Travel Guide: Los Angeles, California

I had been to California one time before and ever since dreamed of the day I would make it back. I was amazed at the way the mountains met the ocean shoreline and since then I made it my mission to travel back some day. My family didn't do much travel growing up, aside from when we were able to tag along on some of my dad's work road trips, so at the time it seemed a stretch that I would have the lifestyle I do now where traveling was possible. When I met Jake I shared that vision with him and it was music to my ears to find out it was a dream we shared. Fast forward four years later and the opportunity presented itself... clearly it had taken me this long to get there, so I wasn't going to miss a beat. We needed to see it all and we had three days to do it.

We started Day 1 with Venice Beach, which is a very artsy strip along the beachside. Aligned with shops, local street vendors come every morning to line the other side of the sidewalk, showcasing everything from handmade pieces of art to their newest song; it's definitely a walk to try out. Going into it though you must know that there is every kind of walk of life, it's truly people watching paradise. We were nearly assaulted by a man because we didn't have any cash on us to give him for a slice of pizza, only to then run into Instagram-famous Tessa Books filming an episode for the Youtube series 'Do It For The Dough' (which my brother ended up volunteering for). Leaving there, I think I fully got an understanding of what California is all about... the guy and girl we saw, while seemingly different were more similar than you'd think. At the end of the day people are just trying to make it, one way or another, and I loved the hustle. We then got a quick drink and snack at a cute place called Rosé before checking out a dispensary called MedMen, as marijuana became both recreationally and medicinally legal in the beautiful state, but that will come in a later post (so stay tuned). With no time to waste, our next stop was Santa Monica Pier and wowza did this place steal my heart. It too had musicians and magicians lining the pier performing and it was an amazing atmosphere. Walking through the pier, you overlooked the beautiful California waterfront and mountainside, while keeping a carnival-esque/Jersey Shore theme with the ferris wheel and ice cream stands. We took in all of the performances on the pier and followed the boardwalk all the way to the end where we caught a late lunch at Mariasol. This cute authentic Mexican place served the best food and margarita's while overlooking the beautiful landscape. They took pictures at the end of your meal (and gave you one free with the option to purchase the others), it was a memorable touch! We strolled back down the pier taking the steps to the beach where we continued to do the Ocean Front Walk. Okay let me start by telling you, these houses were a beautifully engineered dream, all so different, but absolutely mesmerizing. After taking that in and feeling bad about my life (lol) we headed to Downtown Santa Monica and did a little shopping. This area was so adorable aligned with palm trees and live Italian singers in the streets, I couldn't help but feel alive... for lack of another word to describe it. Rolling with that feeling, we didn't slow down from here (quite literally). Lucky for us, we had some friends that were local to the area that offered to take us out for the night and we met them at this racetrack called K1 Speed. It's a premier karting company and for real these weren't your carnival racekarts... we went full Tokyo Drift. It was probably the most invigorating thing I've done thus far to be honest. I also feel it's really important to note that I beat Jake in pop-a-shot while we were waiting for our race.

We dedicated Day 2 to what I consider the basis of LA, Hollywood. Starting the early afternoon with a much needed stop at In N Out, see my review on that here, before beginning our venture down Hollywood Boulevard. I had come to realize at this point that every busy area in California was an opportunity for individuals to promote their talents to tourists (or anyone who will listen) because yet again the streets were lined, but I couldn't get enough of the show. The Walk of Fame took us past all of the sightseeing including the various famous theaters: TCL Chinese, Dolby and El Capitan. We got a quick bite at a little place called Soul and then headed west towards Sunset Boulevard to hit Beverly Hills and of course Rodeo Drive, but first we spent some time admiring the houses in the nearing neighborhoods because they were to die for. Rodeo Drive made so much more sense after seeing the environment surrounding. It was everything you could imagine it being, high-end shopping on a street decorated with such detail I just immediately felt too poor to be there hahaha in my Nike lifestyle poncho, but regardless it was amazing to see. We grabbed some lunch at 208 RODEO Beverly Hills, which was at the end of the street in this little lit up alley of it's own. We sat outside for the view and atmosphere, but the interior did not disappoint either, decorated with chandeliers, very romantic feel to it.

Day 3 we decided we would hop the 'South Bay Beach Cities', starting with Redondo Beach. Their pier is so unique I loved it, it's almost horseshoe shaped? With a little marina in the center surrounded by fresh seafood markets and dining, it truly felt like a mini fisherman's town. Above this, where the boardwalk wrapped around were touristy shops and boutiques... I think my only complaint is that you (legally) couldn't order a frozen drink or Corona and walk the long pier. We took a five minute Uber down the street and there was Hermosa Beach. This little beachside village was so cute and mellow with their pedestrian-only accessed street lined with amazing indoor/outdoor dining leading to the pier. We stopped at a place called American Junkie for lunch and I got the Teriyaki Chicken Bowl...to die for. After lunch we went to the beach to get our feet a little sandy before taking The Strand, which is another ocean front walk you can take, to Manhattan Beach. The beach front houses along The Strand were unreal. I know I've said that about every housing community I've talked about, but if I could dream of one place to live it would be in one of these babies. Do yourself a favor, open a new window with Google Images and search "houses on the strand California" ...are you back? alive? Yeah. So anyways, we walked  The Strand admiring the fantasy houses until we reached Manhattan Beach. The walk wasn't bad at all, except for my brother who you can see in the pictures below forgot to leave his stuffed Gucci duffel bag at the front desk of the hotel before meeting us (we were taking the red eye that night). Struggle bus, so when we made it there we were ready to sit down for a minute and get something cold to drink and decided on The Strand House. This upscale eatery was the perfect place to get a drink with a view, once again I definitely felt underdressed in my crop top and sneakers, but I am who I am. Since we were flying out that night, we decided to head back to the hotel to freshen up and change before ending our amazing weekend. In summary, basically California is the place that is going to make you hate where you live, but in my opinion everyone should make a point to visit, if nothing else, to remind yourself to aim high.