Walked by Scandia Bakery while walking around the shops near the beach in Laguna Beach. It's a bit expensive, but most of the shops here will be, as they seem to cater towards tourists. The cakes looked really good but I decided to go with an "Almond Horn" -- a "U" shaped pastry that tasted like almond paste. It was a little bit too sweet, but not bad. There is some casual seating inside.

Well, we landed at LAX in the early afternoon. I thought that we were going to drive straight to El Centro but we didn't have to be there for a couple of days as the rest of the gang weren't going to arrive until the day after next. We picked up our hire cars and then I heard someone say we were going to Laguna Beach for the night to break up the 6 hour ish drive. I'd heard of Laguna Beach but that was about it. We stayed in a B&B which was right on the beach. After freshening up I went down to the beach for a stroll. All the surf dudes were out and some of my guys had already jumped in. I dipped my toes in but decided it still wasn't warm enough for me to get in.
After the rest we got dressed up and headed for a roof top bar in a neighbouring hotel. It was a very nice, calm atmosphere and we all tucked into the cocktail menu before going for dinner.

The jet lag started kicking in while I was eating and I think the alcohol had gone straight to my head so I called it a night at about 11pm.

My mum has been attending this since 1997. She got me hooked in 2007. I don’t know why I never joined her. i wish I did, this year we dragged my cousin and his gf to come. They are also hooked. We are already planning for next year. After entering, there is a live band In the middle of the courtyard. A handful of local artists display their work. There are also workshops on how to do printmaking, ceramics, and photography. Of course gift shops, snacks, wine bar and restaurant. I would suggest bringing binoculars. Even if you are seating in the front row, you can see the details on the costumes and makeup. DO NOT RENT IT. It is $9 unless you don’t mind paying for it. I would also bring cushions for your bum. CAMERAS ARE NOT ALLOWED during the show. You also allowed bringing a picnic basket of goodies. I would also come early. Parking is limited. The city of Laguna Beach has a wonderful free shuttle bus that drops you off at the PCH to any of the stops on Laguna cyn rd. ie. Sawdust festival….. I enjoy coming here once a year. it is a good reason to leave LA and hang out at the OC beaches. The Pageant of the Masters is held from July 6 – August 30. I would buy tickets early they are sold swiftly. The Pageant of the Masters is an annual festival held by the Festival of Arts in Laguna Beach, California. The event is known for its tableaux vivant or "living pictures" in which classical and contemporary works of art are recreated by real people who are made to look nearly identical to the originals through the clever application of costumes, makeup, headdresses, lighting, props, and backdrops. The first Festival of Arts occurred in 1932, and the first presentation of the Pageant occurred in 1993. Since then, the two events have been held each summer, apart from a four year interruption caused by World War II. History In 1932, at the first Festival of Arts, artist Lolita Perine had an idea for a living work of art. Convincing residents of Laguna Beach to dress in costume, she seated them behind an oversized frame, recreating well-known works of art.The "Spirit of the Masters Pageant" was formally started the next year by the Festival's organizers and was put on again in 1934, but in those early days was an awfully amateurish operation.In 1934, local developer Roy Ropp expressed his dissatisfaction with the poor quality of the production in blunt terms; the Festival's board responded to his frank criticism by placing him in charge of the Pageant. He renamed it the "Pageant of the Masters" and with the assistance of his wife Marie, organized a high-quality and well-received production in the summer of 1935.Building upon this initial success, the Ropps continued to refine and improve the Pageant through its 1941 production; then the Festival and Pageant were suspended for four years due to World War II. Because of increasing personal friction between the Ropps and the Festival's board, Roy Ropp came back only once after the war to direct the Pageant, in 1950. He died in 1974, but today is still remembered as the "Father of the Pageant." In 2000, an attempt by the Festival's board to move the Pageant of the Masters out of Laguna Beach was met with widespread resistance. The fiasco was eventually resolved in 2002, when the Festival signed a 40-year lease with the City of Laguna Beach and thereby reaffirmed its commitment to the community. Pageant The Pageant is held eight weeks each summer and consists of 90 minutes of "living pictures" accompanied by a professional narrator, an orchestra, and period songs by professional vocalists. It hosts more than a quarter million people each year. Like all nonprofit volunteer projects in general, the Pageant is put on by a small paid staff and several hundred volunteers. Production begins in January with auditions and casting of volunteers from all over Southern California; it takes over 60,000 volunteer hours to put on the two-month Pageant in July and August. Today, the costumes and makeup involved are very elaborate and often require large commitments of volunteer time (in terms of arriving early and staying late), so to reduce the impact on individual volunteers, the Pageant selects two full casts known as Blue and Green, which then alternate back and forth.

