Destination Anywhere & Everywhere

A Blog about travel & the crazy adventures of a wanderer

Archive for the category “Day Trips”

26 Jun 2012
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Destination: Walking Across the Brooklyn Bridge, NY

The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the most recognizable New York icons; it’s right up there with the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Chrysler Building, World Trade Center, Grand Central Station, Central Park… the list goes on.

Built in 1883 the bridge really highlights quality craftsmanship. It is said that it was built 6x stronger than it need be, but that is probably the reason why it is still standing today. Made out of granite blocks and wire cables the bridge is a true beauty; the most defining architectural detail in my opinion are the pointed arches.

Devin and I took the opportunity to be tourist for the day and walk across the bridge. It was mid January and it was the first nice day we had had in a long time. The temperatures were below freezing and it was very dreary outside the entire week and this was the first time the sun was out and shinning. Naturally that led to the bridge being packed with everyone else that had been waiting to get out of their house too.

It was a bit of a trek to get to the Brooklyn Bridge from our place in Hoboken. It required three train transfers and since it was the weekend the trains weren’t running on their normal schedule. About 40 minutes later we were finally getting off the 4/5 at Brooklyn Bridge – City Hall. From the train exit the bridge is immediately to the left and that is right where the flood of people began.

Other than avoiding the bikers, joggers, and strollers the walk was peaceful. Taking in the sights of the Manhattan skyline and the beauty of the bridge was just what we needed after being cooped up inside for days.

The mile walk across left us both parched so we walked to Brooklyn Heights and grabbed a beer and a bite to eat. It was a wonderful way to spend our afternoon and I would definitely recommend it if you’re in the New York area.

That’s my story…

Peace & Love

Xoxo, andrea

Posted in Day Trips, Travel, Weekend Getaway and tagged , , , , ,
05 Feb 2012
4 Comments

Destination: Black’s (Nude) Beach- San Diego, CA

If I never stepped foot on a nude beach again I could careless; I could even say that I would be relieved. I had my first nude beach experience at Black’s Beach in San Diego in June of 2011 before I left California as it was one of my must do bucket list items; and I’ll just say I had my fill to last me a lifetime.

If you’re anything like me and expect to see decent looking young bodies on the beach… you are wrong! No girls playfully kicking water at one another topless, no sexy guys with six packs and huge biceps throwing the football back and forth, no toned, tanned, naked bodies walking around laughing and having a good time, instead what you see is your grandpa completely naked with all his saggy wrinkly skin hanging out for all to see. And my feelings can be summarized in two words – Not Pretty!

I had wanted to check out a nude beach for quite sometime, the freedom of being able to layout and tan without getting harsh white lines was a dream come true for me. I had tried several times in my youth to eliminate those lines but each attempt ended unsuccessfully. The worst would have to be the time I was laying out topless in my backyard and my dad came home and saw me- yeah embarrassing. It ended with him screaming from inside the house ”Jesus Andrea, the neighbors can see you, what the hell are you thinking, get your top back on!”

Putting my past embarrassment behind me I decided that I would once again attempt to layout topless, but instead of in my backyard this time at a place that actually encouraged it- the nude beach. So one gloomy June day Devin and I jumped in the car and headed to San Diego from our place in Huntington Beach.

I will say this right now- Devin is always such a trooper, since none of my girlfriends were around that weekend he volunteered to come along with me so I didn’t have to go it alone. Not all guys would voluntarily go to the nude beach where there is nothing but gay men walking around naked, but Devin is something special. I’m sure that he thought he would see a few naked chicks down there and not just all men- boy was he wrong! Always down for the cause he allows me to pursue my dreams- not that the nude beach was a huge dream of mine, just something I wanted needed to do.

