Author Archives: Kiera Reilly

About Kiera Reilly

Traveler, dog lover, F1 & Olympics fan in search of amazing coffee, gin and whisk(e)y. Social Media manager; group travel planner; alumni relations professional. Redondo Beach, CA

Cocktails for Fall and Winter

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The winter chill in Southern California has subsided for a bit, but cooler temperatures and rain are forecast for this weekend. I often look to the internet to find new cocktail recipes made with the spirits that suit the season. Here are the recipes I discovered and am adding to my cocktails repertoire.

Hot Toddy

While suffering with a miserable cold in December, I searched for Hot Toddy recipes hoping that this hot drink might provide some relief. This recipe posted on Liquor.com by top bartender and mixologist Jacques Bezuidenhout features a video on how to make it. I liked the lemon twist with cloves as it gave the drink some cheerful color.

INGREDIENTS:

PREPARATION:
Fill a mug with boiling water and let stand for a minute or two to warm. Meanwhile, stick the cloves into the lemon twist and set aside. Empty the mug and fill about halfway with fresh boiling water. Add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Add the prepared lemon twist and stir. Add the lemon juice and whiskey, and stir again.

Irish Cider

Over Thanksgiving, I was looking for a drink that included whiskey. As I happened to have some apple cider on hand, this Irish cider recipe fit the bill, especially since Jameson Irish Whiskey is one of the key ingredients! It was created by Bill Ward at the Dream Downtown hotel’s Marble Lane bar and restaurant in New York City. The recipe was posted over two years ago in this NY Daily News article on Irish whiskey cocktails for St. Patrick’s Day by Gina Pace; it looks like Marble Lane has since closed.

Cocktail cider

Irish Cider – using seasonal snowman glasses!

 

Irish Cider

Created by Bill Ward at Dream Downtown’s Marble Lane

  • 1½ oz. Jameson Irish Whiskey
  • ¾ oz. Blackwell’s Rum
  • ½ oz. apple cider
  • ½ oz. lemon juice
  • ½ oz. agave syrup
  • Ground cinnamon

Combine the cider, lemon juice and agave and simmer until it’s reduced by about one-quarter to one-third. Let cool. Put all ingredients into an iced cocktail shaker and shake vigorously. Strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass and top with ground cinnamon.

Blackberry Fizz

Shortly before New Year’s Eve, I read Spencer Spellman‘s post on 7 Easy Champagne Cocktail Recipes. Spencer is frequently posting drool-worthy cocktail photos, and this Blackberry Fizz recipe intrigued me since it included one of my new favorite spirits, gin!

Instead of champagne, I made our fizz’s with Cava and served them on New Year’s Eve while we were enjoying a quiet evening at home with the dogs. I really enjoyed the mix of the gin and cava, and with the blackberry and lime mixed in, I think this would be a perfect celebratory drink for the warmer months as well.

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Spencer Spellman’s Blackberry Fizz – the blackberries and lime garnish make for a colorful, festive cocktail.

Spencer Spellman’s Blackberry Fizz

Quoting Spencer:

This may just be my favorite champagne cocktail on the list. Alright, so perhaps that’s because it’s one that I came up with. But it’s really so delicious, refreshing, and fruity. Additionally, it’d make a great summer champagne cocktail for making in batches. Because everyone likes champagne, right? You’ll want to first muddle the blackberries in a cocktail shaker good enough to break up the berries and release the juice. Next you’ll add the rest of the ingredients (except for the champagne) with ice to the shaker and shake. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice and top with champagne.

  • 2 oz. gin
  • .75 oz. agave
  • .75. oz. lime juice
  • Several blackberries, muddled
  • Champagne
Cocktail blackberry ingredients

Making the Blackberry Fizz with Bombay Sapphire and Cava.

 

Candy Cane-Kahlua Hot Chocolate

Believe it or not, winters in Los Angeles can be chilly. When the temperature dips into the 40s and we turn on the heat, it is a perfect time to make hot chocolate. I wanted to make something a bit more involved than regular hot chocolate, and since we had not had any Kahlua in a while, I searched for hot chocolate and Kahlua recipes and found this by Natalie Migliarini on Delish.com.

