Maine! Bethany and Dan! It had been FOUR AND A HALF YEARS since I saw one of my best friends. How does this happen? Life gets busy, I know. But we have vowed to not go that long without seeing each other again. I went to Portland for a weekend visit. I was only there about 48 hours, but we packed a lot in!

I arrived on Friday around noon and it was cold and rainy. (What a surprise, more sad “spring” weather!) We dropped my bag off at Bethany and Dan’s apartment and then headed out for downtown.  I was starving so we stopped at Duck Fat for some very tasty french fries. We walked around and visited a few shops.  Took some photos in the cold and rain (I look like a wet, wind-swept dog in most!).  Picked up some donuts at the Holy Donut cause, you know, we’d need snacks later. Fun fact: the secret ingredient used in these donuts is MASHED POTATOES. Two of my favorite foods literally collided. What a dream.

We spent the early afternoon and evening at Bethany and Dan’s adorable apartment, where I was reunited with a great love of my life: Hattie.  Their dog, Hattie, is such a sweetheart and I love her so much. Bethany and I watched the Golden Girls, talked, and ordered pizza from Slab.  Dan went to his whiskey club.  I went to bed at 8pm because I had been up since 3:30am.

The next day, Saturday, we took the ferry to Peaks Island, which is 3 miles away from Portland.  It reminded me a little bit of Washington Island in Door County — small, quiet, cute.  We rented a golf cart and scooted around the island for about an hour.  It was beautiful, but we wished it wasn’t so wet — as that prevented us from seeing a lot (though I still managed to act like a baby and whine when forced to hike up and down a hill! Bless Dan for being so chill)

Upon returning to Portland, we put our names in for a table at Eventide and got some lobster rolls and oysters!  Afterward, we went to meet Andrea + Matt and then headed home for some stretchy pants, warm blankets, and Hattie snuggles.  We cooked dinner at home that night and then Bethany’s bff, Stephen, and his husband came over — we played trivia games and laughed our asses off until midnight.

Sunday we woke up to SUNSHINE!  SUN. SHINE! Glorious. We dropped Dan off at the bus station (he was leaving for Boston to catch a flight to Toronto).  Bethany and I grabbed delicious bagels at Scratch Baking Co. — where I encountered to only two RUDE New Englanders of the trip.  Sometimes I really cherish and miss “Midwest nice.”

The last activity of the trip was visiting the Portland Head Light — which is rumored to be the most photographed lighthouse ever.  And for good reason, as it’s gorgeous! Bethany then drove me to the airport and I headed home.  It was a lovely weekend and I can’t wait to go back!

Other stray observations:

• Portland is expensive and has to be one of the hipster capitals of the world.
• I would love to see the city during the summer season.
• The Portland airport is small and precious and reminds me of Appleton’s airport.
• Bethany remains one of my favorite people of all time.  We are wildly different – but we laugh so hard, talk about everything under the sun, and have worked to maintain our 15 year friendship.  It’s all worth it.  It’s also great to know someone for that long — because it’s all the sweeter to be in our 30s now and get to look back on our insecure 20s together!
• Dan is a precious gemstone of a person.
• I’d like to petition for a shared custody arrangement of Hattie.

We chilly.
RIGHT?!
Digging the Lisa Frank vibes of Novare Res.
Hattie! Donuts!
Golden Girls’ing. My kind of afternoon.
Heading to Peaks the next day! Still chilly.
A pink house. With hearts on the trim. LOVE.
Eventide Oyster Co.
Bethany knows me well. “Dan, we have to take her to see the colorful mural!”
Relaxin’.
Sunny Sunday
That magnet on her fridge is too perfect.
We windy.
This may be my favorite Huji photo I’ve ever taken. RAINBOW flare!
And we did a drive-by of Target, because that’s me: I visit Targets wherever I go.
See you next time, beautiful Maine!

I spent a long weekend in Austin, TX and I LOVED IT.  I traveled there to visit my friend Stefanie.  Me and Stef go way back — all the way to 2nd grade.  There aren’t many memories of elementary school or summers on the lake that don’t involve Stef.  We don’t get to see each other often, but when we do, it’s like no time has passed.  And this time — we got to chat and catch up over tacos and BBQ and cookies!

I arrived late-afternoon on a Friday.  Stef picked me up and we headed to Kerbey Lane for dinner.  Kerbey Lane is a famous Austin diner-type restaurant — they have locations all over the city.  I immediately ordered chips and queso because….when in Rome.  For my meal I had chicken + pancakes (a slight twist on the classic chicken + waffles combo).  So good!  After dinner, Stef dropped me off at my hotel and I crashed.  Why are travel days/airports so tiring?!

