CITY GUIDE | L.A.

So we've lived in the L.A. area for just over seven months (time flies, right?) but I thought I would put together a list of a few of our favorite things to do in the city, just in case you are ever in the area. This will be my first city guide and hopefully not my last -- so here goes!

L.A. is similar to New York City in that each time I go, I can create my own unique experience. Each time we visited NYC, we stayed in a different area -- and each area has such a different vibe. I feel the exact same way about L.A. It is so versatile and you can go from people watching on Venice Beach to watching a Red Carpet event in Hollywood. Celeb spotting is fun too. It can be a crazy place, but you can really customtize your experience -- the possibilities are endless!

Shall we begin?

We like to go to L.A. on Sundays because traffic is almost non-existent and everything is so much less crowded.

Coffee: my favorite coffee shop is Alfred Coffee on Melrose Pl. It is Instagram Gold, trust me. And my favorite drink is not even coffee - it's an iced chai tea. So good! They also have a Tea spot really close. It is also a must try! 

Others to try: Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea, Verve Coffee, RUBIES + DIAMONDS

Healthy Spot: Sweetgreen. I wish we had this place closer to home, because it's so good. Have you ever had Chopt? - it's on the East Coast but sadly has not made it's way to the West coast yet. This is one way to get me to eat salads and I will definitely take what I can get.

Others to try: Simply O Juice Bar, Lemonade 

District: The Flower District. We picked up a bunch of fresh flowers here that lasted over 3 weeks! The prices are insanely cheap and the flowers are so good and fresh. Not quite Pike Place Market, but I'll take it. Beware, the areas around it are sketchy at best. We decided to get some steps in and walked here from the Broad near the Financial District which I do not recommend, so much so that we had to uber back to the car. Let's just say I was clutching onto my purse for dear life ...which brings me to...

Museum: (so far) The Broad. The architecture of the museum is spectacular and one of my favorite things is that you can even see how they store items they are not currently showing -- a behind the scenes look, if you will. Jake and I got to spend 45 seconds in the Infinity Mirrored Room below and it was amazing. Highly recommend! It's hard to get into, but if you can get tickets right when the museum opens (they're free), you should be able to get a time to see this room. In other exciting news, the museum is getting 6 more rooms like this in October 2017. 

Others to try: LACMA, Griffith Observatory 

Fast Food: In-n-out (duh). Except there is a Shake Shack in Hollywood now, so... Shake Shack.

Beach: Santa Monica. The mountains in the background (not pictured in the photo below) are so picturesque. Must see!

Others to try: Huntington Beach (for surfing), Venice Beach (for people watching), Hermosa Beach (shopping / outdoor cafe vibe)

Restaurant: Gracias Madre. Makes me want to seriously become a vegetarian. Everything here is good, the drinks + the food + the atmosphere. You get the idea. 

Others to try: Fig + Olive, By Chloe, Urth Caffe, Bottega Louie, Eggslut, Mendocino Farms (I have so many!)

Drive: Pacific Coast Highway. Believe me, what they say is true. We are dying to go on a road trip up the Pacific Coast Highway to San Francisco. Hopefully we can make that happen this year. We are still working on our travel plans this year. So far the list is shaping up quite nicely: Palm Springs, San Diego, Nashville, Seattle, Austin, Catalina Island, Hawaii ... and hopefully an international location if we can squeeze it in! 

Hike: Runyon Canyon

Viewpoint: Griffith Observatory

Roadtrip: Palm Springs! We're going again next month and I cannot wait! 

Others to try: San Fran, Napa/Sonoma, Newport Beach, Pasadena

Still on my to do list: Getty Villa, LACMA, Laguna Beach, The Grove. Basically the list of things to explore in this area is endless. I have never lived in a place with so much to do before. At times it can be overwhelming, but it's important to decide what your priorities are first. Then it helps you to narrow down what kind of experience you want to have. 

xoxo,