Black’s Beach is located in the La Jolla area of San Diego. The best way to get there is to follow directions like you are going to the Torrey Pines Gliderport.You park your car at the top of the bluff and then start your decent down the man-made stairway built into the cliff side. The steps are steep and hell, which is why the beach remains quite secluded- climbing up and down is not for amateurs. By the time we were at the bottom of the steps my knees were aching from the impact of climbing down, they had buckled underneath me and made me fall a few times, but I was still determined.

I should have know what to expect when I saw an old man wearing see-through mesh shorts walking up the stairs, but I still carried on. Devin and I found a place to lay out that was away from the other people down there, even at a nude beach a girl needs some privacy, and spread our towels out. First we were both apprehensive about removing our clothing, I was tanning my back so I untied my top strings but that was as far as I could go. I couldn’t bring myself to remove my bottoms especially after what I witnessed next.

There are two types of guys down on the beach- the older (50′s – 60′s) gay guy that is respectfully nude sitting in the sand doing his own thing, and then the younger (20′s – 30′s) creepy mexican guys that walk around with binoculars. I couldn’t help but think about my old coworker Juan Carlos who would be the creepy guy with binoculars and his partner Greg who would be the older guy on the beach- did they meet here? My guess would be yes! Anyway, the guys with the binoculars were really making me feel uncomfortable, I didn’t like the fact they were in the bushes fully clothed looking at everyone else on the beach. To add to the uncomfort as I mentioned earlier to get to Black’s you park at the gliderport and walk down the stairs, so there are people hovering in the air on these big kite things right over all the nudist laying out. I find it a bit ironic, jumping off the cliff to hover above the beautiful beach oh and the naked old men.

So you got the people hovering in the air above you, the guys with binoculars, and then a few of the older gentlemen strutting their stuff back and forth on the beach for someone to notice and call them over. I couldn’t help but feel that I was in one of those places that the guys go to meet each other and rendezvous in the bushes. Throw in a few surfers in the water (the waves are supposed to be really good here) and that is the scene at Blacks.

Needless to say, I don’t feel the need to go back; but then I figured if you can’t beat them then you gotta join them. The rest of the story can be left up to your imagination…

That’s my story….

Peace & Love

xoxo, andrea

Posted in Beach, Day Trips, Girls Trip!, Weekend Getaway and tagged , , , , , , , ,
10 Jan 2012

Destination: Rodeo Drive- Beverly Hills, California

I don’t know what I was hoping for when I put this on my bucket list, maybe it was my love for Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman and I was thinking it would be a uber fabulous day full of glitz and glam, but it was a bore. A total waste of my coveted four-day weekend away from work (it was Memorial Day so per company holiday policy we get the day off)

Most of the stores were closed for the holiday so we -Devin and I- couldn’t even go in them (which was my fault for not thinking of that before driving an hour to get there) but more importantly these stores are now located everywhere! Not to sound like a snob but between South Coast Plaza in Orange County, San Diego, and traveling to New York and Chicago I have seen several Tiffany’s and Louis Vuitton’s. I guess I was expecting a feel of old Hollywood glam, but that was clearly lacking; all the stores had window displays that could be found in any part of the world, nothing special.

Devin and I wandered a bit but with most places being closed and my desire to buy something not being met we ditched old Rodeo to go the Glendale Galleria (A huge mall 30 minutes down the road). It was there that my shopping need was fixed with the purchase of a beautiful Burberry watch for Devin as a celebration to our eight year anniversary (which was the next day).

Overall I’m glad I went just to say I’ve been to Rodeo Drive but in reality it was nothing significant or special to me. With all the high-end designers being so commercially available in most malls in bigger cities I wouldn’t suggest visitors/tourist spend their day here. You would be better served walking up to the Hollywood sign. Regardless it was one more thing I did in California before I made the transition to New Jersey.

That’s my story…

Peace & Love

xoxo, andrea

Posted in Day Trips, Girls Trip!, Shopping, Vacations and tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment
17 Aug 2011
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Snowboarding and the Beach in the Same Day- Destination: California

Finally another drop in my bucket! With only one day left before Mountain High closed for the season Devin and I decided to cross off my desire to go snowboarding and to the beach within the same day.

