Me and my coworkers had a morning meeting at Crissy Field in San Francisco so we could watch the Shuttle Endeavour make its final voyage to Los Angeles. It was a wonderful send-off to a space shuttle that helped save the Hubble telescope and traveled more than 122 million miles. Thanks for the bon voyage, NASA!
Photos by Alejandro De La Cruz
Had a great morning with my team at Crissy Fields! Thanks for the great photos, Alejandro!
American River Raft Rentals
With San Francisco’s cold summers, we often have to leave the city during the summer months to experience warmth. This weekend, we headed up north to Sacramento to go on a lazy, drunken rafting trip.
We packed sandwiches and plenty of beer and headed to American River Raft Rentals. Although there were 6 of us, we had 6 people’s worth of food and drink and opted for a 10 person raft to accomodate everything. The short walk from the rental shack to the river was a tiring work out, but as soon as we got to the cool water, all hardships were forgotten.
The current carry you down the American River and is much like the adult version of the lazy river ride you see at water parks. We took turns paddling, drinking beer and jumping off for a dip. We parked our raft several times through out the course to jump off some rocks and eat lunch.
Over all, a relaxing summer trip that was a much needed break from San Francisco’s chilly July.
For more reviews, check out American River Rafting Rentals on Yelp!
http://www.yelp.com/biz/american-river-raft-rentals-rancho-cordova
Mad Men
We all put on our most dapper and fly outfits for Mad Men Day at work. Pretty fancy, no?
Abalone and Uni
My dad, the avid diver, went on a trip to Mendocino and brought back this delicious goodness! I hated abalone and uni all my life but, in my 26th year, I’m finally acquiring a taste for this stuff. And it’s free! :9
Avicii
I was never interested in Electronic Dance Music (EDM) before, but when K’s EDM-obsessed college friend came to visit the city, I was drag into going to an Avicii concert. I was less than thrilled to be spending a weeknight out late listening to music I didn’t like with bat shit crazy people.
When we arrived at Bill Graham Civic Center, there was a crowd of desperate Avicii fans trying to buy last minute tickets and I almost sold my tickets for double the market price, but K convinced me to go to the concert. So I dragged my feet in. No turning back.
OH. EM. GEE.
Welcome to the dark side. I am an EDM convert. I had an AMAZING time dancing my heart out. The energy was absolutely off the charts and I love the way the music builds up…and I got just as bat shit crazy as everybody else. I am definitely seeing Avicii again and have a new appreciate for EDM.
Listen for yourself. Avicci - Levels. Don’t you just want to dance?
Izakaya Sozai
K and I arrived back to San Francisco tired and hungry after spending the weekend with some of the high school seniors from our home parish for a Senior Retreat. The cold city summer in conjunction with our exhausted bodies led us to crave something soothing, comforting and warm.
We stopped by Izakaya Sozai for a late night bowl of ramen. I had been craving Ramen Dojo for a long time, but was excited to try this 7x7 spot. (Also, I apologize for such a horrendous picture. The lighting in there was terrible!) The pork fat was melt-in-your-mouth good and the noodles had a nice chewy consistency. And while the broth was good, it didn’t have the depth of flavor that Ramen Dojo’s does. Will I ever find ramen as good as Ramen Dojo? I guess the conquest will have to continue.
For more reviews, check out Izakaya Sozai on Yelp!
http://www.yelp.com/biz/izakaya-sozai-san-francisco
Oh, the Place You’ll Go!
“So be sure when you step, Step with care and great tact. And remember that life’s A Great Balancing Act. And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and ¾ percent guaranteed) Kid, you’ll move mountains.”
Good luck, kids. You’ll move mountains! :) Senior Retreat c/o 2012
Congratulations Mr. P and Mrs. J!
Our good friends P and J were wed today! It’s about time! Among the guests were these two adorable twins, my nieces C and A. I remember helping pick out their names before they were born and putting them down for naps as infants and now they’re young ladies with such fun personalities! So crazy how time flies.
Nojo
S and I had a girls night out at Nojo after getting her new ENGAGEMENT ring resized. (Yay!! So exciting!) Nojo serves small Japanese tapa style dishes to share and are known for their Nojo sundae dessert. (It’s a 7x7 item!)
My two highlights of the meal were the spam rice ball and the Nojo sundae. Their spam rice ball was amazing! Homemade spam with a ball of rice that somehow had a crispy outside all around. I wanted to eat the whole thing in one bite, but I had to be lady like and share with S. Ugh. :P
The Nojo sundae was so refreshing! They had an asian style rice crispy with peanuts topped with black sesame ice cream and candied kumquats.
For more reviews, check out Nojo on Yelp!
http://www.yelp.com/biz/nojo-san-francisco
Golden Gate Engagement
Congratulations to my roommates S and L on their engagement! This was the setting of the beautiful proposal. 11 of us stood on the bridge with a special message from L while he drove S across the bridge. She said yes!
Vegas Baby!
It was almost surreal being back in Vegas. It had been almost 3 years since I moved back to California from Sin City. Taking a cab from the airport, taking highway 15 and exiting Spring Mountain to get to the Venetian. It brought back a LOT of memories.
But I was here to make new ones. A lot had changed since 3 years ago. New hotels and restaurant…I felt like a real tourist and it was so much fun! Dancing at Marquee and eating at Wicked Spoon and finally getting a yard long drink with a neck strap! I’ve ALWAYS wanted to get one!
I can’t wait to come back here again!
Marlowe
Over time, I think it’s become increasingly difficult to find food that really WOWs me. There’s a plethora of amazing food in San Francisco, but perhaps I’ve become a bit of a food snob. I feel like I needed to explain that for you to understand how delighted I was with Marlowe’s chicken sandwich. S, K and I took a nice long lunch break this Friday to dine at this SOMA restaurant. Marlowe’s sandwich is only available during lunch, so it gave us an excuse to get together and take a break from our boring routine lunches.
Now, the chicken sandwich. Oh. My. God. So good. Moist with a crispy breading topped with bacon and a magical sauce. It’s heavenly. The Marlowe burger is good too, but after eating the chicken sandwich, it doesn’t even compare.
For more reviews, check out Marlowe on Yelp!
http://www.yelp.com/biz/marlowe-san-francisco-2
House of Prime Rib
For my birthday, K took me to House of Prime Rib. Yeah, I’m that kind of girl. Forget the fancy pancy restaurants with barely there portions. No no…for my 26th, I wanted a fat piece of meat.
House of Prime Rib does one thing and one thing only. They have several cuts of prime rib with two sides (I got cream of spinach and mashed potatoes while K got the cream of corn and baked potato. Yum!) The portions are huge! And our meal came with a large loaf of bread and an entree sized side salad. If you finish your prime rib, you can even ask for a second thin slice for free! Yup, everything about this place is over the top. Even the decor is borderline costume-y. They get an A+ for price to portion ratio. The prime rib was good too, although nothing out of this world. Just good ol’ prime rib.
For more reviews, check out House of Prime Rib on Yelp!
http://www.yelp.com/biz/house-of-prime-rib-san-francisco
Paddleboarding
Living Social always had these deals on outdoor adventures. The four of us went paddleboarding down in L.A. in the past, but the high winds caused our lesson to be cut short. This time, our experience couldn’t have been better! The weather was gorgeous and the water was calm across the bridge in Sausalito. The instructors were amazing and helpful and we had so much fun paddling around. It’s definitely worth a try. We saw a ton of playful seals while enjoying the beautiful view of the city.
I’ve seen the paddleboarding promotion on Living Social a few times, so definitely sign up and take advantage of the promotion the next time it’s available.
