The Pacific Coast Highway

Pacific Coast Highway, also known as Route 1, is described by the book as "America's dream drive." The last leg of our family vacation will take place in San Fransisco, so we decided to take PCH from LA to San Fran. Today, the route took us through Malibu, Santa Barbara, the Santa Ynez mountains, Big Sur, and the Monterey Peninsula. The drive is full of breath taking views of both the ocean and mountains. I convinced my family to stop in Santa Barbara at La Super-Rica Taqueria for lunch. It is in the book and is a street corner "shack" famous for their soft tacos. When we arrived for lunch, the line wrapped around the building. After waiting so long the day before at Pink's, I knew I'd hear some groaning from my family. But as soon as the food hit their mouths, the complaining stopped.

I ordered the #1 and #9, steak soft tacos and a cheese quesadilla. This place was so good, and so far, my favorite food spot the book has suggested.

After lunch, it was time to hit the road again. We made a few stops for some must see views and stopped for the night in Monterey. Here are a few pictures from the drive.

At our last hotel, my brother and I found a CD behind the dresser. So Jordan took the miscellaneous CD for us to listen to on our road trip. We had no idea what was on it and were pleasantly surprised that we actually liked most of the music. We were even more impressed with the amount of songs on the dang thing. It was the never ending disc of music with 88 tracks. Here is the picture to prove it...

So far, I'm loving California and I can't wait to see what it has in store for me this week!

Quote of the Day: "How are we doing on gas?"--Dad

I was in the driver's seat for the majority of our trip today. Our rental car has a fuel gauge that indicates how many miles you can drive before a fill up is necessary. But my dad has never owned a car with this feature. I'm not sure if it was a lack of trust or understanding of how the gauge works, but he felt it necessary to ask about the gas every 30 min. Fun times!

Hollywood

Day three in Cali was spent in Hollywood. We started the afternoon out at Hollywood Park for some horse races. Jordan discovered a love for betting on horse races (aka gambling) last year. So we headed out to the park so he could show my parents the ropes.

My Dad ended up being the only one that came home with winnings. Being a big spender, he waged $2 on his first bet and won! I had to take a picture to document the earnings from his first win...

This guy came out and played his horn before each race to announce the horses taking the track.

After a few hours at the track, we headed over to Pink's for dinner. Pink's is a famous hotdog stand and a must see landmark in Hollywood. It has been in the same location for 69 years. Celebrity sightings are common there, but we didn't see any during our visit. :( When we arrived, the line to get in wrapped around the building! We waited in line for close to 1 1/2 hours for our dogs! Many thanks to my family for visiting so I could mark it off in my book!

Pink's is famous for their Chili Dogs, so that's what I got...along with onions, mustard, and cheese. Can you say heartburn? We got some onion rings and fries to share. I had an Orange Crush to wash down all of the grease.

Jordan ordered the Giant 12" jalapeno dog with bacon and cheese.

That was taking it a little too far for me, but he seemed to enjoy it!

Quote of the day: "This guy should feel blessed to have people waiting in line to buy his hot dogs."--Dad

Los Angeles, CA

We decided to kick off day two of family vacation by touring the Getty Center in LA. The center is named after Jean Paul Getty, an American industrialist, who made billions in the oil industry. He was also an avid art collector. He built a house in the Pacific Palisades to house his collection. When he died in 1975, over $661 million of his estate was left to the museum. The Getty Villa is still open and Jean Paul Getty is buried there. However, as the Getty collection grew, more space was needed. So a center was created. The center was designed by architect Richard Meier and opened in 1997. It is 110 acres and six buildings. It took 14 years and $1 billion dollars to create. It is beautiful and overwhelming. The center is free to enter, but $15 to park. And if you think you can find free parking, guess again. The center sits atop a mountain and over looks LA. You have to ride a tram up the mountain just to get to the center! The museum houses many famous pieces of art, including Van Gogh's Irises.
Anyone that has ever traveled with me knows I HATE to look like a tourists. I prefer to blend in with the locals. So, you can imagine my disgust when we got out of the car and I spotted this...

My dad placed his brochure on the museum in his shirt pocket....

"Let me get that for you dad....I'll just keep that for you in my purse!"

Here is one view of LA from the museum.

The center also contains a beautiful outdoor garden and sculpture park. We spent a lot of time outside admiring it all.

This picture features the architecture of one of the buildings.

Jordan was not as excited about the museum as the rest of us...

Jordan and I sat outside next to this sculpture for awhile. Everyone was posing next to it and getting their picture taken...I'm not sure why. But I did it too!

After the museum, we drove to my Uncle's condo in Little Tokyo. I loved his place! He took us on a tour of downtown LA and then to eat at Philippe's. Apparently it is a pre-Dodger game staple. Here is a picture of the crowd of people all waiting in line for a sandwich! Almost everyone was in their Dodger gear. There were a few, including my brother, sporting some Yankee pride.

