Back to the Bay

Walnut Grove

A few weeks ago my friend and I decided to take a last-minute trip to the bay. I hadn't been in over two years so I was super excited for this spontaneous trip! We ended up leaving later than planned, but had a great time on the way there. 

We took the back roads and stopped by Walnut Grove, to check out this cute little town. It's one of those towns that if you blink for a second you'll drive right on through.  There honestly wasn't much to see but the old historic buildings and houses, along with the art galleries and views of the river definitely made it a worthwhile stop. 

Pacifica, Cali

Next stop on the trip was to Pacifica, to visit my friend's grandma. On the way to her house we stopped by the beach in Pacifica, which was a first for me as I had never been to Pacifica before. After our time at the beach we got to her grandma's and had dinner. By the time dinner was done it was starting to get late so we headed to the city before it got too dark to enjoy Golden Gate Park.

 Abandoned! 

GGP is a must stop for me every time I go to the city, and although we didn't have much time to spend there, we had a blast nonetheless. I even got a chance to abandon a couple my Mac Dre Egg Carton Relief Prints right in the park, and to my surprise I actually received an email response from the finder of my art, which made it all the better! Such an awesome time! Only wish I would've gotten a chance to meet up with a Nelli, but time just wasn't on our side this trip. Hope to make it out there again soon for some more fun times! :) Thanks Sav for the awesome day! 

Cheers!

<3 Noonie

Point Reyes

Hello Folks!!!!!

My mom came to visit me this weekend and we took a drive up to Point Reyes, which neither of us had ever been to. 

It was fabulous!!!! 

Celebration | Westward Bound

Seventh Stop: CELEBRATION

My last destination on the East Coast was Tampa, Florida. One of my best friend's lives here with her family so it seemed only fitting as my final (and longest) destination spot.
As a City Planner I have spent time researching cities across this great country, big + small, urban + rural, particular + typical; so when I realized that Celebration, Florida was right outside of Tampa I decided that I just had to go!
Celebration is a Disney Designed Community, created to replicate different types of American houses as well as create a walkable community with sidewalks, water features, and small clustered shopping areas. Upon arriving in Celebration I could not overcome my excitement when I saw the little downtown strip. The 'downtown' has brick streets, a lake at the end, little shops to buy trinkets, banks, a movie theater, restaurants, and a surprising number of real estate agencies. We walked around for a little while before stopping at the corner diner for a quick lunch. The food was nothing special, but large portions for the price, and the kiddos got balloon lightsabers (how cool is that?!). After lunch we departed, but not before driving around and checking out a few more homes.

My two-cents:
From the outside Celebration seems like a typical suburb, nothing that would particularly stand out to the laymen. However, the fact that these shopping centers and walkability were worked into the community is particularly unique. While they are not my 'preferred' restaurant quality, stores, or style I do appreciate that Disney took the time to try something new + different, not to mention that the development is basically sold out which shows me that people want to live in communities with easily accessible shopping + activities. So cudos to them!

** I refrained from writing about Tampa, FL as I wrote an in depth blog about it last year.

Previous Posts:
Nelli is Moving
Baltimore
Virginia
Asheville
Greenville
Columbia
Charleston
Tybee Island

Virginia | Westward Bound

As you all know by now, I have been making my way down the East Coast and will eventually be landing in San Francisco. This means that over the next few weeks I will be posting snippets about each place I stopped at and a few of my favorite things within each.

Second Stop: VIRGINIA

As I left Baltimore I drove about 3 hours South to Charlottesville Virginia, where I was heading for the main purpose of seeing Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. Being an architecture nerd and by default a history buff I could not pass up this opportunity. I arrived in town in the early afternoon, and after being disappointed that Ace BBQ was closed on Mondays, I made up for it by grabbing quick chicken salad at Revolutionary Soup and a tea downtown before heading out to Monticello. The $25 admission fee is a bit steep, however I feel it was worth it (at least once). The ticket gets you access to everything on the property + 3 different informational tours. I partook in the 45 minute tour of the house, and afterwards wandered around on my own. If you are physically able, I recommend walking up to the house rather than taking the bus. The walk is about 10 minutes in the woods and its beautiful. On the tour you get a decent amount of relevant information on Jefferson as well as the way he lived and designed the house. Not to mention, the views both of and from the house are breathtaking.

After Charlottesville, I stopped in Roanoke to meander and grab dinner. I arrived at 6 on a Monday and was again disappointed that the restaurant I had planned was closed on Mondays (note to future travelers). However, this let me wander downtown a bit longer before choosing my eventual dining destination. Downtown Roanoke is quaint and adorable. However, it was also quite deserted this particular Monday evening. For some reason my photos ended up being of the signage, perhaps because it maintained its old town charm... They had little general store, and I picked up some old time candies for my dad, before settling on Lucky for dinner. The food was yummy and service was great. - The one thing I had to say about Roanoke is I felt more unsafe here than anywhere I've traveled, perhaps because it was simply deserted -
As for my resting spot this particular evening, I had to drive to Blacksburg, VA. When I was looking for a place to stay I found a modern home in the woods for a reasonable price, so I drove another hour south to find it. This place was a good 20 minutes off the highway, on winding roads, at night. The house itself had no address marker and was down 2 driveways off of the country road. Needless to say trying to find this at 9pm was not the most enjoyable experience but after countless U-Turns I made it, stayed the night, and in the morning I stopped by Indego coffee in Christiansberg Virginia. The girl behind the bar was a sweetheart and I sat and chatted with her for a good hour before making my way to North Carolina on my next adventure....