I love the addition of the candy cane – perfect for all the candy canes that you receive for Christmas and never end up eating. I served the hot chocolate in my Christmas markets mugs from the Christmas market in Budapest and the Schloss Schönbrunn Christmas market in Vienna. It pairs perfectly with my home made sugar cookies for a decadent dessert.

Cocktail hot chocolate

Candy cane-Kahlua Hot chocolate served in mugs from European Christmas markets.

Candy Cane-Kahlua Hot Chocolate

Ingredients

  • 1/2 c. whole milk
  • 1/2 c. heavy cream
  • 1 candy cane
  • 3 tbsp. sipping chocolate
  • 1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 oz. Kahlua
  • whipped cream
  • candy canes

Directions

  1. In a saucepan over low heat, warm whole milk and heavy cream.
  2. Add 1 candy cane and stir until melted.
  3. Stir in sipping chocolate and vanilla extract.
  4. Remove from heat, stir in Kahlua, and pour into glass.
  5. Garnish with whipped cream and candy canes.

Do you have a favorite winter cocktail? Share the recipe or a link in the comments below.

Flashback: Penn Alumni Explore the World

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My Uncle Terry from Colorado visited our family in Southern California after Christmas this year. During his visit, he asked if I chronicled my many journeys around the world. While I keep track of places that I’ve visited, I have not yet put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), to capture most of the truly memorable moments of my journeys. Starting this blog was my attempt to do just that.

Today I look back on the first blog post I wrote for the Penn Alumni blog, Frankly Penn. It was about the Baltic Cruise I took in 2005 – it is hard to believe that it was ten years ago. I shared one of my most memorable travel experiences – visiting a Russian Orthodox church service with my friend Christel. Reading about it again transports me to that church, and the sights, the sounds and the smells we experienced. It reminds me of why I travel, and why I continue to want to explore more of our amazing world and learn about the people that live here. I hope you enjoy it!

This post was originally published on the Frankly Penn blog on April 22, 2011.

Penn Alumni Explore the World

As the Director of Penn Alumni Travel, I have been fortunate to see much of the world, traveling with fellow Penn Alumni and friends on Penn Alumni Travel programs. While the sites we see are often iconic, sometimes, it’s the stolen moments of unexpected serendipity that stay in your memory and make each trip special.

In the summer of 2005, we were on the Historic Countries of the Baltic cruise. The itinerary included stops in Gdansk, Poland, several former Soviet republics – Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, as well as St. Petersburg, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Stockholm. It was a wonderful trip – a small ship with 100 passengers from various institutions around the U.S., including Penn. Everyone seemed to get along well, no matter your alma mater. I still remember climbing to the top deck late one night (with the infamous white nights of summer, dusk started around 11 p.m.) to find a few of the Penn travelers sharing Cuban cigars with alumni from LSU.

St. Petersburg

I had never been to Russia before, so arriving in St. Petersburg was fascinating. It was hot, and humid, and the city just shimmered. Since our ship was small, we were able to dock relatively close to the central part of the city. As we took a bus to tour the major sites, there were young brides and grooms everywhere, taking photos against the city’s landmarks.

Bride and Groom

Everyone seemed to smile when we saw another pair of newlyweds.

The Happy Couple

We toured the Peter and Paul Fortress, visiting the tombs of the czar and his family. We had an early morning tour of the Hermitage– the architectural details of the building itself were amazing, not to mention the vast art collection.

The Hermitage

We traveled outside the city, visting Petrodvorets, (Peterhof Palace), which lived up to its reputation as being the “Russian Versailles”, and Catherine’s palace, Tsarskoe Selo,, walking through the recently restored Amber Room (no photos allowed). En route, it was fascinating to see the Soviet architecture – such beautiful palaces and museums from long ago contrasted with the blocky modern buildings of the former USSR.

