CALIFORNIA POPPIES- // State Flowers, State Birds and San Francisco

Yesterday my friend Sarah took me around San Francisco to look for apartments, and we saw a flower shop with a bundle of poppies for sale, and I was shocked!  shocked!  And on top of that, I also passed by State Bird Provisions, which serves our state bird,the California quail.  When I was a kid, I was always terrified to pick poppies because it was illegal to pick our state flower and thought the police would just somehow know and arrest me.  (As a child I never had a desire to eat a quail, but if I did, I would have assumed that was illegal too)  I looked it up though and it seems like the consensus is just that you can't pick golden poppies that are growing in the wild, but the rest are fair game.

If I eventually get over my fear of picking poppies, this could change my life forever, because I have a serious thing for poppies.  I love how tall and lanky the stems are, and how fluffy happy the tops are.  There's just something about them that doesn't take life over seriously.

Anyway, I really am falling in love with San Francisco! I'm trying to decide if it's worth the insanely high rent prices to live there, but regardless, I hope to visit often and spend a lot of time there!

LOS ANGELES, YOU'VE BEEN GOOD TO ME

Chalkboard drawing of the downtown Los Angeles skyline

Today I am driving up the 101 and making my way to the Bay Area to start a new job and embark on what looks to be a new chapter in life. The transition is undoubtedly a mixed bag of emotions- butterflies over the thought of something new, but also the inevitable sadness in leaving family, friends, and a city I really grew to love.

A quote I read in C.S. Lewis' The Four Loves, really rings true to me- "No man loves his city because it is great, but because it is his" Though I was born and raised in Southern California, LA never became mine until I moved there after college. In my three years back, I've rediscovered my relationships with family, had the privilege of sharing life with some of the most incredible people I've ever met, and said "I do" to a lifelong commitment to my best friend. I could never put it in words, but I am so thankful for my time here, LA - the people, the places, even the smog filled traffic, made their mark on me, and I am forever changed because of it.

THAILAND Part 7 // At Night

Bangkok is one of those cities that comes alive at night. The temperature cools down a bit, and it's finally bearable to walk around the streets. Here are some views from the neighborhood around our hotel and the Wat Arun (second place we visited in my post here) at night. I love love love big cities so it was so much fun to see all skyscrapers and architecture lit up.

THAILAND Part 6 // Ayutthaya Ruins

After our seeing the current capitol in Bangkok, we made a day trip out to Thailand's former capital in the Ayutthaya Province, which was destroyed by the Burmese in 1767. The site was enormous and you could really tell that it was full of splendor and beauty in its original days. The only other ruins I've seen in person were in Rome, and both experiences were really reflective experiences- just thinking about what once was, imagining a way of life that no longer exists, and looking at what remains and finding beauty and sadness in it at the same time

THAILAND Part 5 // Bangkok

After our first couple of days in Southern Thailand, we made our way up north to Bangkok and visited some of the capitol's proudest landmarks- the Grand Palace and Wat Arun. Bangkok was a night and day difference compared to our lazy days on the sleepy beaches of Phuket. It's a really bustling and fast paced city so you really have to hit the ground running, especially because we didn't speak the language. I bought my outfit off the street because we got lost and didn't have time to grab a change of clothes (my dress was not long enough and needed sleeves). It was funny because after changing I felt like I fit right in- the guard at the Grand Palace even mistook me for local and directed me to the line for Thai citizens where you can enter for free.

The temples were definitely a sight to be seen. Full of color and ornate detail- like nothing I've ever seen in person. It was fascinating to read about the history of Thailand and get a chance to learn more about the culture.

THE GRAND PALACE










THE WAT ARUN

THAILAND Part 4 // Beach at Sunset

I'm visiting my parents for a few days, and in my hurry forgot to bring my other pictures to post! Will be back next week with pictures from Bangkok and elephant riding. Here are some pictures of Karon beach at sunset. I wasn't able to really capture it, but the Thailand sky at sunset is so unbelievably beautiful. Huge and open, and full of clouds, all these crazy colors start coming out, and the beach starts to cool down almost immediately. You can feel the transformation from day to night as the nightlife starts to come alive and the surrounding businesses start turning on their lights and the streets get busier and busier.

THAILAND Part 3 // Karon Beach

Even though we are surrounded by nearby beaches in LA the only time we've actually gone to a beach while living here has been on vacation elsewhere in Newport and the Caribbean. I love being close to the water though, the waves are so soothing and I'm always in awe of how big the earth is and how the water goes on forever into the horizon.

THAILAND Part 2 // Phang Nga Bay

On our second day in Thailand, we took a day trip out to Phang Nga Bay and took a long tail boat out to "James Bond Island" to see the magnificent limestone cliffs. After that, we kayaked around the mangrove caves which was one of my favorite parts of our trip! I took a lot of notes from this blog about how to travel around, and it ended up being a huge life saver. Definitely recommend it if you are on your first trip to Phuket.