This all started years ago while on a business trip in Connecticut. As I was sitting at the bar I struck up a conversation with a couple from Boston; eventually our conversation lead to a debate about where the better place to live was, Boston or California; and I eventually won by concluding, “Tell me where else in the world you can drive less than two hours to go snowboarding and to the beach within the same day,  and not your cold, no wave beach- but your Southern California girls in bikinis, guys riding the waves beach” as they dumbfoundedly looked towards one another for the answer, I smirked knowing once again I won. (ps- I never lose)

Like usual we were down to the wire, only one mountain was still open* for the spring season, and I say “open” meaning two lifts and  4 runs total. There was actually more dirt than snow on the mountain which was why it would be closing for the season the next day.

The status of Mountain High on April 23, 2011

The status of Mountain High on April 23, 2011

It had been about three years since the last time I laced up my snow boots and let me tell you this was not an easy feat. I don’t know if my boots had just been unbroken into- if that can even happen, or if my feet grew, but I could barely get my foot in. If that was my Cinderella moment, prince charming would have given up; I was totally the evil stepsister trying to squeeze my oversized foot into somewhere it didn’t belong.

It’s said  that  you never forget how to ride a bike, and while that may be true, you can forget how to ride a snowboard, or at least I did. At one time early in my “career” I had a season’s pass to the mountain and would go snowboarding on a weekly basis. I wasn’t the best, but I did once ride a box. This experience for me was by far one of my most embarrassing- well the time I ran into the ski instructor’s chair was worse, but at least that was my first time ever- this time I couldn’t ride toe side, so I spent the whole way down the mountain riding heel side zigzagging back and forth. I used to hate people who snowboarded like this, their unpredictable pattern down the mountain made it nearly impossible to pass, and when you tried to they would spastically fall right in front of you causing you to nearly fall also. Well today I was one of them, complete with the falling on my ass over and over again- and did I mention I was wearing jeans? As we were pulling out all of our gear the night before I noticed that my pants weren’t with everything else, with all the stores being closed I said F it I’ll be okay, I’m not going to fall… boy was I wrong!

Wearing my snazzy snow gear

Wearing my snazzy snow gear

After two runs I was exhausted and done snowboarding. I sat on a bench at the bottom of the mountain drinking a Coors Light sulking over my wet jeans, ache feet, and sore thighs. I couldn’t wait to get to the beach, but had to wait for Devin to go on a few more runs.

Ski Lifts at Mountain High

Devin Snowboarding

Andrea Snowboarding

 

Once Devin finally had his fill of snowboarding we threw our boards into the backseat of his car and headed towards the beach. Less than two hours later we laying in the sand listening to the seagulls crowing and children screaming as the cold waves crashed onto them (because the beach on a warm spring afternoon never has the peaceful waves crashing into the sand sound).

I have become somewhat of a wimp in my later years; the girl who used to bodyboard and hang in the water with all the guys was replaced by the girl who would rather lay out and bronze her body, and today was no exception. I really did want to try to surf with Devin to make my story more complete- snowboarding and surfing in the same day- but I couldn’t make it past dipping my feet into the cold water.

Andrea Beach

Devin Beach

Devin Surfing

 

As Devin swam out with his surfboard I sat in my chair reading the latest Nicholas Sparks novel still amused with the fact that only in Southern California could a person go to the snow and to the beach in the same day- and I was now someone who had done it.

Footprints in the Sand

 

That’s my story…

Peace & Love

xoxo, andrea

Posted in Beach, Day Trips, Travel, Weekend Getaway and tagged , , , , , , , ,
01 Apr 2011
1 Comment

Destination: Hollywood sign

 Each country has its own nationally renowned landmark/monument, something that visitors from all over the world travel to see; the Eiffel tower in Paris, the pyramids in Egypt, the Taj Mahal in India, and in the United States the Statue of Liberty in New York and the Hollywood sign in California. While the United States has several other natural wonders like the Grand Canyon or Niagara falls, I feel that both Hollywood and the Statue of Liberty represent more of the “American Dream”- freedom and the chance to make it big. Millions of people flock to Hollywood each year to see the handprints outside Grauman’s Theater, their favorite star’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the mansions where the celebs live, and the 45 foot tall letters of the Hollywood sign.