Peterhof

Catherine Palace

All these sites were amazing to see, but it was something I experienced not on the itinerary that remains lodged in my memory. The cruise director on our ship had lived in Russia for several years, and she shared tips about St. Petersburg with the passengers – where to have lunch, what to do if encountering gypsies, and suggestions for places to visit, including a Russian Orthodox church service. Intrigued, I decided to visit the church not far from where our ship docked. Christel Pailet, Director of UCLA’s travel program, decided to join me.  The cruise director informed us that orthodox services go on for hours, so she said we could stop in, stay as long as we liked and leave on our own timeline. She also recommended that we cover our heads and shoulders. We brought along a shawl and set out – about a 10 minute walk from our ship.

This is the church where Christel and I attended a service as seen from our ship

From the outside, Russian Orthodox churches are beautiful and massive. Inside, this church seemed small and intimate. It was dark, with only minimal light streaming through small windows.  There were maybe 15-20 people inside. There were no pews so everyone stood. There was chanting coming from above, from monks or priests we couldn’t see. It seemed like the chants were coming from the heavens. Every once in a while, the worshippers would bend over and touch the floor with their hands. Christel and I stood in wonder, watching, listening, not understanding anything being said or chanted but transfixed by the spirituality of the service.

Then, we noticed what we assumed to be a priest. He was standing slightly off center on the ground level. He was speaking in hushed tones with a woman who was clearly upset. Tears were streaming down her face. He seemed to be comforting her, or maybe it was a confessional, we could only guess. Then, he would stop speaking to her, say some words aloud for the service, and resume speaking with her. After about twenty minutes we left, fascinated by what we had witnessed. We wondered why this woman was so upset and what the priest was telling her for comfort. Other worshippers came and went while we stood and watched. When I saw Christel recently, she said it was one of her most memorable travel experiences. I couldn’t agree more.

This year, Penn Alumni Travel is visiting the Baltics again. I look forward to visiting these countries as I join the Penn travelers on the May 31 departure. Two famous historical figures will come aboard the ship for lectures – Lech Walesa and Mikhail Gorbachev. Plans are underway to repeat this trip next year, and as these departures sold out very quickly, you should make your reservations early!

Kiera Reilly, C’93, Director, Penn Alumni Travel, in front of St. Petersburg’s Church of the Spilled Blood

View more photos from Penn Alumni travel here.

Originally published on the Frankly Penn blog on April 22, 2011.

Reflecting on the “Best” of Instagram 2015

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Here are my best nine Instagram posts from 2015:

Best Nine

A week or two ago, I noticed people posting a photo collage on Instagram with the hashtag #2015bestnine. I googled and soon learned how to discover your best nine photographs you shared on Instagram that garnered the most likes.

It is quite simple – visit http://2015bestnine.com/, type in your Instagram user name, and the site searches your posts and compiles the top photos in a collage you can post to Instagram, share to Twitter or save as an image. The site also compiles your total number of likes (5,332 for me) and the total posts you shared in 2015 (299 – almost one per day!).

I was surprised to see my results – all the photos are from right here in southern California – and it was fun to remember the story behind each one.

My most liked photo (in the top left of the collage) is from a calligraphy workshop this fall in downtown LA at the Design Love Fest studio. I have followed Lauren Essl’s feed, @BlueEyeBrownEye, for a while, and I was excited to be able to participate in one of her workshops. I took the introduction to calligraphy class, and I learned enough to address all of my Christmas cards this year with calligraphy!

From Lauren Essl's Blue Eye Brown Eye introduction to calligraphy workshop at Design Love Fest in Downtown LA

From Lauren Essl’s Blue Eye Brown Eye introduction to calligraphy workshop at Design Love Fest in Downtown LA

The middle column of my photos is from right here at home – almost daily walks along the Strand in Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach and Manhattan Beach are always Instagram worthy. The middle photo is with a Paradise Bowl – delicious acai and pitaya bowls that are perfect after a long walk along the beach! Sometimes it feels redundant to keep posting photos of the beach at sunset, but every time I am there, the scene is so beautiful I have to take another picture!