Philippe's is a sandwich spot. They have five choices, Beef, Pork, Ham, Turkey, or Lamb. And all sandwiches are served in a halved french roll. They claim to have invented the French Dip sandwich in 1908. My uncle has been eating here for the last 50 years. He was amused when I told him it was listed as a place to see before you die in my book. I would love to go back when I have more time to really enjoy the place. But we were in a hurry, we had a Dodger game to get to after all!

The Dodgers were playing the Yankees. And out of all the games we've been to, we've never been to one quite like the one we experienced last night. The game was a sell out and about 40% of the stadium contained Yankee fans. This is rare for baseball. The stadium is usually full of home team fans with a handful of visiting fans. The atmosphere was more like a college football game, not baseball. It made for an emotionally charged game. We witnessed the ejection of many fans, fights, and a Dodger fan pouring a beer over the head of a Yankee. And people say Baseball is boring to watch...

The Yanks won. Here are Dad and Jordan sporting their team pride.

Next up: Hollywood Park for some horse racing and Pink's, the famous hot dog stand.

Quote of the day: "Everybody wants to be a star."--Lindsay, referring to all of the wanna be singers and comedians that seem to be everywhere we go!

Santa Monica, CA

Today marked the start of my one week family vacation in California. We had our first fight before we even made it to the airport, but as of tonight, we still love each other. We spent our first day in Santa Monica. My great uncle lives in LA. We had made plans to meet up with him at some point during our stay. We were pleasantly surprised to find him waiting for us when we picked up our rental car. He guided us to our hotel and then took us to the beach to get a bite to eat at a place called Back to the Beach Cafe. It was a beautiful day to eat outside next to the water.

My great uncle's full name is Robert. He is my mom's uncle and she calls him Rob, but as a child, I thought she was saying Bob...So, to me, he is my Uncle Bob. At a very young age, he planted the seeds that would develop into my passion for travel. He was always visiting some cool city or country and then would come back to Kansas with gifts and stories from his travels. I remember being specifically impressed with his tales from Egypt and various places he would visit in Europe. In high school and college, he encouraged his nieces and nephews to take a foreign language all 4 years in exchange for a $500 graduation gift. I took him up on his offer, and he helped me pay for a trip to France when I was in high school. As an adult, he still encourages me to visit new places and experience new cultures. I love seeing him and always learn something new from him every time I get to visit with him. At 78, he is still a force to be reckoned with.

My brother, Jordan, enjoying the sun.

After eating, we decided to venture over to the famous Santa Monica Pier. The Pier dates back to 1909! Here is a view of Santa Monica from the Pier.

The pier is famous for Pacific Park which contains several amusement park rides. I LOVE amusement park rides. Unfortunately, no one else in my family shares my love. After some hard core persuasion, my mom and brother agreed to ride the Ferris Wheel with me.

Day 1 in Cali was a success. Tomorrow includes a visit to the Getty Center, lunch at Philippes (home of the French Dip sandwich), and a Dodger's game. The first two are in the book, and if you ask my dad or brother, the Dodger's game should be...

Quote of the Day: "I think I just saw Bob Saget!"--Jordan, referring to our first sighting of a famous person. I watched Full House religiously as a child, so he is famous in my opinion!

Raleigh, North Carolina

This month I was lucky enough to visit an old friend and meet a new one. I'll start with the old friend first. My friend from college, Erin, is now living in Raleigh with her husband, Ryan. I last saw them almost a year ago in Omaha at their wedding. So, I was due for another visit with my friend! I was really excited to see Erin and hang out with her new husband. Ryan and I had some catching up to do since I met him for the first time at their wedding. He is truly a Southern gentleman and I am so happy for my friend. Did I mention they met at the grocery store? I love that things like that REALLY do happen!
The lovely couple, Erin and Ryan Champion--How cool would it be to say "We are the Champions!" Their last name ROCKS!

The last time I rode around in a car with Erin she was driving a 1997 Honda Civic. I was pumped when she picked me up from the airport in this...

I named him Benny the Beemer, but Ryan insists the car needs a girl's name. :(
We kicked my vacation off with a trip to Moonlight Pizza. This place had a really cool funky and urban atmosphere. We ate outside next to candlelight and the weather was beautiful. Erin and I split the Greenhouse Effect--pizza with tomato sauce, garlic, basil, spinach, black olives, sun dried tomatoes, lemon zest, and mozzarella. We washed down the delicious pizza with pomegranate margaritas. Just a warning, from this point on, this post will contain a lot of food talk. You can't visit the South without eating your way through it! After dinner, we went back to Erin's house to share a bottle of wine. And I loved the wine! We sipped on Charles Shaw Shiraz, aka, Two-Buck Chuck. That's right folks, is $2.99. I loved it so much, I made Erin take me to Trader Joe's to purchase some to take home in my suitcase. And now, I wish I would have bought more...

