I flew to the west coast last week to visit my friend from high school. Cali was more green than I expected due to all the rain they received over the winter. Here are some of my favorite spots from the trip!
Jasmine vine and birds of paradise flowers, on Cypress Ave between Wilshire and Georgia in San Diego.
The oversized elephant topiaries with trucks up at Balboa Park. So many museums here - if I had known I would have spent the days that it rained here. But instead we binged the last season of True Detective - very good.
The cacti and rose garden at Balboa Park. The rose garden was completely pruned back, so that was underwhelming but in general this area is packed with flowers, I was told.
The plants and flowers, mainly birds of paradise, at our hotel in Baja.
Puerto Nuevo for the night markets and restaurants on the ocean.
The Lafayette Hotel in San Diego. Loved the bar, very Roaring 20s vibe with outdoor pool. So not expensive to lounge at the pool there if you’re not a guest. Yummy matcha but also not hard to get that wrong as long as it’s high quality matcha.
Drove out to Jacumba in the desert for brunch and to view the Superbloom from the past rains. Bright orange flowers took over spots on the highway creating long blurry moments as we zipped past. I thought superbloom was something that happened every year, but my friends said nooooo. Superbloom happened last year, and the time before that was ten years ago. Felt so special to experience it here. I watched it all with the cutest puppy in my lap. My friend’s friend, took us through the desert in his 87 Bronco and it was a real treat.
Ocean Beach for the most beautiful sunset. Pacific Beach for brunch and midday walking.
Also loved the the cliffs in La Jolla, and watching the Navy Seals workout, like a serious workout, on the ocean in Coronado.
Our car got towed one afternoon on the way to Tory Pines which honestly felt so awful at the time, but now just feels hilarious. Also that it happened with my friend from high school feels fitting…on spring break.
I held a private workshop online for one of my students. Looved starting off my last day this way. We made centerpieces, talked a lot about negative space, and resisting the urge to add all of the flowers to the vase.
The weather there was cold and rainy the first couple of days but then warmed up a lot for the rest of the week. I’m so grateful to have had a couple of really warm pool days in Mexico. This winter has been so long and…just long. Happy to say goodbye to winter this weekend. Goodbye, winter! I won’t miss you. ;)