Paradise Bowls are the best after a long walk/run on the Strand.
Another beautiful sunset in Manhattan Beach

Below the calligraphy post in the first column are coffee photos, both from Two Guns Espresso in Manhattan Beach (they also serve coffee at the Manhattan Beach Yacht Club at the end of the Manhattan Beach pier). Nothing makes me happier than a delicious espresso, and Two Guns makes the best Flat Whites around! These photos make me miss visiting Caffe Luxxe in Brentwood – my office used to be close to their San Vicente location, and I enjoyed stopping in for a cappuccino (and sharing it on Instagram) before going to the office (n.b. they roast the beans for Two Guns).

The column on the right is food – the top is a chicken sandwich from the Free Range LA food truck. They were in front of Stumptown Coffee in downtown LA, right around the corner from the Design Love Fest studio where I took my calligraphy class! Since Free Range LA says they are #ChickenGawds, I had to try one of their sandwiches. I had the “classic” but they allowed me to customize it by adding some of the “original” slaw. Mmm, mmm, good!

The original sandwich from the Free Range food truck. It was huge - I didn't have dinner that night.

The classic sandwich from the Free Range food truck. It was huge – and oh so good – I didn’t have dinner that night.

The bottom two photos are from a blogger gathering at Gloria’s Restaurant and Bar in Huntington Park. Thanks to Chef Turok (Brian Menendez) for organizing the event and inviting me. The food was delicious, the margaritas yummy (they created three different ones for us to sample), and the mariachi music was fantastic!

Enjoying the food and music at Gloria’s!
The mango chamoy margarita at Gloria’s

2015 was so much more than these nine photos, but it is fun to share things daily and then see what resonates the most. It will be interesting to see what I post this year, and which ones become favorites. Have you discovered your #2015bestnine? Let me know in the comments below!

Happy New Year! Here’s to a great 2016!

Flashback: Woof! Woof! Happy Holidays from our Furry Friends

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This post from three years ago shares photos of our four-legged friends dressed to celebrate the holidays. The last time I took Koa and Lau Lau to see Santa was in 2012, and I decided they needed an updated photo this year. As usual, Lau Lau is looking a bit shell-shocked.

Koa LL Santa 2015

The post was originally posted on the Frankly Penn blog on December 28, 2012.

Woof! Woof! Happy Holidays from our Furry Friends

By Kiera Reilly, C’93  @KieraReilly

Here in Penn’s Western Regional Office, we love our pets . Like any proud parents, we often share photos of our “kids.” Our furry friends obliged us and allowed us to dress them for the season.

Elizabeth Fields, Director of Penn’s Western Regional office, said her dog Leinie wasn’t too excited about this Hanukkah sweater, but she consented to wear it long enough to take her picture.

Felicity Woods, C’93, a volunteer with the Penn Club of Northern California’s Sacramento chapter, shared photos of her two dogs Jack and Minimus in their holiday finery.

Jack lives in California, so of course he has bling-y shades to ring in the New Year:

Jack’s cousin Minimus is looking festive in his red bow tie. He received a dollar for his dancing abilities!

Minimus looking suave in his red tie.

Minimus looks good in both red and green, as evidenced by this festive green collar he’s wearing here:

Jack and Minimus’ cousin Payton likes wearing a tiara.

Here's a male who likes a tiara!

Lisa Cohen, C’85, PAR’15, co-president of the Southern California Regional Advisory Board, shared her family pet photos.

In the Cohen household, Penn is prominent – they named their dog Penni!

Penni Cohen looks sweet in this purple scarf.

The Cohen bunnies, Quaker and Ben, were excited to celebrate Hanukkah.

Quaker and Ben Cohen celebrating Hanukkah in Los Angeles.

Lisa tells me that Ben (the brown rabbit) is a little chunky, just like his namesake Ben Franklin. And, “Quaker likes the limelight so much (like the real Quaker mascot!!) we could barely get her off the couch and back in the rabbit carrier.”

