If you gave me a free day in Paris I could pull out a list of 50 things I would love to do and start working my way through it. In Southern California other than be in the sunshine I get a bit stumped about where to take it from there but every time I head back I’m finding things I like more and more. Free time and a nearly perfect forecast means no excuses not to go out and search for little adventures. Here’s a scrapbook of some of my favorites, including afternoons at The Standard downtown, beach days at Will Rogers, treats from Bottega Louie when I’m missing Paris, and last minute overnight road trips to Sin City…
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Sometimes in Southern California you’ll still pass those vintage billboards painted with smiling faces reading “Palm Springs, the one tank vacation!” But girls like us need no such convincing to pack a Prius to the sun roof with crop tops, bikinis, and shades. Like a mirage our final destination appeared in no time, the rainbow in the desert – The Saguaro. We made ourselves right at home in this desert oasis from the bucket lists and wanderlust boardsof so many dreamy adventurers like us. Post check-in it was straight to the pool where we stretched in the sun on plush pink towels. There was little reason to leave with scrabble, good reads, and slight waves of a hand enough to keep our thirsts quenched and tummies satisfied. Eventually our curiosity got the best of us when the rumors of vintage shopping led us to explore downtown where we indulged even more on iced coffees, flan, cookies, and margaritas. In the end the sunset brought us back home to our balcony because while sun worshippers by day, we had celebrating to do that night. With a table of tapas at The Tinto Rachel’s LA entourage and I toasted to a quarter century of her, my oldest friend. We topped off chocolate mousse with a candle because birthdays do not go unnoticed at The Saguaro. It was one of those weekends that makes you want to sing like a girl scout ♫ make new friends but keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold ♫. After all, what better way to catch up with old friends and make new ones than to travel together. Eventually work would call us back west to the coastline with our new tan lines and these photos as our souvenirs. But we’ll be back here soon, or should we say how could we stay away?
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Heliophilia - (n.) a desire to stay in the sun; love of sunlight. I’ve been diagnosed and prescribed myself a healthy dose of sunshine. There’s one place I know to go where the sun shines without fail and I’ve got more than a few places to crash up and down the coast — California. If it weren’t for Nor Cal we would have beaten out Florida to be “The Sunshine State”, but I’m happy to settle for the “Golden State,” if you can call a couple weeks vacation here settling. I traded in my alabaster white skin for freckles and my scarves for shades. The poppies are out to meet the sunshine too, and I’ve always got someone I love around to catch a sunset with…
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