Is Anybody Out There?

Why, hello there!

Nearly a month goes by and nothing to say. That is not exactly true, I suppose, but obviously I haven't had much to blog about lately. Here's what you've been missing.

It's getting better. It being California. Last week-end, I rode Dan's bike to Venice to take a workout class, and then I rode back. It was sunny and the sky was blue and the wind was in my hair, and I thought to myself, "I like this. I like that this is my life."

I have been visiting the Farmer's Market on Main Street on Sunday mornings. I never did the Farmer's Market thing in NYC because it was never convenient, and I couldn't deal with the crowd. Now it is a 10 minute walk away. There is a little bit of sticker shock paying everything in cash, but the produce really is better. I have been stocking up on farm-fresh tomatoes, peaches and whatever else looks good. They have these strawberries that are super shiny and super sweet. When I eat them, "I think, I like this. I like that this is my life." (Although I do kind of feel like a big yuppie). Passing by the "valet bike parking" at the market always makes me smile. Only in California.

In the last month, I have made a conscious effort to take better care of myself. Think: Taking vitamins, eating more salads, limiting my sweets and exercising often. I have gained about 10 pounds since moving out there (thanks, tacos and ice cream) and since starting my regimen, I think I might have lost a few lbs. (Best feeling: being able to fit in an old pair of shorts that were too small a few weeks ago!) I also feel calmer and happier and more like myself. Maybe that is why it is getting better.

For the very first time in my life, I have my very own garden! It's nothing huge, but I love it. I am growing flowers in a soothing palette of whites, purples, greens and yellows mixed in with some herbs (cilantro, rosemary, thyme, basil and sage). I also have cherry tomatoes and strawberries. Cool right?

I have zero knowledge about gardening and was a bit intimidated by the process, so I recruited my friends Emily and Jonathan to help me pull it all together. We took a trip to Home Depot and Armstrong Garden Center in Marina Del Ray, and they literally forced me to make all kinds of decisions and make my gardening dreams come true in just a few hours. It was all such a whirlwind. Considering I have spent weeks making every other decision when it comes to decorating this apartment, it was kind of crazy to make my garden happen in one afternoon. I think I might add a few pots here and there, but it's just about done, which is a relief!

When it comes to other things in the apartment, We still don't have a couch (long story) but we have a kitchen table, a bookcase, a chair and a lamp. Dan has done a great job in organizing most of our storage spaces. We're getting there, but our apartment still feels very incomplete and it still feels like we just got here. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel. We see it flickering.

We have been more social. Sandy, Ara and June came to visit us.  I consider June to be my best friend in LA. Can you see why? Plus, she's standing now!

I saw Magic Mike with the girls (and a whole bunch of screaming girls in the movie theater). We had dinner with Matt and Katie. We tried (and possibly succeeded) to make new friends. I'd like to start some exploring LA very soon.

I'll be in Miami next week for a business trip.

That's about it. Can't think of anything else. See? That's why I haven't blogged. You've missed nothing; absolutely nothing.

Last Day of Vacation

Last day of vacation took place in my backyard. Still pinching myself that I live here, and that this is only a 10 minute walk from my apartment.

We're still the whitest people at the beach.

Day Trippers

From London, we took a day-trip to Brussels to visit our favorite Danish family!

Leaving London via the Eurostar. Check out the Olympic rings!

It was so much fun to hang out with Gerda and Morten in their home turf. After all, they had come to visit us in the States on many occasions over the last few years.

We spent the day walking around the town and doing some light sight-seeing. And record-shopping, of course. Dan was pleasantly surprised by the amount of good-quality stores in Brussels.

Finally, a nice vacation picture of us! Thanks, Morten.

I like this one, too.

Dan with the Manneken Pis

Hey, I remember this place!

Tasting some Belgian candies that everyone thought were nasty except for Dan.

Good friends

We had such a nice time, and of course, Gerda and Morten were the most gracious hosts. They wouldn't let us pay for anything, and they kept feeding us delicious food. The highlight had to be dinner at their lovely home, where we feasted on steak, potatoes, strawberry salad, lime pie and chocolates. Oh, so many chocolates. Dan must have eaten enough food for ten people. I think it amused them greatly, which is why they kept feeding us more. We ended the night with some limoncello in memory of their visit to Visalia. Also, it was crazy that it didn't turn dark until 10 at night.