Finally, here are my “angels,” as we affectionately call them when they’re running around the house barking at the possum in our yard. Standing in line at the mall with a bunch of other dogs around was  a bit overstimulating, so I’m amazed they were able to sit still for this photo with Santa. Koa and Lau Lau are trying to be on their best behavior so that they’ll be on Santa’s Nice list.

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday and a very happy New Year from

Leinie, Jack, Minimus, Penni, Ben, Quaker, Koa and Lau Lau!

Woof! Woof!

Travel Treasures: Budapest’s Christmas Markets

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Last December, I made a solo trip to Europe to see the holiday lights, sip mulled wine and shop the fabulous Christmas markets. It was my first time visiting Budapest, and while I had heard wonderful things about the city, I did not know much about the Christmas markets there and what to expect.

What I discovered was a very pleasant surprise – festive markets with mulled wine and delicious food, live performances, and many stalls with local handmade ornaments, crafts, ceramics and more.

My favorite market in Budapest was the one in Vörösmarty Square. It was large, always filled with people, and featured traditional wooden stalls.

I discovered this booth with felt ornaments, small pouches and pillow covers, and I was in love.

TT Budapest pillow stall 2

These felt ornaments and bags were so pretty. I purchased several of these white and gold star ornaments (on the left in the photo below) and some of the angel ornaments as gifts for my family. I would love to decorate a Christmas tree in red and white ornaments only.

TT Budapest pillow stall ornaments

These felt pillow covers captivated me. It took me a long time to find the right ones to bring home – and what great souvenirs too – they are fabric (and lightweight), they fold, and they won’t break in your luggage!

TT Budapest pillows

The pillows are a great way to decorate for Christmas.

TT Budapest pillows couch

Have you been to the Christmas markets in Budapest? What was your favorite find?

 

Visiting the LA Auto Show

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The LA Auto Show at the Los Angeles Convention Center (South Hall entrance).

Last weekend, Dave and I visited the LA Auto Show on Saturday. Through Dave’s membership in the Audi Club, we were able to enter the show an hour before it opened to the general public. What a treat to see and take photos of the different car manufacturers displays without crowds of people!

The LA Auto Show is at the Los Angeles Convention Center and is open through Sunday, November 29th, and show hours are 9:00 am – 10:00 pm daily. There are cars to suit everyone’s interest, an aftermarket hall, and opportunities to test drive some vehicles too.

Here are some photos of the cool cars we saw.

We first explored the Audi booth, or rather, we made a beeline to see the new Audi R8 in the Audi booth.

I event sat inside for a little bit – there’s a surprising amount of head room (not an issue for me, but for those with taller builds, I imagine it would be quite comfortable).

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Here are the displays.

BMW:

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Mazda:

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Cadillac:

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Acura:

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The new Acura NSX was on display with a screen above showing the overhead view.

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When I walked by the Alfa Romeo area, most of the cars were still covered, but this 1968 33 Stradale was unwrapped and gorgeous.

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The 1965 TZ2 was also uncovered and looking fantastic.

Alfa Romeo 1965 TZ2

Alfa Romeo 1965 TZ2

The Maseratis were also still under wraps but slowly emerging. I love the look of the Maserati front grill, and their trident logo is iconic.

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We briefly ran through the Mercedes booth, stopping to take photos of this.

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And the SLS

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We left the South Hall and rushed over to West Hall, hoping to see the Ford booth before the show opened. We wanted to be able to ogle the new Ford GT before the crowds came. It did not disappoint in person!

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Both the race car and the street car were on rotating stages so you could see the car from every angle.

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It was really interesting to see the back and look under the car to see how the air flows beneath it. We can’t wait to see this race!

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Although I am not crazy about the yellow color on display, the lines of the street model of the Ford GT are beautiful.

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After staring at the two Ford GTs for a long time, we looked at some of the other Fords on display, like this Mustang GT 350r which Dave declared is, “my next car.”

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We went outside to test drive the Fords. Ford had an Explorer, Edge, CMax, Focus and Mustang to test, but in order to test the Mustang, you had to drive another car first. Dave tried the Explorer and I drove the Edge. Both were nice comfortable rides and handled well on the short drive around Los Angeles’ city streets.