Living in Southern California all my life I have driven by the Hollywood sign many of times on my way somewhere else and never ventured to see it up close; that is until I was moving.

A mere day after putting the finishing touches on my bucket list Devin and I were already crossing something off. It had been raining all week-long, but when I woke up Saturday morning the sun was peeking through the clouds, so I decided it was time to get out and get some fresh air. An hour after forcing myself to get out of bed I was at the base of Mt. Lee in Hollywood strapping on my backpack, getting ready for the hike.

Where the hike started

Devin holding Hollywood in the palm of his hand

The hike started off easy enough, uphill but on a smooth, hard packed trail; after ¼ mile the trail leveled off and was flat, gradually increasing in elevation. Somehow Devin and I missed the turn off to get to the Hollywood sign and ended up going east towards the Griffith Observatory; to get back on track we began cutting through the mountain side. The ground was all muddy, there were steep rocks to climb down and huge bushes to crawl under; the hike had suddenly become very difficult, not what we had been expecting.

We don’t do trails, we create our own path

We only had our one water bottle (after Zion you would think we would learn our lesson), because everything we read about the hike said it was a quick 30 minute hike, uphill, but reasonable; little did we know we were detouring through the mountains. We honestly could have been those people who show up on the news that get lost going on some easy hike and end up dying. Luckily we found our way to the road and got back on track.

Finally we found our way back!

Yeah I said road, after walking on the hard packed dirt for a while it runs into an old service road, so you continue up to the sign on paved asphalt, why we were climbing through the mountains instead of on the asphalt…. I don’t know.

The clouds were rolling in as we were on the final ascent to the top of the mountain (which had become very steep at this point), so we knew we had limited time.

The clouds were rolling in

 The closest that you can get to the sign is 20 feet behind a metal chain link fence, but you still get the feel for how grand it is. Even better is the view of the Silver Lake reservoir and the city of Los Angeles.

The City of Angels

The view from the top of the Hollywood Sign

We took a few photos but began feeling rain drops so quickly began heading back down and all of a sudden out of no where gum ball sized hail drops were coming down on us. So we started running down the hill trying to get to our car faster, it didn’t take too long to get there but we were drenched! Afterwards we stopped at Earth Cafe (the guys of Entourage aways went there) to grab a quick bite before heading back to our place in Huntington Beach.

The hike was a great one, very easy as long as you stay on the trail; and provides phenomenal views of the City of Angeles. I am really glad I climbed to the top of the Hollywood sign and don’t have to worry about telling people I never did it while I lived in California. I would recommend it for anyone that lives in California or even for people who are just visiting.

Devin’s Hollywood Head Shot

My Hollywood Glamour Sho

My Advice:

  • Check out this guy’s site before you try and go and read it all the way through, he gives you step by step directions so you don’t get lost like I did :) http://hollywoodsigntrip.com/
  • Look for the trail to split left, while you are walking you will pass a part where the trail cuts back behind you, uphill- this is where you want to go

  • If you go in the summer wear sunscreen, bring more than one water bottle, and put on a big floppy hat – there is no shade on the trail.
  • If possible go in the early morning or evening

That’s my story…

Peace & Love

xoxo, andrea

Posted in Day Trips, Hiking, Travel, Weekend Getaway and tagged , , , , , ,
25 Feb 2011

My California Bucket List

Well we’re movin on up, to the east side- literally. Devin and I have been offered the opportunity to help our company expand it’s operation to the East Coast; which means we will be packing our bags and heading to New York/ New Jersey.

