Los Angeles to Carlsbad Road Trip | Casa de Bandini Mexican Restaurant #carlsbad #mexicanfood

If you live in California there’s no shortage of weekend destinations. You can go your whole life and not hit them all.  From large cities to small towns, deserts, snow-capped mountains and miles and miles of breathtaking coastline -- the possibilities for day trips and getaways are endless. So crank up those tunes and roll down those windows and let’s gaze upon the beautiful Golden State as it rolls by while we head to The Forum in Carlsbad.

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Beach Day

It's a beautiful day, in the high 70s, so we ventured out to the beach to play in the sand, soak up some rays with the scent of salt water and had a fun summer morning.

Above the Horizon

... the sun is rising on our way to Disneyland 

Gold, Silver and Bronze

Standing at the Olympic podium, the announcer said, "And the Gold medalist and Olympic champion from United States of America....."

Autumn Foliage

Up in Whistler, some leaves have turned to enchanting fiery red which means Autumn is right around the corner.

Whistler

Home to the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, Whistler is a resort town visited by more than two million tourists every year.   It’s a great destination for skiers and mountain bikers.  We are neither.  I gave skiing a shot, in Lake Tahoe, a few years back.  Needless to say, I failed.  Mountain biking?? Husband and I have mountain bikes. We used to bring them to Santa Monica and Griffith Park. Used to... long, long time ago.  

Whistler attracts sports enthusiasts and the rest of us who love to see new places and enjoy beautiful sceneries.

Here are some snapshots...

Sea-to-Sky Highway

From Lions Gate Bridge, we winded our way up joyously on Sea-to-Sky Highway from the wind-blown sea-scented coast, passing snow-capped mountains and quaint villages, breathing the fresh breath of the ocean trees until we reach the resort town of Whistler.

Midsummer Stroll in Santa Barbara

Friday afternoon while I was juggling a thousand reports without blinking an eye, husband called to ask if I wanted to go on a weekend getaway.  Of course, of course! I knew I had to finish some work stuff over the weekend, but who cares? I can do it at the hotel when they are both asleep.

The moment the Little Guy and I got home I started searching for hotels.   Forecast for the weekend was in the three digits so I narrowed down my search to towns/cities along the coast. Unfortunately, most of them were either fully booked or require a two-day stay.

Saturday morning we decided to just drive to Santa Barbara, dubbed ‘The American Riviera.’  First stop was at Stella Mares in Montecito for brunch, then we proceeded to Old Mission Santa Barbara,  strolled at the rose garden, then hopped on the car, drove to State Street all the way to Stearns Wharf, then on to Cabrillo Blvd to US-101 S.  

The sun was setting as we drive back home.

Brunch at a French Bistro Stella Mares

Ruffled curtains, distressed woodwork, floral quilts and  decorative wrought iron.  Elegant, relaxed, rustic  and charming. We ate escargot, poulet, salade niçoise and eggs benedict.   It felt like we were transported to the countryside of France for a couple of hours.

Marine Layer

A coastal marine layer creeping over the mountain canyons forming a drape on Santa Monica Mountains... beautiful!

This snapshot was taken on a Friday morning as we drove on Los Virgenes Road which becomes Malibu Canyon Road on our way to Malibu Bluffs Park.

A Trip to the Danish Village

A spontaneous getaway up north to the beautiful Danish town of Solvang about two hours drive from Los Angeles.

We strolled around as we had in the past, ate some sausages and the traditional Danish pancake called aebleskiver, grabbed a couple bottles of wine and some cheese and drove back home -- while enjoying the gorgeous wildflowers along the way.

Ogunquit, Maine

The lobster roll I had for lunch inspired me to post the snapshots we took during our trip to Ogunquit a few years back.

As I had mentioned in my previous blog, this place is one of my favorite.  The rocky shores, the quaint boutiques and galleries, the restaurants serving the most delicious lobsters, the charming houses by the cove.... I so love Ogunquit and I will move here in a heartbeat.

On a Cloudy Day

Today is a perfect Autumn weekend. Beautiful skies with fluffy white clouds. The sort of scenery you see in landscape paintings.

q2

Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill

Another favorite celebrity chef - Iron Chef Bobby Flay.  We're here to get a taste of his Southwestern cuisine.

On the table..

• Roasted Corn Soup

• Tiger Shrimp Roasted Garlic Corn Tamale

• Spicy Chicken + Sweet Potato Hash

• Ancho Chile - Honey Glazed Salmon

• Cocktail Drinks

Cheers!

Wynn's Whimsical Atrium

At the stunning atrium of the Wynn to see the impressive 20-foot-high hot air balloon created out of more than 50,000 flowers, the animated carousel with white horses and the floral sculptured balls hang from the trees with twinkling lights.

Giada at The Cromwell

Got to meet one of our favorite chefs -- Ms Giada de Laurentiis!

The restaurant was spacious with high ceilings. We passed by the bar and lounge as the hostess walked us to the main dining room to a corner table.  

What we had...

• A bread basket filled focaccia, lemon thyme flatbread and parmesan breadsticks

• Marinated olives with herbs and citrus

• Orzo meatballs with parmesan pomodoro

• Margherita pizza

• Waldorf panzanella

• Baked pasta

 
Hands down it was a delicious brunch and service was top notch.
 

 

The Long Drive

Signed off my work laptop. Packed our stuff. Then we hit the road.  Had to beat the Friday afternoon rush hour traffic when vehicles are moving at a speed of 1 mile an hour or in worst cases not moving at all.

We took I-405 to I-5 to SR-14 on to the Mojave Dessert on a scorching triple-digit weather. Temperature display on the dashboard said, it was 103 degrees outside.  

While looking at the Joshua trees scattered on the side of the road, I wondered… how did the American Indians, the pilgrims and the pioneers crossed this dessert thousands of years ago?

From SR-14 we took I-15.  Then on we drove for hours while the Little Guy, cuddling his toy truck, was snoring in the backseat.  He woke up a few miles before the California-Nevada border.

We stopped by at the Gold Strike to stretch our legs.  Husband went inside the casino, played for about ten minutes and walked away 100 bucks richer. He smiled and said, “told ya, there’s a better chance of winning outside the Strip.”

Then on the road again… Vegas seemed as far off as ever.