LA Road Trip!

We convinced my mum to replace her 2002 Nissan Frontier with a shiny, silver Prius. If you know how techonologically-resistant she is, you'll know this was a huge feat. My mum has been anti-technology for decades, holding on to her VHS and cassette tapes as long as she could. Last year we introduced her to the world of texting, yet she is still hesitant to give up her Motorola Razr for an iPhone. She's adopted YouTube and watching Korean dramas online, but does so on a 7-year old Dell desktop.

It took a few weeks but we convinced her that she needed the Prius for its mpg benefits... but now she's too scared to drive it! (Took a good 20 minutes for the salesman to explain how to put the car in park, and turn off the car with the smart key system) So instead, my sisters and I took it for a spin around town. The goal: how many food spots can we hit up on the way to Yona's apartment?

(Dolphin) Watching

Last weekend the BF and I went whale watching in Newport Beach. It was the perfect weekend-morning date after a long, hectic work week. You kick back on the deck with a beer and stare out at the gorgeous coastline (read: gorgeous beach houses on the Newport coastline) with no cell or 3G signal to distract you. (Although I still attempted to tweet)

I was a little disappointed that we did not see any whales even though it was prime grey whale migration season but we did see 6 different types of dolphins and some lazy sea lions.

My favorite part, though, was staring at the coastline. There was something peaceful about swaying on the water, being on the outside looking in. Aside from gorgeous houses and architecture, it was amazing to just take a timeout and think about what a great city I live in. Where else can you see surfers on the beach in the foreground and snow-capped mountains in the back?

West LA Outing

Today was my first "LA" outing since we moved out of LA. I have to say -- didn't feel much different from when we were living in LA, but I did notice traffic and inconsiderate parallel-parkers a lot more today than I did before.

First stop was Century City mall to pick up some towels I bought on presale about a month ago. They are the super, softest towels you can ever imagine. To save an additional 15% off, I prepaid for them during the Bloomingdale's presale and haven't been back since to pick them up.

After spending hours at the mall (unintentional; bringing a puppy that stops all foot traffic really slows you down in a mall) we headed to the Barrington Dog Park to kill time before picking up Aai from her work. This was Cora's first time at the dog park and she did pretty well! We went into the small dog area only and woke Cora from a nap to let her play. At first she was a little groggy and reluctant to play with the other dogs. After walking around for 10 minutes she started being more interested in the other dogs, quickly learning to sniff butts.

When it was clear she wasn't going to go potty, we headed out towards Santa Monica to pick up Aai at her work, Bergamot Station.



This was my first time in the paper store and I have to say I was taken aback at the variety of traditional/hand-made Japanese papers. There were so many different kinds, colors, textures and more. I was most intrigued by the natural papers made out of thinly sliced fruit.

After Joanna closed up the register, we headed to Fritto Misto in Santa Monica for a quick dinner. I had the jumbo ravioli for the first time -- prosciutto ravioli in a garlic cream sauce tossed with sundried tomatoes, caramelized onions and bacon. Max had the garlic shrimp black and white pasta (as good as I remembered it!) and Aai had the plain jain spaghettini in marinara sauce. This place never disappoints!

We saved just enough room for the creamy Tiramisu -- I'd say the best I've had in Southern California! (My fave ever is Steps of Rome in San Francisco)