I’d like to think that I’m a creative type of person, but sometimes I just don’t feel that way. Feeling inspired is one thing, but STAYING inspired is something else all together. I look to social media to share content I photograph/film/edit in order to celebrate what I love about life and what keeps me happy (and hopefully you too), but I have to admit that there are moments when I feel that I’ve hit a roadblock.
Traveling is something that I turn to whenever I feel this way and since I’d been wanting to go on a trip with one of my blogger friends Francesca (@frankvinyl on Instagram), I thought: why not get away for a while? The winter tends to bring out the blues in me, so Francesca and I booked cheap airline tickets to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico through Volaris to search for some sun and creativity. I’m always down for a really good bargain, so rather than stay at some swanky resort, we found an affordable (but super cute-looking) Airbnb to crash at so we could cook our own food for some meals. When we arrived, we were surprised to find that our Airbnb was actually a room at the Los Cabos Golf Resort and that we wouldn't have any Wi-Fi during the duration of our stay apart from a shared signal in the lobby (which meant no checking e-mails, no Instagram, no Netflix, no GPS - nothing). We were a little disappointed (especially since the Airbnb description said we would have Wi-Fi), but after scoping out the property, we appreciated how safe/low-key it felt, how beautiful the decor was, and how nice the staff was.
The first couple of days of our trip were met with on-and-off rain, so we bought groceries for our room via taxi and took our time lounging around the pool - specifically a lower level area that had a little waterfall and seating area. Since we were visiting during the winter, we pretty much had this entire section to ourselves.
Francesca and I also weren't planning on renting a car when we first arrived, so we were kind of stuck by the hotel due to the weather. Although, the outer deck of our room was surrounded by plants and a hammock, so I can't say we had much to complain about (a more detailed tour will be in my Cabo vlog up on my YouTube channel).
Once we had our fill of just lazying it up at the hotel all day long, we decided we needed to explore a little more and taking a taxi everywhere just wasn't cost-effective (Cabo doesn't have Uber). So, we were able to find a car rental service through a friend of Francesca's that would let us rent for $30/day with damage protection, would drop off the car to us at our hotel, and pick it up at the airport before our flight. This was super convenient for us since it was so last minute and pretty much allowed us to see a lot more on our trip than we had initially planned. The service is through referrals only, so if you're interested in checking it out, please don't hesitate to reach out to me for the details!
By the time we got our rental car, I was in desperate need for a latte, so we ended up at this place called Coffee Lab in San José del Cabo and then ended up exploring the Old Town Mexico area afterwards.
We explored and filmed so much that it wasn't long before the sun started to set, so we quickly drove on over to Medano Beach to see if we could get some pretty sunset photos. I was pretty happy with what we ended up with.
The next day we decided to grab a drink at this place called Acre Baja after chatting with a local at the same coffee shop we visited the day before (we had to go back because I left my credit card and the shop was kind enough to hold onto it for me). Acre is a restaurant/bar surrounded by a ton of foliage and decorated with wooden, cotton and concrete elements, but also a boutique hotel on the weekends - according to the bartender. They had a bit of construction going on as they're in the process of building little treehouses for their guests, but the pool area was ready to go (which we totally took advantage of).
This was our last full day in Cabo, so after spending what felt like hours by the pool, we drove over to another beach called Playa Palmilla to catch the sunset again. The sun was setting on the opposite side of where the beach was, but it still made for a beautiful view.
We didn't have much time on the day we were scheduled to leave, so we decided to spend the morning having brunch at a restaurant called Flora Farms, as it's known for its fresh farm-to-table food and kind of funky ambience. It was a little pricy for their all-you-can-eat buffet by my standards ($18 per person), but the food was incredibly fresh and well seasoned (I had a bunch of their salads, their vegetable quiche, fruit, coffee, some bread/pastries and a green juice on their menu).
After breakfast, we just explored the grounds a bit and took in the last bit of sunshine before heading back home to cooler weather.
All in all, I have to say that this is probably one of the more relaxing trips I've been on. I came back home feeling refreshed and inspired to create content from the photos/videos we took, even though the majority of our time was spent eating and sunbathing. Though I did sneak my daily Instagram posts in on my data roaming charges, it was sort of a relief to not be so connected to the internet all the time. I love documenting my travels - my life in general, really. Every photo or video that I share online has always been something I like to create for others to enjoy, but it's also a diary for myself to look back and reflect on. Removing the availability of having the web at my fingertips 24/7 definitely put me in the position to enjoy and take time documenting things for myself more, as opposed to immediately sharing everything I can with the snap of my smartphone.
xx Audrie