I met up with my friend Joanne while I was in the US. Joanne was a classmate of mine during elementary and highschool years. Our families were good friends, too. I think it was me who informed her that I'll be coming to California so we agreed to meet up. She works by the way as a nurse there.

After lunch, Chris and Ross (my colleage) decided to go biking around the beach area so I was left alone on the pier. Little did I know that I will be alone for quite a few hours! It turned out that Joanne arrived around 6pm, to think I started waiting at 11am! HAHA...Filipinos be like...

During the wait, I was able to roam around the area and watch people hanging near the shore. It was breezy and chilly at that time and only a few people had the courage to take a dip on the chilly waters of the beach.

Arlington West. What immediately caught my eye upon nearing the pier was this view - rows of red and white crosses. I actually thought it was a cemetery at that time. However upon reading wiki, I found out that the crosses can only be seen on Sundays.

According to Wikipedia, "Arlington West is a temporary memorial created on Santa Monica Beach just north of the Santa Monica Pier at Santa Monica, every Sunday from sunrise to sunset. Crosses are placed on the beach for each U.S. military person who has died in the Iraq War. The Arlington West Memorial is intended to offer visitors a graceful, visually and emotionally powerful, place for reflection."

The pier is often filled with tourists and locals especially on weekends. There's a viewing deck at the end of this pier where you could see the vastness of the Pacific Ocean.

Me at the viewing deck. Joanne has arrived (yey..sa wakas!) when this pic was taken. It is a nice spot also for sunset watching.

I've encountered a lot of pigeons while there. At first, they were fun to watch but later on it was a challenge avoiding them since you'll never know when one will poop on you! Di ba nakakahiya, mag-isa ka na nga, napupuan ka pa! HAHA

The pier also has a National Historic Landmark – the 1922 Looff Hippodrome Carousel.

Santa Monica Yacht Harbor Sign. The iconic sign where everyone stops to document their entrance to the pier.However, this pic of ours was taken on our way out of the pier. HAHA.

It is the only family amusement park on the West Coast of the United States located on a pier. They have a variety of rides like Pacific Wheel Ferris Wheel, West Coaster, Inkie’s Scrambler, Sea Dragon, Pacific Plunge, Sig Alert EV and a lot more. We got to try the Ferris Wheel which is solar powered by the way -- so cool, neh? We got a glimpse of the whole pier during that ride. There's also a trapeze school on the pier. I found myself watching the classes while waiting. I actually thought of taking a class just to kill time. HAHA. Pero natakot ako, mukhang mahirap eh. Pang acrobatic level lang ata yun pupwede..HEHE... Days later, while on the plane on my way back to Pinas, I watched the movie 'This Means War' (Reese Witherspoon) where it was actually filmed on that flying trapeze place that same year..hehe..kinilig lang naman ako, I was there just a few days ago..

  

 Route 66 is possibly the most popular roadway in the United States, ask nyo na lang si Google why. HEHE. There's a sign at the end of the Santa Monica Pier that marks the end of this legendary American highway, symbolizing that this road only ended when the sea stood in its way.

I thought this sign was famous since I saw a lot of people taking a pic with it - famous pala talaga sya. HAHA! Someone asked me if I could take a picture of him with the sign. In retrn, I also got a pic with it. HAHA, para paraan lang. #aloneProblem

What I found sa ilang beses kong kakaikot sa pier habang nag-aantay — CANDY ATM! It’s so cute I wish I’ve tried, kaso nahiya ako — #aloneProblem na naman. 

When Joanne arrived, together with a friend, we only got to spend a few hours together. I had an NBA game to catch at Staples Center which has already started by the time she arrived. So we just grabbed some light meal before heading back to downtown LA. It was Christmas season that time and the surroundings have a warm and cheerful vibe, add to that the choir singing Christmas songs on the background. We passed by this area with nice Christmas decors and can't help but took a pic while in a hurry on our way to the parking lot.

My very first trip to the US was in December. As I have said in my Baguio blog, I've always wanted to experience winter. And so I was excited. However, the places I'll be staying while in the US of A aren't the snowy type of winter. California is always termed as the sunny and warm side of the US. So instead of bringing heavy clothes, I had cardigans and light sweaters on my suitcase instead.

Nonetheless, without the snow experience, I still enjoyed my first trip to the Land of the Americans. We went to Vegas on our first weekend there so on the 2nd weekend, it was time to roam around Los Angeles.

When my boss asked me what or where I wanted to go, I immediately said I wanted to see the Hollywood sign and have my pic taken with it as the background. And so my ultimate goal that day have been checked off my bucket list.

One item ticked off my checklist. 

 On the way to the Hollywood sign, we passed by this lovely park with a good view of the sign.

 It was a hike to get to this view. Some people take their time meditating or reading a book - like this girl, while on top of the mountains of Hollywood.

Went down to Hollywood Boulevard after the hike. This is the Chinese Theatre where many Hollywood films have had their star studded premiers.

 Celebrity handprints and footprints of neary 200 celebrities. These are located in front of the Chinese Theatre.

 Hollywood Walk of Fame

El Capitan Theatre -- you can watch Disney movies here especially if you're with kids. Wrecked Ralph was showing at that time.

Dolby Theatre -- this is where famous actors accept their Academy Awards

I've been amazed by how people in Los Angeles are so disciplined when it comes to road traffic. Traffic rules are always followed and pedestrians always a priority - so unlike with how Filipinos are.