Ever since the first time I visited New York I knew I would want to someday live there, if only for a few years. California will always be my home; I’m a laid back beach bum at heart, but something about high rises, subways, and corporate America has always turned me on. It may sound crazy but I love hearing all the noise of the big city (honking horns and all); it reminds me of growing up in a house with three siblings- never a quite moment (and if you know my family, you know what I am talking about- we are loud!) And while I look forward to all the new adventures in store for Devin and I, there is still so much left to do in California.

We have four months before the big move and within that time I have to knock off everything that I’ve been wanting/meaning to do, as it will be several years until I am back on a permanent basis. I just can’t be asked about “cool things” to do in California from some New Yorker and answer back- “well I never did it”. My goal is to cross off as many things as I can within the next four months…. and I’ll be sure to write all about them :)

My California Bucket List:

  • Snowboard and go to the beach within the same day

 I distinctly remember on a work trip to Connecticut arguing with a couple in the bar that California was way better than Boston because you could snowboard and go to the beach within the same day (a perfect weather beach at that). And they agreed because where else in the world can you do that- I still never have, but for argument’s sake I need to.

  • Ride my first wave, after all I do live in “Surf City USA”
  • Go beach camping one last time (I don’t care where- Carlsbad, Leo Carrillo, Pismo… I love them all)
  • Go to Blacks Beach in San Diego tanning all the areas where the sun normally doesn’t shine (it’s a nude beach)
  • See/feed the animals at the Wild Animal Park up close and personal, aka “San Diego Zoo Safari Park” (what a lame re-name), after all it is where Devin made our relationship official :)
  • Go to Yosemite and take Ansel Adams style pics- of course mine would be way better

I have been to Yosemite once before, on a crazy family vacation when I was 11. All six of us piled into my dad’s truck, which only seats six, and spent three weeks of the precious summer touring California Ghost Towns, Yosemite, Lake Tahoe and Reno Nevada. Oh and did I mention my brother was three years old sitting in his car-seat screaming the whole entire way. To say we bonded as a family is a complete understatement- it was torture! Needless to say I didn’t really look at Yosemite with all the amazement it deserves- come on I was 11 and actually had friends to hang out with. So now I would like to go back, really admire it, and put Ansel to shame!

  • Wine taste in Napa/Sonoma, Paso Robles, and Temecula Valleys
  • Hike to the Hollywood sign,  to see it up close and personal
  •  Ride the ferris wheel at the Santa Monica Pier and walk the Venice Beach Boardwalk
  • Shop on Rodeo Drive… and maybe even buy something
  • Go clubbing in LA
  • Go to California Adventure- Disneyland… I’ve been there done that

There are probably others that are missing from my list, but these coupled with the things that I have already done should give me a good base. Once everything is checked off my list I will be a California expert, and will never have to answer “I never tried it”.  It will be a busy four months, but in the end so worth it!

Posted in Day Trips, Travel, Weekend Getaway and tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment
12 Feb 2011

Destination: Bachelorette Party- Wine Tasting in Santa Barbara (girls weekend getaway)

It was February 2009 and my friend Jessica was getting married in less than a month; we wanted to send her of in good fashion so we all gathered for a bachelorette party! Since Jessica was already a mommy and had been with her finance for several years Vegas wasn’t really her scene, instead we did a girls weekend wine tasting in Santa Barbara. At 7 am eleven of us piled into two cars with all our weekend bags in tow, I swear the bags took up more space then the passengers did (some girls just can’t leave without taking their whole closet with them – there were a few of them in our group).

Me, Sonia, Diana and Jessica before the festivities began

The drive from Long Beach to Santa Barbara went by really fast- especially because we were blasting Mariah Carey singing at the top of our lungs to all the songs. Before I knew it we were boarding the party bus, popping a few bottles of champagne, and heading to our first winery. Luckily our driver was a younger guy and didn’t really mind the eleven screaming girls in the backseat- but it was still early and he hadn’t seen the worst of us yet.

