to be a group of five but when my three friends Jessica, Ronald and Guillermo picked Osman and I up from the airport I was pleasantly surprised to see my friend Tony there as well!
We spent 3 days in Seattle exploring the market, the art museum, Space Needle, Chihuly Glass Garden and hiking Mt. Rainier before making the short(ish) drive to Portland. Unfortunately our time in Portland was not as fun as expected because we learned that there was a huge protest happening downtown the day we arrived and were advised by multiple people to avoid the area. I believe the protests carried on until Sunday so we didn't have much of a chance to explore the city until Monday when we had to head back to Seattle within the same day. We spent the last day and a half of our trip in Seattle by spending more time at the public market and getting drunk at the Airbnb before heading back early Wednesday morning. Some of my favorite memories from the trip include the amazing Airbnb we stayed at in Gig Harbor for the first half of our trip, cooking dinner together at the house instead of going out to eat, getting drunk with my friends (I hardly ever drink), laughing with my friends and of course spending an entire week with my bb. I really fell in love with Seattle and everything it had to offer.