Winks

Photo by Lyntha Scott Eiler (from the National archives)

It's the Weekend! Woot! My mom is out on Lake Powell (above)--a reservoir on the Arizona-Utah border--where she's spending the weekend on a houseboat as a wedding photographer! I'm sad I couldn't join her for the trip, but I know she'll bring back beautiful photos that I I'll share next week. (Funny fact: the happy couple just found out that since they will be straddling the states' borders, and they will stepping over into Utah the day of their wedding, they'll need a Utah marriage license. So Yesterday they had to hurry off to get a new license!) Also, it's going to be 99 here in NorCal on Sunday. Summer won't quit.

Now for some weekend links to keep you company until next week:

• Oktoberfest is ON! For the 179th year!
• "The World's Coolest Bus Stops" by GOOD
• Dance and clean--or just dance to Hey Champ this weekend
• Don't want to clean? You'll be chillin' in your PJs all day? Then Michael Kiwanuka is your guy
• A Cozy Kitchen brings us her best fall recipes
• Make your own spa day with this DIY perfume recipe/video by L.A. in Bloom
• Ode to ice-cream: Italy opens new ice-cream museum
• Gorgeous Antelope Canyon shots and make-you-want-to-hop-on-a-plane-now photos of Bali by Hither and Thither 
• Finally, some feel-good words via A Cup of Jo

Happy weekend!

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Armchair Travel Tuesdays

Arthur's Seat                                                          

All of my favorite blogs are posting about the coziness of fall, but here in Northern California it's still over 90 degrees! I too am really looking forward to wearing a few more layers and riding my bike without looking like a wet mop by the time I arrive at my destination. To me, Scotland is one place that lives and breathes cozy. I love its dusty skies, good tea, pretending to enjoy its throat-warming (and burning) whisky, and swoon-inducing accents--à la James McAvoy. Just the thought of Edinburgh makes me want to curl up with some tartan blankets and read Alexander McCall Smith (McCall Smith is the brilliant scottish author of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency and so much more). 

View of Princes Street from Edinburgh Castle

Pretty Edinburgh doors

My Scotland-fever began a few weeks ago when I watched two British movies in a row and started to long for the striking green hills. The first film was The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down A Mountain--starring a very young, glossy-haired Hugh Grant in a Welsh town--and the other was The Decoy Bride--starring the endearing David Tennant of the Doctor Who fame. The Decoy Bride was filmed in Glasgow and on the Isle of Man (but takes place on a fictional Scottish island called Hegg). Despite what the BBC said about the movie, and even if you're not a Tennant fan, the accents and gorgeous landscape make it more than enjoyable.

View from Arthur's Seat

Another view from Arthur's Seat

I've been lucky enough to visit Scotland once. I traveled to Edinburgh two years ago with one of my best friends from college and stayed with a friend who was studying at the University there. I had a fabulous time sipping tea, eating scones, and not drinking whisky straight out of the bottle with my friend's dorm mates. I was there around Burns day and you could smell the haggis on every block, however, I wasn't feeling adventurous enough to try it or the vegetarian version.

I did however partake in "brews"--communal tea drinking breaks where people bring their own mugs and teas to share--some whiskey drinking (out of my own glass), and the usual touristy stuff. We hiked Arthur's Seat, brunched at the Elephant House--the "birthplace of Harry Potter"--and danced in a Ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee) with men in kilts. I would love to go back and see the countryside and after reading McCall Smith's 44 Scotland Street series I feel like I know the streets of Edinburgh even better now.

What places have you been itching to visit or revisit? Or where have you been visiting via your TV, books, or computer?

Want more Scotland?

• Beautiful photos of fall in Scotland (via Fergie & Fife)
• Anthropology has a great Scottish themed Pinterest board 
• Scones, Shortbread, and tea, oh my!
• Tartan blankets
• IMDb's guide to Scottish movies 
• A history of tartan and Glasgow and Edinburgh city guides from DesignSponge

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Winks (Weekend Links)

It's finally Friday! And, it's fall tomorrow.

Here's a late, but hopefully entertaining list of Weekend/end of the week links. Any plans for the first day of fall? I plan on enjoying the temperate weather and making pumpkin soup.

-PUMPKIN everything!

-Fall into autumn decorating and guide to seeing the pretty leaves in New England

-Summer sunsets

-Fancy some armchair travel and great food? My Berlin Kitchen is finally in here! And she's on tour!

-Pretty pictures and a food blogging conference in London...that would be fun!

-Need a weekend playlist? Monocle streams international music

-Fig, Hazelnut, and Ricotta Crostinis...need I say more?

-Pretty California Poems Scarf

-Two great songs for a mellow Sunday: Jessie Ware and Emiliana Torrini

Have a great weekend!

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Clear skies

Happy Tuesday!

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Hello World and Goodbye Summer

Hello!

Welcome to my first post!

In honor of the blog's central theme--California--my first dispatch is about one of the Golden State's gorgeous beaches: Stinson Beach. On Saturday I hit the beach with high hopes, good company, and my camera. Here's what you can look forward to at the beach during the summer (the beach is beautiful during the fall and winter too, but expect more fog and bring a sweater!).

The water is icy, but you can still spot a few fearless, wetsuit-clad surfers enjoying the waves. Though, given there was a great white shark sighting in 2011 I don't know if I'd ever do more than put my feet in the water.

Here's how I recommend passing the time at Stinson:

• Arrive early if you go during the summer. On weekends and particularly hot days there can be lines of cars down the mountain.

• Lie on the beach! With sunscreen, books, and coconut water (or something else beachy)--or champagne like some classy beachgoers we saw. People bring tents and what look like five-course picnics to the beach.

• Walk: there are beautifully rugged rocks at the south end of the beach where you can look at mussels and other sea creatures and pretend you're a land-bound Jacques Cousteau.

• Wade along the shore until you can't feel your feet anymore.

• Buy a towering soft-serve ice cream with colorful sprinkles from the Parkside Snack Bar like you are 6-year-old on summer break.

• Take pictures of family or friends while they nap and then threaten to put the pictures on Facebook when you get home unless they buy you more ice cream.

Where are your favorite beaches?

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