Sebastapol: SF culture rooted in vines
We entered the new year living in a small town in California. The first new year in the US in five years. After our nature stint in Gualala I wanted a soft landing into civilization. Sebastapol was the perfect half way point between city and rural atmosphere. And since we are on the hunt for a base in California, we wanted to check out one of the primary spots SF people go when they leave the city to live elsewhere.
Sebastapol sits fifteen minutes away from Santa Rosa, a city in its right. Most rural communities within four hours of Santa Rosa use it as the main shopping hub. Despite this proximity Sebastapol does not rely on its sister city. It has a Whole Foods and three locally owned grocery stores, my favorite being Andys. The town has a no drive through law which efficiently took care of the ubiquitous fast food chains in most American places. McDonald's just closed down and there is an abundance of locally owned speciality shops. The Beekind is a shop dedicated to honey and all things honey related. There is an amazing Waldorf toy shop called Circle of Hands, that is a nest of handmade beauty. It is located in the Barlow, a resurrected industrial complex, that is now a trendy SF style hub of shops and restaurants. We especially enjoyed the Christmas trees that lined its streets and open grassy patch with garden toys for all ages. There is even a clothing store dedicated to burning man style, though it has some great independent designers stuff, that draws people from hours away - Funk & Flash. The best coffee proved to be on the outskirts of town, a tiny little shops called Ninja Star Coffee. I can only do decaf and theirs was the real deal. Emrah said the coffee was sublime. And the guy who owns it typifies the kind of person who lives here: warm, down to earth and a bit eccentric.
Sebastapol has a community with a foundation of a rural vibe; people are here to live closer to the earth. You can tell the community is changing with an influx of people leaving SF who cannot afford that city anymore, but still want the trendy culture it offers. Yet that trendy desire is being coupled with land values, so people are doing stuff that is unique and hand made. There is a definite alternative heath slant with acupuncture and massage signs everywhere. Like the policy of no drive through, people here seem to prefer taking time to be real about who they are and make that distinct. Conversations easily happened with locals, and they always seemed to reach depth fast. I loved the social atmosphere here, but the nature was less than optimal for me. You can access it all within an hour, but I want even closer proximity to forest and ocean if I am going rural.
What is within close proximity are vines, and that is the main draw card here now for the tourist economy. I tended to chose winery's that had gardens and space for children to run around. But was pleasantly surprised by the quality of wine. I had some every night, it was so good. It is Pinot Noir and Chardonnay land, with Zinfandel close by. Many people have hobby vines, even the house we stayed at had some at the bottom of their garden.
We stayed in a carriage house Airbnb, surrounded by a large and wild garden. The hot tub proved to be the most useful addition, used almost daily by Ruya who happily tested out her purple water wings. Sebastapol is not that cold but very rainy in winter, so we spent a lot of time indoors. When the deer would visit we would all crowd around the window and watch them with ooh and aha from the little ones. Having deer wander around the garden is always a good sign to me that the place we are in is a good one.
Our trip ended suddenly with a storm that swamped much of the coastline. Hundreds were out of electricity including us. So after more than a day of no water and no electricity we made a decision and rapid shift. Those kind of shifts are a necessary part of nomadism. I like how it teaches us to be decisive and lean, cutting our loses and adapting swiftly. But these shifts are exhausting, money wasting and it takes at least a day to recover. That teaches me a harder lesson, to ask for help and take rest.
We end our US phase in Daly City, on the outskirts of San Francisco, for five days instead of two. Away from the beauty of the nature we have been in, but enclosed in the utility that city life offers, like consistent electricity. Our next step is onto a plane headed overseas to Istanbul and then Cape Town. California time has been full: Fairfax, Gualala, Sebastapol; city, nature base and country town. It has made me ponder what makes a place as it is, and what kind of place draws me most.
I have come to think of places as defined by two continuums. That of culture and environment. I tend to prefer environments that have a natural beauty, and a culture that has few restraints but lots of ritual. And I need both aspects: Gualala lacked a social vibe I needed; cities often lack the nature access. Environment desire seems more easily solved, it is the social niche that is harder to find. I like people that are free and challenge taboos, but who also live life with lots of enacted magic. Like taking time over a meal and celebrating the bounty, dancing and clapping each day, sharing stories and telling them over, making up events when things are good just to have a party, burying the dead of what is lost like dolls and phases in life. The kind of rituals that amplify everyday moments. Not the kind that enforces dogma. I think that mostly emerges in smaller communities, where life is slower and the land speaks louder.
Sebastapol is just that, a small community with less restraint and a fair amount of ritual. What I liked best about Sebastapol was the space it gave to imagination and expressing it. It spoke of the quirky element that is less and less found in San Francisco, now rooted amongst apple trees and vines.
