Travel & Exploring

Facing Fears in a Bathing Suit | Seven Peaks Provo

August 9, 2017

This post was sponsored by Seven Peaks Resort and BillieJo Clothing. All Opinions are my Own

Earlier this summer, I had the awesome opportunity to partner with SevenPeaks Resort and enjoy a fun day at their Provo, Utah water park with several of my blogging friends. You may have caught all of our adventures on my Insta-stories (we took over the SevenPeaks Instagram for the day and had a blast!)

I’m going to be straight up honest with you all – I had a really hard time wanting to take photos in a bathing suit because I was worried about how I would look in them. I wanted to be skinnier, I wanted my scar to be a little less noticeable, I wanted my chest to be more proportionate to my body. I was worried about what I was going to look like next to my friends who were probably going to look a lot cuter in their swimsuits. Sure, I’ve made great progress in loving my body and embracing it for what it is, but I wasn’t sure if I was ready to commit to a swimsuit shoot at a waterpark.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that this was a constant worry and anxiety in my life. How often have I limited myself and prevented myself from having vibrant life experiences because I’m too worried or self-conscious about how I look to others? How often have I said no, not because I didn’t want to do something, but because I was too scared of how I was going to look? I realized that the answer to those questions was: often. Way too often.

So, I decided to push my anxieties aside and let myself have a day at the park with some of my favorite blogging friends. And do you know what happened? I had SO much fun! We floated the lazy river, we tubed down slides and we rode waves in the wave pool. Yes, once in a while, I did worry about how I looked in a bathing suit, but it was fleeting because we were too busy dragging our tubes to the next slide.

Seven Peaks Water Park

The Ultimate Guide to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Diagon Alley

May 11, 2017

I can’t believe I’ve waited this long to continue sharing about our trip to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, but as I mentioned last week, some pretty crazy things happened in life and everything else had to take a back seat. But, I’m excited to revisit my memories from this trip and share all my tips/tricks for visiting Diagon Alley so that anyone else who is planning on going has an idea of what to expect and what to look for!

In case you missed it, you can read Part One of the Ultimate Guide to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: When to Go & Where to Stay and Part Two: Guide to Hogsmeade and get all the details for your future trip!

Welcome to Diagon Alley!

Diagon Alley was opened a few years after Hogsmeade and it’s about twice the size. It has a COMPLETELY different feel and atmosphere than Hogsmeade, which makes it even more exciting. You don’t feel like you are seeing the same things in Diagon Alley that you saw in Hogsmeade. You would actually never know that Diagon Alley was in the park if you weren’t looking for it. Nestled in between San Francisco and the Men in Black attraction is a row of brick houses, a giant archway into Kings Cross Station and a street cart with British Merchandise. If you look closely at the row of houses, you may see some movement behind a curtain…because it’s not an ordinary row of houses! It’s Number 12 Grimmauld Place and Kreacher is peaking out at all the people below!

You have to actually walk into the brick building and (with the sounds of bricks moving as you pass through an arch and turn the corner) you walk into Diagon Alley. It’s COMPLETELY hidden from the rest of the park, which makes it feel so authentic to the Harry Potter World. And, at the end of the crooked cobblestone street is Gringotts with the dragon towering over ahead and blowing fire. It literally took my breath away the first time we walked into it.

The Rides:

There is only one main ride in Diagon Alley, besides the train ride to get there if you are coming from Hogsmeade. Although I was initially disappointed about this, I was so blown away by the size and detail in Diagon Alley that it didn’t bother me at all by the end of the day.

Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts 5/5 Stars: I’m not even kidding when I say that I burst into tears half-way through this ride from sheer joy. I felt totally and completely emerged in the Harry Potter world and on a real adventure with Harry and his friends.