Sonia, Me, Kristen and Diana inside the party bus

Jessica, Jen and Sonia inside the party bus

Our first stop was at the Coquelicot tasting room in Los Olivos. Nestled between typical old town main street antique stores, this cute storefront has tons of ambience. As we walked in we were greeted by two younger women eager to serve us our first taste of wine, and an acoustic guitar player doing his rendition of popular songs.  This place set our mood for the rest of the day, fun. The wine wasn’t too impressive here, but it was a good place to start.

The next place we visited was Roblar Winery; their tasting room is actually on the vineyard, set in the rolling hills of the Santa Ynez Valley. The grounds were gorgeous and so was the inside of the tasting room, but our pourer was a real bitch. I mean by the way she was acting you would think the winery was giving her a bonus at the end of the night for only using one bottle of wine. Basically she would put a drop in our glass; just enough to get your lips wet but not enough to render an opinion on the wine. If the horrible pours weren’t enough, she would skip people and then argue with them saying she already poured them that wine. A real buzz kill on our party girl weekend.

But it didn’t last very long, we headed outside with a few bottles of wine and ate our lunch at picnic tables overlooking the vineyards. When we were done we were all in a good mood and couldn’t wait to go to the next winery.

Our picnic in the Vineyards

The last stop on our tour was Sunstone Winery. By the time we arrived we were all pretty frisky, as you can see by the picture beneath we were letting out our inner tigers. We didn’t need to taste anymore wine, but we did. The wine at this winery was actually really good- now I don’t know if it was because I had been drinking all day and everything tasted good or if it was true. Their Eros wine was delicious- it just so happened to be the most expensive bottle.

Dani, Jessica, Julia, Kristen and I letting out our “inner tigers”

I bought a bottle of the Eros to take home to Devin and was so scared when we went to actually drink it; I forewarned him that although I thought it was delicious at the time, I would have probably thought the same thing about a bottle of 2 buck chuck from Trader Joe’s. Luckily although extremely intoxicated, I could still pick out a good wine.

Our poor driver must have wanted to kill himself on the ride home. We stole his hat and each took our turn posing with it, while playing Estelle’s American Girl on repeat, singing it at the top of our lungs. He was a good sport, but I’m sure he was relieved by the time he dropped us off.

By the time we got back to the hotel we all needed a nap, but only a few girls actually took one- like usual the room I was sharing was the party room, so me and my girlfriends stayed up dancing. Eventually we were all ready to go eat so we headed out for a dinner. We dined at Opal which is a really nice restaurant and most of the food was good- however my friend Kristen and I both ordered the nastiest thing there.

After watching a few seasons of Hell’s Kitchen I had always wanted to try risotto, so I ordered it. It came out soggy with practically an entire rosemary bush on it. I was extremely disappointed with risotto and have never ordered it again. Jessica bless her heart wanted to buy us all drinks to celebrate the weekend so she ordered 3 bottles of wine. But by that time we were all wined out, needless to say by the time we left there was still a full bottle on the table.

We got to some club and I swear it was like we were transported to Mexico. These creepy men were all over us (they were honestly about 35 years old and were fresh from the border). We pretty much stuck to ourselves trying to save each other from being groped. Slowly our group died off, with more and more heading back to the hotel too tired to stay out. When we got to the point that three of us had to finish one beer it was our cue to leave (in our defense it was a Budweiser one of the most disgusting beers made). But not without a pit stop first; we were ready to leave the club, but not to stop drinking so we made the taxi driver take us to the liquor store. There was no way we needed anymore to drink- we couldn’t even tell the guy which hotel to take us to (all that we could remember was that it was a big white building across from the beach) somehow he figured it out and took us to the right place.

When we got back to the hotel we didn’t last very long. Kristen passed out in the bathroom, head hanging in the toilet bowl; Diana and I poured ourselves drinks, but didn’t even take a sip, and I spent an hour on the patio getting fresh air so that I wouldn’t get sick. Eventually we all passed out.

