June 30, 2015
Just one hour north of San Diego is Temecula Valley, the laid-back wine region that boasts more than 40 wineries. Its rolling hills and Mission-style architecture—not to mention loads of wine tasting opportunities—make for an amazing day trip from San Diego or L.A. I was grateful to be there for a few days for a freelance assignment, and in our 2.5 days, we fell in love with this slice of SoCal country.
Here are a few places you need to visit: read more
June 25, 2015
Outdoor jazz concerts, opening day at the Del Mar races, boozy popsicles, dog-friendly happy hours at the Hotel Del, and more—I rounded up a summer-tastic lineup of food, drinks, and events for the new issue of San Diego Magazine. You can read the full story here. (The concert finder is my fave.)
Photo by Jen & Bec
around san diego - Design + Interiors
June 23, 2015
Birthdays, weddings, barbecues—’tis the season for a party, and shopping at local boutiques has become my new favorite outlet for gifts that are equal parts thoughtful, unique, and often locally made. Here are my eight favorite spots in San Diego for something special: read more
June 18, 2015
While doing research for our vacation, I realized that even though we wanted to go to Cabo—it was the most affordable, logistically-sound beach destination to fly from San Diego—we did not want to go to Cabo. Let me explain.
What I had found in Cabo were tequila-shot-chugging parties, massive/generic hotel chains, wildly expensive luxury resorts, and more often than not, a lack of availability given our last-minute planning. (I’m sure there are wonderful off-the-beaten path finds, like this restaurant I want to visit some day, but I couldn’t find many. I wanted to get really off-the-beaten-path.) I wanted something quiet, on the beach, and for $100-200/night. I was told that would be impossible.
But I prevailed! In a last-ditch effort, I looked up ideas on one more site, and on a map of hotels, I saw a star indicating a hotel on Cabo’s East Cape. As it turned out, it was the dreamy hotel Villa Del Farro, and this is where we spent a glorious 4.5 days last week.
Villa Del Farro is located on 12 acres in Baja’s East Cape—a sprawling mansion split up into individual accommodations with a breakfast room, pool, and the great outdoors to share. Owned by an extended family of siblings and their spouses, VDF has seven different casitas, each with its own decor scheme. The grounds of the property are lush like a rain forest, with the desert on one side and the beach on the other. Because getting there requires an hour’s drive on a dirt road—we rented a car for $4/day—and there’s almost no other sign of life in the area minus a few homes, it’s incredibly, wonderfully secluded. That means it’s also very much an eco-hotel and suited to a certain type of traveler. There are no power lines, water heaters (solar panels instead), or air conditioning (you’ve been warned!), and drinking water is trucked in from a local ranch. With the area’s iffy plumbing network, guests also can’t flush toilet paper down the commode.
That said, as long as you’re willing to handle a few glamping scenarios, the payoff is 100 percent worth it. Nay, 200 percent. The owners have paid such amazing attention to decor details, the breakfast (included in the rate) is huge and delicious, and most importantly, the area is so quiet and the stars shine so bright, that it was just the recharge we needed. The world is so big that I rarely say I’ll revisit somewhere so soon, but I can absolutely see us making this an annual trip. It’s a special place.
Take a look: read more
June 16, 2015
I appreciate my hole-in-the-walls and fun-for-free beach excursions, but SoCal isn’t SoCal without some floss, no? With that in mind, I had been itching to check out Rancho Valencia ever since I moved to San Diego and got wind of this sprawling, glossy property located in one of America’s wealthiest neighborhoods, Rancho Santa Fe.
The award-winning hotel is comprised of suites, villas, a luxury spa, fine dining restaurant, croquet lawn, and equestrian-themed bar, all of which together has earned it the number one spot on U.S. News & World Report’s list of best hotels in America. When you pull up to its Veladora restaurant, you can’t even see where all the cushy accommodations are. That’s how wide this place stretches.
Lofty title aside, would you just look at that design? Spanish-style architecture, bougainvillea to the left and right, and a perfectly pristine attention to detail. And that’s just the space allocated to the resort’s restaurant.
Take a look:
June 11, 2015
In my latest piece for San Diego Magazine, I’m sharing nine picks from the neighborhood of Bonita, a south San Diego nook with diverse menus, surprisingly country-like landscapes, and gorgeous strudels. Thanks to Katherine Belarmino, a Bonita resident and blogger at Travel the World, for her help with this!
You can read the full story here.
Photo by Sam Wells
June 9, 2015
Yes, I’m going to Cabo tomorrow! The idea hatched just a month ago within a few days of deciding that Eaman and I really needed a vacation. It’s the quickest I’ve ever planned a trip, and I’m so, so excited.
