An InterContinental Valentine
February 1, 2010 by Melanie
Filed under California, Los Angeles, Southern California, Southwest, The Americas, USA
Valentine treats from Jin Patisserie at the Intercontinental L.A.
Adam and I won’t be together on Valentine’s Day this year. I’ll be on the Love Boat (that is, the Crown Princess) and he’ll be, with any luck, skiing down a mountain. So when the InterContinental Los Angeles offered us a little Valentine’s getaway this past weekend…it felt like kismet.
Happy Holidays to You
December 22, 2009 by Melanie
Filed under California, Northern California, Southwest, The Americas, USA
While Christmas isn’t really my holiday per se…I have to admit I do enjoy it.
Bring a tree indoors, exchange gifts, eat cookies and sing songs about snow?
Head out into a whole new neighborhood to check out the best light displays?
Do something nice for someone else just because you know it will make them smile?
Why, yes. Sign me up.
We’ll be celebrating the holiday in Northern California, around Adam’s mom’s tinsel-sparkly tree in Oakland.
Adam doesn’t have to go to the office today, so with any luck, we’ll even be able to take some of Highway 1 up the coast.
Wherever you are, I wish you and yours a happy holiday, a nap, something delicious to eat, the weather of your dreams…and a maybe even a break from telemarketers.
May your spirits be bright and 2010 bring with it a whole wide world of possibilities.
TWT’s 3 Best Kept Travel Secrets
December 4, 2009 by Melanie
Filed under California, Central California, Couples' Travel Tips, Europe, France, Oregon, Paris, Paso Robles, Portland, Southern Europe, The Americas, USA
Photo by Roadsidepictures
The popular travel blog TripBase has started a tag-you’re-it game across the travel blogosphere. The goal is to collect an amazing list of across-the-globe travel secrets from as many travel bloggers as humanly possible. Someday soon, this list will be a Creative Commons roundup that I’ll be sure to share with you!
I’ve been tagged by two of my favorite travel bloggers, Sheila of GoVisitHawaii and Isabelle of Isabelle’s Travel Guide to contribute my own best kept travel secrets.
So, here we go:
Bolsa Chica Wetlands: Preservation Takes Flight
November 4, 2009 by Melanie
Filed under California, Huntington Beach, Southern California, Southwest, The Americas, USA
Huntington Beach is now celebrating its centennial, and city planners have been hard at work carving a whole new world out of this oil industry town. The result is an impressively clean and quiet ocean community of shops, restaurants and a few nice hotels…bordered by derricks and refineries.
One of its greatest achievements, though, was actually created over 30 years ago: the Bolsa Chica Wetlands, one of the largest untouched coastal ecosystems in Southern California.
The Bolsa Chica are vibrant, living proof that, in a region renowned for gated developments and endless strip malls (read: Orange County), there are a lot of local folks who view preservation as progress.
Huntington Beach Hyatt: Staycation Vacation
November 3, 2009 by Melanie
Filed under California, Huntington Beach, Southern California, Southwest, The Americas, USA
Main pool at the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach
We’ve been spending more time in Southern California lately, and after a year of far-flung travels (that aren’t yet done), the proximity to home suits us just fine.
Take Orange County’s Huntington Beach, for example: For those weary of L.A., with an hour’s drive you can kick back at the Hyatt and immerse yourself in a laid-back, endless summer. It’s the perfect compromise between vacation and staycation.
