Los Angeles - 03.22.18/03.27.18

I'm not sure if I'll ever be a "West Coast" girl, but I like visiting! One of my friends from high school, Nan, was getting married in Rancho Palo Verdes, CA, I knew I had to be there and get some sunshine during the dreary NYC winter.

I added in a few days, so I could see other friends and enjoy some great food. So, here's a few things that I did in Los Angeles and Southern California.

Thursday, March 22nd, 2018

I flew into LAX on Thursday afternoon and arrived in LA in the evening. I accidentally booked my rental car at an off-site hotel, so I had to wait for a hotel shuttle, get to the hotel and pick up the car. Due to delays, I was late to pick up my car and they had released my reservation! (This trip was off to a great start!) Luckily, this rental was still much cheaper than renting from AVIS, so I forked over $20 more a day and was on the road to meet my friend, Courtney (we were Madewell buddies a few years ago and have stayed in touch). I was very fortunate to get to stay with her and her husband in LA and save lots of money on a hotel room. By the time I got to her apartment in Los Feliz, it was fairly late, so we drove nearby for tacos and went to sleep.

Friday, March 23rd, 2018

On Friday, Courtney had to work, so I drove to Buena Park to pick up my friend, Chung (we also used to work together at Madewell) and hit up some of the more touristy sites in Downtown LA. Chung picked out breakfast for us at Porto's (Some amazing egg sandwiches) and we were on our way to the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

I'm lucky that Chung is such a good sport, since I had to find RuPaul's newly minted star on the Walk of Fame! We walked up and down Hollywood Boulevard, looking for famous names and then to the "Boy Band Section:" New Kids on the Block, Boyz II Men, New Edition and Backstreet Boys. (I would miss the *NSYNC star by about a month, since they received their star on April 30th for "It's Gonna Be May" Day!") After finding all the pop stars I could handle, we walked over to Amoeba Music; where Chung had never been and is closing down!?

I had one mission: to find random Broadway cast albums and rare pop music for my ridiculous CD collection and I succeeded. 

• Flower Drum Song with Lea Salonga & Jose Ilana
• The Boy from Oz with Hugh Jackman
• OBC of Falsettoland
• Gypsy with Bette Midler
• Broadway Divas
• Gentlemen Prefer Blondes with Megan Hilty
• Annie Get Your Gun with Bernadette Peters
• OBC of Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson
• The Light in the Piazzai with Kelli O'Hara
• No More Games: The Remix Album by New Kids on the Block
• Tonight by New Kids on the Block

After a thorough hunt through all the things at Amoeba, I was finally read for some lunch at In-N-Out! We walked to the nearest location (which was right when the nearby high school was letting out) and were able to place an order and find a seat. However, we sat with two teenage boys, who were visiting from Canada and I had to keep telling Chung that I was old enough to be their teenage mother! Oof. Anyways, we got our food and then it was time for me to get her back to Buena Park, no big deal, right? Wrong.

We spent almost 3 hours, driving the 30-ish miles back to her apartment. LA traffic, you're no joke and another reason I'll stay on the East Coast. After that nutty trip, I didn't want to drive all over again, so I met up with my friend, Molly (another former Madewell co-worker) at Grand Central Market. I don't have any photos to prove it, but I had some delicious vegan miso ramen, even it was too much food for me at the time. Then it was back to Courtney's to sleep.

Saturday, March 24th, 2018

Usually when I come out to the West Coast, I spend part of the time near LA and part of the time near San Diego. This time, since I couldn't get down to San Diego and Solana Beach, where my cousin, Liz, lives, we met halfway in Laguna Beach. 

I spent the morning, adjusting my weird mid-day Tuesday flight to a Monday night red eye and figuring out why JetBlue customer service really is the best. Then I grabbed a snack at bakery nearby and started the drive to Laguna Beach.

I got to the beach a little before Liz & her husband, Jeff, so I took the time to relax in the A/C of my car. We were planning on a little hike (I was prepared in workout clothing, cut I didn't have the best shoes...Converse, my go to, are a little hard to grip the various parts of terrain in), but I didn't know how steep the incline actually was going to be! 

We started out on the path, the Valido Trail, and soon saw that the first half mile was the steepest; almost a 40 incline!? Oof. I was breathing heavy and exhausted, but once we reached the top, the view was unbelievable! A bonus: seeing LC's house from when she was on Laguna Beach and The Hills and then making a short video while playing the theme song to The O.C.

After our hike, we found a place to sit outside, eat and catch up before both driving our separate ways. Back in LA, I helped walk Courtney's pups and caught up with her husband. 