Past Posts:
Nelli Is Moving
Baltimore

Baltimore | Westward Bound

As you read a few days ago, Nelli is Moving, and I hope you're ready for a whole buncha-lotta photos!
Not to mention, I still need to catch you all up on Europe.... I'm going to have alot to do after I get settled.

First Stop: BALTIMORE

Many, if not all, of my stops are based on my having a friend living in a particular city.
My first stop contained one of my favorite ex-coworkers and her boyfriend. I haven't seen her in almost a year, but it feels like yesterday. She and her boyfriend were so beyond hospitable I was regretting leaving.
I arrived in the evening and after a long chat they took me to Brewer's Art for a cold beer, and also because they knew I would love the space. The building itself was very cool! It is an old house that has been converted into a restaurant and bar. The restaurant is on the main level, while the bar is in the cellar and boasts arched ceiling, brickwork, and funky art. The beers were great and we shared duck fat fries, which were superb (and I don't even like fries!). The next morning they took me to the local farmers market and we got biscuit breakfast sandwiches from Blacksauce Kitchen's stand, and WOW. I had the buttermilk biscuit with grilled peaches, arugula, and artisan cheddar cheese, the flavors worked so well together and the biscuit melted in my mouth. After that the 3 of us walked around picking up her fruits and veggies for the week, grabbed a bison beef stick, and some $1 iced coffees before we headed for a walk to the inner harbor. They showed me around the harbor, which is a combination of touristy, historic, and busy (like most of these style places). I've studied Baltimore's harbor so I was excited to see what all the hub-ub was about. It is definitely picturesque and for the most part I think the designers did a decent job merging history with the disney-fied tourist attractions. Our next stop was a wine bar in Fell's Point called V-No Wine. What I liked about this place was that they also are a wine store, so if you want to sit outside and enjoy their harbor view you can come in, purchase a bottle and they will open + serve it for you. It was also great to be able to sit outside and enjoy the wonderful weather they were having.
After our bottle of wine, we walked over to Fork & Wrench, which is her favorite restaurant in Baltimore and I can understand why. The food was superb! We shared the lemon kale salad, the chicken wings, and short ribs. None of which I would typically order, but all of which were great. The salad had just the right amount of dressing and croutons to keep the flavor profile unique, the chicken wings were just the right amount of crispy and they had this wonderful dipping sauce, and the ribs came with fingerling potatoes and a beer syrup that was to die for!
After we rolled out of dinner, we of course had to try ice cream from the place that makes fresh waffle cones, Kilwins! We shared a Baltimore Mud waffle cone, which was gigantic and more than enough for the 2 of us.
Upon returning to the apartment, we enjoyed a homemade beer on there roofdeck with a view of Baltimore, which was a lovely way to end the evening.
The next morning I was off to my next location: Charlottesville Virginia, but not before I grabbed a Cortado + a Muffin at Dooby's Coffee Shop. Not only was it delicious, but this was one of the most unique muffin's I've had in years! It was a blackberry muffin with a passion fruit glaze that added just the right amount of sweet. As an added bonus: the store sells 'day old pastries' for 50% off so I saved a few bucks and had an equally delectable pastry.

Cheers!

-Nelli

Bauhaus Archive

If I haven't mentioned it before, I work as an architect and as you may have noticed from my photos I'm a bit of an architecture junkie. So when I found out that the Bauhaus had an archive in Berlin I knew I couldn't pass that up!

I happened to be in Berlin on May 18, which was "international museum day" as well as having my student ID card (which you should never never get rid of) this got me into the exhibit for a whopping 4€ quite a steal if you ask me.

While "no photography was permitted" my rebel self snuck a few shots of my favorite pieces. 

The exhibit was broken up into 3 sections: furniture + industrial design, art, + architecture. It was fascinating to read about their philosophy + methodology on teaching art as my precious knowledge on the Bauhaus pertained to their role in shaping modern architecture.

My cohort for this exhibit continuously commenting on how the products  "looked like ikea," + while I couldn't help but agree, I had to explain to him that ikea got most of their designs from them. The Bauhaus produced simple clean designs often based on the mindset of "form follows function." Plus, good designs are copied in every sector of our modern world. 

If you happen to be in Berlin I think the Baihaus archive is a nice museum to visit. It's not the most vast collection you'll find, but it is good solid work and different from what you'll find in other cities. 

Living in NYC + traveling has allowed me the opportunity to experience many museums, so now when I travel I'm often on the hunt for an exhibit that is unique to the region. I no longer want to see Greek + Roman art. I've had my fill, studied it, find it to be beautiful but my life thrives on variety and this exhibit provided that.

Until we meet again, 

-Nelli

Goodbye Germany

I'm heading to Oslo for a layover, then its back to the states for me.
This has been an amazing 3 weeks, I've met some of the most wonderful people, eaten amazing food, spent nights laying awake, walked my ass off, and, and, and....
As I mentioned in my last post I will be writing in-depth reviews for each of my travels (like Savannah). But for now enjoy a few of the photos I've taken for Instagram + my family.

It's bittersweet, but we will meet again Madame Europa.

-Nelli

Zippin' outta Zagreb

I had high hopes for Zagreb, well for Croatia in general, and she has exceeded my desires.
My original plans had completely changed as I met people both in and out of the hostel I was staying in. I spent 2.5 days in Zagreb + 2.5 days out in the Croatian countryside.
Like with the other places I have been visiting I will write a more in-depth review in the coming weeks with photographs and recommendations.

Stay Tuned.

Off to my last stop.

-Nelli

 

Adios Andaluscia

I'm at the airport waiting to board the plane between Espania + Hrvatske (or Croatia). Spain was great but I can't wait to get to the next stop!

Cheers

-Nelli