For New Year’s weekend, we decided to drive to Newport Beach and visit SMS’ grandfather. We drove into town on the 30th and shared a bottle of Naidau sparkling wine with his grandfather and girlfriend and a cousin and her husband. Everyone liked it- a pinot noir sparkling wine, yum!
The next day, we went to LA. As SMS’s cousin said, “That seems a little far for a farmer’s market.” But I really wanted to go to Monsieur Marcel, a French market at the original Farmer’s Market. I follow MM on Instagram (I know, I know) and it just looked so good! Also, the drive to LA is better from Newport than San Diego so I wanted to take advantage of our location.
First, SMS saw a little coffee shop that served shots in edible sweet cups. It was cute and fun to try.
It was a foodie paradise! Even though we were a little leary of crowded spaces thanks to our new friend Omicron, I took some time in the aisles. I didn’t buy a lot since my diet started the next day (I am a total sucker/fan of New Year’s resolution motivation!). But we did buy the fixings for a great charcuterie & cheese board for that night. We also bought persimmons at a nearby fruit stand.
Afterward, we decided to do something outdoors so we went over to UCLA’s botanical garden. It’s a very manageable size and really beautiful. We walked around for a while. Then, it was lunchtime. I was a little hangry and weak (in body and spirit), so instead of walking half a mile, we drove to Westwood. We went to Northern Cafe for noodles (ok). Then I bought a matcha boba at Junbi, which was really tasty. The two very cool people (Gen Z) in front of me knew the song that was playing so I surreptitiously Shazam’d it since I had no idea what it was. After the Storm by Kali Uchis featuring Tyler the Creator & Bootsy because of course it was.
Afterward, I felt much better. Yay food! We went back to Newport. We had a really mellow night and didn’t even stay up until midnight. I wasn’t feeling super-party-ish this year. But it was still enjoyable to be with SMS and in Newport Beach.
The next morning, I walked up the beach to Vacancy Coffee, an Australian-themed coffee place. I walked back with my Americano on a beautiful, very quiet morning. SMS and I went to breakfast at the Lido Hotel, walked around a bit, stopped by Pam’s apartment, and then left. It was a really nice, mellow weekend. I love Newport Beach and mini-trips to LA! Here’s to 2022!
