Note to self: make 2019 the year to remember.
While working forty hours each week kept me on my toes, it did not stop me from enjoying my winter break to its fullest extent. Here are just some of the few highlights!
Santa Monica: After a fun-filled night of celebrating the New Year, my friend and I headed over to Santa Monica to do one of our favorite "traditions": bird-ing! You will see electric scooters sprawled across Santa Monica and all you do is download the app, scan the code, and you're good to go! Ofir and I bird-ed our way towards Third Street Promenade and spent our time looking for stores with After-Christmas sales and filling our stomachs with delicious Mediterranean food. I just had to take this photo as we headed towards home. There's just something about palm trees that remind me of home and California. Without a doubt, Santa Monica's truly a beautiful place to explore!
Anaheim: When I think of Anaheim, what immediately comes to mind is Disneyland but no, Karisa and I actually didn't go there this time. With our passes expired, we didn't jump on buying tickets especially since there has been an increase in ticket prices but we still managed to make the most of our day in Anaheim. I mean, any day with Karisa is guaranteed a day filled with laughs and memories. My parents actually recommended me this restaurant a while back and I finally had the chance to check it out! Am I glad I did because the ramen here is amazing. Such good broth and I loved the chashu pork! I think both Karisa and I can agree that the fried chicken bowl was just as amazing as the ramen we ordered.
Hollywood: Since my friend was home for the weekend, I used the perfect opportunity to spend the day with her at Universal Studios but it was raining all morning long. Luckily, the rain stopped by the afternoon but walking around Hogsmeade in that weather felt like I was stepping right into the works of J.K. Rowling - so picturesque. Because there were barely any lines for the rides, Madeleine and I were able to get on all the rides! After spending the entire day at the park, we headed over to City Walk where I introduced her to one of my favorite places for boba, Snow Monster. They serve the boba drinks in cute mason jars and if you are daring enough, they also have 'cotton candy clouds' that they place around the jar!
The Grove: One of Karisa's friends from her Paris Transfer Program came from South Korea to study at USC so we gave her a tour of Los Angeles and what better way to show her around her the place where you will most likely come across a celebrity? Best part is that we did! With the upcoming season of The Bachelor, contestants from previous seasons were there and much to my luck, I met one of them. Before we headed home, we went to Dominique Ansel Bakery where I purchased the signature items of their famous cronut and DKA. Later that night, I shared it with my mom while watching the season premiere of The Bachelor so here's the big question: Team Colton or Team Cronuts?! Now that's going to be a hard decision to make...
Camarillo: Upon my father's request, I had to volunteer at my sister's soccer tournament. Fortunately, I was with my mother for the most part as we were volunteering at the snack stand. Due to the rain, we had to take so many coffee orders so the first few hours kept us busy! We had a lunch break in between shifts so of course, I suggested In-N-Out because who doesn't love their food? It's my first time eating In-N-Out since I came back from college and man did I miss this place! The freshness of the burger and fries along with the pink lemonade was just the perfect meal after working for four straight hours. Soon afterwards, it was time to go watch my sister's game before heading back to my second shift. And the best part of it all? She won!
Melrose: The trio of foodies - that is Lauren, Karisa, and I - headed to Momofuku Milk Bar to try the crack pie that Lauren has been telling us both about. Be aware: the store is smaller than we expected so as we headed over to Milk Bar, we completely missed it... probably because of the STD billboard that's by the store - that for sure grabbed our attention! This place offers a lot of great photo opportunities with the Milk Bar food truck, the cake wall, and a pink wall with the caption "Please, Don't Instagram This". Once we made our purchase, we tried the crack pie and wow. I could literally eat a whole pie of that right then and there. The combination of the butter and oat crust worked wonders on my palate. Truly a treat!
Westlake Village: Taking a day off of work, I was able to spend my last morning in California with Asesh, Matt, and Sujith - some of my closest friends from high school. Although it is a bit pricey, Cici's Cafe offers just about everything for everyone's appetite. I just had to order my go-to green tea tiramisu pancakes and because of the big portion sizes, most of us couldn't even finish it! Nonetheless, it was nice to sit down and have conversations about life in college. It didn't feel like we lost touch with one another throughout the semester - we still shared laughs as we exchanged stories just like the good old times in high school. As I said good-bye to them, it was also a good-bye to my home and a "warm" hello to Madison!
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