The group that had gone home early woke up bright and early in the morning, showered, put on makeup, and ate breakfast; we were still in bed sleeping. Somehow we finally made it out of bed and went to go eat. Kristen was still feeling sick and now so was I. We both ordered a side of toast and hash browns and touched none of it, Sonia and Diana weren’t feeling great either so we opted to head home straight from breakfast. The ride home was not nearly as fun as the ride there. Kristen had her head in a plastic bag throwing up the whole ride home, Diana began throwing up at the sight of Kristen, and I just covered my face with my sweatshirt knowing that if i continued to see/smell/hear the two of them that I would be next. Sonia just kept driving trying to get us home as soon as possible.

As soon as I got home I jumped into bed and took a nap. It was such a fun girls weekend and the wineries in Santa Barbara actually had good wine. I can’t wait to go back and try some more of the wineries… who needs a bachelorette party!!

That’s my story…

Peace & Love

xoxo, andrea

Posted in Day Trips, Girls Trip!, Wedding, Weekend Getaway, wine and tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment
26 Jan 2011

Day Trip to the Getty Museum

Though I’ve only been once, the Getty Museum tops my list of things to do in Southern California. It has a little something for everyone: art, landscaping, scenic views; and isn’t your typical boring museum. Whether you live in Southern California or you’re visiting for the first time this should definitely be on your list of things to do.

Devin and I headed up to the Getty on a Saturday afternoon. I had never been before, but Devin had on a school field trip (believe it or not, in college you still go on field trips like you did when you were 5 years old), so he showed me around. Everything about the museum’s architecture was deliberate; it is one of those places where everything down to the smallest rock is placed exactly where is should be to create a greater overall appearance.  The travertine used to shape the buildings was shipped directly from Italy and the construction took years, that alone warrants admiration. I’ve never been big on architecture but this is a beautiful building!

The exhibits inside are on constant rotation, so each time you go there is something new to look at. The art ranges from the Middle Ages to current day contemporary pieces. I am in no way an art expert or connoisseur, but I enjoyed many of the items. Seeing the creative process of other individuals that were willing to just go for it and put themselves out there is really inspiring. We didn’t even get through half of the exhibits; there are just so many things to look at.

At the time of our visit I was really into nature photography, so we spent a lot of our time wandering the gardens and snapping photos of all the beautiful springtime flowers. The colors were so vibrant and there were so many different textures, in my opinion a beautiful floral arrangement. I wish I was able to get my garden to look like this! Sadly despite my best efforts it never will.

I even caught a picture of a bee pollinating a flower

We ate a picnic lunch on the grass while taking in the breathtaking views. Even if you don’t pack your own lunch the Getty has carts selling food, so you can still sit on the grass and eat- which I highly recommend! Overall we had a great experience at the Getty, it wasn’t too crowded to enjoy ourselves, and it was relatively cheap (free admission with $15 parking). I would love to go again since there are new exhibits on display, not that it really matters since I didn’t see them all the first time- and even if I did, I probably wouldn’t remember them, but I haven’t made the time. But now that springtime is coming its the perfect time to go… I think I know what I’m doing next weekend :)

My advice:

  • Get to the Getty early so that you have time to see everything (it opens at 10 am)
  • But make sure to time your arrival/departure right so that you don’t have to sit in crazy traffic on the 405 (traffic is bad on the 405N from 7 AM – 9AM, and bad on the 405S from 5PM-8PM Monday-Friday, weekends are usually pretty easy)
  • Pack a lunch and have a picnic on the grass
  • Bring a camera to take pictures of the scenic views  and of the permanent exhibits (these are the only ones that you are allowed to take pictures of)
  • Make it a date- it is actually a very romantic place and you can buy beer and wine from the carts while you sit outside  to watch the sunset.

Peace & Love

xoxo, andrea

Posted in Day Trips, Weekend Getaway and tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

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