2015 US Trip – Week One

I know the post is long overdue – But after almost a month after returning from my 3 weeks trip to the US, I’ve decided to split my travel post into 4 posts; Week one, week two, week three, and a specific post on Coachella. So here we go!

Saturday – 11 April

At midnight, my friend D and I flew Cathay Pacific Airline from Jakarta to Los Angeles via Hong Kong. It was my second time flying CX to the US and to my surprise both of us got an upgrade to Premium Economy class for our Hong Kong – Los Angeles flight. Wooohooo! That means bigger seat, free amenity kit (with comfy socks + eyeshade inside), more delicious food (I had tenderloin steak on a plane served in a ceramics plate!), and more comfortable 15 hours flight. YES. I personally loved the experience and if I were able to save more money for my next travels I’d definitely opt for Premium Economy especially for long haul flights.

After a comfortable flight, we arrived in Los Angeles. R – My boyfriend was there of course, it was soooooo good to finally be able to see each other in flesh. It was also his first time meeting D, so I introduced them to each other. Straight from the airport we went to have breakfast at Grand Central Market and ate at the famous Eggslut – see the picture here. Then we went for a stroll around LA’s Historic Core District.

Afterwards we went home, meet R’s family and rest. We had dinner with the family at a nearby Pho restaurant, it was a very good cure for hangover! 😀

Sunday, 12 April

That day was a touristic – sightseeing day, because it was D’s first time in LA. She was in transit before she continued her journey for a business conference in Denver. But first, we managed to meet up with fellow Indonesian blogger Arman and his family – his wife Esther and kids Andrew and Emma in Santa Monica, where we had Umami Burger. It was fun to meet them, I think his kids are soooo adorable! Hopefully there will be more meet ups in the future! 😀 Here’s a picture of us just before we left the restaurant… (have to “hide” D&R’s faces because they are shy… hehehe)

After lunch, our group parted ways in Santa Monica. Me, R, and D went to Santa Monica Pier and downtown Santa Monica for sightseeing. Then we also managed to go to Griffith Observatory. Both me and R have been there before during my 2013 visit so this time it was photo session time for my friend D 🙂

Next in our itinerary was Hollywood Walk of Fame. Of course, going to LA was not complete without going there! Hehehe. Here’s a picture of me with Mickey Mouse, my Mum told me that I have a picture taken at the exact same spot when I was 4 years old so I had to reenact the picture. Too bad until this moment I still could not find the original picture.. I know it must be kept hidden somewhere in our house :p

When it was dark, we visited LACMA to see the famous Urban Light installation. Remember the movie No Strings Attached? Yep, it’s that place! Then… we ended the day with a Korean BBQ session. Korean BBQ is always a favorite, plus, we went to an All – you – can – eat restaurant. Meat frenzy!

Monday, 13 April

R had to work that day and it was D’s last day in LA, so his cousin N took us to Downtown LA for another sightseeing/tourist day out. Because N can’t drive, we took the Metro. It was my first time and I have to say I’m impressed. Well – to be honest Singapore’s MRT looks newer and cleaner but LA’s not so bad at all.

In downtown LA, we came across a restaurant called Bottega Louie. I remember R once told me that the place has very yummy sweets.. so we went to try it. My verdict? it was delicioussss! All desserts seem to be made carefully so not only they look nice, they also taste nice. Just look at this picture :O

Our next destination was Rodeo Drive and Beverly Hills area. After tons of pictures, we came across a queue and found out that it was Sprinkles Cupcakes‘ 10th Anniversary – they’re giving out 1 free cupcake for everyone! As if we did not have enough sweets, we decided to join the queue.. all for free Red Velvet cupcakes which was sooo goood.

We closed the day with something special – watching an NBA game!!! It was Clippers vs Nuggets and although it’s not playoff time yet, but still it was memorable. Although our seats was sooo far but I still felt the euphoria when watching the game. Boyfriend was super excited because Clippers won, and I had fun too. Oh – don’t mind my tshirt, had to borrow R’s :p

Tuesday 14 April & Wednesday 15 April

Early Tuesday morning we took D to the airport – she had to continue her journey to Denver. Afterwards, R had to work and I stayed at home, resting. I did not feel too well those two days, probably because of the sudden change of weather (hot during the day but still chilly at night) and jetlag, so I did nothing much except resting and just relaxing.

Thursday 16 April – Sunday 19 April

It’s Coachella time!! The Coachella festival itself actually happened on Friday to Sunday, but since we opt for car camping accommodation, we stayed there from Thursday afternoon until Monday morning. Like I mentioned before, will write a separate post about Coachella, but here’s a picture as teaser 😉

Until next posts! 🙂