The next day I had bacon and a Texas-shaped waffle for breakfast, then we headed down to Congress Ave.  Congress is one of the more well-known streets — filled with shops, restaurants, nightlife, etc.  Our first stop was Jo’s for coffee (though I had iced tea) and to see the famous “i love you so much” wall.  Then we spent the rest of the morning walking around, shopping, taking photos of cute things, etc.  Lunch was at Torchy’s for tacos — so good!  Before heading back to Stef’s neighborhood, we stopped at Hayley Cakes and Cookies.  I’ve been following the bakery on Instagram for YEARS, so it was a trip to finally be able to visit the store in person.  And the cookies were really good (thank you, almond extract!) — I love it when cute cookies actually taste great.

I took a little break mid-afternoon to take a nap (because I am an old lady and I was still tired from the day before, I think).  We reconvened on Saturday night to go to Stiles Switch BBQ for dinner.  OH MA GODDDD, so good!  Stef had ribs, I had brisket, and between the two of us, we had mac + cheese, potato salad, french fries, and corn casserole as sides.  We did not leave hungry and everything was so delicious.  But perhaps my highlight was the fact that they had Diet Dr. Pepper on fountain AND crushed ice. All my dreams came true that night in Austin!  After dinner we stopped at Sprinkles for a cupcake because… why not?

The next day, Sunday, was another busy day! We had brunch at Punch Bowl Social (eating nachos at 9am is dreamy).  We visited fancy Target (because I always visit Target wherever I go; stop judging!).  We went to a ton of shops at the Domain.  Then in the afternoon, we headed downtown to see Ellsworth Kelly’s Austin, which was spectacular.  It’s not shock that I love Ellsworth Kelly — but the building and its colored class was so beautiful!  The rest of the Blanton Museum was really enjoyable — make sure to visit if you ever get the chance!

After our time at the museum, we headed to Casey’s for a snowball.  To be 100% honest, I saw the mural on the side of the building when we were driving around on Friday — and because of the mural, I knew I had to stop.  I’m drawn to all things rainbow like a moth to a flame!  And hey, I really like snowballs, snow cones, and the like.

We went to Velvet Taco for dinner, which was my favorite taco experience of the trip.  So delicious and everything tasted so fresh and semi-healthy.  Loved it!  I had a super early flight the next day, so it was an early night for me.  I loved my time in Austin and I can’t wait to return someday!  Thank you to Stef for showing me around your new city!

Other stray observations:
– We should all love ourselves as much as Texas loves itself. For. Real.
– Tacos everywhere. Everywhere.
– The bathroom situation was amazing. Hear me out.  Every single public bathroom that I experienced was its own separate, totally private stall.  Texas is doing it right!
– Everyone was very friendly and generous with the “y’alls”
– Texas loves legal u-turns and hates decent road signage.
– Queso everywhere. Everywhere.
– Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose. Texas forever, y’all. [now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go re-watch Friday Night Lights]

The Minneapolis airport’s “Minnibar” was pretty glam!
Eats at Kerbey Lane!
Kerbey Lane!
Hotel vibes.
Texas, y’all.
Hotel glam.
Of course there’s a cowboy sign above the bed.  Of course.
i love you, too!  The story goes that the “i love you so much” was spray painted by Amy Cook, a local musician, in tribute to her then-girlfriend, Jo’s co-owner Liz Lambert.  Romance!
The wall of dinosaurs at Maya Star.
Big Top Candy Shop!
Bless this Torchy’s taco.
I could think of worse candidates.
The mural game is STRONG in Austin.
I bought the cupcake from this “Cupcake ATM” — because I am what I am: a basic white girl.
Target!!
It was chilly, which I wasn’t expecting! Low 40s and windy — but that made for fewer people out and about.  It was a win!
Jawbreakers.  I just liked the colors.
Great stairs at Erin Condren; and let them eat cake in the bathroom of Velvet Taco!
The prettiest candy store I’ve ever seen.
A great green wall.  I don’t know why I love walls so much but I do.
The Patron Saints of my life: Dorothy, Sophia, Blanche, and Rose.
The Blanton Museum.
Thank you, Huji app, for making the art museum EXTRA artsy!
Always love a good neon sign.
Bones hanging from the ceiling.
Mood.
The iPhone pics don’t do it justice.
And me… at the airport… at 6am.  See ya next time, Texas!