smart lad, always best to have a job waiting for you during a relocation. Wherever you finally land, give it some time to settle in, and enjoy the ride!!
I say go to Hawaii. About the only regret I have in my life is I did not move to Hawaii when I was young and unattached. Too busy surfing, partying, and chasing tail here in Calif. I could have been doing the same thing in Hawaii. You have a girlfriend. Be realistic. She’s going to be Toronto, you 3-6000 miles away. None of my business, but that relationship is going to be pretty tough to keep going. Mike
Just saw on the news that The unemployment along with The under employed( part time job only) is around 21% in Calif. The surf in San Diego is crowded and at the better spots aggressive locals are the norm. $2000.00 will not even last a month unless you plan on camping and sleeping in your car. Then it will get you maybe 4 weeks to 6 weeks. The California surf Dream was killed along time ago. The rotten putrid corpus is floating in shore break stinking up the beach.
Wish I had better news for you. You will be much better off staying where you are and traveling to places where you can surf.
Big Kahuna’s got it right. When you give Aloha you get Aloha.
I’d move there just for Kua Aina Burgers.
Just so there isn’t any misunderstanding, Hawaii (especially Oahu) is plenty crowded (traffic is just like LA), and the most popular spots can be plenty agro (N Shore during the Winter, Ala Moana during the summer, etc.). Everything in Hawaii is just as, or almost as expensive as California. The only difference is that unemployment was less than half what it is in California. It’s still high for Hawaii, but it’s a lot less than most places. Being from SC won’t help you find a job, either. Being motivated, hardworking, and polite / friendly will.
The smartest thing to do is to do what artz recommends, stay in SC and travel to catch waves. Living in NC I know how you feel but can also tell you that there’s a reason (in fact lots of reasons) why I moved here from Hawaii. But I was also 24 once and know what it’s like to get the bug to want to travel. When I left the Navy (during the last big recession) I lived on a 22 foot boat, ate spam and rice 2x a day, and worked in a retail store for minimum wage until I got my first real job. Not fun, but no regrets for having done it.
What to do with $2000.00? I bet you could find a Sailboat in need of some work. Buy it fix it up and now you have transportation to a number of surf filled Islands. Central America and well with the right boat and enough time you have the whole world. I have friends That took two years and sailed the south Pacific. Surfed places with no name and some are still off the Surf World radar. Learn to Fish,Dive and Spear fish. Become a true Watermen. Learn some skills that would get you work in remote parts of the world. Build a quiver of solid travel boards. One of my big regrets is that when I was younger I didn't spend more time on the road
no matter where you go Big K has some good advice, when you give Aloha you get Aloha
Honestly now,
How many places on the East Coast have you surfed outside Carolina?
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plenty of job experiance in recreation, activities, and hospitality (which are my desired fields)
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That sounds like some sort of cruise line work in the Carib to me but if I was 24 and had connections in Nicaragua I wouldn't give California a second look.
You missed it by at least 30 years.
Here it is the middle of summer and in San Clemente the water is hovering around 60 degrees, the surf is pretty crappy and the sun ain't even out.
You can do better.
Good Luck.
Trust me, you do -not- want to work on a cruise ship. There are very few cruise lines that I would even consider being on as a passenger much less work for. The vast majority of their staff are from third world nations and are paid extremely poorly. On most ships, only the officers get a worthwhile wage. They also don’t get much if any time off in port, so you’ll end up working round the clock, 7 days a week for as long as you’re on the ship. Often a crew will be dropped off at some offshore port and not even paid. Unless you’ve worked in the maritime industry (which I have) you have no idea all the bad things that are going on.
I could also write an entire book about living on boats. Yeah, it is possible to live cheaply and travel the world, -but- it’s not easy. My wife and I lived on our boat for 3 years while we cruised S. California, Mexico and the Hawaiian Islands. We did not live cheaply, nor did we have a cheap boat, but we met some who were. One was a Polish couple who lived in a ferrocement (concrete) boat. They traveled the world and the only things they spent money on was a bag of rice and a bag of beans once a month. Otherwise, they lived on the fish they caught and the fruit / vegitables that were given to them or they picked themselves. They seemed happy enough, but it’s not an easy lifestyle nor does it come with any security.
You might find a cheap boat in Hawaii or California but the “getcha” is that renting a slip will cost more than sharing an apartment. Before we left San Diego we were paying $800 a month for our slip with water and electricity and when we arrived in Hawaii it cost the same. You can live on the “hook” (anchored) but there aren’t many places you can do that anymore. They have moorings and anchorages in S. California and Hawaii, but there’s a waiting list to get one.
