photo diary: popping my los angeles cherry

No one believed me when I won "Never Have I Ever" by saying "I've never been to the West Coast," but it was true! LA has always been a magical mystery land to me, and I kinda wanted to leave it that way... or maybe it was just because I've been welfare poor my whole life. 

Thanks to a wedding [which I'll post about later], I finally had an excuse to go. 

Everything was against me... my mouth that got infected a week before forcing me to get emergency wisdom teeth surgery, my wardrobe that didn't seem good enough.... okay, that's about it. 

Finally..... it happened. And it was one of the best vacations I've ever had. I explored and hung out with friends and saw shows and ran into celebs.... and took a lot of selfies because when you travel alone, that's your only option. 

Taking selfies while not looking, as dozens of people walk by is pretty awkward... but worth it for this view of the whole city. 

Let's please talk about this house. 

Mandatory Hollywood sign picture. 

My most mandatory stop: Ellen's star. I took an Uber directly to it. No shame.

The red carpet locations really are in the middle of the streets... One day I'll be there when a lot more red is involved.

Just for fun: This is the track and field at Hollywood High.

I had time to go to one beach for a couple hours... which one do you think I picked?

Laguna, DUH.

Seaweed was everywhere and it wasn't exactly as pretty as I remember on the show, but the scenery with all the houses on the hills and then people playing basketball right in the middle of everything was pretty awesome.

Also got to make a trip to Disneyland thanks to my girl Brooke! 

Beers at Disney- surprisingly cheap and making the small world a more magical place. 

CarsLand was my favorite. It's like walking right through the movie!

In N Out cherry also popped! Luckily I remembered to Google the fun ways to order the food since the menu is the plainest of plain. Also delicious: That Nutella martini. It was the best kind of dessert for a vacation.

You may not know who this guy is, but he's a big effing deal in the radio world- the program director of KIIS in LA. [AKA Seacrest's boss] It was surreal to see the station and meet people like Sisanie and JoJo who I've emailed and studied while trying to grow my own career. It was a little terrifying to meet this here John Ivey, but he actually likes me! Whattt. 

And for my final night, I met up with some people I met while in College Station! Alora and Steve both made the "here goes nothin'" move to LA and they're on their way to extreme greatness. 

It's still a bit unbelievable to me I got to explore LA, and everything I got to do! Sometimes traveling alone is the best way to travel, even if it means selfies. I wasn't always alone, though. I have to give SO MANY THANKS to my girls Alex and Brooke who let me crash their life for the week.


Next on the to-do list: Nashville.

love,
elizabethany

PS: #1 thing I learned: if you're searching for celebs, don't look for the pretty people. Look for the ones who look a bit ratchet. There's someone famous somewhere under that bare face.

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pics and video diary: what america needs to learn from mexico

Before last week, my passport was five years old and completely empty. Basically sadness in a book. But THEN! I decided to take a trip to Cancun.

I won't bore you too many words. I'll just share these pictures from an absolutely amazing trip, and also a couple things that I think America needs to adapt from this awesome party city ASAP.

Yes, the bottom left was the view from our room. Still unbelievable.

Dolphin Discovery day! We got to swim with two dolphins for an hour! I wish I had the money to get all of our pictures [like them putting their noses on my feet and making me fly through the air like Superman]. The whole area was awesome though- Pools, sting rays, sharks, snorkeling, and oh yeah- FREE DRINKS SERVED IN THE POOL!

I asked Facebook where I should go, and everyone said Coco Bongo! This place was amazing! 5 minute Cirque du Soleil shows with dancing between. Perfect for my ADD mind.

We went to the "XPLOR" park, which had sky-high zip lines, cave rafting/swimming, and ATV's to drive through it all. It was a freaking blast, and I met a new animal friend- the yet to be named Coati! Here's a video from ON the zip line: 

One of my favorite moments: Being able to help release 209 brand new baby sea turtles into the ocean. We held them, put them by the ocean, and guided them into their new home. It was definitely an incredible, unforgettable thing. 

Now, I think the rest of the world needs to learn from America and not wear Speedos to the bars [or anywhere for that matter], but there are some things America needs to take from Cancun:

5. Legally rob people's wallets- at the flea market. Every flea market I've gone to always meant "get things for super cheap." I know how to do it, I know how to talk people down... but somehow [I blame it on the dollars-peso conversion rate being impossible to figure out in your head quickly] my bank account was raped. I paid $50 for two martini glasses. Unacceptable. You're welcome, Mexican economy.

4. We really should learn more languages. I won't lie... I've always said you should know the language of the country your traveling to instead of expecting them to cater to you, but I was beyond impressed with how well 95% of the Mexicans knew English.. and I don't know how I would have survived if they didn't.

3. Liquor needs to be sold in Walmart. We bought a bottle of Captain for under $10 there! And Skyy was about $11! Um- BARGAIN LIQUOR SHOPPING?! Count me in!

2. We need to learn to dance. They had a dance battle on a boat one afternoon, with one person representing a different country. Go figure- America was the drunk a-hole with no rhythm.

1. Drinks should be served, for free, before entering the club. We went to Coco Bongo [which is the coolest nightclub I've ever been to, BY FAR! They have quick shows based on everything pop culture with dance breaks inbetween... perfect for the ADD mind!], and before we even got inside the club, I was handed two shots of tequila and a vodka/cranberry- FREE OF CHARGE.


And that's a little about my vacation! I'm also pretty sure that something is pretty obvious/evident at this point. You're right. ;) [If ya don't get it, ya don't get it...]

love,
elizabethany

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