The favorite part of my visit to California this time, was time at Laguna beach. Much anticipated, I patiently waited as Byron planned the places he was going to take me to including wine tasting which I don’t have photographs of. I left my battery charging and carried my camera anyway, heheheheeeee!! How sad indeed.

I knew I was about to meet another wonderful TravBuddy!!!

Richard had sent me a text message letting me know that he was going to be in Laguna Beach, CA….only about 15 miles away from my home in Lake Forest, CA.  I had already been in contact with Richard….I knew he was in town and was looking forward to a meet.

Originally, I thought that I was meeting Richard in Long Beach…..but in speaking with him….he had mentioned that after driving through Laguna he was quite hooked on the location and had to stop.  Better for me.  Laguna for the most part is a way more desirable location to Long Beach.

As soon as I finished with my first flying lesson, I hurried to meet up with Richard.  Okay, I was a bit delayed….I had to stop and pick up my dry cleaning and I had been to the market earlier in the day….so had to unload my groceries.  All in all, got down to Richard about an hour later than I originally thought.

Richard was a pleasure to meet.  He was immediately ready to go and have a great time.  We took off in search of some good eats and found a Mexican restaurant “Olamendi’s” with a balcony so we could eat outside, look at the beach and enjoy the beautiful California weather.

The food and drink were good……    when we finished, we took off and walked along the coastline……yes!!! Right on the beach.  Walked and talked until we got up to the area where his hotel was located.

We stopped at his hotel. I used his internet and we were off again.  Not sure where we were going? We opted for a local lounge/restaurant/bar called Mozambique.  We had a couple drinks and I got some valuable information from Richard.  Thank you oh so much.  I think it will definitely come in quite handy and probably sooner than later.  For one reason or another we had walked into the other room of the lounge and when we were both back together…..we talked about how great that room had smelled.  We were both smelling the prawns that made us both a little hungry….so we ordered some.

I found out that Richard loves seafood.

We had a couple more drinks and then wrapped up the evening.  Richard went back to his hotel and got ready for his trip north the next day.  I headed home to finish with everything that was left undone.

this walk had been planned a few days in advance.  I met up with Hurley's Girlie (Angel (Angelbaby)) where she dropped off her car and we talked about what we were going to do.  It was a toss up between doing a walk/hike by her house or walking her favorite beach (if you know her, you know exactly where I am speaking of).  It was almost an instant decision, the beach it was!!!!

Driving south on highway 5 and south again on highway 133 (yes our "freeways" are a bit confusing) we headed down to Laguna Beach.  The 133 ends shortly passed our 405 and begins Laguna Canyon Road.  The Canyon is an amazing sight.  all the hills and mountains all green and lush.  While driving down the canyon at points it seems as if you are just driving straight into the hillside.  Finally, at the end it seems as if you are driving right into the ocean.

Now parked by the Las Brisas restaurant....oh by the way, the city of Laguna Beach has metered parking that accepts credit cards (you don't have to bring change anymore).  So we walked down the path right onto the beach and we headed south.

