Back in La La Land

I’m back in Los Angeles, and although it was a summer full of amazing travels, I’m happy to be back in my town. I’m still in traveler mode, which is the perfect excuse to play tourist in my own city!

My first weekend back in LA was a great one. Austin and Oli helped my family move me into my apartment. I grabbed a late lunch with the fam at Urth Café (and was heartbroken to realize that the berry cake was sold out – forcing me to “settle” for a mini Oreo cheesecake). I was the first of my friends to move in, so it gave me plenty of time to get organized. That evening I met up with Oli and Austin and we had a few drinks as we shared stories from our summers and went out later in the night.

The next day I was still alone, so I tagged along on a trip to Malibu for lunch at Duke’s with Austin and Oli. The drive is spectacular, and I love Duke’s. I discovered it in Hawaii, and was thrilled to find out their was one in Malibu! Later that night I went out with Claire for a cute dinner date. We walked around downtown Venice beach reminiscing on our travels over the summer, finally deciding to eat at Lemonade. We drove to Beverly Hills afterwards for Sprinkles Ice Cream. I had a cone with Captain Crunch ice cream, and I must say it was amazing! It’s so nice to have my car in LA. I was a little worried about driving in the big city (seeing as my hometown doesn’t have a stoplight), but so far so good! I’m definitely a less high-strung driver now.

The next morning my friends started to trickle in. Brittani, Sarah and I decided to hike Runyon Canyon. None of us had been before, and thought it would be a fun way to start the week. It was a tough hike (some parts were literally scaling mountain sides), but the views were phenomenal. We blasted music as we followed the many twists and turns of the famous Mulholland Drive and when we spotted a Starline Tours Van showing off celebrity homes, we cracked the windows and followed close behind to catch snippets of the tour!

Maria moved in later that day, and finally the gang was reunited. We joined Sarah again that evening for Roscoe’s chicken and waffles. Just three days in LA and I had already hit some of my favorite eateries! I’d count that as a win.

The next day we went over to Austin’s to visit with he and Oli and go for a swim. We wanted to jacuzzi together, but at Palazzo the locker rooms are not co-ed. Nobody was in the ladies room, so Austin and Oli joined us until they were kicked out! It ended up being quite a hilarious spectacle as the gym manager and cleaning crew all came in to get the guys out. Austin ended up having some people over in the evening, and we all played FIFA and shared drinks and stories. It was a great night.

The next day was a Malibu beach day. Austin is getting his SCUBA certification and was going for a beach dive in Malibu, so Maria, Oli and I decided to tag along. We sunbathed on the beach and even swam a bit, in front of the mansions on the beach front. You could tell we weren’t really welcome with the homeowner’s but public beach is public beach! Oli, the pale Brit that he is, ended up getting quite badly sunburned by trying to keep up with my advanced suntanning habits. We ate in Pacific Palisades at a delicious seafood place, Gladstone’s. I had the most delicious fish tacos.

Our first Eurobruins party also happened this week! It was a pretty cool event, eventful to say the least.

My brother Nick spent a week in Australia with some college friends, and had a layover in LA on Saturday. I decided to drive down to LAX with Maria to meet him for lunch. He unfortunately didn’t have much time so he just bought us coffees. It was so nice to see him, and hear briefly about his vacation! He also brought me a little koala bear and an Australia mug to add to my collection! He can be the sweetest.

Santa Monica has become our weekend hangout. It’s an easy drive, and I’m proud to say I can get there easily without a GPS! We go shopping and watch the street performers and grab something sweet to eat (either a milkshake from Steak & Shake or a slice of the most delicious cake known to man at Sweet Lady Jane’s on Montana).

The gang all went to First Friday’s in Venice Beach as well. Austin drove, and it was really fun! Maria and I split a sushi burrito. It was soooo good, if a bit overpriced. We then shared an order of deep fried Oreos, which I believe are God’s gift to man.

That night we went to a party for our one year of friendship with Austin – actually the first party we ever went to together, Board Club’s annual “America” themed party. It was a crazy fun night spent with our original trio and the welcome addition of Oli.

Austin’s dog Coco visited for the next week, so every visit to Austin’s was made even sweeter by the adorable little pup. Since being off the Hill we’ve been becoming more interested in finding cheap food, and 800 Degree’s half priced pizza of the day is just the ticket! For just $5 you can get a delicious pizza, and we’ve been going more often than I’d care to admit.

Maria and I had an impromptu beach day in Pacific Palisades one lazy Sunday. It was the perfect escape from the stress of school, and the water was literally as warm as the Mediterranean! The waves were giant, and I’m glad my mom wasn’t there to see us playing in them for hours.

Eurobruins hosted a tailgate for a UCLA men’s soccer game, and both the tailgate and cheering on our Bruins was a blast. We met up with Alyona and Shreya and saw all of our friends, and even though our boys didn’t manage to pull out a win against Stanford, it was great fun to dress up in our UCLA garb, and then drown our sorrows at an afterparty.

I met up with Sarah, Nadia, Maria and Brittani for a lovely brunch date. We decided to give Novel Cafe in Westwood a try, and the ambience was surprisingly charming for Westwood! I insisted we dine on the terrace (channeling my inner-European) and we sat at a beautiful tiled table. It was wonderful to catch up with Nadia especially, since this was the first I’d seen of her since we’d been back.

These first few weeks back in LA have been some for the books. It was amazing to have Oli added to our trio, even if it was for far too short a time. Somehow I’ve managed to squeeze some studying in amidst enjoying all LA has to offer.