Like the rides in Hogsmeade, this isn’t just a ride; it’s a complete experience that starts the second you get into line. You first wind your way through the top of Gringotts, which is built to full scale with the marble pillars and perfectly detailed goblins weighing gold coins and exchanging money. Once again, the attention to detail was amazing and I had to REALLY study the goblins to make sure they were, in fact, animatronics.

Once you were through the main part of the bank, you wound your way down to the bank offices, where your photo was taken for your “visitor pass.” The offices all had names on the doors and once in a while, a light would turn on in the office and you could see the silhouette of a goblin walking around or working at his desk.

After getting through the offices, small groups were brought into a room where your adventure officially started. In front of the room was a comfortable looking office and a 3D Bill Weasley and Griphook were projected into the office, walking around and talking about having to go to the bank. They invite you along for a tour, so you move into an “elevator” to get down to the mine cars. It’s not really an elevator, but it feels SO real. The floor and sides of the wall move up and down in bumpy motions, so it feels like you are descending down a deep shaft into the depths below Gringotts. Once your elevator ride is finished, you exit into a cavern that leads you up to the mine carts that take you on the ride.

I won’t spoil the plot of the ride, but just know that your tour of the bank vaults goes wrong very quickly. It’s exciting, it’s fast-paced, and it’s a complete experience, filled with heat and water 4D effects. And, for someone who gets VERY motion sick, I rode this ride three times and barely felt woozy. It wasn’t bad at all!

The longest we ever waited in line for this ride was 20 minutes, tops. It moved really fast and there were so many parts to getting to the ride that you didn’t feel like you were waiting at all. And, because of how the line is set up, once you get to the mine carts, you basically walk right on. I seriously would have ridden this ride all day long if there wasn’t other things to see and experience and it was by far my favorite ride out of all the Harry Potter world attractions.

The Ultimate Guide to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter Orlando: Hogsmeade

November 14, 2016

Last week, I started sharing my Ultimate Guide to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter -Orlando. Dustin and I got to spend two days at Universal Studios Orlando, mainly to fulfill my dream of becoming a wizard and to celebrate my 10 Years Cancer Free anniversary. It was more magical than either one of us imagined, and we learned a lot about making the most out of our trip in the short time we were there.

If you want to read the first part of the guide (where I covered where we stayed and when we went) you can access that here.

Today, I wanted to share all the ins and outs of Hogsmeade, which is one of the two sections that makes up the Wizarding World of HP. Hogsmeade is part of Islands of Adventure and because we stayed at Cabana Bay, we got in an hour before the park opened!!

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade

Walking into Hogsmeade for the first time is an absolute dream. It looks EXACTLY like it does from the movies, down to the crooked chimneys and snow covered roofs. As you first walk under the arch, you can see the Hogwarts Express, billowing steam. There is usually a conductor standing right by it, so this makes for a great photo op. All of the employees are dressed up in Wizard’s robes and stay in character as you talk to them, referring to the muggles visiting the village for the day and making cute jokes at their peculiarities.

After you pass the Hogwarts Express, you literally walk down the cobblestone streets, past the shop windows and doors and are completely surrounded by the music from the Harry Potter soundtrack. You are completely transported! As you turn the corner at the end of the street, you are met with the sight of Hogwarts Castle, complete with the winger boars at the entrance. While the castle is clearly built to scale, the details are not overlooked and it still looks very impressive looming in the sky.

The Ultimate Guide to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (Orlando) – Part One

November 7, 2016

The Ultimate Guide to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (Universal Studios Orlando) Part One. We knew nothing about going to Florida or Universal Studios before we went on this trip, so I'm sharing all the information, tips and ticks to having an amazing trip to Harry Potter world, including a review on staying at the Cabana Bay hotel and resort. // Hey There, Chelsie

I’m a little (okay a lot) behind in sharing everything from our amazing trip to Orlando back in the beginning of September, but you know, I moved across the country and then had to get my feet on the ground in my new home state, so I’m giving myself a little bit of grace in the writing department. But, now that things are slowing down and settling into a bit of a routine, I finally can start sharing all the magic from our amazing trip to Universal Studios Orlando and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

