It’s 19 degrees and snowing in Keystone, Colorado, as I write this. At the same time, I’m getting “extreme cold alerts” on my phone for my home in central Mississippi!
The extreme cold here seems to be of no consequence to the skiers; the parking lot outside my condo has been steadily filling since 7 a.m.
Just last week, Hubby and I were in Laguna Beach, California, basking in 65-79 degree temps and clear skies.
Speaking of Laguna…
We decided to go a few days before a conference to see what we’ve been missing. We booked a couple of nights at beautiful Casa Laguna. It’s oh, so quaint with its meandering walkways and steep flights of terra cotta tiled stairs. There are no elevators here!
We found out from the local bookseller that the tiny rooms at Casa Laguna were once efficiency apartments, complete with partial kitchens and Murphy beds. Since then, it’s had a total makeover in Moroccan blue and white.
Laguna is walkable. There are plenty of boutiques, art galleries, gelaterias, and restaurants to visit, and we did.
Our first evening, we ate at South of Nick’s.
On Saturday morning, we caught up with a friend at Better Buzz Coffee for “the best coffee ever.” It really was!
With coffee in hand, we aimed our sandals towards the weekly farmer’s market and found the line for Yelp’s #4 USA/Canada croissant place.
There, we purchased an almond croissant and–for later–a chocolate croissant. We can testify that these folks earned that award. YUM!
In recent months, Hubby has grown more insistent that I look for art development opportunities when we travel. He found a local plein aire artist who offered lessons on the beach. I made an appointment with Lisa Rainey and met her at Shaw’s Cove at 2 pm on Saturday.
Hubby took pics and videos of us and then spent the rest of the time walking from Shaw’s Cove to the cove north of us and south of us, taking advantage of the low tide to make steps along the sandy beach. He took some gorgeous pictures!
For the conference, we moved into a suite at newly remodeled Surf and Sand. Our room on the 7th floor overlooked the ocean.
We joined a group of conference folk for breakfast at Crystal Cove, near a beach house from the 1988 movie Beaches that was the home of a character played by Bette Midler. (I never saw the movie, but my friends were impressed with it.)
Hubby and I had some time Sunday afternoon to stroll down the coastal trail, which has scenic stops every few yards. It’s no wonder that this is an artists’ colony!
While Hubby presented and attended his conference on Monday and Tuesday, I enjoyed the town of Laguna Beach.
On Wednesday, Lisa Rainey offered to take me to the Laguna Art Museum, which I thoroughly enjoyed. An exhibit on California artist Conrad Buff’s work was about to close. Lisa and I were excited to see it before it was gone.
On Wednesday afternoon, the fog moved into Laguna and socked it in. As the temps dropped, we prepared to head home from sunny SoCal.
Hubby and I have visited many places these past few years, and he says that Laguna Beach is a place to which we must return. According to him, it feels like we have “unfinished business there.”