We both drove the Mustang – it has eco boost which makes it not as front heavy as usual. There was also a paddle shift option on the car, which I tried for a small section but it didn’t have the same feel as the manual transmission I am used too, so the Ford representative switched it off.

After our test drives, we went back into the hall to see the Fiat booth – I love the Fiat 500s, and was also interested to see new Fiat Spiders on display.

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We took a quick glance at the Dodge Viper.

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We left the south hall and went to see the Porsche display, which was in its own contained area in Petree Hall. Not surprisingly, it was very crowded.

The 911.

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It was nice to see the race 919 Hybrid FIA World Endurance Champion car on display.

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While I was adding money to our parking meter Dave visited the Galpin Hall and saw the Aston Martin from Spectre…and didn’t take any pictures of it, or tell me about it. I love the beauty of Aston Martins and am bummed I didn’t see any.

In the After Market Hall, there were some modified Lamborghinis and Corvettes on display.

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Of course I spotted some original Abarths – modified by Madness Autoworks in Signal Hill (Long Beach). They are so tiny compared to the modern versions!

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This is only some of what is on display at the show. There are literally hundreds of cars to see, to sit in, and to test drive! It is fun to see the new cars the manufacturers are showing, and also to compare different makes and models of cars if you are in the market for a new one.

It is the last weekend of the LA Auto Show, so head downtown and check it out!

 

Manhattan Beach Pier Lighting

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Last week, Manhattan Beach hosted their 21st Holiday Open House and 26th Annual Pier Lighting. It was a relatively warm night, so I threw on a sweatshirt, put the boys in the car and drove down to join in the festivities.

Local streets were closed in downtown Manhattan Beach, and as we parked and started walking, we saw many other people headed downtown as well.

Most of the stores were open until 9:00pm and were decorated for the holidays. Many had snacks, treats and drinks inside, but since the dogs were with me, we were only able to window-shop.

It was a festive atmosphere as the streets were filled with adults and children of all ages enjoying the shops, carolers, and music playing outside.

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York Town on Manhattan Avenue. I liked their wood houses and white light display.

The window display for the Rolling Hills Flower Mart featured a ‘living’ flower dress, but all these children cared about was the snow that was falling outside.

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It’s snowing!

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Snow dance.

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Carolers wandered the streets singing holiday songs. Here is a group in front of Manhattan Beach Creamery.

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I reached the intersection of Manhattan Avenue and Manhattan Beach Boulevard and saw the traditional “Season’s Greetings” sign across Manhattan Beach Blvd., but the tree and the pier was yet to be lit.

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Looking west toward the pier – waiting for the tree lighting.

 

And then, promptly at 7:00 pm the lighting began – it took less than a few minutes, but you can see there was a large crowd to watch.

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Looking west and there are no lights yet…

Then the trees lining the pier and the ‘pier tree’ were lit.

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And then everything!

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I continued walking around to see more of the holiday windows.

A snowy window-scape at Dacha.

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Lush and festive floral displays at Growing Wild.

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The windows at Udderly Perfect featured an old-school TV.

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In the Metlox complex, Waterleaf had pretty stars hanging in their windows.

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I love Fringe, the new store on Manhattan Avenue. They also have a location in south Redondo. How cute is this oven display with cookie ornaments?

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Bo Bridges Gallery seemed to be having quite a party inside the studio. This striking photograph of the Eiffel Tower was touching in light of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris.

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Manhattan Denim decorated their windows with disco dancers. They kept moving so it was hard to take their picture. I want a wig like that!

At Katwalk there was a large elf blowing kisses to all who passed by (and obliging selfie-takers).

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Prizes were awarded to the best window designs, detailed here in The Beach Reporter. Rolling Hills Flower Mart won “Best Overall.”

There is a beautiful photo gallery, also by The Beach Reporter, with more images from the tree lighting.

It was a fun night to be out enjoying downtown after dark, although I wish the holiday season started after Thanksgiving!

