Two weeks ago Ryan and I went to Los Angeles, California. And we LOVE it there. We stayed in Long Beach because it was pretty close to the office he was working at. While he was away working I had time to chill by the pool and work on our wedding details. I also enjoyed making plans for our evenings after he got home from work. I relied on bloggers and Instagramers to find all the local gems!
My days were spent at the pool and in the hotel room because I didn't have a rental car, and I wasn't really up for walking around downtown Long Beach alone. It was mainly corporate buildings with the exception of the Starbucks around the corner from the hotel room. No complaints here though, I embraced the time to unwind and take it slowly. I often struggle with restlessness, so giving myself time to relax is always beneficial. And I had time to finish a book that I had ordered right after my grandma passed away, called They Serve Bagels in Heaven. I recommend the book to anyone that is open minded about Heaven, angels, life after death, and even reincarnation, especially if you are mourning the loss of a loved one. I found it uplifting!
Night #1: We went to Seal Beach. We ate delicious Thai Food. After dinner we walked to the beach. The sky was the most beautiful turquoise with soft pink clouds floating behind the palm trees. There were flower shops that scented the air with the sweet fragrance of fresh blooms. Music surrounded us thanks to local open air restaurants and the guys that were playing music on the sidewalks. And the waves at Seal Beach were huge and the water was a crisp blue. As I was walking with my hand in Ryan's I felt a heart full of gratitude. Thankful that we get to experience life together like this. Thankful that he makes my life a real romantic comedy. Thankful in these beautiful moments of life he still takes the time to kiss me on my cheek, and on my forehead, and that he'll twirl me around on the sidewalk, and remind me of how much he loves me.
After our walk on the beach I was craving ice cream, but I always get frozen yogurt because I feel much less guilty eating it. Anyway we found Yogurtland on the map and headed that way. Once we arrived we saw a line of people waiting at this place called AFTERS. I looked it up and sure enough it was an ice cream place. We decided to be bad and try it. AFTERS serves ice cream in the middle of a donut. Check it out here. Well, we stood in line for a long time and then we got tired of waiting (and I was still feeling like I should eat yogurt instead of a donut with ice cream in the middle ---- after all we do have a wedding in a few weeks) so we jumped over to the yogurt place instead. So that wasn't a very good story, other than there is a cool new ice cream place in California, and we weren't patient enough to try it.
This is a photo from their Facebook page. Looks yummy, huh?
Night #2: We went to the Art District in downtown Los Angeles. We ate at a place called Petty Cash. The menu was interesting (like pig ear tacos - NO WAY) but the food was delicious. The atmosphere's vibe was fun + hip and it was nice to be out in the culture of LA. I always find the buildings of an area fascinating and then I usually wish that I can break-in to explore. As we were walking back to our car we saw a permit stating that the building down from Petty Cash would be used to film NCIS:LA the next day, so we did what any out-of-towner would do and we took a selfie in front of it!
This is the dress I wore to Petty Cash, I bought if for my birthday two years ago, and never wore it!
Inside Petty Cash.
My soon to be hubby. Did I mention how very much I LOVE him?
In front of the building that was used to film NCIS: LA.
And this is the building I'd like to break into and look around.
Night #3: We went to Malibu. We even drove by the real life Barbie dream house. I didn't have my camera ready to snap a photo though, I had to apologize to my niece for that one. We ate at a place called Malibu Farm. Our seats were on the water and it was heavenly. I enjoyed a glass of prosecco and the conversation of my man, as we took in all the sights and sounds of this wonderful place. There were people from all over the world enjoying an evening on this pier with us, it was nice to hear people talk in languages that I'd never heard before, knowing we were all making memories at this special place.
We love California so much, and there are so many parts we haven't seen yet, like Santa Barbara, Lake Tahoe, and Yosemite. We are planning to take our honeymoon there in early November.
xo Wen
