Even though I am a California native, born + raised, my trip through Santa Cruz began a love affair with California cities and towns that I have yet to visit.

For just $27 dollars each way on Amtrak, you can hop a last-minute train to Davis out of Oakland. I decided to find out what “The Davis” was all about.

I escaped the overcast gloom of San Francisco, ferried across the Bay, and caught the train to the hot college town just outside of Sacramento. The gentle ride took me through the pastoral section of the East Bay, with the water glistening off its coast, we passed through Berkeley, Fairfield, and Martinez until all you could see was golden grain, cows, and bison. An hour later, I walked off the train through the small depot right into the town with the GORUCK backpack my brother had sent me for the holidays, the Mother Jeans that kept me comfortable & chic and the locally-made golden bar earrings that helped me stay on trend. Well-traveled, I was a young stylish woman, ready for adventure!

Ten minutes later by foot, I arrived at the Aggie Inn to check-in and drop my bag. I’m no stranger to being a lone traveler, but even so, I keep certain traditions, like dressing for dinner. I washed up, put on my new Ali Golden Black Silk Romper and headed on down to the local Izakaya, Yakitori Yuchan. Like any college town, it’s all mostly pretty casual much like a Westwood (UCLA), Palo Alto (Stanford), or Berkeley (UCB), but in this college town, you could get more bang for your buck. A 300 ml sake bottle, edamame plate and spicy gyoza later, I head over to the Davis Creamery for a cookie, where I am informed that in order to use a credit card, they have a minimum of a dollar. The last time I paid 75 cents for a cookie was at a high school bake sale. I was in a college economic parallel universe and it was awesome.

The next morning, I borrowed a bicycle from the Inn and rode through UCD getting a glimpse of the Arboretum with the fresh scent of the hybrid gum trees and Eucalyptus in the air.

After returning the bike and partaking in the continental breakfast, I took a stroll downtown and found Temple Coffee. I don’t usually order the expensive pour over coffee, but today I picked the Nicaraguan. I was impressed how these roasters were able to deliver pour over that was not bitter or burnt, serving me a side of almond milk, without charging me extra!

A couple blocks away at Central Park, I caught the Farmer’s Market where I was able to get some healthy finds for my fridge. An Apple-a-Day quart of cider, the vegan + gluten-free Marin Gourmet Artichoke dip, and farmer fresh basil were my top food picks.

As my brief getaway came to a close, my appreciation for a life outside an urban center rose. A love for local businesses and farmers came back to San Francisco with me, as I made a fresh tomato bruschetta with a dash of that Marin Gourmet Artichoke dip, served with cider.