
Wanderlust is something I feel in my soul. There is a very strong, burning desire to travel within me and I have a list a mile long of places I want to go.
For over 5 years now I have been wanting to visit Southern California again. I had only been there once in my life and I was 13 years old, so I didn’t appreciate anything.
I’ve felt this strong pull to the west coast for the last 3 years. Most of the people I’ve been meeting on-line, clients I’ve been working with and opportunities to learn and grow have all stemmed from the west coast. It’s like the Universe has been trying to drag me there and like the stubborn person I am, I kept coming up with reasons not to go.
I mean who does that?!
Thankfully I removed all of my excuses a few weeks ago and I finally boarded a flight to LA for 5 days.
From the second I saw the California mountains from my window seat on the plane, I was in love. (and the 5 hours of being kicked by the little kids next to me and behind me, who were headed to Disney with their family, all faded away.)

Yeah, there was smoke from the fires that poor California seems to battle every year, but there was something about the landscape that just filled me with happiness.
In true East Coast fashion, as soon as I landed I had to head over to In-n-Out to find out what all of the fuss was about. Let me tell you something… this burger did NOT disappoint. I was told I had to order the Double Double Animal Style and it was amazing. The fries were meh and I was warned I had to eat them first because if they get cold you might as well just throw them out, this piece of advice was spot on…In-n-Out needs to up their fry game!

After I stuffed my face in true foodie form I headed to the coast and just took in the views for a bit. Never in my life have I sat somewhere and felt the calmness and sense of peace that I did while taking in this view. If would have sat in this one spot for all 5 days, I would have been happy. How could you have this view and be unhappy?!

To be honest, there wasn’t a single beach I visited that didn’t make my soul happy and make me feel like I needed to come up with a plan immediately to relocate. There is just something about the vibe out there that made me feel like I was home.
I didn’t take nearly as many photos as I should have. For once in my life I found myself not reaching for my phone and just enjoying the moment. It was such a refreshing feeling to be unplugged and relaxed.
We should probably all try doing that more often.
Below are some photos that I did manage to snag during the trip…I really need to bring my DSLR with me next time and have fun documenting.

Amazing mural I spotted while driving around the Huntington or Newport area.

Soaking up the SoCal sun on Newport Beach

Santa Monica Pier

Santa Monica Pier

View from La Jolla, San Diego

Redondo Beach

The Cinnamon Roll French Toast was legit at Barney’s Beanery

View from The Queen Mary in Long Beach – The final stop on my 5 day SoCal adventure

Took the Red Eye home and caught the sunrise over PA.
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t heartbroken as I boarded my flight home to the incredibly humid east coast. SoCal definitely stole my heart during our 5 short days together and I can’t wait to go back and be reunited.