We also got a chance to see Katrine. Yay! Anna is away at school. Boo!

When and where will we see this awesome family again? I vote their beach house in Denmark. That sounds quite nice to me! How about it, Dan? Gerda? Morten? Anna? Katrine? Who's in?

My favorite Belgian chocolates from Passion Chocolat

London Calling

London: Then

London Now

As a teenager, I went on a week-long whirlwind trip to London and Paris with my high school. London especially charmed me, so it seemed a no-brainer that I study abroad there in college for one semester. (Funny enough, on that second trip, I did a long weekend in Paris and preferred it over London). My time in London was the best semester of an otherwise dismal college experience. That was 12 years ago.

Dan had a business trip in the city, so we decided to tack on a few days and make it a holiday.

Big Ben

Dan's London-based workplace

I don’t have a particularly good memory for things, but taking that first Tube ride from Heathrow airport to the hotel, a feeling of overwhelming familiarity came over me. The smell of the train, the sound of the train, the font on the Tube map, the carpeted seats. It was all the same. I am not sure why, but it made me tear up. Maybe I was tired. Maybe it was nostalgia. Maybe it was coming from LA where everything is still foreign to me, and feeling at home in a subway car. I can’t really explain it.

The feeling never returned. London had changed, or maybe I had. I enjoyed the city and my week there, but it didn’t wow me as it did when I was 14 or 21-years-old. Blame it on living in New York City—other cities have a hard time competing nowadays. I visited my old neighborhood near Marble Arch and could barely point out any landmarks except for the Pret a Manager (though absent of the rows of disgusting mayonnaise and cucumber- and sprout-filled sandwiches I remembered), the casino, and the Middle Eastern shops. It took a few false starts before I found my old flat—to Dan’s amazement (“How could you not remember exactly where you lived for a few months 12 years ago?” “I dunno, because I only lived there for four months and I haven’t been here in 12 YEARS? I know, shocking.”)

I did reconnect with my favorite McVitees Digestives Caramels that I never was able to find in the States. I used to eat a roll (or two) per week during my time in London and still managed to lose weight because the food was so terrible.  (“Are these cookies really that good?” Dan asked uncertainly, as he ate his tenth one.  “YES,” I answered. “If you don’t like them, stop eating them and leave more for me.”)

We meet again!

Since it was Dan's first time in London, we tried to see as much as we could. Meaning, we went to every record store in town. Okay, not every, but a lot.  I had already seen most of the famous sites before, but seeing them again was no big deal (remember my bad memory?), and it was especially more fun to take it all in being a savvier traveler and not having a student budget to worry about. Plus, the food was so much better this time around -- though these people really need to step it up in the dessert department. 

To make up for stale cakes, lackluster cupcakes (the newest craze) and ho-hum cookies, we came across The. Best. Gelato. On. Planet. Earth. It’s called 3Bis and naturally it is an Italian chain. The gelato is very fresh and light, but what really makes it out of this world is the fact that they pour a tablespoon of warm, melted hazelnut chocolate on the bottom of your cone, so your last bite is utter deliciousness. 

Gelato heaven on earth

English breakfast

Patriotic cupcakes

We were blessed with unseasonably high sunny temperatures, which made the city throb with people walking around, sitting in the grass and eating al fresco. It maybe rained for five minutes the entire time we were there. The city was gearing up for Queen Elizabeth’s Jubilee Celebration marking her 60 years at the throne so every storefront was decorated with patriotic signage and British flags waved on nearly every street corner. (Unfortunately, we skipped town the day before. This is what we missed). Also, the city is hosting the Summer Olympics in two months so we got a glimpse of the new Olympic Park. And what made the trip personally special was we got to celebrate our two year anniversary. We spent it drinking at a pub with Dan's co-workers, and then having dinner just the two of us at a nice restaurant called the Laughing Gravy on the South Bank.