Sunday, March 25th, 2018

Finally, it was wedding day! Since the wedding was about a 30 minute drive away, Courtney & I got up early to get ready. I had purchased a cute new skirt and heels, but opted for sneakers at the last minute, when my friend said it was a casual wedding. Well, it was not. Everyone else was dressed up; suits, dresses, heels...and here I was in a skirt, t-shirt, jean jacket and sneakers. Oops. 

The ceremony was beautiful and partially conducted in Mandarin (oof, are my Chinese skills rusty). The guests were able to enjoy some drinks and snacks while the wedding party was taking their various photos. Finally, we were called to come in and sit in the venue, where I was seated with Nan's parents and some other friends. The crowd was very Chinese, in that when Nan and his newly minted wife, Julie, entered; there was polite clapping and then mine & Courtney's whooping and hollering. We were served course after course of delicious food: New England Clam Chowder, Caesar Salad, Roasted Branzino with Mushroom Risotto and Blueberry Cheesecake. (Oh, don't forget the amazing wedding cake!)

Then it was finally time for some games! Even though I'd known Nan the longest (20+ years), I didn't win, because his Mom had already "won" a prize at our table. Boo. Well, the next game up was a sort of "musical chairs" where we had to complete tasks: run up and give Nan a kiss, run up and give Julie a kiss, bring back a shoe from someone at your table, bring back $20 from your table...I lost on the bring back a child from your table, because the little girl looked terrified. However, I did make it to the last three and was the only girl participating. I might have had a chance to redeem myself in the last game, but the numbers were all announced in Mandarin! Then the DJ/Host heckled me with "Your parents should have taught you Chinese!" I got him right back with "I was adopted!" I probably made a lot of the more traditional Chinese guys embarrassed, but at least we had a great time.

After the food and games, we each got a chance to take a photo with Nan and Julie. Then Courtney & I got her car out of the valet (fancy) and made the drive back to her apartment. We were pretty exhausted from all the excitement, so we changed clothes and chilled for a bit before heading out for dinner and hitting the hay.

Monday, March 26th, 2018 

I didn't have anything planning for my last day in LA, so I decided to do some shopping. I went back to get a pastry from the bakery near Courtney's house, wandered around a book & record shop (what's up with this The Residents album cover!?), took her dogs for a walk, put them in their kennel and packed up my things to head to the airport later that day.

I decided to drive to Glendale and check out Americana. I was wandering around, in search of a place to eat, when I passed by Din Tai Fung. Oh how I wanted xiao long bao from there, but as one person, there was no way to really enjoy all the food there without someone else to help me eat it. However, as soon as I looked across the street and saw an Eggslut, I immediately knew where I had to go! (Especially after being at the Grand Central Market and having that location be closed for dinner.)

I couldn't resist getting my favorite dish from there, "The Slut" and enjoyed the chance to sit for a bit before wandering back through the shopping center. When I had finally walked through all the stores I could handle, I made my way back to my rental car's hotel/home. Since I still had time to kill before getting to LAX for my flight, I chose to eat dinner at the hotel's restaurant before hopping on the hotel shuttle to LAX, to my flight and heading back to NYC.

Calgary - 04.20.17/04.23.17

Last Fall, my brother,Philip, graduated from the University of Minnesota with his Doctorate in Political Science, which took him & my sister-in-law, Melanie, to the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. So, before he moves back to the States this year, I figured I should go and visit him in our neighboring Country up North.

Thursday, April 20th, 2017

I arrived in Calgary around 9pm Mountain Standard Time and was pretty hungry. Passing through Customs was easy and I arrive before Philip was at the airport. He drove me through a little bit of downtown Calgary, before we settled on going to Peter's Drive-In for a burger and poutine. We took our food back to the house and indulged in some cheesy, gravy covered french fried goodness before getting settled and going to sleep.

Friday, April 21st, 2017

Mel had to work, so Philip & I went downtown to get brunch at OEB (Over Easy Breakfast), one of Calgary's must-eats for breakfast & brunch. There were SO many good things to choose from, but in my over-eating nature, I had to get something savory & something sweet, so I opted for a meal that gave me eggs, ham, a slice of French Toast and a side of their fried potatoes. Philip opted for one of the "Box'd" dishes, which arrived in a Chinese takeout container. I also appreciated the architecture and design of the restaurant as there were two gazebos inside: one shaped like an egg and one shaped like a waffle.