There is no perfect solution, but I personally think what we have here on the Banks is a pretty good trade off. We don’t get much surf but when we do it’s not crowded and it’s always friendly. Had a knee high glassy session this morning, only me and two other guys out. You’ll never find that in Hawaii and probably not California either.
Thanks again for all the help on this decision guys. I was 100% dead set on buying a ticket to Hawaii or California and sorting it out from there a few days ago, now I’m definitly uncertain. From the advice given on here, I’m not going to move anywhere without a job lined up so I’ll probably be sticking around here for a bit. I’m going to apply for a few jobs in the Central Florida area if I don’t hear anything back from the places that I applied in the next couple days. My sister and her family are down there, so at least I’ll have a place to stay, and there’s a few resorts in the Orlando area that are hiring.
Unclegrumpy- My east coast surf travel is limited. I’ve surfed some spots in Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. It’s just the inconsistancy of the east coast that kills me. I’ve had some of the funnest sessions of my life on the east coast, I just want to be surfing as close to every day as I can.
My advice is this:
If you have a job now that pays the bills, then stay put and learn to adapt to the natural resources you have there. I kitesurf in addition to surfing and this time of year I can often kitesurf 4 or 5 days out of the week (and I’m lucky if I get to surf once a week). The whole reason I got into kitesurfing was because of my passion for surfing. Here on the Banks (and I bet where you are too) is some of the best conditions for kitesurfing on the planet. Between the two, I’m able to get out at least 5 days a week, year round.
If you don’t have a job and are looking for work, then anywhere is fair game. I just spoke with a buddy that lives in Washington and he swears there are tons of jobs there. Granted, you’ll need to wear a full suit, booties and gloves year round, but they do have surf (and wind for kitesurfing). If things get bad here, that’s one spot I might try. Gonna be brutal after leaving Hawaii to surf Washington’s coast, but hey, gotta do whatcha gotta do. ;)
I am 24, and have plenty of job experiance in recreation, activities, and hospitality
What the hell kind of resume is that????
Maybe you could stand at the border and welcome the illegals as they sneek into the U.S.
if you hold a sign they may throw you a bone. then you could throw it back
there you would enjoy recreation, activities, and hospitality
stay where your at,,, we not hireing
If you have more time than money you can do like me and live in Baja and work in San Diego. The waves pump here year round and it’s rare to surf with more than 5 guys in the water. The line to cross the border is a PITA but a Sentri pass takes care of that. My landlord is renting a nice 3-bedroom 2 blocks from the beach for $325. I’ve been here 3 years and can’t see myself leaving anytime soon, though warm water and sunshine in Hawaii sounds nice.
@wavewrangler - What are gas prices like down there? I used to hop the border during the early 80’s to surf k38, etc. and gas was about half the price it was in the US. Also, what’s crime like in Baja? It’s always been “la frontera” but I’ve read that recent excalation in the drug wars has made it even worse down there?
I might just have to move to the country that's invading mine, so I can make ends meet. How ironic.
One of my oldest friends lives in one of the neighborhoods at the beach north of Rosarito. He’s been there 7 or 8 years now. He swears he’s going to stay there for good. I might join him there someday.
Dude, if your young and dont have kids or even if you do, dump all but the nescecities, buy a small, older but good running RV and hippie -style it up and down the coast till you find what your looking for. Live the dream brother, a bag of rice and some roadside produce will go a long way, you'll meet all kinds of interesting people and gain alot of knowledge that alot of "natives" don't even have. CA veries greatly from one region to the next. Don't sell yourself short by aiming for a certain area, you'll never know that you were realy meant to live in a completely different one....just dont settle in Santa Cruz please
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Dude, if your young and dont have kids or even if you do, dump all but the nescecities, buy a small, older but good running RV and hippie -style it up and down the coast till you find what your looking for. Live the dream brother, a bag of rice and some roadside produce will go a long way, you'll meet all kinds of interesting people and gain alot of knowledge that alot of "natives" don't even have. CA veries greatly from one region to the next. Don't sell yourself short by aiming for a certain area, you'll never know that you were realy meant to live in a completely different one....just dont settle in Santa Cruz please
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So...In other words, BOGART off everyone else but S.C.
Effing hippies think life is one big handout.
‘Live the dream brother, a bag of rice and some roadside produce… just dont settle in Santa Cruz please’ - Gashuffer
friggin hilarious…LMAO
tblank - Dude you sure have a lot of hostility. I don’t see how living cheap equates to living off the state. If the economy continues it’s downward spiral, we might all be living on a bag of rice and a couple veggies a month. ;)
bigkahuna. Cant afoard to buy rice and veggies. Gotta start eating the cats and dogs and pick up whatever is at the food bank, and of coarse food stamps !!!