There's a cure for the Monday blues, if you don't work a traditional job, that is (if you do, you can always play hooky). I've been making an effort to go someplace new each week so I trekked to Salvation Mountain in the Colorado Desert a couple Mondays ago; this mountain/massive art piece made from Adobe, straw and lead-free paint is based on Christian sayings and bible verses like the Sinner's prayer and was created by a man named Leonard Knight in the '80s. You don't have to be religious to appreciate it.
On the way down, we drove 65 mph alongside the Salton Sea. Must stop and see this sea, I told my friend Felicia. So we did. I've always been fascinated by the idea that a body of water could be so polluted it just kills everything that touches it.
The stench was bad. I've read that on days when the wind is particularly strong it may travel all the way to LA. And Bombay Beach looked like something out of The Hills Have Eyes. Dead birds on the sand. Black cats roaming the streets. People sitting in foldout chairs in haphazardly fenced-in makeshift yards behind trailers. Most homes/trailers aren't even livable anymore. Broken windows. Debris. Dirty walls tagged with graffiti. I wondered if those people pay rent or if they own those trailers or if they're squatters or what. Was too scared to ask. I'd make a terrible journalist.
Back in the car and back on the road, I had to pee by the time we were approaching Slab City (the area right before the Mountain). Held it until we got back to Palm Springs aka civilization, because the diner stops looked like movie murder scenes, at best.
Salvation Mountain is a sight to see (check out my cute little friend posing all nonchalantly in front of it!) and I'd say the drive is totally worth it. It's odd to me that people camp out around the area as there's nothing there besides this one very interesting painted mountain. It didn't feel incredibly spiritual or anything. Just pretty. Pops of color worth Polaroiding and Instagramming. California's bright blue skies definitely add to the photo magic. Thought about saying a prayer while I was up there. Make mom proud. But basically we wandered through the candy-colored caves, climbed the mountain, snapped some pics, fed Shiloh water and left.
The stench was bad. I've read that on days when the wind is particularly strong it may travel all the way to LA. And Bombay Beach looked like something out of The Hills Have Eyes. Dead birds on the sand. Black cats roaming the streets. People sitting in foldout chairs in haphazardly fenced-in makeshift yards behind trailers. Most homes/trailers aren't even livable anymore. Broken windows. Debris. Dirty walls tagged with graffiti. I wondered if those people pay rent or if they own those trailers or if they're squatters or what. Was too scared to ask. I'd make a terrible journalist.
I would not suggest eating or drinking anywhere near this area, but what do I know? Pack a lunch; wear a diaper. And when you're over it head on over to Joshua Tree or something. That's what we did. More on JT coming right up in a week or two.