When Dustin and I decided to leave Arizona and move to Louisiana for the summer, I told him I would go willingly with two conditions: one being that I got my own monthly budget to Sephora and the other being that he took me to Harry Potter world at the end of the summer. I was approaching my 10-year Happy-No-Cancer-To-Me anniversary and I wanted to really and truly celebrate that occasion, instead of letting the survivor’s guilt drag me down. Dustin, being the amazing husband that he is, agreed. He worked hard all summer, we saved up our money and even had to change our plans last minute because of a tropical storm, BUT! We made it and easily had the best trip of our lives.

I did a TON of reading and research when it came to planning our trip but still felt really unprepared when it came time for our trip. I’ve only ever been to Orlando once before (when I was 10) so I really had no idea what to plan for or what to prepare for. That being said, I wanted to share our trip in a bit more of a guide format in case anyone out there is looking for information like I was or if you’re planning on going to HP world in the near future!

The Ultimate Guide to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter (Orlando) – Part One

I was initially going to put everything about our trip in one post but it would easily be over 5,000 words. I have so much to share and so much to talk about that I figured I’d break it up into smaller chunks. This post will talk about how we booked our trip, where we stayed and how we planned out our trip.

6 Things To Do After You Move to a New State

September 16, 2016

This post was sponsored by Groupon, all opinions are my own!

Guys. It’s finally here. The last weekend in the Deep South before we pack up and head back West. We’re spending all day today and tomorrow packing and cleaning and head out first thing Monday morning! This summer has been so crazy, filled with a lot of ups and downs, has pushed Dustin and me to the very breaking point at times, and has made our marriage stronger by the end of it all. (More on this later)

This will be our 5th move in the last year and a half, and yes, we’re a little crazy and a little tired of it all. We’re hoping to make this move a bit of a permanent stick, so fingers crossed! Regardless, we do have moving down to a science, so today I wanted to share some of the tips and tricks I’ve learned along the way when it comes to moving to a new state! These are things I never thought to do when we did our first big move, so I’m not sure how many other people realize they have to do it, too!

6 Things to Do After you Move to a New State

Update your Banking Information

It used to give me a panic attack when I tried to order something online and, after putting my new address in the billing address section, my card was denied. Turns out there was nothing wrong with my card, I just hadn’t updating my address with my bank, so the billing information didn’t match up! Make sure you update your bank information with your credit cards, too!

Ultimate Guide to New Orleans French Quarter in One Day

August 5, 2016

If you follow me on snapchat (if you aren’t you should, it’s a hoot over there) you’ll know that a couple weekends ago, Dustin and I hopped into our car and drove down to New Orleans to spend a short weekend exploring the French Quarter. We originally didn’t think we were going to try to make a trip down there because I’m always nervous about planning trips that require a lot of walking. But after a rather rough week of work, I realized that a weekend away was exactly what we needed and that I shouldn’t let my fear get in the way of experiencing one of the liveliest cities in America. This is my second chance at a vibrant life, right?

Since we had never been down to ‘Nawlin’s before, I spent a few days reading through some blog posts I found on Pinterest to get an idea of what to see and what to do. We planned to only stay one night, and it was clear that we should spend most of our time in the French Quarter because that is where a lot of history and culture is! The French Quarter is the oldest neighborhood in New Orleans, founded in 1718, with most of the buildings being built in the 18th century. The district as a whole has been designated as a national historical landmark and there is a really fun mix of French, Spanish and African-American cultures throughout the streets of the Quarter.

What’s in my Road Trip Tote + License Plate game

March 15, 2016

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #GIVEEXTRAGETEXTRA #Target #CollectiveBias

If you follow me on snapchat (add me @cwhit145) then you might have seen a snap a couple weeks ago about another big change that’s coming up for my little family.

We’re moving. Again.

