beverly hills whatta thrill

it's been exactly twenty three days since I made the hop, skip, and jump from boston to los angeles, and I'm still in that weird "I feel like I've been here forever" slash "it feels like it's been 5 minutes" phase. I jumped right into work the second day I arrived (#whatwasIthinking), and have been attempting to adjust to the time difference/jet lag/settling in phase ever since. I feel like Thanksgiving, with it's sleeping in/laid back vibe/good food/humbling attitude, has given me just what I needed to get my butt into gear. what an incredible opportunity for me to be here in california, with one of my best friends, in a city with so many amazing opportunities, and limitless adventures. in these twenty three days I've managed to cross quite a few things off my LA bucket list; lunch at Lemonade (order the arnold palmer with mac & cheese- so good!), visit the urban lights at the LA county museum of art (expect a post with pictures soon because it was just too pretty not to have a mini photo shoot), shopping on melrose (surprise visit from my cousin who decided to drive down from san fran for the weekend), santa monica (celebrated a very Persian thanksgiving with Nikki's family at her grandmothers by the beach. less traditional, more rice- but amazing), but there are still plenty of adventures to be had :)

xx, marissa

LA or bust

my love affair with Boston is strong, but there's something about the west coast that had always intrigued me. the laid-back vibe, incredible beaches, and gorgeous weather roughly 360 days a year might have something to do with it, but the fact that it happens to be the home to my college best friend is the kicker. since we graduated (eek- THREE years ago!), we've discussed west coast trips and something has always come up. but since she made the trek out for my birthday last october, it only seemed fair that she received the same treatment for her big 2-5 this summer. since tickets have officially been booked, i've officially given myself the green light to compile a list of all the places I've wanted to go, and will hopefully be seeing while i'm there. thanks to Emily and her fabulous LA must-see lists!

eat:

- Sprinkles Cupcakes (as a self proclaimed cupcake addict, how could I not)

- the Ivy (because it's the Ivy, duh. maybe a celeb spotting, or two!)

- Lemonade (flavored cutesy lemonade? sold.)

shop:

- VintageTShirt.com (the store for scoring the perfect vintage t)

- Rodeo Drive (because hello, every girl wants to have a Pretty Woman moment- "without the whole hooker thing")

- Melrose (to find cool one of a kind things that no one on the east coast will have)

- Venice Beach (cool sunglasses for cheap)

see:

- Urban Light at the LA County Museum of Art (been obsessed since before knew this was a real place!)

- Griffith Observatory (love space, stars, and incredible views)

- Celebrity Center International (because Scientology/cults fascinate me)

play:

- the Pacific Ocean (the beach is my favorite place in the world, I believe I'm part mermaid)

- Runyon Canyon (for cool views of the Hollywood sign)

- Vegas (not in LA, but there will be some playing while we're there)

- Disneyland (not sure we'll have time to visit the original happiest place on earth, but a girl can dream)

these are just a handful of things that I'd love to do while visiting Lala land, but if I know my tour guide, she'll have plenty of her own adventures planned. any other spots that I just have to hit while I'm there?

xx, marissa