I'm guessing anyone reading this blog already knows who i am and why i'm writing it. But for those who don't: my name is Nitin Goel. I'm 29 years old. Born in Minneapolis, grew up in Baltimore, currently living in the Washington DC area. Went to college at University of Maryland College Park and grad school at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Currently work as a Research Specialist in Process Development and Manufacturing for the Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation.
The impetus for this trip is the impending nuptials of my friend Frizzy. Frizzy and i went to middle school, high school, and college together, and i'm lucky to be able to call him one of my best friends, from Comic Book Club and backyard fires in middle school, through our Denton 5 days in College Park, all the way up to the present day as the High Rollers routinely bitch-slap the Quacktastic Blue Ducks in the Umpstead division of the UFFL.
Frizzy lives in San Diego now, which is where the wedding will be held, a week from tomorrow. I will be flying out there, as will much of the rest of the Cockeysville/Lutherville-Timonium cohort. Now, i've never once in my life ever set foot on the west coast. Also, i have a ton of vacation time saved up at work. Finally, i'm turning 30 in january. These three factors combined together made me decide earlier this year that i should make the most of the opportunity and try to see as much of the west coast as possible while i'm out there.
I will be flying out to San Diego on Wednesday October 3rd. will be in San Diego for 5 days, until the 8th. At that point, all the Baltimore guys fly home, i pick up my rental car, and the trip begins! The current plan includes stops in San Diego (of course), Santa Barbara, Big Sur, Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Francisco, Point Reyes National Seashore, Sonoma, Chico (gotta visit the Sierra Nevada brewery!), Redwoods National Park, Eugene, and finally Portland. Will fly from Portland back to Baltimore on October 28th.
I'm hoping to use this blog to share my pictures and stories with friends and family and let them keep track of my progress. It will also be nice to have a diary of the trip that i can look back at myself after it's all over and done with. Will try to post as frequently as possible, but since i'm not taking a laptop with me, it will be dependent on my access to computers and the internet.
Anyways, that's all for now. I have an obscene amount of packing, cleaning, and other preparation to get through in the 4-5 days remaining, so posting will probably be light-to-non-existent until i actually get to San Diego next wednesday. Check back for updates, hope you enjoy reading about my journey as much as i know i'll enjoy doing it!