As I mentioned here, I’ve been burned out. A new work schedule and my mom’s surgery have been recent stressors, but both events made me realize how the last 2.5 years of freelance hustling and being the supportive sounding board for a boyfriend creating a start-up had taken a toll on me, on Eaman, on our relationship, on our health, you name it. I’ve been exhausted, eating poorly, becoming increasingly forgetful, and worst of all, anxious. There were some mornings I had to turn on talk radio just so I could drown out the to-do lists running through my head or go to evening yoga because I was starting to have mini panic attacks every day at 5:30pm. And seeing my mom in the E.R., coping with a broken ankle and then surgery, made me realize that I needed to take care of my physical and mental health. I needed a vacation.
Around this time, I was also reaching out to a few girlfriends, all of whom are successful business owners. Quite simply I asked them, “How do you do it without pulling out your hair?” All of their tips had a common thread of traveling. One had just come back from a trip, another was about to leave for one, and the third travels so frequently (for fun) that she might as well be a travel writer. One of them explained that she just books a trip for the future so she’s committed. Leading up to it, she makes tweaks—maybe less shopping or less eating out—and it’s worth it because getting that change of scenery is rejuvenating. We’re all struggling, we’re all hustling, and we all don’t quite have the funds, but they all seem to make it work, so why can’t I?
For 2.5 years, I’ve been really hard on myself, whether it was talking myself out of going to the movies or getting a manicure because I thought I had to save money. Well yes, I do need to save money, but I also need to take care of myself, lest I want another epic meltdown.
Visiting family is not a vacation. Weddings are not a vacation. Press trips, while great and I know I’m lucky, are not a vacation. Two-day weekend getaways are not a vacation. I needed something longer.
So one day last month, feeling totally worn out from my anxiety, I texted Eaman that we needed to book a trip asap. To my surprise, he was 100 percent on board. (Usually one of us checks the other when it comes to finances.) And before we knew it, we decided on Mexico, then Cabo (big ups to Alaska Airlines for affordable direct flights!), then found this relatively cheap and secluded eco-resort. All of a sudden everything was booked.
I’ve packed sunscreen, my swimsuit, books, and a big floppy hat. I may or may not Instagram. I may or may not blog about it. But finally, I am doing something good for me, and it already feels right. (Cabo was under hurricane watch this past weekend—”Blanca” was the earliest-in-season tropical cyclone to make landfall in the Baja peninsula—but it was downgraded to a tropical storm yesterday and will dissipate today, so I think we’re in the clear *fingers crossed*. And more importantly, it doesn’t look like the area endured much damage.)
The blog will continue as normal on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so see you Thursday! I hope to come back a little sun-kissed, a lot relaxed, and full on tortilla chips.
June 4, 2015
One of the great things about living in San Diego is that, compared to New York, I spend time with friends in a much healthier way. It’s less about drinks and brunches (though there’s some of that too), and more about going on a hike or trying a yoga class.
So now I love setting up dates with my nearest and dearest that revolve around something active. And last week, Eaman and I swapped a dinner date for a workout date at Sonima Wellness Center in Encinitas. The part-gym, part-cafe, part-health coaching Mecca stemmed from the Sonima Foundation, a non-profit organization that brings health and wellness education to underserved schools. The founders, Sonia Jones and Salima Ruffin, went on to create Sonima.com to share tips to a broader audience. And now the first center, which opened in January, sits on the 101 in Encinitas.
The Center offers group classes, and while it’s no surprise that yoga and meditation are part of the schedule, the inclusion of circuit-training boot camps and dance is pretty rare in yoga-centric studios. And one of the coolest parts is the piggy-backing possibilities. We tried Michelle Rene Buysse’s Active Alignment class, a restorative blend of yoga and physical therapy that everyone has to try at least once, and followed it with yoga. Or you could try boot camp then reset your body via Active Alignment.
They also offer health coaching and workshops, and most dreamy of all is their organic, vegan, raw cafe, led by Joy Houston, raw food nutrition educator and teaching chef for Whole Foods. I know, organic, raw, and vegan?! How very SoCal of me. But trust me, Joy is doing amazing things with that menu. The spicy Thai kelp noodles was outstanding—my favorite raw/vegan dish I’ve ever tasted.
I know it sounds like I’m fan-girling a bit, but that’s because I am. I love what the Foundation stands for, the mindfulness they’re bringing to staying active, and the spa-like ambiance of the Center. It encourages a new breed of hanging out.
Best of all, your first week is free! Take a look:
