Our 5 year wedding anniversary (and 11 years together!) was in September. When we realized that milestone was coming close, we started talking about a vacation for us to get away. We had only stayed 1 night away from Barrett since he was born, so I knew it'd be a little tough to go away. But we both needed a vacation and some good time for just the two of us, especially with such a great reason to celebrate!
We tossed around a couple ideas and landed on California. Southern California. And a drive up the coast in a convertible. Sold!
It took quite awhile for me to actually book the tickets. Halfway because I was hunting for good prices, but also because I was having a tough time wrapping my head around being across the country from our little one. I talked to our moms to make sure they'd be able to watch him while we were gone, looked at rentals, and finally bit the bullet and booked our tickets. I did lots of looking and asking for advice on things to do and had a loose plan. I knew we would fly in to San Diego, rent a convertible there to drive up the coast, and fly of our LAX 5 days later. We knew a couple places we wanted to see, but didn't make our actual plan of attack until we were on the plane ride out there.
Tuesday
We had a bit of a rocky travel out to SD. Our first flight to Denver was ok (other than being 2 hrs and 45 min), but the second leg from Denver to SD wasn't great. We hit some turbulence and it was raining in SD. On 1 of the very very few days of the year that it actually rains in Southern Cali. We circled in the air for awhile waiting for the visibility to clear. When it didn't, we had to land in Palm Springs, fuel up, and wait (againnnn) to get off the ground and back on our way to SD. All in all, we were on a plane for 5.5 hrs. We were so relieved to get off that plane and start our vacation! We got to the rental place and picked up our silver Camaro convertible. Whoop!
First stop: San Diego!
Our first stop in San Diego was to my friend Abby's We started our vacation by spending the evening with Abby eating tacos and drinking margaritas in Ocean Beach and then made our way to downtown San Diego and the historical Gaslamp District. We were so excited we were able to see her! We were out for some drinks and to catch up.
Wednesday
She got up that morning for work (she is getting ready to deploy-so proud of her!), and Matt and I went to get some amazing breakfast at Hash House A Go Go. It was delicious! We stuffed ourselves. With full bellies, we drove with the top down to Coronado Beach for some kayaking around the bay! It was so fun. One of the highlights of our trip, for sure. It was so nice to just be out on the water, take in all the quiet and all of the sites, and to be together paddling around. We kayaked all the way to the Coronado Bridge and just sat out in the water taking in the sun and looking at all of the cool ships.
Next stop: Laguna Beach!
We hopped in the convertible and made our first stretch up the coast. We looked at the map and studied which way could get us on the ocean the whole drive. Highway 1 (Pacific Coast Highway) was the winner! We had to take Interstate 5 until San Clemente and then were able to hope on the PCH. We took that through a couple small beach towns and arrived in Laguna Beach late afternoon. The weather on our drive was perfection. In fact, the entire rest of our vacation was absolute perfect weather. Mid 70's, no clouds in the bright blue sky, and an easy breeze. We LOVED it!
We stopped for some dinner at a restaurant right on the ocean called The Cliff for some drinks and awesome fish tacos and crab nachos (to. die. for). We asked some of the staff for somewhere we could park to get down to the beach for the sunset. They made it seem like it was pretty much impossible to find anywhere to park or get down to the beach in general. So we made our own way.
We drove along the ocean looking down the small side streets. We saw one with a car parked on the road near a cove we saw on the map. We turned down and realized there was no charge for parking since in was a little neighborhood of houses. We parked on the street and walked right down to the beach. It was amazing! We put our feet in the water and then went to sit up on the rocks to watch the sunset. It was so great to just sit and enjoy nature and enjoy each other.
After the sun set, we made our way back to a hotel we had found on expedia at dinner (Pacific Edge Hotel) and checked in. They ended up upgrading our room to what was basically an apartment. The hotel had direct beach access so after we walked downtown for some ice cream, we took a little night walk on the beach. There had actually been an earthquake in Chile that day so there was a tsunami advisory for that night. We ended up sleeping through what could've been the wave, but we apparently didn't miss much. We got up and had another amazing breakfast and then got back in the car for our next trip!
Thursday
Next stop: Santa Barbara!
We got back on Highway 1 and drove through Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, and then took the Interstate through LA. We got back on Highway 1 in Santa Monica and got to drive through Malibu and the Santa Monica Mountains. We had noticed on the map that there were a couple roads that went all the way up through the mountains to the next major road. So we decided to see what it was all about! We were SO glad we did! It was even cooler than I thought it'd be. It was a little scary to be driving up those super windy roads and climbing up higher and higher (and looking off some cliffs), but it's exactly what we were wanting to see! You could see the ocean behind you and the beautiful mountains ahead. We drove for awhile and then turned around and went back down to Highway 1 so we could take it on to Santa Barbara.
We got to Santa Barbara in the afternoon and walked around the downtown area to find some place for lunch. Santa Barbara is known to have a "Mediterranean climate" which comes from it's southward facing position and being in between the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. It was like being in a whole new world. The weather was perfection and the architecture was so unique. It was simply beautiful! We found a nice Italian Restaurant ( Passicio's) and sat outside so we could take it all in. We hopped online again and found a hotel for that night (waiting until the day of to book our hotels was a little nerve-wrecking, but ended up being the best decision we could've made. We got some really amazing hotels for great prices since they were trying to fill their rooms!).
After we ate, we walked around the city for awhile and then made our way down to the beach. We threw on our swimsuits and played and swam in the ocean. We hadn't done that since our first vacation together (where it all started :) ) to Jacksonville! We walked down to Stearns Wharf and walked the pier. It was so gorgeous to see the contrast of the ocean and then looking up to a huge mountain range. We just loved Santa Barbara!
We ended up getting a room at the Montecito Inn which is a landmark hotel with a lot of history. They still had the original elevator from the 1950s functioning, and although the rooms were all renovated-they still had a historical and Mediterranean feel. That night we got dressed up and walked to a little bar/restaurant and sat outside for some late night appetizers and wine.
Friday
Next stop: Hollywood!
After an incredible day in Santa Barbara, we got up the next morning and set back south along the coast for a touristy day starting in Hollywood! We even got a taste of LA traffic on the way in. We parked and got out to walk along the Walk of Fame, saw the Chinese Theatre and all of the sites, and grabbed a quick lunch at a Mexican Restaurant.
We grabbed the car and did some more sightseeing. Made our way through Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive, and then took Sunset Blvd down to Santa Monica. We stopped and got out at Santa Monica Beach. It was different than the other beaches we had been to, HUGE amount of beach leading out to the ocean. Plus a pier/boardwalk with some carnival games and rides. We took a ride on the Santa Monica Ferris Wheel which gave great views of the beach and surrounding areas.
Then, we hit the road again! I can't believe we fit all this into one day (with even more to come!) and never once felt rushed or tired. We got back onto Highway 1 and drove until we found Malibu Canyon Rd which was another windy road up through the mountains. We were able to take it all the way up to Agoura Hills (in the valley) where we were staying that night. As if the first right through the mountains the day before wasn't great, this was even better! It was the most beautiful drive. We just took it all in. The sun, breeze from the top being down, and the incredible views.
We got dressed and ready for our anniversary date! We had bought tickets last minute to a Donavon Frankenreiter concert at a really cool place called The Canyon Club. We had dinner reservations there too and got there early to make sure we could eat before it started. We were somehow able to get a front row table for the concert!
Saturday
We got up the next morning and got packed up for home. Our flight was a little delayed which gave us some time to do another mountain drive before heading to the airport. We drove on Mulholland Highway through the Santa Monica Mountains. So breathtaking.
We made our way to LAX to drop off the rental and say goodbye to our amazing California vacation. We had a nonstop flight home and it went much smoother. We got home late, but were so excited to wake up with Barrett the next morning! We missed him so much, but are so glad we took this time for us. Our vacation was everything we hoped it would be...and more! Until next time California...
