After my hasty return to Las Vegas, I spent one more day together with my friends and then we started packing all over again: our weekend destination would be Newport Beach, on the Pacific Coast Highway, close to Los Angeles.
On Friday morning we started our trip, 3 adults and 2 delicious children, and the car packed with toys, books for children, luggage, food for babies and many more.
First things first, the kids were hungry, so we stopped on the highway to L.A. and had lunch at one of the fast food restaurants around, a Greek one. It was quite an experience since it has been a while since I last stepped in something similar to a fast food, but I quickly found some yoghurt to taste. Everything else around was typical American, or at least I felt it that way.
The smooth sun rays of early afternoon greeted us as soon as we arrived in Newport Beach. We checked in the apartment and went out for a walk to discover the area. The ocean was so close I could see and breathe it in from the window, thus my level of excitement was already extremely high. We parked and started walking on a tiny pathway among long threads of grass, with the wind blowing pleasantly into our smiling faces, and the ocean kneading waves right before our eyes. We followed the road via the Crystal Cove Park Historic District and soon arrived at Crystal Cove. We made camp at The Beachcomber Café and simply enjoyed a normal afternoon on the beach. We ordered and commenced eating, and once I finished, I took our pretty baby girl out for a walk on the beach, for her to see and feel the water, the breeze, and the sun caressing her soft baby skin, giving her parents some time to relax a bit. As we went back to meet them, everyone in the restaurant was super excited about something, they were all standing and applauding – apparently, a whale had been sighted quite close to our location. Soon, we walked back to the car and did some night driving around the area, tracing stars on the Pacific Coast Highway…
The following morning, we got everyone dressed up really quickly and went out to eat at Nick’s in Laguna Beach. This place is famous for its typical American waffles, but as you might know by now, I am the adept of a pretty strict diet so I simply enjoyed the vegetarian dishes which were amazing anyway. And after, we simply laid in the sun with the children, on the Main Beach Park. What amazed me was that absolutely everywhere you go with kids, personnel in bars, restaurants and coffee places are extremely nice to young children, they are trained to bring them a small colouring book and some coloured crayons, and to take their food order faster. (they also have special kids’ menus which arrive long before the adults’ food comes out so that families can enjoy a great time together, without their children getting cranky).
As the afternoon fell upon us, we embarked once again and drove to Balboa Island – a small island connected to mainland by a bridge, famous for its frozen banana tradition. This tiny piece of land showed us small alleys, quaint houses, and a general peaceful setting, as if time stood still. What else we saw was a nice marina, houses on the shoreline facing boats anchored right in front of their own pier. Life seemed steady and relaxed, flowers enchanted the eyes everywhere, and the sea was quiet. Again, we drove on the coast as twilight embraced the landscape, and had some incredible sushi and Japanese traditional dishes at Kitayama.
USA was my relaxing trip this year, I slept early and woke up late, I walked a lot, I took many pictures, and I absolutely love my decision of doing so. Sometimes, we become tired of our daily activities, daily chores, even though they are mostly pleasant, sometimes you simply need a break.
On Sunday morning, we started packing to go back to Las Vegas. We took a long drive on the coast, the sun was up opening our way and guiding us towards the amazing beaches hanging around. Thus, we reached Dana Point, near the Monarch Beach. Went in the Ritz-Carlton in Laguna Niguel to grab some lunch. The views from up here are absolutely stunning, the wide beach stands still as the ocean sends out blue and white foamed waves to moisten its extremities. Colourful umbrellas seemed like tiny candy inside a golden chocolate box and people – mere small shapes carved into this fantastic landscape. Children, surfers, kites, balls, waves, parents running around, bikinis, t-shirts, a nice chaos overall, which I witnessed from above as I served my lunch. A discrete alley would take you down to the soft sand, across green trees and among delicate flowers. The Ritz had Easter decorations in its surroundings, giant eggs painted with beaches and the ocean. Also, the inside of the Ritz, luxurious of course, featured some surf boards, elegantly placed on some hallways, as a tribute to the area’s tradition and to the surfing community.
After another 4 hours’ drive we were back home in Vegas.
To me, Newport Beach felt like an oasis of silence, bonding with my friends, creating memories together, enjoying the simple moments of life, and taking things as they come and as they are, without the attempt to change them in any way.
Looking back to our trip to Newport Beach, I miss the breathtaking sunsets, I miss the thought of summer during spring (in Romania it was snowing in April), I miss the chilled mornings on the coast, and the entire family vibe, and the black tea I usually had as I looked over the ocean, thinking about life in general, and about my life, in particular. I adore my moments of introspection. My mind is structured like a library, with books, so many books, which I know by heart already, through which I browse and memories come alive, which I cherish and which no one can take away from me - they make me happy forever.