The beach was lightly crowded, we had ample space to walk without walking on or over bodies.  We talked and then we got down to some of the coves.  There was even a cove with a tide pool.  To be able to see sealife up close....amazing!  There were also some coves that we had to climb over to get to the other side.  So in a sense, we did some rock climbing as well.

It was an amazing day, not too hot, but hot enough to break a sweat.

After a few coves, we turned around a went back.  The whole trip about 1.5 hours.

Without TravBuddy....I would never have met Angel or had such a wonderful day.

Angel......Thank you.

(sorry. I don't have any pictures for this blog....forgot my camera)

K'ya is a seaside resaurant and bar that lies on the coast of Laguna Beach. TAnd no other restaurant celebrates this synergy better than K’ya. K’ya’s melding of cosmopolitan and coastal motifs work together to create a casual, romantic décor and thoroughly inviting place to dine—before or after an evening of theater or art, or after a day at the beach. The spirit of diversity is well-represented both in the kitchen and in the menu, which offers sensational entrées influenced by the flavors of the Pacific Rim, Europe, the Mediterranean and local trends. K’ya also offers a tantalizing small plates menu of tapas-style delights. It's a great way to sample a variety of dishes...and with this luscious, inventive cuisine, you'll want to do just that! And be sure to sample the heavenly tapas-style appetizers. Like K'ya, The Rooftop Lounge is the place to be in Laguna Beach.

So guess what I did today? Drove up to Laguna, Long, Newport, and Huntington Beach. I started off early, enjoying a seaside breakfast at K'Ya and wandered the streets for a bit, albeit without the shopping cart and socks! For me, Laguna reminds me quite a bit of Sausalito, the little island right off San Francisco. Both have a large amount of houses all packed together, crammed for a view of the gorgeous Pacific. Walking down South Coast Highway, windowshopping and actual shopping made me all happy inside!

Then I stopped in at Newport Beach to pick up some cupcakes at the famous Sprinkles bakery. Soo delicious! Don't worry I scheduled sessions with my trainer already! hahha I got a dozen for me, to be consumed over a month of course! And 10 boxes of 6 for all the people I'd be seeing along the way.

After that I popped into a few of my friends' shacks in Long Beach, just to say hello and drop off cupcakes and presents.

I finally ended the mini-road trip at Huntington Beach, where I'm spending Christmas and the next few days with an old professor's family. I'm uber lucky, even though I live on the beach in Del Mar, I don't live on a mansion. But the Crenshaw's house is exactly that! 4,000 feet, a pool, 2 jacuzzis, and a tennis court. I need to marry their son ;]