The highlight of the trip for me has got to be afternoon tea at the famous Fortnum & Mason. They served us an unlimited amount of tea, tea sandwiches, scones with jam, lemon curd and clotted cream, and desserts galore (actual good ones!)—all in a fancy schmancy setting, my kind of scene. I definitely want to get more into tea now. I am not sure what the best part of the trip was for Dan, but flying Business Class on Air New Zealand was certainly a highlight. Along with all the records he bought.

The big red buses have been modernized, which I suppose is better for the environment, but I missed the old ones.

Camden

Camden Market

In the past week, I have felt the happiest I have been in a long time, and even Dan commented that he could tell how much I love to travel. It's true. Being away gave me some perspective that maybe I needed to treat Los Angeles as more of an adventure and really make the effort to be a tourist in my new home. Travel makes me feel my best.


Dan also realized how good he has it in the States after visiting London. Here's his list of the things America does well:

• Street signage
• Air conditioning (heat wave in London yet still no AC in many stores, the subway or our hotel room. Yeah.)
• Tap water
• Abundance of ATMs
• Cold drinks and ice

Me with the Olympic mascot

View of St Paul's Cathedral

View from the top of St Paul's Cathedral

The only picture of the two of us, taken in front of Big Ben and the London Eye. (Our hotel is the building on the left)

For those who are interested, here is everything we saw and did. Though really, this is purely written for me in case I forget (because I surely will.)

Sites visited (some with and without Dan) include: Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral, Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, National Portrait Gallery, Spitalfields Market, Winston Churchill War Rooms, Camden Market, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese pub 

Areas walked: Camden, Covent Garden, Soho, Carnaby Street, Regent Street, Trafalgar Square, South Bank, Primrose Hill, Jermyn Street, West London. 

Parks visited: St James Park, Hyde Park and Speaker’s Corner, Soho Square, Kensington Park.

After all that, we need a vacation from the vacation.

What, what?

Before

After

In anticipation of our couch being delivered (soon! I hope!), I cleaned up the living room.

Mind you some of the boxes ended up being transported to the second bedroom, but I also unpacked a bunch of things.

It feels strange and echo-ey in the room now, but psychologically feels so much better to not walk into a house filled with boxes.

We still have no kitchen table either so we've been taking all of our meals outside. Poor us.

I am really excited about our new outdoor mat...

...and our colorful dinnerware.

My Mornings

Let me share with you how I have been spending my mornings lately. Monday through Friday, I have been taking a boot camp workout class.

 I get there nice and early.

It is dark when the class starts, but since we're nearing the summer solstice, the sun comes up almost right away.

Three days a week, we work out on the grass near the rose garden in Palisades Park.

This is our track. We run around that thing as a warm-up.

This is our view.

At the rose garden, we lift weights, do squats and lunges, agility drills and the like. On Tuesdays, we go down to the actual beach and run in the sand. ("running" is a loose term here). On Thursdays, we run up big hills and climb steep staircases. Every class is different. I really like my instructor. He knows what he's doing, he kind of looks like Tom Cruise and he listens to heavy metal. You can't go wrong with that.

This has been my favorite part of California so far. I LOVE BOOT CAMP.

It's almost sad because when I am done with my workout at 6:30 am, I know the best part of my day is already over.

I have one more week to go out of my 4-week class, but I think I might sign up for another round.

Progress

Our living room three weeks ago.

Our living room one hour ago.

 For the amount of time and effort we have been spending to get our home in order (every second of the last three weekends), it sure doesn't look like we've accomplished much of anything.  We've been here for one month, and it's still a disaster zone. At least we got internet/cable connection today. But alas, no television yet to enjoy half of those benefits.

Our living room after I cleaned it (aka pushed all the boxes to one side).

We're having our very first visitors this weekend. Our friends Brad and Holly are in town, and they are staying with us for two nights. Don't worry, we picked up an  air mattress so they don't have to sleep on the floor (or in a box).

I made these to distract them from the fact that there is no place for them to sit.

Oh, wait! There is one place.

No kitchen table, no TV, no dressers to put away our clothes or anything like that. Just some outdoor furniture. Yeah, we've got our priorities in place.