Good morning!! Time zones blow my mind, and I woke up early to write this post and feel bad because it’s nearly lunchtime back east!
I’ll be sharing all of the details from my TV segments later this week, but I wanted to also share some of the delicious meals we’ve been having — as well as some celebrity sightings!
I hugged this guy extra tight before I left. I have explained to him that I travel for work, and he is very understanding. If I remind him of my trip he’ll say “YOU TOLD ME ALREADY!” He doesn’t miss a beat. He also asked if I was going to see KK while out in California, and I told him no because KK was headed his way! This trip worked out perfectly because she was planning to visit Cville this week anyways, and so Mazen is in good hands between Matt and Karen’s company. They are actually going to New Orleans together to visit Ava and family, so Mazen is very excited.
MY OTHER RECIPES
I spent all day Monday traveling. My first celebrity sighting was London Perrantes of UVA basketball fame! He was on my flight to Atlanta : ) We all missed our connections though because our flight was delayed a few hours leaving Cville. I was able to get a standby seat on the next flight to L.A. otherwise I would have had to wait four hours in Atlanta. Props to the Delta app for all of the notifications — it knew I would miss my flight before it actually happened. I was also able to book the later flight right from my phone — super cool!
Cross-country flights are a drag, but I got a lot of work done thanks to wifi (which jumped from $9.95 to $29.95?!) and in-seat power. I had a glass of wine and a cheese plate for a dinner-time snack!
Upon my late arrival in L.A. my team had some dinner ordered to my room, which I was incredibly thankful for. I didn’t feel that hungry until I started eating this salmon, which was actually really good!
My room is very cool and cozy.
What an odd place for a full-length mirror?!
On Tuesday morning we were up bright and early (actually my body clock woke me up at 4:45 but I was able to fall back asleep!) for breakfast. Is it really this nice here all year long?!
My stomach was in knots, but a bagel with cream cheese sounded good (just like when I was pregnant — my body must find comfort in bagels with cream cheese!) so I ordered one with lox. It was so good!
We are staying right in Universal Studios so we were able to walk to the NBC building for our Access Hollywood Live interview. Tell you all about that tomorrow!
Holy make-up!
After the director said “CUT. That’s a wrap!” (ha) we went to lunch at Joan’s On Third.
Celebrity sighting #2 was Joey King, known best for her role as Ramona. We sat at the end of her table, and then James Franco walks in and sits to down chat with Joey for a while! I could have reached out and touched him. Talk about movie star looks!
But back to our salads, which were also movie-star quality. I had the chicken over baby greens with goat cheese.
I spent a few hours that afternoon working in my room when I realized I was running out of time to enjoy the pool, so I went out and read a magazine in a cabana for 30 minutes before dinner. Gosh, it felt good to lie down!
Amanda and Mallory are my media tour organizers and cheering squad this week! They are awesome.
We went to Laurel Canyon to a restaurant called Pace that could literally be described as a hidden gem because it was tucked away on the lower floor of a convenience store.
We shared a chopped vegetable salad that was packed with goodness:
We enjoyed some wine, and this snapper with roasted roots and sautéed spinach. Very delicious!
And for dessert, we shared this chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream.
I crashed into my bed, hoping to keep my body as close to East Coast time as possible because our day tomorrow begins at 3 am pacific time!
Thanks for following my adventures!
That’s so funny I’ve been to LA so many times and NEVER seen any celebs. The thing is I don’t think I recognize them anyway, beyond N’Sync and Brittney my ability to keep up with pop culture has always been sub par ha ha Can’t wait to see your Tv segment!
Haha!! Well to be honest I didn’t recognize either of them – my companions did! I’d probably see a Survivor cast member and go nuts : )
What a super fun trip! I love those succulents, and your makeup looks gorgeous!
Thanks!!
I love travel recaps! Why are pictures of people’s hotel rooms so interesting? This looks like such a cool trip.
This post makes L.A. look so fun! I live here and you’re making me want to be a tourist in my own city. The weather is lovely, but I’m always envious of your open spaces (like backyards – rare find here unless you have tons of money). I LOVE Joan’s on Third. So fun you’ve seen some celebs – for a while my husband was grocery shopping on Tuesday mid-day and he saw someone almost weekly. Glad you’re enjoying your trip. The hotel looks glamorous!!
I wish I had a car and even more time to explore!
Bring on the Survivor cast members any day! Finale tonight!!!!!
I’m going to miss it so please don’t mention the winner! I tried VERY HARD to get tickets to the finale since I’m here, but no luck…
ha! you’re walking distance to my house! Enjoy LA!
No way!! Come lounge by the pool with me : )
I missed you at Joan’s on Third !!! I was there mid morning! Great place. Enjoy CA!
Aw it would be fun to bump into some of you guys!
Great adventure 🙂
Sounds like such a fun day!! So exciting!
welcome to los angeles!!! and yes, it’s pretty much this nice here all year round, we are very lucky 🙂 your trip looks like it’s absolutely wonderful so far and you’re hitting some amazing foodie spots! i went to pace for my 25th birthday a few years ago, and the food/atmosphere is still fresh in my mind! joan’s is also amazing! can’t wait to see what your next few days bring and enjoy your time here!!
you have had such a fun and busy few weeks! and you chose a good time to leave the area, if Cville is half as cloudy as DC has been…I’m ready for pool weather : )
I know I’ve blathered on here before about my work travel and how I love getting to see new places, so it’s fun to see where other people get to go. do you have any plans to explore Los Angeles? I was there last fall for work, and I managed to see a lot of cool stuff, and I bet you could find some down time. Your media guides would probably be able to tell you fun spots to go!
and a few tips of the regular business traveler trade — I rarely use Gogo because it never works, but if you do buy it, always buy the day pass if you have more than one flight. If you’re going to get stuck in an airport for four hours, Atlanta is one of the best — it’s huge, there’s about 1.5 miles of walking area by the plane train, and all of the different concourses have really good food. If you’re still on a bagel kick, try Goldberg’s on Concourse A!
Also, you look so pretty in your TV shots — can’t wait to hear all about it — but I’ve never been able to blink in fake eyelashes. I hope you had better luck than I did lol.
good tips!!
Wow, it sounds like they’ve really streamlined the flight change change process, it used to be such a nightmare! Your trip sounds so fun 🙂
Mascara looks GORGEOUS on you Kath!
And Wi-Fi costed you that much?! Oh gosh, when I used Wi-Fi it was free on air Canada airline.
Also, when you wake up earlier than usual do you tend to feel hungrier earlier on in the day Kath? Do you go to sleep earlier also as a result?
Wow! I lived in LA for 3 years and didn’t experience these places- hah! Always something new to explore. This post makes me nostalgic to go back! What a wonderful trip!
So envious of anyone who gets wifi on their flights. It would solve a lot of my problems, but it’s not yet common in Asia… (or costs too much, haha)
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Welcome to our awesome city! So glad you’re having a great trip. Looks like your team is in the know because you’ve been to some of my favorite restaurants so far!
James franco? My fav!!!!!