#23: Spend a Day Exploring Laguna Beach
29 Oct 2011 Leave a Comment
I have lived in Los Angeles for going on two years now, and have told myself repeatedly that I want to go check out Laguna Beach. I have always heard amazing things about it–how it’s a stunningly beautiful, cool artist enclave. I even have family friends there that I have wanted to go visit, but for whatever reasons, it never happened. It always seemed sooo far away and I could never find a whole day or weekend to venture down to explore this magical little town…which is why I added it to my list. Two weeks after I launched the list project, I was in Laguna Beach enjoying a totally relaxing and inspiring day with my mom, wondering why on earth I hadn’t come to this place sooner.
Our day started early. We departed from my abode at 6am to catch the early bird service at Agape, which I always find to be a lovely way to start a Sunday morning. Immediately following the service, we hopped in my “baby bimmer” (named Tinkerbell) and cruised down the 405 to Laguna Beach. It was an easy drive at 8:30 on a Sunday morning and I realized that this is the time to travel in the LA area, while everyone is still asleep. We arrived at our friends’ quaint home in Laguna shortly after 9am and were greeted by a friendly army of gnomes that inhabit their garden. We spent the morning drinking tea, eating delicious bagels and chatting for several hours catching up on the many years that had passed since we last met.
Then came time to explore. We left my car parked outside the gnome house and stolled along the coast through a beautiful park overlooking the ocean, headed towards downtown. The path was strewn with an assortment of artists who were participating in a painting competition. From what I gathered, they had exactly one hour to set up with their portable easels and paint sets and create a portrait of the landscape. There was a woman briskly walking behind us blowing an air horn to notify the painters that their time was up. Then the next round began and a new group of artists set up. It was fascinating to watch such creativity in action.
As we roamed through a little artisan market, my mom and I continually whispered to each other, “we could make that,” and got inspired to do a million creative projects…none of which I have actually done yet. But it was definitely inspiring to see people actually creating such interesting and unique pieces of art.
We continued to wander through the streets of a cute little downtown area, in and out of galleries and shops. Everything was insanely over-priced. For example, a mini skirt made from a large sweater sleeve was selling for $60. But we got excited about the idea of creating such a thing from a $3 used sweater from a thrift store. Cute clothing articles from used sweaters seemed to be a theme of the day.
We stopped to have a bite for lunch at a delicious little cafe called Zinc, which was highly recommended by our local friends. It was just as excellent as they made it out to be. I had a Thai-flavored salad and my mom enjoyed a mini quiche with homemade veggie chili and a side salad. Yum!
It was wonderful to see the murals, sculptures, painted parking meters and gardens as we strolled through the town on our way back to the car. We did not have the opportunity to explore the many outdoor adventures that the area has to offer as well, so there may be a part 2 to this adventure. But for now, I definitely consider #23 on my list to be successfully completed.