Trader Joe's is an awesome store that carries great tasting foods, mostly used for entertaining. And the staff all wear Hawaiian shirts. Fun!
Day 2 of my trip was extremely productive because I got to cross 4 things off of the list of must sees before you die! We headed to Chapel Hill for a view of the University of North Carolina and a walk down Franklin Street.
We made a stop for lunch at Mama Dip's.

Not only was this restaurant in the book, but it has also been featured on the Food Network. That qualifies as a must see in my opinion. And just in case that is not enough to convince you to stop by for lunch, Paula Deen, the Southern Queen of food, holds an autographed spot on one of the walls when you walk in. I ordered Chicken and Dumplings for lunch. My meal came with two vegetable sides. I picked mashed potatoes with gravy and mac and cheese. You read that right, mac and cheese qualifies as a vegetable in the south! That's my kind of eating. And did I mention I had some cornbread, too? And did I mention I ate all of my food?
After that meal, some "walking around" was in order. So we headed over to Durham to visit Duke University. We spent some quality time in the Sarah P. Duke gardens. This spot was free to visit, not to mention beautiful. Here are a few of my favorite pictures.

After relaxing in the garden, we took a walk over to the famous Duke Chapel.

After walking off lunch, it was time to eat again! We picked another selection from the book, Magnolia Grill. This sophisticated restaurant is located in the middle of a neighborhood in an old converted grocery store. Magnolia Grill has also won several awards for its tasty food, including being ranked as #11 on Gourmet Magazines top 50 places to eat in America. Wow! We started out with a glass of wine and a crab dish for an appetizer. I had a NY strip for dinner with some yummy potatoes. We all finished with this...

The lemon poppy seed souffle cake with raspberry sauce was perfection!

After dinner, Ryan and Erin took me to Durham's new chic area for entertainment, the American Tobacco District. This was one of my favorite places to visit. This area was once one of America's largest tobacco manufactures. Today, the old warehouses have been renovated into bars, lofts, and office space. We went to Tyler's Tap Room to have a drink. Erin introduced me to this beer...

Lindemans Framboise Lambic, brewed in Belgium. I'm not gonna lie--this is a girly beer, but so yummy! Before it was common to use hops to season beers, fruits and vegetables were used. This beer is seasoned with raspberries and taste like fruit punch.

On Day 3, I made sure we hit up some Chick-Fil-A, which is probably my favorite fast food restaurant. How I wish we had one in Wichita!

Day 3 is also when I met my new friend. In 2005, I took a trip with a group of people from my church to Kampala, Uganda. We traveled to Africa to support the work of Watoto Children's Ministries. The mission of Watoto is to Rescue the precious orphaned children of Uganda, then Raise them in the word of God, and Rebuild Uganda by teaching these children how to be the next generation of Ugandan leaders.--Rescue, Raise, Rebuild. Instead of putting these children in a traditional orphanage, Watoto has developed a model that allows them to be a part of a family. They have 3 villages with medical clinics, churches, schools, and homes. Each home is made up of a mother and 8 children. This allows the children to grow up in a supportive and loving environment where they are allowed the opportunity to learn about the value of a healthy family. In 2005, our team helped build one of the homes in Suubi Village. Suubi is Swahili for hope. The experiences I shared with the people I met there left a lasting impression on my heart. I knew I wanted to continue to be involved with the mission of Watoto. However, visiting Africa on a regular basis is not financially possible for me. How I wish it was! So, I decided to sponsor a child for $35/month. Shortly after my trip, I was matched with Derrick. He was 7 years old at the time. It has been so much fun to see him grow through his letters and pictures he sends me. Watoto also puts together a children's choir. They allow each child to tour a developed country for 6 months. This allows Watoto to share their message while giving the children an opportunity to see what could be possible for their country as well. Derrick was in Raleigh at the time of my visit. So, after 4 years of sponsoring him, I actually got to meet him! And I loved every minute of it. He was incredibly sweet and polite. And his smile screamed innocence and happiness. I am so thankful I got to see him. If you are interested in learning more about Watoto or sponsoring a child, visit Watoto's website.

After seeing the Choir, Erin and I headed to a fashion show. The event was called Redress Raleigh. The fashion show only showcased eco-friendly designers. All of the garments were created from recycled or remanufactured garments as well as eco-friendly fabrics and production processes. One of the designers was Lindsay Kay. In case you missed it, that's my first and middle name. So, I felt compelled to take photos of her line. Please remember, I am not a professional photographer people...

Day 4 meant it was time to leave. I had my last southern meal of Biscuits and Gravy at Bojangles. I can't wait to go back and visit. There is still so much to do in N. Carolina out of my book! Here is Otto, Ryan and Erin's dog, giving me a kiss goodbye.

Thank you Erin for letting me stay in your beautiful home and planning such a fantastic trip! I can't wait to see you and Ryan again.

Quote of trip: "I hope you like your biscuits soaked in butter."--Ryan