THE PHOTOS ARE WHAT I ORDERED. THE OTHER DISHES AND DESSERTS ARE IN THE LA BLOG ATTACHED TO THIS. TOO MUCH YUMMINESS :P this was a great restaurant. it was walking distance to the beach. open air or inside seating. we went there for lunch. we sat outside in the corner of the patio under an umbrella. the service was great. one thing about eating in a beach community. the food and the service is slow by nature. maybe it just living in LA. HAHAHA we ordered a variety to dishes to try. i ordered the American Kobe Beef sliders, leek-mushroom fondue, tempura onion rings. my mum ordered the Southern-fried chicken salad, baby field greens, pecans, roast corn, dried cranberries, buttermilk-ranch dressing. john ordered the Pan-seared Barramundi, “truffle frites,” Café de Paris butter, frisée-haricots verts tossed in citronnade. and ashley ordered the Vegetarian egg white tower, portobello, goat cheese, ratatouille, pimento de piquillo coulis. we all shared for an appetizer, lemon-ricotta flap jacks, blueberry ginger compote. yummy. wow the flap jacks were light and fluffy. for dessert, i ordered my fave, Warm soft-centered Valhrona chocolate cake, pistachio ice cream, rum-caramel sauce AKA volcano cake :) my god i think i about died when i took my first bite. my mum ordered Peach Melba crème brûlée, raspberry sorbet, and john and ashley ordered Classic apple cobbler, cinnamon crumble, vanilla ice cream. all was expectational, with unique flavors and beautifully presentation. my dish was delicious. the onion rings is the best, the batter was light and thin. my sliders were juicey and tender. While the cuisine at Sapphire Laguna is characterized by Chef/Owner Azmin Ghahreman's distinctive international style, its cornerstone is the freshest possible local ingredients. The evolving menu changes seasonally - based on what is freshly caught and available from small farms, nearby markets and artisan suppliers. Chef Azmin's motto has always been: "When you dine at my restaurants you are traveling through the world's markets with your palate, and you don't even need a passport." Now, Chef Azmin opens global portals to diners and shoppers who visit him at Sapphire Laguna. Sapphire Laguna also features reach-in wine vaults which house an eclectic wine collection – more than 900 bottles, emphasizing varietals from around the world. All vintages are stored in temperature-controlled units behind a rustic wall made from actual wine staves. In addition, approximately 25 wines by the glass are available. Menu samples and wine offerings can be found on Sapphire Laguna nside, Sapphire Laguna is rustic-beach-shack chic with colorful swirled glass light fixtures, dark wood beams and distressed wood flooring — nostalgic and cozy, but also extremely noisy if you're seated anywhere near the hyperactive bar scene or the open kitchen. Ah, but that patio — where the smart set wants to sit — is furnished with marigold orange umbrellas and a rectangular fire pit filled with silvery glass and dancing flames. Arrive early enough and you can watch the light fade over the Pacific framed by a Jack in the Box and a fanciful ivy-covered Tudor building. Settled at one of the slatted teak tables under the shelter of one of those cheerful umbrellas, there's only one thing to do: order potato chips. The house signature potato chips, the finest slices of potatoes, are fried to a perfect gold and strewn with sea salt and crunchy wisps of rosemary and sage. They're impossible to resist. And on each occasion that I ate here, my dining cohorts and I considered getting a second order. It makes you wonder what the Iranian-born chef and his crack kitchen team has in store for the rest of the menu. Sapphire Laguna could have been a tourist trap. After all, it is located where the Pottery Shack, a rambling complex of funky cottages, sat on the main drag sprouting an American flag and bursting with ceramics and colorful dishes in every direction. A statue of Laguna's irrepressible unofficial greeter, Eiler Larsen, a Dane with long hair and beard, stood (and still stands, newly restored) at the corner, and you can still find old postcards of the place with big Buicks pulled up in front, the better to haul away dinnerware and garden ceramics. Founded in the '30s, it closed in 2004. Three years later, Old Pottery Place encompasses a handful of upscale retail spaces, including a chocolate shop, bookstore, gallery, boutique, gourmet shop — and Sapphire Laguna. It is a serious restaurant — and that adjective applies more to the food than to the beach town exuberance of the place. Chef-owner Ghahreman is going for bright, vivid flavors and a menu that flirts with cuisines from far-flung places.

My cousin, john, his girlfriend, Ashley, mum and me, drove to Laguna Beach to have lunch. But, before that, mum wanted to pick up the bowl that Marcus made in the sawdust festival 3 weeks ago. she wanted to kill to birds with one stone.

It was a 45min drive going south. it was smooth drive. There was no traffic. We drove to Marcus' house to pick up the bowl. He lives 2 blocks from the beach.  It was a block from the saw dust festival like he said. We arrived and yes it was right off laguna canyon. The bowl is gorgeous as you can see. An one hour process to be like that, we can see all the colors in the light.  Mum just needs to buy a stand for it. She is going to place it next to the window where the sun sets. the bowl is etched signed by Marcus. Marcus bubble wrapped it and off to lunch.

marcus was the one who recommend this restaurant. he said one of the girls that work for him is a waitress there. We ate at sapphire Laguna. We hung out there for 2 hours. it was a beautiful weather. The sun was out. i love the ocean breeze. there was an art gallery that had a handful of his glasswork. we went inside before we ate.