Remember that time we moved three times last year? Yeah? I sure do. And, we’re crazy people and adding another move to our resume this year. Dustin is going back to his summer sales job in Louisiana and we’ll be heading out to Layafette the first weekend of April. I’m not going to lie; I’m not very excited about this move. I love, love, love our home in Arizona and the people we’ve met here and the church we go to here. So, our plan is to come right back in September, like snowbirds! Knowing that we are going to come back makes this move a little less bitter, and with any luck, this job will help us pay off the last of our student debt. Plus, I’m excited to try real Southern food and to live five minutes away from my blogging pal, Taylor at Dear Friends.

It’s all about the bigger picture, am I right?

Since we’re about to add our fourth move to our list in the last 12 months, I wanted to share some of my road trip essentials. After moving from Idaho to California (April 2015,) California to Boston (July 2015,) and then Boston/Idaho to Arizona (September of 2015) and doing 90% of those moves by car, I feel like definitely have road tripping down to a science. So, if you are preparing for an epic road trip/move, here is everything I keep in my road trip tote that has been essential to our sanity and our safety!

Sunnies- We’ll be driving from Arizona through New Mexico and Texas and I expect to be driving through a lot of sunshine. I always have a pair of sunglasses in my road trip tote because they help protect my eyes from the bright light and prevent me from getting headaches from squinting! I love love love these cat-eyed sunnies I picked up at Target just a couple weeks ago to add to my collection; they are fashionable and have a great filter against the sun!

Headphones- Dustin and I take turns driving in 3-4 hour shifts, and while one of us is driving, the other one is trying to get rest. Since Dustin loves to listen to techno music while driving and since techno music isn’t very conducive to sleeping, I need headphones to block out his music so I can sleep!

Dentastix- Thankfully, Dustin and I were blessed with the world’s most perfect road tripping pup. Rosie handles long drives really well, as long as she has her puppy bed and her hedgehog toy in the back. Still, I always keep some Dentastix on hand (some of her favorite treats) to keep her occupied if she gets restless and to help her breath not stink. Trust me, there is nothing worse then being stuck in a car with a panty puppy who has stinky breath!

Mini Lint Roller – Another must when road tripping with a dog! Rosie tends to shed more when traveling from the stress, so we end up with dog hair everywhere. When we stop for dinner or at our hotel, the last thing we want is to drag in excess dog hair. So, I always keep our mini lint roller in my travel tote so that we can quickly get off before going into any public place.

Deodorant- I don’t know about you, but after spending 18 hours in a car, I feel pretty grody. I always, always have to have deodorant in my travel bag tote so that I can make sure that I feel as fresh and clean as possible after spending hours in the car!

Makeup Wipes- This goes hand in hand with the deodorant: my face feels SO grimy after driving for a few hours and eating fast food. Even though I don’t normally travel with makeup on, having the makeup wipes to take off any grime and refresh my skin is so important to my sanity while moving. If I don’t try to take care of the excess oils, I will break out a few days after getting to our new destination and that is NO fun!

Chapstick & Lotion- Like I said, my skin tends to freak out if I don’t take care of it while road tripping. My skin gets more oily and I break out and my lips get so chapped and my hands dry out. It might be the constant change of climates or just extra stress, but I need need need to have chapstick available at all times to prevent split lips.

5 Packing Tips for Studying Abroad

July 1, 2015

In case you missed it, I’m in the middle of the woods this week at a church camp being a counselor. I’ll be back tomorrow, but I’m SUPER excited because my littlest sister is taking over Life with Rosie today and sharing a little bit about her recent study abroad trip to England! Not only did she get to see Stonehenge, Jane Austen’s House and a broadway play, she learned a ton about traveling in different countries. Katie doesn’t have a blog (although I think she should after writing this post for me) but you can follow all of her adventures (and catch the occasional picture of Rosie, too) on her Instagram.

