Around the city with the family-in pictures

At Boudin Bakery at Fisherman's Wharf, you will find sourdough bread in all sorts of shapes and sizes.

Sister pose!

Excited to sample some macarons from Miette!

The parents @ Taylor's Automatic Refresher.

My tasty garlic fries from Taylor's.

I need one of these in my kitchen.

Mom with the Bay Bridge in the background.

Brother and sister crossing the street in Chinatown.

Sister and the random cat.

My Dad playing with a squishy ball at a bazaar in Chinatown.

Cousin Josh deciding on his purchase.

I can't wait 'til my family comes to visit again. I miss them already! On a happier note, Marc and I will be back in the city on Sunday to participate in some nerdy festivity which I am too embarrassed to post about right now. The worst part is that it involves my initiative. In fact, I just bought the tickets. I hope to share more about this next week. :)

I'm in Nor-Cal!

On Sunday, a caravan of 3 cars + a moving truck made their way through the long and boring stretch known as Interstate 5. The trek started at 5:30 am and ended close to 1:00 pm. The journey consisted of 5 stops of which only 1 was to fill up the tanks with gas. Unfortunately, the other 4 stops were made to empty out some bladders. Thankfully, I had my 10-year old cousin in the car with me to keep me company. He slept most of the time as I munched on an entire bag of carrots to keep awake. Trust me, hearing the loud crunch of carrots will keep you functioning through boring cow-land while watching suicidal bugs smash right into your windshield. As soon as we unloaded the truck, you would think that we would start to unpack. That didn't happen 'til two days ago when my family finally headed home. For the first three days, we spent time with them enjoying the surroundings of the beautiful Bay Area. We had a wonderful time walking the streets of San Francisco, visiting relatives in Hayward and Milpitas, and shopping in San Jose.

Now that all the fun is over, we have been busy unpacking boxes and putting things into their rightful places. I am so thankful for Target and Ikea for being easily accessible for all my home needs! Our place is slowly starting to feel a but more homey; just a little bit more organizing is needed and we'll be set.

I miss everyone in So-Cal very much but am excited to make Nor-Cal my new home! I'll share our little city adventure in my next post. For now, need to run to Target...again!

My helpful movers: Mom, Dad, Chad {brother}, Kirsten {sister}, and Josh {little cousin}

Family from the Abellada side at a 'mini reunion' in Hayward.

Cousins!

Do you know the way to San Jose?

In the past 24 hours alone, we have had 3 different 'goodbye dinners.' Not to forget, the many other 'goodbye' meals and meet-ups in the last week. Food coma? Yes. Too much socializing? Not enough!

I never left home for college so to me, this is move up to the Bay Area may be the equivalent. I know, we're still going to be in the same state as our dear family and friends but it sure doesn't seem like it! I am going to miss everyone so much! I hate goodbyes so I'll just start saying "see you later" from now on.

Half-way through last week, I realized that I hadn't seen everyone I wanted to see yet so I called a quick last-minute dinner at Old Spaghetti Factory in Riverside last night. This is probably the only chain restaurant I keep frequenting. Thanks to their special Mizithra cheese! I was so happy with the turn-out. Did I mention, I'm really going to miss everyone? Speaking of cheese, here are a few pics from last night. Unfortunately, the only group photo we had was extremely blurry and non-photoshop-able. :(

Love these girls!

{Roeum, Inah, Alli, Jane, Audrey}

Marc & I with my 'little' brother from college, Rommel.

Marc & the guys {Doug, Leo, Marc, David}

Frostings cupcakes from my twin. Thanks Jane! Marc & I devoured them for breakfast this morning.

Following the dinner at the OSF, Marc and I rushed to LA to pick up my brother and headed to Noodle World in Alhambra where we met up with my aunt and uncle. By that time, it was 12 midnight! Marc and I just ate a little but still ate nonetheless. One of the highlights for me was running into my friend Dani who I haven't seen since college!

We'll be hitting the road early in the morning. Bay Area, here we come! Before I sign off for the evening, here are a few more photos from last night.

My brother Chad and Tito Alvin=man vs. food contest; who can eat the most pad see ew? Haha!

Below: Tita Susan and I

Blogging from my hometown

In 4 days, we will be moving up to Northern California. Marc is so excited to go back to school for his MBA at Santa Clara University. While at first I was a bit skeptical about this move, sensing his excitement makes me happy as well! Last week, we traveled back to Irvine from Redlands every day as we slowly yet surely emptied out our apartment. This week, we have been organizing everything for the move. From getting the utilities hooked up, changing addresses and shopping for some home goods, it has been quite the busy week. Most of the furniture we had in our previous apartment were borrowed pieces that have now been returned. As a result, we have been scouring the town (and nearby towns) for some essentials to call our own. We're trying to get everything down here since:

a)So-Cal has cheaper sales tax

b) we have a truck to haul stuff with!

I'm proud to say that we've secured a futon from Ikea. We've also invested in a folding table (to act as a dining table for the time being) Wal-Mart to accompany some Ikea folding chairs that were donated to us. We like to keep it real simple, especially right now when practicality matters more than aesthetics. We'll get to the 'fancy' stuff someday.

Not to forget, we are currently shacking up with my parents which inevitably involves endless chores and errands. What is with parents slacking off when their kids are home? Haha! I was hoping to utilize this week to catch up on some personal projects and visit friends. Unfortunately, both have been put on the back-burner as I've been consumed by the mis-fortune known as responsibility. I did get to have lunch with some old office mates yesterday which was a nice break in my day. I'm hoping to see everyone on Friday night for a little get together. Ah! I'm already starting to tear.