 

South Bay Scenes – Week of Nov 15 – 21, 2015

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The week started with cool (cold for southern California) nights and high winds. We didn’t take the dogs to the Strand then, as the sand was blowing and would get in their eyes. Later in the week, the temperatures rose, and it felt like summer during the day.

Surfer on the beach.
Late afternoon sun.
Clear skies.
Down by the water.
Portions of the bike path were closed due to the sand blown on the path.

On Wednesday night, Manhattan Beach hosted the annual tree-lighting ceremony and open house downtown. The temperature was warmer as I was comfortable walking around with only a sweatshirt.

And the nights, while cooler than in the summer, were still California temperate. But you can see the days are very warm! We traveled downtown for the LA Auto Show on Saturday, and it was much warmer there.

But as you can see, cooler weather is on the way – just in time for Thanksgiving!

 

Travel Treasures: Roots Canada

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I remember becoming aware of the Canadian clothing brand Roots Canada when watching the Olympics – they outfitted the Canadian Olympic team for several years and also created the berets that the US team donned at the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics in 2002. The hats created quite a frenzy as everyone was desperate to purchase one.

While at the Winter Gamers in 2002, we spotted some creative fans at the Super Giant Slalom event wearing their own hand-made “Rootz” gear.

Trav Treas Rootz

Custom-made “Rootz” bathrobe and baseball cap worn by fans at the Super Giant Slalom.

And I even met the Silver Medal-winning Canadian Men’s Curling Team – outfitted in their Roots attire – walking around downtown Salt Lake City!

Trav Treas Roots SLC

The 2002 Winter Olympic Silver Medalists in Curling: Team Canada. I asked to take their picture, and they said, “You should be in the picture with us!” I’m so glad that they said that!

So when our family traveled to Whistler, British Columbia, for a family vacation, I saw the Roots boutique in Whistler Village and had to stop in to shop. My sister joined me and we had a hard time figuring out which things to buy.

We both decided to purchase these cozy sweatshirts. Now that it’s a bit chilly in LA in the morning and evening, I’ve been wearing my sweatshirt to keep me warm. It’s so soft and comfortable – and brings back happy memories of our trip and beautiful Whistler.

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Sarah and I posing in our new Roots sweatshirts at our rental home in Whistler.

I loved this black t-shirt with the red maple leaf – the leaf is felt and stitched onto the shirt. It is a woman’s cut so the fit is quite comfortable. Koa and Lau Lau are modeling the t-shirt and sweatshirt I purchased for my nephew who was born in Canada while we were on our vacation!

Travel Treas Roots Maple

I normally do not purchase clothes on my travels, but I am so happy with my Roots items – especially the cozy sweatshirt that is soft and keeps me toasty when it is cold!

 

South Bay Scenes – Week of November 1, 2015

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Sunday afternoon, while walking the dogs to the Redondo Beach dog park, it was very windy, and then it started raining and dark clouds loomed overhead. We kept walking and the strong winds seemed to push the storm to the east and suddenly as we reached a high point on the street I saw a rainbow and then a double rainbow! Everyone at the dog park was taking photos of the rainbows. SBS Nov 2 2015 2

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More crazy storms in the late afternoon. You can see the dark clouds looming at sunset.

I saw this pretty butterfly sitting on our bougainvillea.

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We finally experienced some fall temperatures – or LA’s version of fall temperatures – and bright, clear skies.

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Saturday night, after I walked the dogs, I saw this bright blue-ish light in the sky. At first I thought it was the moon behind clouds but there weren’t any clouds in the sky. It was so odd, that I went inside to get my phone to take a picture. It doesn’t look like much, but apparently it caused a bit of panic and lots of social media postings.

Apparently the Navy test launched a trident missile from a submarine off the coast. News reports earlier in the week reported that the flight patterns in and out of LAX would be changed for “military operations,” but I didn’t put two and two together when I saw this light burst. There are better pictures of the sky on KTLA‘s site and more information on the launch via The Los Angeles Times.

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