Hey! My name is Katie, and I am Chelsie’s youngest sister. I am now sophomore at BYU-Idaho, and I am majoring in Music Education. I feel so lucky to be a guest writer on her blog, because she is such a strong and incredible woman, and I strive to gain her qualities all the time. aw, shucks, Katie!

Recently, I had the amazing opportunity to travel abroad to England, Ireland, and Scotland for 3 weeks! BYU-Idaho has amazing programs that allow students to travel with a group from the school, while also taking a few class credits. And let me tell you, it was an adventure of a lifetime.

In a nutshell, we were able to see huge cathedrals, quant little towns, amazing landscapes and gardens, the Queen herself, some bar hopping, and lots of afternoon tea! But the one thing that I wish I were more prepared for was living out of a carry-on suitcase.

I asked people that have traveled before how they packed, and got some great tips on what to do. All together, I have a list of my top 5 packing tips for studying abroad

1.) Bring a raincoat

The weather is very unpredictable over in the United Kingdom, and we were caught in many rainstorms. Even on the sunniest of days, 60% of the time the afternoon brought some type of rain. So definitely pack something that will not only keep you dry, but will also keep you warm and shielded from the weather.

2.) Pack boots

I thought about bringing rain boots, but that would have taken up WAY too much valuable space in my little suitcase. So I brought my pair of black army boots. They kept my feet dry on rainy days, helped me on our long walks/hikes, and everything else in between.

3.) Febreeze or Footspray

I never really thought that I had smelly feet! I always had clean socks and tried to air out my shoes after long days of walking. But in a room of 10 girls, certain smells started to build and eventually took over our room. Hence the febreeze or footspray! You can’t travel with it on planes, so the easiest way to get some would be from a pound store, or convenient stores (they are everywhere). Trust me, you don’t want that smell lingering in your room.

4.) Converter

If you don’t bring a converter, you won’t be able to charge anything! Also, if you want your hair to look nice, bring a surge protector for your straighteners, blow dryers, etc. Without the protector, they will potentiallyexplode or melt because of the amount of heat and energy they produce because of the different outlets.

5.) Items you are willing to leave behind

I didn’t think that I was going to buy the amount of clothes that I did, but I couldn’t resist! So I packed things that I was okay with leaving behind. I brought cheap $4.00 shirts from Walmart, and other things that I would have donated when I got home. I left behind some shirts, a pair of pants, and my boots that were falling apart in my last hostel. It was hard to leave things behind, but bringing home souvenirs and new clothes seemed more important!

I loved every second of this trip, and I definitely learned some very valuable and useful things that I will use for the rest of my life. Adventure sure is out there, and I hope all of you find it!

Have you traveled abroad? What are your must haves or packing tips for studying abroad ?

Travel Oregon: 5 Places to Visit

June 12, 2015

Some of my closest friends from college are from Oregon and ever since my first trip to visit them back in 2009, I have been absolutely smitten by the state. While New England will always be home, Oregon has completely stolen my heart. When we moved to California, I realized we were only a few hours from the border of Oregon and since Dustin had never been to Oregon, I convinced him to travel Oregon during Memorial Day weekend so I could show him all my favorite parts of the state. I love to road trip and when there is a long weekend, I think it’s waste to not be going somewhere! There is so much to experience in this life and I want to see as much of it as I can.

One of my favorite things about Oregon is how alive the state is. Everything is SO green (none of these pictures are edited besides the one above). The people may be a little weirdy, but they are, for the most part, welcoming and kind. And Oregon is EXTREMELY dog friendly! We didn’t take Rosie with us on this trip because we were going to be driving a ton, but after seeing how many places were dog friendly, we will definitely take her next time. Dustin and I got to experience so many things in Oregon in one short weekend; places that I would recommend to anyone that they have to see if they are going to Oregon.

1. Multnomah Falls. One of the most iconic waterfalls in Oregon, this waterfall is located about 40 minutes outside of Portland in the Columbia River gorge. It has really nice paved walkways and is handicapped accessible. You can take about 30 minutes to walk around, get up to the bridge and peruse the gift shop. It’s gorgeous!

