Santa Monica Pier, CA

When thinking of California, the Santa Monica Pier is an image that comes to mind.  It is a beautiful pier with a stunning view of the beach.  Although it was too cold to enter the water, it was nice to watch the waves crash along the shore, as birds flew overhead in the most lovely way.
  

After visiting the Santa Monica Pier, I did learn a few things.  For one, the Pier's wood creeks and you can easily step onto a bolt and trip.  It almost happened to me.  Second, the water in September is extremely cold.  I did not see a single swimmer in the ocean.  Third, there is an amusement park there.

I would love to return to the beach during the summer.  However, the 20 minutes I spent at the Santa Monica Pier during the freezing month of September was enough to satisfy my curiosity, at least for now.

Fairmont Park's Kelly Drive, Philadelphia PA - A Runner's Heaven

It was only a few months ago when I visited Philadelphia for a couple of days to attend a wedding.  I knew I had to squeeze a run in though, so I headed to Fairmont Park. 

If you've ever seen the movie Rocky, he runs up the stairs of a musuem, as he works out.  The musuem featured in Rocky is the same area where Kelly Drive is located.  Behind the musuem, there is an area to run, bike, rollerblade, and more.  It's just a beautiful park with a lot to do.  It's nestled near a lakeside and has old homes alongside the river that attract many outdoors to view its sights or to relax in the park.

There are pieces of art work scattered throughout the park and if one was to run around the entire park's loop, it would equal approximately 8 miles.  I only ran 4 because I was completely out of breathe and tired.  It's horrible I know, but I was really out of shape up until September!  I truly had to force myself to run. 

I couldn't believe how many people were running outside!  I can understand why though because the beauty of the park made me want to return for a run! There are also bathrooms scattered throughout the park, making it conveninent for runners.   As I was running, I also saw many amazing looking statues and pieces of art work.  I ran alongside the river and saw a train pass by, while I was there too.

After finishing the run, I saw the most incredible view of the boathouses from a far.  There is a nice restaurant that is also on the edge of the water.  I have not been there yet, but I would love to try it sometime in the future!

I was more than grateful to have finished the run finally.  It sure was a work out!  Before my 4 mile run, I had barely run for several months.

The more I visit Philadelphia, the more I enjoy returning to the city.  I love the center of the city so much that I would not mind living there.  It's a college-town area rich in art, culture, and history. I can't wait to run at Fairmont Park's Kelly Drive again.

Fogo De Chao - Beverly Hills, CA

While in California, we headed towards Beverly Hills to eat at Fogo De Chao, a Brazilian steakhouse with 16 types of prepared meats. 

The restaurant is quite unique.  First, you go to the salad bar.  It's not your typical salad bar either, where you can find romaine lettuce.  There were a lot of foods that were unfamiliar to me, such as the many cheeses available.  I ate a lot of first time foods, but it was interesting to try something different.  Have you ever heard of "palms?"  I thought I was eating artichoke, but it was some other vegetable I've never even heard of.  It must be fancy food!  The food at the salad bar was incredible.

I'm just an average girl, so all the fancy food at Fogo De Chao sure was interesting.  After eating at the salad bar, it was time to indulge in meat though.  I'm not much of a meat eater, but while there I ate my money's worth.  After all, it was $60.00 per person buffet, so there's no way I was holding back.

Just getting started here ...

Before you eat, you are given a card.  One side is red, the other green. When you are ready to eat meat, you flip your card to the green side.  Out of the woodworks, men carrying meat come out of nowhere, asking you if you want to try a particular type.  They ask you if you prefer medium, medium rare, etc.  Then, you take your mini tongs and grab the piece they cut for you.  Add it to your plate and enjoy!  It can be overwhelming at first when you are swarmed, but it was hillarious.  I started to wonder if people had speaker phones on them because as soon as we flipped the card, the reaction to serve us was quick as can be.  The service was truly top-notch.
It was my birthday that night and I got a free dessert!  It was great!  I really love flan.

When I return to California, I definitely want to take my dad there.  I know he would enjoy it.

Wax Museum - Hollywood, California

While in Hollywood, I wanted to visit Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, but I had a three museum pass to go to another one instead.  There's always next time, I guess! 

At the wax museum, I wondered how similar each figure would look, but all I can say is the best one there was joker.  It gave me the creeps, for sure.  In fact, it looked so real that I thought it was someone dressed up as joker, pretending to be a wax figure.  I didn't want to get too close.

I had a good time at the museum, but I won't lie.  Not all the figures resembled celebrities.  There were some wax figures that were close, but others were definitely way off.  Megan Fox and Brad Pitt didn't look anything like their wax figures.  What do you think?

When I first entered the wax museum, there was a section that  made me nervous.  It felt like someone might pop out and scare me.  There were wax figures of some of Hollywoods most darkest characters, such as Hannibal. Is this not creepy? I walked down a dark hallway with many of these wax figures.

Another tourist caught on to my fear as I cautiously walked through the area, so he thought it would be a lot of fun to scare me.   Yes, I did scream.  The tourist and his wife laughed at me afterward.  I thought it was pretty funny too.

