reLAxation

Following an amazing Cedar Point trip at the beginning of the summer, there was talk of a reunion/reenactment/rematch between some of my Michigan friends. But we had to do it bigger than Sandusky, so the only logical next step was Los Angeles.

Unfortunately my tight STEP schedule meant that I couldn't stay for the full week that most people were coming for, but I flew down on Friday afternoon. Immediately we made a trip to the famous Grove mall (as featured on shows like The Hills). Following that was a drive down to the OC where we stayed the night with some friends who live down there.

Saturday morning started off pretty rough with the news of the Michigan football game. The game starting at noon in Ann Arbor meant that it was 9am in California, so our breakfast plans were thwarted by some of the guys demanding we find a bar so we could watch the game. The Big 10 bar we found was unfortunately packed with Michigan State and OSU fans, so while the guys suffered the pain and embarrassment, I walked around Newport Beach with some of the girls. On the upside, it's been almost two years since I was in a Michigan football environment of any sort (I don't count watching the Rose Bowl by myself on my Auckland couch last year), so it was good to have that back again, even if it did end so horribly.

The only got better, though, with a trip to Hollywood to be hardcore tourists.





If you look really closely in the back of this picture, you can see the Hollywood sign.



That night we went clubbing in Hollywood and although there were no celebrity sightings, I felt pretty special when my friend's party promoter cousin got us in to a club for free and we got to use the VIP line.

As planned, we relived our Cedar Point trip on Sunday with an excursion to Six Flags Magic Mountain. Unfortunately, the California heat wave that had been frying the Bay Area was significantly worse in SoCal. Trekking around an amusement part in 100+ degree weather is not an ideal combination. However, we made the most of it by drinking gallons of water and buying the flash passes that let you bypass the long lines. The rollercoasters were amazing--dare I say that some of them topped Cedar Point? In particular, I have to say that my new favorite rollercoaster is X, a coaster with seats that spin 360 degrees as you're going along the track. Another new favorite is Tatsu, a coaster that positions you on your stomach as if you were flying flying.



Perhaps the best, and most unexpected part of the day was the discovery of a carnival game where everyone who plays gets a superhero cape. Obviously we spent the rest of the day stopping every five minutes to take awesome pictures.





By Monday all I could do was attempt to recover, and as soon as I got on the airplane I promptly passed out and woke up when I felt the wheels hit the ground at SFO.

A truly amazing weekend, to say the least. Definitely a much needed respite from teaching, Stanford, and the Bay Area. More than anything, it was just a good reminder of what it feels like to be around people I know and people I have a history with. So much of the last year and a half has been spent meeting new people and making really great new friendships, but there's nothing like remembering why I love my old friends so much.