2. Oneonta Gorge. This is literally the most beautiful place I have ever seen; to the point that Dustin and I were both almost in tears at the sheer beauty of it. This is just down the road from Multnomah Falls and a bit harder to hike. BE PREPARED (we weren’t) to get wet. Wear water shoes and a bathing suit! You literally hike through the gorge in the river. Most of it is shallow, but there was one part that got up to our knees and another part that reached up to our ribs. There is about a 10-foot high log jam at the beginning of the gorge that you have to climb over, which was so scary, but Dustin helped me every step of the way (and I climbed on my butt the whole time. It’s fun to take back small things that cancer has taken away from me, like getting over a scary log jam!)

3. Ecola State Park. This is about 2 hours outside of Portland on the coast. It’s where they filmed the Goonies! You feel like you are driving through a rainforest to get to the coast, but it’s beautiful. There are two look out options; one gives you a perfect view of Haystack Rock and the other one is a beautiful rocky beach where the Goonies was filmed. You can bring a picnic lunch, watch the surfers and look for sand dollars. This is one of my favorite places to go in Oregon, because I love the way the ocean makes me feel; small, but like I count for something anyway.

4. Seaside. Seaside, Oregon is a super cute beach town right outside Astoria. It has a ton of small shops, seafood, candy stores and an arcade! We got fresh fish and chips from The Crabby Oyster and ate dinner at a delicious Irish restaurant called McKowen’s. There is a candy store that had over 100 flavors of saltwater taffy and walked along the promenade in the sunshine. You could easily spend a few days here, if you wanted!

5. Tillamook. We drove along the Oregon Coast Highway from Seaside to Tillamook and it was beautiful. At Tillamook, we spent a whole afternoon touring the cheese factory! We got to see how the cheese was made, sample a ton of different kinds, eat grilled cheese sandwiches and get Tillamook icecream cones. It was delicious and fun experience! Definitely worth the stop for the cheese and ice cream!

We had the best trip and it was so fun to watch Dustin experience Oregon for the first time. He was blown away at all of the beautiful places we got to see! We spent a day in Portland, as well, but there is so much to that city that it’s should have it’s own blog post. Oregon is so alive and it makes me feel alive being there and so grateful for a second chance at life to see it!

Have you been to Oregon? Have you seen these places? What other places have you been to? We want to go back before we move away from California!

Ten Fun Things to do in Northern California

April 13, 2015

I’m excited to have my good friend, Evi on the blog today! Dustin and I lived in the same apartment complex as Evi and her husband before we moved and while our husbands got together to video game, Evi and I would talk blog, hair products and make up while I played hide-n-go-seek with her kitty, Moo! Thanks for taking over Life with Rosie today, Evi and for celebrating our move with this post!

I’m Evi & I blog over at Eyeliner & Erasers. Recently, I’ve had my hands full with tackling life as a new mom, but I love to write about beauty, healthy living, professionalism, travel, womanhood, motherhood, and life in general! Yeah, I write about it all, but the reality is that I want to help women realize that life is about positivity and empowerment. We can all do great things and feel great in the process. For more information, check out my about page.

I love Northern California. There I said it. Yes, a Southern Californian girl loves good ol’ Nor Cal. While among Californians there is an unspoken debate over which half is better, I can honestly say that I love all of my home state. I have some major California pride, which is why I am so excited for Chelsie and Dustin to move there—even if it is just for the summer. To celebrate this fortuitous move, here are ten fun and awesome (and slightly unique) things to do in Northern California. To Chelsie, Dustin, and Rosie, I’m sorry that some of these are a couple hours from Chico. 😉

San Francisco

Ferry Building

The Ferry Building my favorite place in all of San Francisco. My sis-in-law took us there last time we were in town. It is a gold mine of great food. You should set aside an entire meal and devote it to the Ferry Building. First, grab a sandwich that features Cowgirl Creamery cheese. Last time we were there, I just got a baguette and didn’t regret it. I snacked on that sucker all day; however, I hear Cowgirl Creamery is life changing. Finish off the meal with a Miette cupcake. Trust me. You want the cupcake. No, you haven’t had enough cupcakes, and you haven’t lived till you have tried Miette.

