Three states. Three cities. Five hotels. Two weeks.
Wow. If you’ve been following along on my Twitter, Facebook or Instagram page, you’ll know that the last two weeks travelling around America has been filled with so much excitement! It still feels like such a surreal dream – although that’s probably mostly to do with the jetlag…
I’ve now been back in the UK for two whole days. I’m still catching up on sleep, adjusting to the freezing London temperatures, and trying to convince my cats to forgive me for leaving them for a fortnight. (I think I’m making some progress. Maybe.)
Looking back on my two weeks of sightseeing, celeb spotting, beach lounging, cultural sightings, long journeys, dodgy taxi drivers and epic day trips, I’m left wondering: did I really just do all that? The idea that I’ve managed to tick off so many HUGE bucket list items in such a short space of time is beyond alien to me. I’m stupidly happy to have experienced such an awesome few weeks with my best friend. And I’ve returned to the UK even more in love with America than I was before. Someone take me back please?
I’ve got so much content to bring you all over the next few weeks. So, be warned – it will be a pretty USA-focused run-up to Christmas here on the blog, but I’m hoping that the articles will inspire you to make that dream trip (or even return to California!) at some point.
For now, however, while I’m still starting to get back into the routine of working and sleeping at a reasonable hour, here are 10 pictures that sum up my big America trip to Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Enjoy!
1. Jumping for joy on our first day in Vegas in front of the iconic ‘Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada’ sign!
2. Fulfilling my lifelong dream (don’t judge) of seeing Britney Spears live. And she was incredible. *Does a little weep*
3. Conquering (sort of) my fear of heights and ticking off a MAJOR bucket list item at the Grand Canyon.
4. Exploring the beautiful, colourful rocks within the Valley of Fire.
5. Finding Paul Rudd’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame! (WAY too much love for this man.)
6. Getting into the Christmas spirit early at The Grove in Los Angeles – complete with fake snow and the most gorgeous Christmas tree I’ve ever seen in my life!
7. We didn’t have very long in Venice Beach, but it was enough to make me fall head-over-heels in love with it.
8. It was while we were in Los Angeles that we heard of the horrific Paris attacks. This simple painting in the window of a San Francisco house summed up our thoughts – and it was so heartwarming to know that so much love was being felt for the victims even though we were geographically so far away from it all.
9. A nighttime visit to Alcatraz prison was atmospheric, fascinating, and one of the big highlights of the whole trip!
10. Yep. I biked the Golden Gate Bridge. Please, no one laugh. I’m still recovering from all that exercise.
11. The stunning San Francisco sunsets were unlike anything I’d ever seen before. I captured this particular image in Sausalito, just a short ride over the Golden Gate Bridge.
12. YOSEMITE. Was it worth the 15-hour day trip? I would 100% say yes. No picture I took during the trip could do the place justice – it was absolutely magnificent.
Hope these pictures give you a bit of an idea of just how busy the past few weeks have been! This is just the tip of the iceberg, and I can’t wait for the weekend when I’ll have a bit more time to sit down and write about absolutely everything that went on. I’ve got a lot of writing to catch up on 😀
Pics are great ! Can not wait to hear all about it – brings back my happy memories of my trip there !
OMG !! Sounds amazing, I can’t wait to read all about your trip!
Lots of love,
Angie
So many amazing things you’ve done on your trip and I’m so excited to do them all myself in a few months (except for Britney…just no!). Can’t wait to hear more 🙂
Oh Emily, I’ve missed reading your posts and am so pleased to hear you loved it – you look so happy and on top of the world in these pics! Bring on the US posts, I can’t wait to hear more! And I love Paul Rudd too ☺
Been following your trip & looks like you had an amazing time my dear! Can’t wait to hear about Alcatraz as I’ve always wanted to go and didn’t have time during my whirlwind San Fran trip a few years back. Yosemite looks amazeballs too – I’ve been to the US quite a lot but still haven’t visited one of the big parks!
Look forward to hearing all about your adventures! K x
PS – Love, love, love your yellow mac & I also think that Mr Rudd is the man! 😉
Thank you my love! I can’t wait to write up all about Alcatraz – it was absolutely fantastic! XX (oh, and the yellow mac is from Topshop! I look like a 2-year-old/fisherman in it, but I’m in love! :P)
Looks like you had an amazing time, can’t wait to read more about your time there!
I am heading to LA in March, it will be my first time visiting the States and I can’t wait 😀
Emma x
Oh my gosh Emma, you are going to LOVE it! LA was great – so much to see, it’s just constant madness 🙂
Is it sad that one of my highlights is the Paul Rudd star… I also love him! Photos look amazing! I got a bit exciting thinking number 6 was real snow. Look forward to reading more about your trip! xx
haha Loriley! I had to have photos with his star on two different days – just in case one outfit looked awful next to his name :’) x