San Diego trip

I haven’t been in a writing mood lately but I think the California sun rejuvenated me! Josh and I just got back from spending a magical week in San Diego and I am feeling so thankful for an extended period of rest + enjoyment. We took a red eye home last night and I think I slept about two hours total, so if this post is  completely incoherent, that’s why!

Tuesday was our first official day in San Diego and we started off strong with breakfast at Communal Coffee. Believe it or not this was one of my favorite meals of the week even though it was pretty basic. Josh got the avocado toast (millenial alert) and I got a bagel with herbed cream cheese + avocado. We also got a latte flight (ok fine, we are both total millenials) which consisted of two flavors- rose vanilla and honey lavender. Both were delicious but the lavender was my favorite.

After breakfast we did the most gorgeous hike of my life at Torrey Pines! Our first glimpse of the waves crashing in the Pacific ocean was surreal. We hiked around all morning just enjoying the sunshine and the views and then stopped for a little lunch picnic.

That afternoon we rested before venturing out for cider at Bivouac Ciderworks and then dinner at City Tacos. I guess I forgot to take a picture of dinner but their carnitas tacos were probably the best I ever had! Josh agreed so I feel like that is saying something since he is the official carnivore of the family.

On Wednesday we went sea kayaking in La Jolla cove! Let me just say that navigating a double kayak in choppy ocean waters will either make or break your marriage. 😉 But seriously this ended up being a lot of fun and we even saw a sea lion pop up right by our kayak! It was such a unique experience and the views from the water were incredible. It’s so crazy to me that people live here and see this every day as they go to work.

For dinner that evening we went to Cafe Gratitude which I had been to before in San Francisco and wanted to check out again. I love that all of their food is made from simple ingredients and yet the dishes are so creative. After eating we walked down to Seaport Village for a “City Lights” trolley tour that drove us all over San Diego.

On Thursday morning we went back to Cafe Gratitude because I wanted to try one of their fancy shmancy lattes! My latte addiction gained some serious momentum this week. Mid-morning we did another beautiful hike at Sunset Cliffs in Point Loma. This was much less crowded than Torrey Pines and it seemed like mostly locals and surfers. Watching people surf never gets old for me. After our hike we went to Liberty Public Market for lunch… all I have to say is this: honey balsamic roasted brussels. Must try to recreate!

That afternoon we took an impromptu little trip out to Coronado Island to walk on the beach and check out Hotel del Coronado. It was pretty but I’m not sure it fully lived up to the hype for me! In lieu of a sit down dinner that night we walked to the North Park farmers market. We got sushi, churros, and I think some other snacks too? Then we randomly went to a nearby movie theater and saw Parasite. I do not even know what to say about this movie… it shocked/surprised me in a lot of ways. If you are looking for an out-of-the-box film (and don’t mind subtitles) then I would recommend it!

I am realizing this is getting longgg. Okay on to Friday, our last day! Friday started with yet another latte, although this time we went back to Communal Coffee. We wandered around University Avenue for quite awhile, perusing gift shops (Pigment!) and admiring the residential areas nearby. Landscaping goals, for real. Everywhere you turn there are succulents, citrus trees, and brightly colored flowers. My dream! For lunch that day I got a poke bowl at Poki One N Half and Josh went for round two at City Tacos. We spent the afternoon exploring Balboa Park which had some amazing architecture, a few free museums, and pretty walking trails.

Since it was our last night we wanted to go out in style and decided at the last minute to drive back to Sunset Cliffs for, you guessed it, a sunset! Oh my goodness, it was SO worth it. So much beauty everywhere and such a reminder of our Creator.

We had some time before our flight that night so we got dinner at a California classic, In-N-Out Burger! I’m not going to lie I didn’t really want to go here, but I ended up being pleasantly surprised. The fries were just so-so but the special sauce on the burger was pretty divine.

So there you have it, a full recap of our California trip! Oh my goodness, if anyone read this far then God bless you. Hopefully you have been inspired to take an adventure somewhere too, even if it’s just to a different part of your city! I truly believe that a change of pace and scenery can open up our minds and get us “unstuck” from ruts. California definitely did that for me.

One more thing (I promise)- I recently guest posted over at In The Quiver about how I am approaching the new year. You can read it here if you’d like!