Death Valley

Another weekend, another road trip! This was a particularly ambitious one with 10 of us nestle kids driving 4 hours to Death Valley

Just kidding, we weren't all in one car for all 4 hours. We took 3 cars from 3 locations all to converge in Furnace Creek, which is 200 feet below sea level and was an unseasonable chilly 85 degrees. 

We spent the night camping. We had a pretty sweet set up

Two tents, a campfire pit, and all the hot dogs and smores we could eat, what more do you need?

The main purpose of our trip was obviously to explore. We saw a lot in our few hours there. From rolling hills...

To barren wastelands

To gigantic sand dunes

To natural skyscraper (when we were lost)

To an old borax mining operation from 1800s

And we even saw millions of flowers, part of a rare phenomenon called the Super Bloom. It only happens when there is enough rain. The most recent one was 2003

We also saw million and millions of stars,!like I have never seen before. A few people were luck enough to see shooting stars. We couldn't stop staring at the sky.

Overall it was a great weekend with great people! The only sad part was having to leave on Sunday. But I am sure I will return one day!

Earthquake!!!!

We had our first earthquake since I moved here! Don't worry, I am fine. It was a 4.9 and lasted about 10 seconds. Still it was very exciting!!!

Hollywood and beach

After the insanity of last weekend, it was time for a relaxed weekend. 

It's been a while since I saw my beloved Bakersfield condors so first I checked in on them

Sadly they lost 3-2. Very exciting game though.

My friend Curtis and I had a joint birthday party Friday night. I celebrated my 24th, and if anyone asks Curtis was also turning 24 (actually 32)

Saturday was a day of catching up on "adulting" like laundry, cleaning, bill paying, and other boring stuff I haven't done in abut 3 weeks.

So naturally, we had to make Sunday exciting. Though I have been in California for a year and half, I haven't done the most touristy thing ever of hiking the Hollywood sign

We weren't very ambitious so we did the easier hike of just over 2 miles. But we had a pretty good view anyway

The whole nestle crew, interns and all, were looking good. We took some artsy pics too

And some goofy ones

Even though we didn't hike far, it was very hot out. So there was only one option...beach!!!

Though we make fun of young intern Marea and her selfie stick, we don't mind being in her pictures.

We went to my favorite beach, Manhattan Beach. Also known as the birthplace of beach volleyball 

We had a little too much fun taking pictures in the sunset

Way too much fun

But that's just us being the crazy Californians we are

Birthday weekend part 3

After two days of extreme adventuring, it was time for a little break. We slept in on Monday (yay no work!) After a delicious breakfast at a cute little local place, we went to Pismo Beach. 

First stop was the monarch butterfly grove

This grove is currently home to 25,000 butterflies for just January and February. They were everywhere! It was crazy. And they are all wild and just happen to stop in these trees as they migrate

It was hard to catch a picture of them. I tried through the telescopes

Not the best picture. 

After that we spent the rest of the day doing the California thing: laying on the beach in February. The temperature? A nice 80 degrees all day

Overall, a fantastic weekend with some awesome friends. It was nearly impossible to go to work on Tuesday. This weekend is going to be very hard to surpass.

Birthday weekend part 2

I woke up on my birthday to pillows in the face and my friends wishing me a happy birthday. Once again we were up early because it was time to hit the road south

We had no schedule or plan other than go south and stop wherever we wanted. 

The only place I really wanted to stop was McWay Falls, which is the most famous spot in Big Sur

Hard to tell, but I have my birthday crown on in this picture. 

It's hard to put into words all the places we stopped along the road. So here are the pictures

Plus we saw some cool things along the way

I don't think the pictures do it justice.

But I think my favorite moment was the little secluded beach we found for the sunset. We had a bottle of champagne and just enjoyed the last moments of the day

Overall, it was a pretty unforgettable day. Even now, a few days later, I can't stop looking through all the pictures.

Birthday weekend: part 1

I know, I know. I am very behind on posting. I have so many pictures from this weekend I've had a hard time picking the best ones.

In honor of making it to another weekend, some of my friends and I spent 3 days on Big Sur National Park and driving down the Pacific Highway. To call it the best, most relaxing weekend ever would be an understandment 

The weekend started off with the 4 hour trip up to the Bay Area, which was filled with lots of country music sing a longs and joking around. Between the 4 of us we represent Michigan, Ohio, Texas and New Jersey so we have a lot of interesting conversations.

Friday evening was uneventful other then is grabbing dinner and a few drinks in Monterey. 

The next morning was when the fun began as we drove into Big Sur early in the morning. It's hard to describe how beautiful the views were

My favorite sight was of the famous Bixby Bridge

Pretty crazy. 

Being the athletic, young folks we are , we decided to go on a 16 mile round trip Andrew Molena trail to the top of a cliff overlooking the coast

We found a pretty cool spot to stop for lunch 

Not too shabby of a spot.

The hike was pretty strenuous, especially since I was still recovering from a cold. There were lots of sights to see, from cool forests on our left to the ocean views on the right. But nothing beat the view from the top where we stopped and lazed around for a very long time 

The hike back down was significantly easier. Unfortunately, we had very poor timing and missed the sunset over the water. But we had seen a lot for one day so we didn't mind

We celebrated our long day with some well deserved clam chowder on the Fisherman's wharf in Monterey. 

Baltimore and DC

Another business trip to Maryland this week!

Look at those beautiful California mountains covered in snow!

I arrived Thursday in Maryland and immediately began to freeze. It didn't help that that night I went to a hockey game to see the Capitals take on the Islanders

Friday was first production of one of my new products and for once everything went great! Easiest day of work ever.

That night my college roommate, Chelsea, came to visit me and celebrate our mutual birthdays.

We went out in Fell's Point in Baltimore and caught up over some beers. 

The next day, Mom and Dad came to visit me and also celebrate my birthday with a food tour of Baltimore. There was lots of treats to eat 

From Peruvian...

To Mediterranean....

To beer

To some fresh crab cakes (of course)

And of course we got some good views of Baltimore too

And ended the day in little Italy for an awesome cannoli

Finally on Sunday, it was back to hockey for the Capitals versus the Flyers

With my friend from college, who is a die hard Flyers fan

Sadly the flyers lost, but it was a great game!

It was a long , cold weekend but it was great! But I am very glad to be back in the 78 degree weather of california. Enjoy your snow, east coast!