Gold Coast Bound

California 
In the wee hours of the morning while most of New York was sleeping..ha yeah right but you know what I mean..my family was off to the airport hoping to catch a plane to California. What I mean by "hoping to catch a flight" is that we are never really sure if we are going to make it on the flight. This is because my mom used to work for delta airlines and if there are extra seats on the plane my family gets to travel on the plane for free !! If not, no flight for us. Still, I am so grateful for this privilege.. even though it ends for me when I graduate from college :(

 Anywayyy we began our morning hanging out on the Delta sky deck. It was outside overlooking the runway. Not such a bad morning in my book.

Every Wednesday in Santa Monic an entire street is filled with stands set up by local farmers selling their produce. I love the whole vibe of this out door market as everyone is so friendly and there are free samples (who doesn't love free samples) of delicious fruit everywhere!! If you are a chef, or just a person who appreciates fresh food, I would highly recommend checking out this market.

A trip to LA would be incomplete without a little visit to E! News. Hey Terrence and Guiliana! Last year my sister and I met Guiliana and Jason and I can honestly say they are the nicest people. 

Recognize these lights? This is where a scene in No Strings Attached was filmed. Taking pictures here was so much fun.

Crazy car we found in Santa Barbara

On the day we drove up to Santa Barbara it was my momma's birthday. To celebrate we went to The Santa Barbara FisHouse, and it was delish. Ever since I was little pasta has always been one of my favorite foods. That being said, I have tried a lot of different pastas and I can confidently say that this one receives top marks. The pasta was not overly cooked, the sauce was light and full of flavor, the veggies were still a bit crunchy and the shrimp tasted very fresh. Plus, it didn't hurt that the beach was right across the street and there was perfect California weather. 

Cute side street in Santa Barbara

The Courthouse

Courtthouse View

Courthouse view

Inside the Courthouse

Inside the courthouse 

Now, I admit, the beaches in Santa Barbara were mehh. BUT, the town of Santa Barbara was so cute and any shopper lovers dream.  I could probably spend a couple of months there just shopping. Even though there were a lot of shops my dad, someone who hates shopping, loved the town as well. The town had a bit of a European feel and had a relaxed vibe which made it very easy to fall in love with it. While we were there we stumbled across this courthouse that looked very similar to a church. You could climb to the top of the courthouse, by the clock, and look out over all of Santa Barbara. It was beautiful and a must if you ever visit. 

Brandy Melville

For the rest of the trip we looked at some colleges, ate some In-N-Out Burger, explored the area, went shopping, hung out on Venice beach, and played with that cute doggie eating the lollipop. The dog's name is Logan and he belongs to my "aunt" (not biologically my aunt but I still call her aunt). While in California we stayed at her house in Marina Del Rey and she owns this little guy named Logan. Logan likes to eat lollipops. He likes to carry them around and then open them up and eat them. If you're not careful he will also go into your bag and eat your gum...the little guy has a sweet tooth, but then again don't we all?

Thanks for joining me on my trip! If you guys live/ have ever visited SoCal please let me know about any cool things to do that I might have missed! Oh and before I forget, last year when we came to California we walked around the Venice Canals and walked around the Santa Monica Peer which was also  supper fun and I recommend checking out!