Crossing the streets in California are not as risky as what we do in the Philippines. Usually, there's a button that you have to push if you want to cross the street. Their system then identifies that you want to cross so you just wait for the go walking sign to light up which also shows a countdown till it stops. Also, my boss told us that once you put your feet on the pedestrian lane, even if it's not yet time to cross, the cars would have to stop. You will however probably receive glares from the motorists if you do this due to irresponsibility. 





  

 
My Starbucks story. My boss invited us to have some coffee during late in the afternoon. Since the cafe was quite full that time, he decided to order on our behalf and have it to go. I told him my choice of drink thinking that he will order the hot version since it was chilly that time. However, he handed me the blended ice version. HAHA. Imagine me with shaking hands while I took this pic.

One thing that also amazed me was how huge their parking spaces are. Most malls or supermarkets have a lot of space intended for parking. Commuting is not that commonly used and most households have more than a vehicle thus the need for parking is a necessity. I also noticed that establishments are scattered in location and not in walking distances thus having a private car is really appreciated.

My first burger meal is from In-N-Out. They said that this burger chain is a must try when there.

Dollar$$$. It was hard spending money using a different currency. I used to think at first that $20 is just a small amount but once converted, it takes a huge amount from your peso wallet. HAHA. It was also not a good thing using your credit card due to higher currency conversion.

Amidst busy preparations for Kiel's 1st birthday party, I still made time to prepare a surprise for DJ's birthday. I wanted it to be extra special this year because his birthday has been and will always be an 'etsapwera' after the arrival of Kiel (their birthdays are just 3 days apart).

So I consulted my ever reliable adviser, Mr. Google. He led me to this private, cozy and highly praised resort in Antipolo. A few more research and I opted to choose this place due to good reviews and high excellence ratings from its customers. I also chose this place because of its proximity to where we reside -- its just a short drive from Pasig.

I finally booked a room through their website, about a month before his birthday. You can also book through Agoda or similar booking websites but I opted to use their website. I think it was cheaper when I compared rates. Before I booked I had to make a deal with DJ. Since it was supposed to be a surprise, I can't tell him that I reserved a place. I instead asked him if he could allot his birth day to me, meaning no other plans with friends or family that day, just me.

The day before his birthday, we headed out to Antipolo to check in. He actually had no idea where we were going. I configured Waze on my phone to lead us to the resort and told him not to look at the destination I set, just keep driving and follow its instructions. We however got lost..HAHA! Waze ended us up at a seminary in Antipolo. Good ol' Waze almost failed my surprise. But since we have no choice, we resorted to using Waze once again. This time it led us to Beverly Hills Subdivision, which was the correct address. However, it led us to a place inside the subdivision which was almost a 'talahiban'. Haha! Turned out it was the correct place. The place was private with its gate closed and we had to use the doorbell to have someone let us in.

 

The staff then led us to our room after we signed up some papers at the reception desk. They were actually kind of excited to lead us to our room. And this greeted us. I was actually surprised. I forgot that I have emailed the owner and requested for our room to be set up in a romantic way. DJ was surprised as I expected. He is not used to this kind of cheesy romantic surprises and didn't see it coming. It was his first time to experience petals on the bed which he only used to see on movies. So he dived into the bed and acted like John Lloyd. Haha! It turned out to be a major fail though since he got allergic a few minutes later. :( He ended up taking a shower before we had our dinner. The staff also had to change our beddings with fresh new ones.

Dinner was then served. The place is actually owned by an Italian chef who prepares the food himself for the guests. The resort not only caters to those checked in but they also accommodate people who wanted to dine in. I've read some suggestions on what good food to try so I suggested them to DJ. We ordered 2 sets of pasta, a pizza and a chicken salad, paired with a bottle of red wine. O, romantic di ba? Add to that the view of the metro city lights on our right. They call this space the lover's spot anyway. I have reserved this space for dinner prior to our arrival as suggested on the reviews. Very ideal for couples who wants to have a space of their own while enjoying the food. The food was great by the way but serving was too much. We got so full that we ended up with leftovers and feeling very sleepy.

 

Next day, breakfast was served in our room. They have choices of American, English and Pinoy breakfast which they will let you choose the night before. Just the normal breakfast though with instant coffee or chocolate drink. They included a small birthday note (which I also requested upon booking). Happy Birthday, DJ!

Before checking out, we took a dip at the resort's well maintained pool. It may look small but it actually is deep. Soft music has been playing all day at the pool (and dining area) which helps you relax and calm your senses while wallowing at the coolness of the water. There's also a mini bar and lounge chairs near the pool area.

This place has a nice interior design - modern but with a chic and simple vibe to it. I've read that the wife of the Italian chef is an artist whose work is evident on how the house was set up and designed. The house looks small when viewed from the pool area but it actually consists of more than 2 levels - 4 I think. Or might be just 3 levels. It has a lot of stairs especially when going to the rooms where guests stay.

You could find random things which will catch your attention while exploring this place. There's also a cute dog roaming around waiting for the guests to play with him.

Overall, our stay in Date & Dine Residences has been a delightful one. I loved how they catered to my every request in their own special way. The staff was welcoming and you will feel well taken cared of. Privacy is a sure guarantee at this place. Phone signal may be weak but this could mean spending more quality time with your loved one. Staying at this place felt like owning the beautiful place for that time being. I would surely recommend this to my friends to also try. Very ideal for quick getaways from the hussle of the busy metro life.