Afterwards, we walked to brooks st beach. The was waking distance to the beach. i love it. When you go to a beach community, you see the surfers running down the street carrying their surfboard, wearing their wet suit, and bare footed. we walked down the steps to the beach. it was high tide. The waves to about 3 feet high, there was a handful of surfers in the late afternoon. There are homes on the beach. You just have to keep your distance. we did not walk on the beach. Ashley did not have the right shoes. We just enjoyed the view.

i wanted to go walk around for a bit. i did not want to stay out in the sun to long. i did not want to tan. We around down south coast hwy. many restaurants, surf shops, art galleries, and retail shops.

We walked past the b&b that my mum's stay when she goes every year to the pageant of the masters. Which is in a prime location, you are near everything.

It was about 4pm, we drove back to LA. There was a bit of traffic, it was not too bad for a Sunday. It was a good to have lunch and walk on the beach. Gosh I miss living LA.

This is only open during the "festival of arts". i would not recommend ordering the pork chops. i asked to order medium rare. then the waiter said it only comes in medium. that should have been a clue. the pork chop was so well done that you can kill somebody with it if you use it as a weapon. i ordered another dish. i ordered a plain i/2 chicken. for the price of $24. they should have at least deboned it. however, the house salad is good. my mum's dish is good too. she ordered the chicken tivoli. a breast of chicken with asparagus and mushroom sauce. for what it cost i did not want to order chicken. it was over priced for what it is. then again you are in the grounds of the "pageant of the masters". the resturant is outdoors. you are surrounded with a beautiful garden and classical live music. they serve Californian cuisine.

Zulu Cafe is a wonderul restaurant that is chef owned. This establishment serves the best swordfish around and regulars include Laguna Beach locals as well as tourists from all over the world. The restaurant is small; seating approximately 40 people. The kitchen is in the front of the restaurant and much like a sushi bar, they have seating for approximately 8 people at the bar that overlooks the kitchen. If you prefer, there is table seating. They have a pretty good wine list to accompany your meal. This place is worth checking out if you're in Orange County. Be sure to make a reservation in advance, particulary during the busy summer tourist season. If you don't care for fish and eat meat, try their meatloaf. It's the best meatloaf ever but the swordfish is king at this place. Truly exceptional.

After a nice dive, managed to be shown this restaurant. Actually got there around 10am, still in time for breakfast on a Sat. morning. The ocean breeze felt great, along w/ the view being very nice out on the patio w/ nothing in the way to observe everyone and everything out and about on the beach. The website is really cheesy and simple, and they do not show their breakfast menu, but the breakfast was good and inexpensive. I had the Eggs Oliver (Eggs benedict w/ avacado), and it came w/ potatoes and fruit. Their desserts looked very good, but I didn't get a chance to come back and purchase any. Finding parking can be a bit difficult, but well worth the trouble as there are many interesting local shops as well.

Went diving w/ my best friend & my dad @ Shaw's Cove in Laguna Beach.  I'd have to say that there is honestly nothing more relaxing than diving.  I wasn't expecting too much as I know the visibility in the Cali coastline waters isn't all that great.  Water was about 70 degrees, and pretty warm.  Had on a 4-5 suit, and was more than comfortable w/ no hood or gloves.  Had to cut the dive short on account my dad's air ran out quick.  I think it was from a leak in his second, but I guess we'll never know.  I guess we started out kind of late, and figured we'd just come back the next day, just him and I.  Another GREAT dive minus the visibility.  We saw a statue, I took a few pics which I will post upon getting the film developed.  I read reviews on the dive site, and I must agree that even though the area was a great beginner site, it was still a nice dive for someone w/ a few more dives under their belt.  Saw a statue out there "The Lady of Shaw" or was it the "Lady of Swank"? I can't remember, I hate when I run out of film, and see something cooler than the pics I took beforehand!