california-part 1

before amy had her birthday this past june, she made a list of things she wanted to do after she turned 30...things to help make her look forward to a year most people dread. on the list was a girl's trip away somewhere, even if only for a weekend. and so her sweet husband nate gave her a plane ticket tucked away in a vintage suitcase for her birthday present. a whole week away with me and our friend beth on the other side of the country to visit old friends and warm sunshine.

this trip was about celebrating our girl...spreading our wings...seeing new sights...and being together.

i've had since june to prepare myself for the flight. i've always had these silly romantic ideas about the airport and flying on airplanes. when matt and i first became friends, he used to take me to the airport for coffee and people watching. it's always fascinated me....how everyone at the airport seems to move with such a purpose. but i never once got to see past security. getting to go beyond it this past week was a bit of an odd dream...it was like a secret world opened up! restaurants and bookstores and hustling and bustling.
who knew?! (all of you, that's who...haha...this gal is behind the times for real)

anyways, i hope i always get a little bit excited about these sorts of things.

once we landed in los angeles it was all palm trees and breathing in different air....amazing mexican food for dinner and late night girl talks. it was so good getting to stay with sarah and kate! they are the sweetest, most talented, ohio girls (sisters even) who have made such good lives for themselves in los angeles. they are true californians now. we stayed with sarah the first part of the week and spent the rest in los feliz with kate and her husband. for the most part we laid low...the name of the game was to relax. 

we strolled the santa monica pier, took a drive through malibu, shopped and museumed, ate amazing food, bought records at ameba music, saw moby at cafe graditude! (our lone celebrity siting), spent the day in pasadena, hiked canyons, and took in all sorts of tourity sites and old hollywood whatnots.

i think my favorite part of los angeles is her ethnic centers...places like olvera street and little tokyo. (we heard a street karaoke rendition of "the phantom of the opera" by two men while in little tokyo that forever sealed the deal for me and that part of town.) 

but really it might be unfair of me to choose. the whole city, and all of what i got to take in of southern california, i'm completely smitten with.

it was such an amazing trip! getting to be with beautiful friends (old and new), my amazing sister, and getting to flex a bit of independence in a wonderful city. we just might have to do it again for my 30th.

tomorrow i'll have pictures from the huntington gardens in pasadena! it was too beautiful to not get its very own post.

p.s. i have more pictures of our trip up on my facebook! go take a peak!