It is surely hitting me that we are moving. While I had my list of things to do in the OC, I definitely have my list for the IE as well. Sad to say, I don't think I'll get through this list. As 'crappy,' as people may think the IE is, it will always be my hometown!

Weekend Brunch & Flea

On Sunday, I got to join my cousin, Claudine, for a nice brunch at Elements in Pasadena prior to ransacking the ever-so-popular Rose Bowl Flea Market. We came home with an assortment of jewelry, crates and other great finds. It was a great workout, to say the least. Unlike the pros who brought wagons and carts, we decided to take to the flea unarmed. I'd consider it hard-core as we lugged all of our purchases with our own strength from the stadium all the way to the car! We joked about how we lost a ton of electrolytes and brain cells in the process as we were quite dumb-founded and sore when we got back to her parents' house. I couldn't even manage to get a bag of popcorn opened! I blame it on the sun too. Seriously though, after all the rain, it all of a sudden got mighty hot here in So-Cal! Nonetheless, it was a day well-spent!

Not your typical brunch food. However, this lobster-truffle mac 'n cheese was beyond amazing!

Pumpkin & mixed berry filled ebelskivers-not so tasty but the mac 'n cheese made up for it!

One of the many jewelry vendors at the flea.

The beginning of Claudine's flea-market finds. These gorgeous rings will be used for the bridesmaid's bouquets.

We all need a laugh sometime, don't we?

Nails for sale!

We took home a couple of these.

Do you fancy other people's junk? I do!

The letters were for sale and someone just happened to form these 2 words with them.

Goodbye Orange County-Part IV

As we got onto the freeway to head back to the Inland Empire, Marc decided to take a detour to his favorite Empanada's Place in Costa Mesa.

This charming little hole-in-the-wall has been one of our favorite dine-in spots in OC.

The extensive menu caters to both meat-eaters and vegetarians alike.

These are the corn & cheese stuffed empanadas with the infamous chimichurri sauce. Don't let the pictures fool you, these babies are quite large.

Cheese & Onion and Potato empanadas. Such delightful treats!

And that's it folks! What a perfect way to end our last day in OC. Is it sad that our favorite places were all associated with food? I'm a proud food lover and have no shame in admitting that!

As the saying goes, with every ending comes a new beginning. I am very anxious and excited to begin the next chapter of our lives together in what I now refer to as "the great north." :) But for now, I must indulge in all things So-Cal as time is a ticking!

Goodbye Orange County-Part III

We made a few more stops during our last day in Irvine. Not to eat, but simply to take pictures of some of our favorite places. : )

The token Taiwanese bakery in Irvine known as 85 Degrees . The long lines, self-serve buttery breads and the yummy dessert counter will surely be missed.

The only decent Thai food place in all of Irvine-Thai Ritz Cuisine. The monstrous portions were a steal for the low price to pay!

My favorite supermarket, H-Mart. This place allowed me to stretch my $20/week grocery budget beyond limits!

I love how clean it is inside plus the assortment of produce was always fresh and very affordable. Where else can you get 5 bunches of spinach for $1. Yes, I did say bunches.

Goodbye Orange County-Part II

This post should really be titled as "An ode to Yogurtland." Yogurtland kept me sane during my long days at work, especially during the hot summer. Thankfully, there was one within a few blocks from my office. Every Friday, Marc and I would religiously reward ourselves with a cup of fro-yo for getting through the week. Naturally, we had to make a stop at Yogurtland before making our final 'exit' out of Irvine. On our way to our usual branch by campus, we stumbled upon the grand opening of another branch just down the street from our former apartment. What a pleasant surprise! Since it was closer, we stopped here and as always, our taste buds were satisfied with yogurty goodness! I'm sure there will be another one of these at our next place of residence. However, this post is just to prove how severe our obsession is with Yogurtland. Sorry, Pinkberry. I think we'd love you more if you were self-serve. : )

New flavors always entice me!

Goodbye Orange County-Part I

One of the things we have been wanting to do in our now previous hometown of Irvine is to ride the orange passenger balloon at the developing Orange County Great Park. After turning in our apartment keys, we spent the rest of the day bidding farewell to our favorite places. In addition, we finally made the flight on the orange balloon. The sunny skies combined with the beautiful weather allowed for a wonderful flight!

Helium passenger balloons require boarding passes too! :)

We were fortunate enough to get a pair of tickets instantly; unlike our last attempt.

Our ride up to the sky

Lifted off!

The balloon's shadow.

The view from 400 ft. The OC Great Park used to be a Marine base/airstrip

It was a happy flight indeed! Can't wait to see how this park turns out in the next decade. It's supposed to be larger than NYC's Central Park.

Farewell 112

For the past 13 months, we have made our home at 112 Santa Barbara in Irvine. This past Thursday, we finally moved out our last box and turned in our keys. It was a bittersweet moment. 112, as we so fondly referred to our apartment, was our first place together. Though we will not miss the sound of the leaf-blowers in the early mornings, the wet halls after 'routine cleaning,' and the gate blockages due to constant tree cutting, we will always remember this place as our first home.

Cleaning out the almost-empty apartment

I'm going to miss my kitchen! :(

Our bedroom all emptied out.

Marc, on our final descent from our 2nd floor home.

Farewell Santa Rosa Apartments!