My husband and I are back from a whirlwind getaway in the states. Here’s a brief overview of our travelling in the USA!

Santa Monica

Santa Monica is one of my favourite destinations. We’ve been there many times when my son and his family lived there, and have our favourite spots to visit. We always enjoy a long walk down Main St. and then on to Abbott Kinney. There’s a huge selection of artisan stores, restaurants and interesting coffee shops. We really enjoyed Espresso Cielo and True Food. And you can’t beat the sunsets from the beach overlooking the pier.

Austin, Texas

I’ve been asked, “why Austin?”. I’d heard so much about it being a vibrant and interesting city, that it is! I would say it’s like the Portland of Texas. It’s so creative and has an extensive music scene (if you’ve seen The Theory of Everything part of it was shot in Austin. We too had a drink in that club!). There’s an adorable area called Rainy Street close to the downtown core. It’s several blocks of old bungalow homes that have been converted to bars & restaurants. (Lucille’s was one of my favourites). How innovative & fun!

There were many contemporary design & furnishing stores, but I must say that Five Elements was high on my list. If you are ever in Austin it’s worth a visit. I also had the pleasure of meeting up with Valerie Pierce of Elite Austin Design, an up and coming design & staging company in Austin. Due to the incredible amount of building that is going on in Austin I can imagine the Valerie is going to be very busy in the next few years.

San Antonio

You can’t go to Texas without a visit to the Alamo. Although it was very interesting, my favourite spot was the “River Walk”. It’s mile after mile of meandering walkways alongside the river, dotted with little café’s and shops – so charming! After a long & enjoyable walk we ventured out for lunch through many colourful buildings. All in all well worth the drive from Austin.

Last stop ….

San Francisco

What can I say about San Fran.? Always an enjoyable and entertaining place to visit. From the graffiti buildings to incredible restaurants, and of course getting around on the cable cars. We discovered a great new-to-us restaurant in the North Beach area called Caffe Delucchi.

Hands down the best Italian restaurant I have ever experienced. There’s always got to be a reason to take the ferry to Sausilto. The highlight of that day was the market at the Ferry Building. I had never been to the Ferry Building on a Saturday before and had no idea the market was taking place. What an impressive event. Another great find was Beldon Place. It’s more like a back lane than a street and houses numerous restaurants in the tiny hidden away enclave – all with outdoor seating. Definitely a must if you are travelling to San Francisco.

It was an amazing trip but I have to say that every time I return to Vancouver I am feel so blessed to live in such a wonderful place. There’s no place I would rather call home.

~ Patti, Owner