After brunch, we went to the neighborhood of Kensington. I was on the hunt for used CD stores, ones that might have Broadway Cast albums that I don't already own, but at the same time we wandered through some other shops, browsing through clothes and books. I found a few Haruki Murakami books for $6 US, but was torn on buying some clothes at a local shop; since I hate trying things on.

After killing time around Kensington, we opted to go to Cross Iron Mills, a sort of outlet shopping center with a giant Bass Pro Shops store attached to it. Browsing through all the fishing gear with my brother really reminded me of our childhood; as he used to make his own fishing flies (and still does), participated in casting competitions and shopped through the local tackle & bait shop. Having never been in a Bass Pro Shops before, I was amused at the signage stating to "check all firearms & bows at customer service" before entering the store. The rest of the mall had some great shops and I picked up a few treats, including some maple flavored cookies and chocolates to bring back to work with me. 

After our shopping excursion, we went back home to rest and so Philip could take their dog, Hazel, out on a walk. Once Mel was off work, we decided to try our luck at Hayden Block for some delicious BBQ. The wait was just under an hour, so we walked around Kensington again and got a pre-dinner, dessert. By the time we finally got our table we were pretty hangry and might have ordered a bit too much food, but it was all delicious. The highlight for me was the hush puppies with peppers inside and the creamy side of corn. Post-dinner, it was definitely time for a food-nap/bed.

Saturday, April 22nd, 2017

Saturday morning, Mel had tryouts for the local women's frisbee team, so Philip & I went to the Calgary Farmer's Market and the Glenbow Art Museum. The farmer's market was impressive and housed year-round in a large warehouse-like building. There were lots of local merchants, but I was mostly interested in the food, per usual. While my brother browsed for produce for their next week's meals, I wandered through the food stalls. Eventually, I landed on some potato & cheddar pierogis with potato latkes and a small chicken pot pie. 

We then ventured down to the Glenbow Art Museum. There was a very large exhibit featuring the "Mavericks" of Calgary and Alberta, which was pretty fascinating. However, my favorite part of any museum is the Contemporary and Modern Art exhibits. A definite highlight was the Wayne Gretzky piece by Andy Warhol and a giant acrylic installation, which Philip thought was really weird.

After Mel's frisbee tryout, we all went back downtown to get xiao long bao (soup dumplings) at one of their favorite spots in Chinatown, Great Taste. Post-dinner, Mel helped me on my quest to find some great bubble tea and we walked down the street to a little spot that had TONS of bubble tea options. I opted for a Jasmine tea with soy milk and boba, which made up for the disappointing bubble tea I had at the mall earlier.

Sunday, April 23rd, 2017

For my last day in Calgary, we drove just over an hour outside of Calgary to walk around Banff National Park. But like any good Canadian, we stopped at Tim Horton's on the way out for breakfast. Admittedly, I haven't been to many Tim Horton's in NYC, so it felt right to go in Calgary. I had to try their pretzel bagel with sausage & egg; which was chewy and savory. I tried to read a bit in the car on the way up, but was unsuccessful; so I spent a lot of the time looking at the scenery, wildlife and taking a brief nap.

We arrived in Banff, which was a very beautiful resort town and walked around the restaurants and shops until it was time to drive up to the Banff Gondola, so we could ascend to the top of one of the mountains for great views. The weather was beautiful, in the lower 40's, so it was chilly, but not freezing - even with all the snow around us. The ride in the gondola took just under 10 minutes and took us almost 8,000 feet up into the Rockies. We then climbed up more to visit the Cosmic Ray Station on Sulfur Mountain and to see where the satellite that once captured cosmic rays was stationed.

After our gondola ride and hike, we'd worked up an appetite and went back into town to find lunch. Philip chose something that was basically another name for a Philly cheese steak and I got a burger, to satisfy a long-lasting craving. Mel & I topped off the meal with a "Beavertail" - fried whole wheat dough topped with a variety of items. As you can see, we chose the Nutella and banana one.

Before heading back home, we drove to Johnston Canyon to walk along some cliffs (not the easiest in Converse high tops) and view a spectacular, albeit kinda frozen waterfall. The detour was worth it, since the slippery conditions made the trails a bit less crowded and we were actually able to get a clear view of the waterfall.

Then came the ride back, where Mel & I couldn't resist taking a nap. Once home, I started to gather all my things for my super late flight back home and Philip made us all dinner. Overall, it was a wonderful way to get out of the city and another excuse to travel somewhere "International" and to use my passport. Perhaps my next adventure with my brother will be in Wisconsin, since he'll be teaching there in the Fall.