Weekend Warriors

Last weekend, my college friends Maya and Becca came to visit from San Francisco. Hooray friends! Ryan and I picked them up from the airport on Friday night and immediately whisked them to Bon Appetito for a late dinner. I ordered my usual dish, Cappellini alla Checca, which was as delicious as ever. The real surprise of the night was the seafood gnocchi special that Maya and Becca split. It was melt-in-your-mouth heaven. We drank our fill of wine and came back home to call it a night.

On Saturday, Becca and I went on a 6 mile run. Two things were working against me on this one: a) the extreme heartburn from eating leftover spicy pasta right before the run and b) the scorching heat of the midday sun. Luckily, Becca (who I think barely broke a sweat) urged me on with her normal peppy self and we finished the run in one piece. Afterwards, the girls (Ryan had to go to LA to work) went to Whole Foods and picked up everything we needed for a picnic at the beach. We got sesame tofu, cauliflower in tahini sauce (very tasty), curry chicken salad, naan, babaganoosh, garlic green beans, and a chopped medley of tropical fruit. We spent a few hours at Del Mar beach eating, chatting, and basking in the sun. When it got a bit cooler, we came back to our complex and hung out at the jacuzzi/pool. It wasn't quite a spa but it came damn close for being free. Once Ryan got back, we got dressed up for the night and hit downtown La Jolla. Dinner ended up being at Sushi on the Rock, which had good sushi but an amazingly inefficient staff. I don't think I'd go there again (would rather go to Sushi Ota in Pacific Beach). The plan was to go dancing after dinner but after all that sun, we (meaning everyone but Becca) decided to go home instead. It should be noted that Becca is a dancing machine while Maya and I are lazy by nature and prone to activities such as napping. Once home and changed into PJs, we watched Rocket Science, which I thought was great fun, and collectively devoured massive amounts of chocolate. To our delight, we discovered Becca was a certified masseuse and she graciously gave us all foot rubs.

On Sunday, I woke our guests up at what Maya called the crack of dawn for a 10am yoga class. Afterwards, we refueled at Brockton Villa in downtown La Jolla which had a delicious Easter Brunch menu. I particularly liked the Bloody Marys and Becca's eggs benedict with lox. The rest of the afternoon was spent walking off our meal and enjoying the gorgeous weather. After we dropped Maya and Becca off at the airport, I realized how much we all needed a weekend like this: a weekend purely dedicated to relaxing and the enjoyment of your friends' company. Next up: San Francisco.