9/6: Arcata is a small university town that according to the guidebook might be one of the most progressive in the US. The politics there are uncommonly leftist (for being American). The garbage trucks run on biodiesel, the recycling gets picked up by tandem bikes and almost every road has a bike lane. It’s mostly populated by students or other young people looking to ‘expand their mind’. It’s also the center of the very productive high quality medical marijuana business of the northern California coast.
What all this boils down to is a town with a very relaxed atmosphere with streets full of interesting small stores and a central square full of odd but fascinating people. That we happened to be there on a Saturday morning just made things even more enjoyable: on Saturdays, the Arcata farmer’s market takes over the entire square.
We bought tons of strawberries and cherries and sweet peas and just didn’t want to leave.
And just a couple of blocks from the main square, these odd old houses started popping up and feeding our imaginations about their residents.
And they had palm trees in their gardens! We really were in California now.
Fairwinds Motel, where we spent the night. We could easily have spent a couple of mor nights there, though. Both Hanna and I fell completely in love with this charming town with the bikes and odd houses and second-hand stores. Wonderful!
But we had to drive on.
Katja Malmborg 