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Wednesday, July 31, 2013

T-Rexcellent!

I bet you didn't know this but California has dinosaurs.
And I'm not talking about fossils, We're talking about life size dinos.
They live in the desert on the way to Palm Springs, right next to a date farm.
BTW the date farm owns a little restaurant called, Hadley's.
They make the absolute best date shakes in the world, it is probably a moral sin to pass this place and not stop by to get one.
It may be 110 degrees and howling wind (like it was when I went), but my friend, it is worth it and you will thank me.
Anyways, back to the dinosaurs.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Thirst Quenching Napa Valley







































I'm a big fan of business trips.
I've only been on a few so far but from what I can tell, they are right up my alley.
Overtime pay, getting paid to fly, delicious meals paid for by the company, drinking with co-workers, meeting new people, staying in a nice hotel, room service, a change of surroundings.
What's not to love?
It definitely beats sitting in the office 9-5 staring at a computer screen in my opinion.
Last week I was sent on a business trip to Napa Valley, needless to say I was stoked.
Having never been there before, I wasn't exactly sure what I was in for, however an all expense paid trip to a world famous wine region in exchange for some work sounded like a good deal to me.
So I packed my bags and headed for the airport.
When I got to the gate I realized that I had completely forgotten to check into my flight the night before.
 As I was awaiting to hear my fate from the airport attendant, my stomach sank with the notion that this whole trip could all go down the drain.
Thankfully, somebody had cancelled last minute so I was able to board the fully booked flight.
Bullet dodged. Close one.
Once I landed, there was still a small drive to to Napa from the airport, which was cool because I got to see a foggy Golden Gate Bridge across the bay in the distance!
I took a picture but pictures taken with a cell phone from the backseat of a car on the freeway do not exactly make for the best quality photographs...so just use your imagination.
About 45 minutes later the fog had cleared, the sun was shinning bright and there were grape vines as far as the eye could see in every direction.


Saturday, July 20, 2013

The Rooftop Laguna Beach

So there's this great little gem hidden in the cliffs of Laguna, it's the absolute perfect place to grab some appetizers and drinks in the summer, it's called The Rooftop.
I had heard about it awhile ago and had been meaning to get my butt over to try it out for some time now.
Well friends, that day has finally come and I would like to share it with you.
It was kinda tricky to find at first because it is actually on top of a hotel in Laguna Beach.
There are no signs for it so you just have to invite yourself in and find your way there.
4 flights of stairs and a little confusion later we finally arrived.
And believe me once you finally find it, it does not disappoint.
Well, if panoramic ocean views are your thing...




Thursday, July 18, 2013

Nautical Nonsense

I was invited on a sunset cruise the other day, so of course I went...
A Yacht and cocktails? Sign me up!
We all met at the Balboa Bay Club to board The Fighting Irish (that name of the boat)
It was docked at the end of the row so we had to walk past a few boats on the way, and let me tell you, these things are giants.


Saturday, July 13, 2013

Louis, I Think This is the Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship

Well hello lovely people of the blogosphere!
I hope you have had a fantastical Friday, now time to welcome in the weekend with open arms.
My friend from Northern California and old roommate from London study abroad decided to come down and visit me last minute.
STOKED >>>ME.
So we went to BJ's (unfortunate name, I know).
It's about the most hoppin' place walking distance from mi casa.
We had a really funny man who decided to wait on us and wouldn't let us finish ordering cocktails for some reason (bigger tip? hmmm, I think so)
Well he won and we ordered more then we intended, life story.
I think we might have gone through the greater part of their drinks menu.
We also had Aki Poke and Sweet Pig Deep Dish pizza it was soo absolutely delicious (no pics, bad blogger. Eeek >.<)
...BTW, am I the only one that feels weird taking pictures of food in a restaurant (especially with a big DSLR)?
Either way, we had a great night reliving all of our stories from London and making fools of ourselves having the time of our lives there.
Don't you just love catching up with old friends?
This is the only surviving picture of the night...what a couple of weirdos.


Duck Sauce.
That's all folks.

Monday, July 8, 2013

Isla Vista: The Student Ghetto

After a couple days of prancing around the resort on our best behavior in our poshest clothes, we decided it was time to go back to visit our Santa Barbara roots.
Welcome to the most expensive student ghetto in the world, a crazy little place I like to call, Isla Vista.
If you remember a few posts ago, I mentioned that I went to college in Santa Barbara at UCSB.
Well, Isla Vista (IV) is the 1 square mile party mecca that all of the students claimed as their own, and I am proud to say I was one of them.
Words cannot describe the memories, stories, and marginally illegal times I've had here the past few years.
But if you can image about 15,000 kids between the ages of 18-24 all smacked in the middle of beach party paradise with no supervision, you can probably get a little bit of an idea of what goes down here...
For the sake of my dignity and reputation, I'll leave that to your imagination and just show you a little around town ;)




Thursday, July 4, 2013

Trails, Towers and Tales

It is not like me to wake up early when I am given the luxury to sleep in.
However, I felt that my current proximity to the beach was a worthy reason to pull myself out of the marshmallowy king size feather duvet and explore a little.
So I decided to go for an early morning run.
Gotta love it when you can run from your hotel room to the beach in about 12 seconds!


Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Bubbles & Wine Are Always A Good Time

Santa Barbara is probably one of my favorite places to visit in California.
It has everything... Secluded beaches, incredible restaurants, and beautiful people.
However, I might be partially biased since I spent some of the best years of my life there in college at UCSB. 
Olé Olé Olé Go Gauchos!
I Digress.
Even if I wasn't a proud alumni, I know I would still rave about what a lovely place it is.
If you have been there before you know what I'm talking about, if you haven't I'll show you.
Nestled between the sea and the vineyards you'll find a beautiful resort called Bacara.




Unfortunately I didn't take this picture because I was driving, but this is the entrance. Not too shabby.