HOLLYWOOD 1-11-11

Does anybody blog on January 1st at all? Or is everything closed?:) Well, I did go for a hike with my friends today, so I figured I might as well make an entry in my blog.

Today we hiked to the Hollywood sign and it turned out to be the most challenging trail I've ever been on. My friends and I decided not to follow most of the tourists to a safe spot close to the sign to take pictures. We climbed further up, which felt more like crawling. I was very committed to carry my 20-pound backpack with me, and now and then it would get stuck somewhere between sharp branches of frequent bushes, push me towards the ground or drag me backwards. I thought that this is what it must be like during unpredictable Kilimanjaro climb. When we were almost a hand away from the sign, a mysterious voice from a speaker warned us: "It's enough. You can stop now. You are tresspassing and should go back". We did pass a couple of cameras along the trail and it was obvious that somebody must have been watching us while we were trying to get closer to the sign.

Even though I have lived in Los Angeles for 4 years, I have never been that close to the famous Hollywood sign. We couldn't help taking more and more pictures, being excited at the closeness of the symbol of dreams coming true. Isn't it what every New Year's day is for? 10 minutes into taking photos we heard the mysterious voice again, which proved we were not hallucinating, but really hearing it. "You should go back right now, I am warning you for the last time. Happy New Year!"

We retreated and started climbing down. At some point it was not clear which path to take and I volunteered to go down first. As I slowly descended to the next step while girls were waiting for me, I realized that I am pretty much hanging above the hill with only loose dirt under my feet and my hands holding on to some tree branches. It was the wrong path and there was nothing underneath. My backpack was holding me down and I couldn't fathom climbing up to where I came from. F***!


Pretty much hanging out there on loose dirt I felt pretty calm for someone who never did it before. I just thought that I am learning to survive under extreme circumstances and should now act appropriately. I got on my knees and grabbing the branches, started pulling myself up towards my worried friends. 3 minutes later I was safe and dirty.

The excitement in my heart didn't go away. I felt very adventurous, brave and strong. There was nobody on this obscure trail with a 20-pound backpack and nobody who almost fell off the hill. I knew that I didn't have to push myself so hard, it sort of happened on its own, while I was following where I wanted to go. But this little experience made me convinced that I am ready for the Kilimanjaro climb, which will start 24 days from now. I have been training for almost 3 months and I am stronger than I have ever been, even after the wild New Year's party and champagne in the morning!

It was so beautiful to get closer to the symbol of dreams coming true on the New Year's day. Every wish I have ever made on this day was "Let all my dreams come true!" So it was twice as symbolic.

I am so blessed to have 3 wonderful girl-friends visiting me from Moscow for the holidays and my upcoming birthday! I always feel that my friends are angels who surround me everywhere I go. I can feel them in my heart very strongly. I am, grateful to the Universe for each and every friend I have or will have. And from the bottom of my heart I am sending them my warmest wishes for the coming 2011! As well as to all other people who are in my life. It is such a wonderful experience to be a human and to live this life in a body and to be able to do all these amazing things. I am joyfully and lovingly embracing my friends and this beautiful world, a wonder of a human life unfolding in its own time and space, unveiling to me who I really am and letting me simply BE... Happy New 2011 Year! Love and Light:)