Aftward, I saw a ton of other wax figures from differet movie sets.  Within 10 to 15 minutes, it was over though and we headed to our next destination.

Hollywood, California

It's been a while since I've written anything.  My blog has been taking a beating since I've become a graduate student, as I've had less personal time.  However, I still have many things to write about and to share with all of you.  I first started my blog to practice my writing and it has helped me tremendously.  Thank you for your support.

Recently, I flew to Los Angeles to visit my sister.  While she was at work, I visited the L.A. area with D and L.  One of the places we visited was Hollywood.  I've always seen images of Hollywood on TV, but I wanted to see the place for myself. 

I always heard Hollywood wasn't clean and that there were a ton of bums roaming around.  However, it wasn't as bad as I had imagined.  In fact, I actually had a great time in Hollywood and things weren't as expensive as I thought they would be either.  In fact, we found $2.00 parking with validation. 

I didn't know what to expect in Hollywood, but I had a chance to see a number of interesting things.  My favorite would be the Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum, although it was a bit creepy. 

Here are some images from Hollywood during my visit:

I would like to return to L.A. to one day see a live show among many other things.  L.A. has a lot of things to offer and I can't wait to return for another visit. 

My First Philly Chicken Cheese Steak

While in Philadelphia, I had my first Philly Chicken Cheese Steak.  Although Philly Cheese steaks are popular at Gino and Pat's, my brother-in-law said there are actually better places he knows of, such as the one below. 

Look at how huge this cheese steak is!  It was about $10 for it too.  If that's not a deal, I don't know what is ...

The first time I had a Philly Cheese Steak, it was either from Pat or Gino's ... I can't remember.  All I know is I took a bite out of the sandwhich to see what it tasted like because I was so full from eating at a buffet earlier in the day.  There were a lot of people outside, eating Philly Cheek Steaks there from what I remember, so it must be pretty good!  What I didn't know, however, was that Pat and Gino are rivals.

"The Sweetest Place on Earth" - Hershey, PA

While Philadelphia may be nice, there's nothing like the countryside.  I love a lot of places, but Hershey is one of those towns I would love to live in.  I felt like I was in "The Truman Show" the first time I visited Hershey because it felt so peaceful and perfect there. 

I absolutely love main street too.  There are hershey kiss street lights and you can smell chocolate in the air!

A snapshot of Hershey Park from a hil

Too beautiful

Hershey Kiss street lights!

Who wouldn't want to live in such an amazing house?

Chocolate Avenue

From what I hear, a lot of famous people stay at the Hershey Hotel.  I wonder how much a night costs because it looked amazing from the outside.

The one thing I love about Hershey is that the founder had suh a good heart.  Milton Hershey created a place for orphans and for those in single-parent homes under difficult circumstances.  There's a tear jerking documentary about the children who have been given an opportunity for a better life here. 

Hershey is an incredible place to live.  My husband is sooo lucky he had the chance to live here.   It's the perfect little town to enjoy life in simplicity.

From Betsy Ross's House to the Liberty Bell - Philadelphia, PA

After touring Betsy Ross's home, we walked down the road to find the liberty bell, where I noticed a ton of interesting things.

On the way to the liberty bell, we passed the Quaker Meeting House ... Betsy Ross and other notable figures used to meet here frequently.  There's a ton of history here!

If this isn't Ben Franklin, I'm not sure who it is, but I thought it was pretty cool, so I had to snap a photo!

Wow ... Hoopskirts!

A souvenir shop

A walk down a historic street from Betsy Ross's House to the Liberty Bell only takes about 5-10 minutes.  It's not very far at all.

 Let me tell you ... this flag is humongous!  It's the biggest flag I've seen.

The Liberty Bell is now in the building before this one feautured below.  Before entering, you have to walk through a metal detector and your bag will be searched if it's bulky, as I remember.

As we walked towards the building housing the liberty bell, I noticed a woman in a fur coat.  I had to take a picture as she passed by because it's the weirdest thing to me.  Being from Hawaii, no one wears fur coats. It seems classy, yet too cruel to wear. 

A ton of info is available inside ...

There's so much history to see in Philadelphia

Finally, reaching the building with the Liberty Bell ... Inside, it's pretty crowded.

I never realized how so many international figures also stop by Philadelphia to see the Liberty Bell.

It's really busy at the Liberty Bell!  There are tons of people.  After waiting for quite sometime, I noticed people come in waves, so catch a photo before the next wave of people hits because it's not easy to squeeze a photo in unless you don't mind strangers in your pictures.

The Liberty Bell is a lot smaller than I imagined and the crack is a lot bigger than I thought.

It was a lot of fun visiting the Liberty Bell.  There really is a lot to see in Philadelphia!  If only I had more time, I'd spend days touring the city.  I'd also comment more on the liberty bell, but I didn't get a chance to really soak in much information because it was so crowded!  I did enjoy visiting the Liberty Bell though.  It's history and something to see for sure!