Exploratorium

Every summer my family would go to San Francisco when my dad attended an annual conference there. The Exploratorium is still one of my favorite museums (I’ve easily been to fifty different museums—not elaborating). Sure, it is the museum where I discovered my little sister’s reflexes are faster than mine, but it holds a lot of great memories for me. It is interactive, and they feature extraordinary exhibits.

Lombard Street

There is nothing unique about this one. Lombard Street is a huge tourist attraction, but definitely something worth seeing if you are in the area. My sis-in-law, a Bay Area local, says that they may be closing it to traffic soon, but you should still be able to visit. It’s gorgeous and a lot of fun, especially if you have your own car and it is still open to traffic.

Seward Street Slides

The Seward Street Slides Park is perfect for your inner child. They are concrete slides and they are fairly large. Bring your own cardboard to slide on, wear pants that are a bit higher up (not the place for your hip huggers), and enjoy the ride. Plus, it is free. You can’t beat that.

Gilmartin’s Swing (AKA Hippie Tree)

Another free activity, this swing has one of the most incredible views of the Bay. I haven’t had the opportunity to go yet, but it is on my bucket list. You get a panoramic view of the Bay and Golden Gate Bridge at once. It’s also very peaceful. It is a bit more difficult to find, so bring your smartphone or GPS.

Monterey

Monterey Bay Aquarium

My husband insisted that I see this aquarium. I am SO glad that he did. This is one of my most favorite places in the world. The exhibits are incredible. I still think about the absolutely stunning jellyfish there. If I could sleep in the jellyfish exhibit every night, I absolutely would.

South Bay (Sunnyvale)

Mahalo Bowl Food Truck

Known for the Acai bowls, the Mahalo Bowl Food Truck is very popular. It has 4.5 stars on Yelp, which we all know is a pretty awesome accomplishment. Customers rave that the bowls are authentic and similar to the bowls you’ll find in Hawaii and Brazil. Just thinking about it makes me want to travel from Idaho to California.

Santa Cruz

Mystery Spot

This is my second stereotypical tourist attraction. The reason why this is a stereotypical attraction is because Mystery Spot is that awesome. It’s just a fun place to go. Mystery Spot is a “gravitation anomaly.” It’s debated that it is an optical illusion, but nevertheless, it’s a great photo op and located in gorgeously green Santa Cruz. Bring food. Reserve your spot online beforehand. This place sells out often.

Swanton Berry Farm (near Santa Cruz, but in Davenport)

You can make an entire day out of visiting this area. You can hike in Big Basin and then it is roughly a fifteen minute drive to Swanton Berry Farm, where you can eat your packed lunch at their picnic tables and enjoy fresh berries, jam, pies, etc. at the farm. If you’re willing to drive a bit further (25 minutes) and go into Santa Cruz, Betty’s Burgers is a fan favorite and there are a lot of other great places to eat at.

Big Sur

Elephant Seals

Elephant seals are awesome. They’re big, squishy, loud, and ever so slightly terrifying. Still, they’re cute and fun to observe. This time of year (February to March) is the prime time to see the elephant seals in Big Sur. The babies are weaning and prepping to venture out on their own, so they are more active and playful. Even if it is February or March, it is fun to see the seals in all of their lazy glory.

There you have it! I know Dustin (Chelsie’s awesome hubby) is a Northern Californian, so I’m sure he could add to this list. However, I am curious: what are some other places that you have been in Northern California and feel like need to be on this list? Comment below or on social media!

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