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Rejuvenate Your Soul: A Luxurious Weekend Getaway at Civana Wellness

Rejuvenate Your Soul: A Luxurious Weekend Getaway at Civana Wellness

Hey there fellow weekenders! I recently embarked on a soul-reviving weekend retreat that I can’t wait to share with you. Join me on my journey into tranquility and well-being at Civana Wellness, a hidden gem nestled in the heart of nature.

Day 1: Arrival and Serenity Unveiled

Upon arriving at Civana Wellness, I was instantly captivated by the serene atmosphere and lush surroundings. The resort is located in the picturesque desert oasis of Carefree, Arizona. Just north of Scottsdale it seamlessly blends luxury with wellness, making it the perfect haven for those seeking a holistic escape.

Accommodations:

I had watched plenty of reviews on Youtube, but nothing could prepare me for the size of our room! It was so spacious and offered breathtaking views of the surrounding Sonoran Desert. The minimalist yet cozy design immediately set the tone for relaxation.

Wellness Offerings:

Civana Wellness takes a holistic approach to well-being, offering an array of wellness programs and activities. Our first day was dedicated to exploring the resort’s extensive menu of spa treatments, yoga classes, and mindfulness sessions. The intuitive and knowledgeable staff made sure every experience was tailored to my needs, providing a truly personalized journey to rejuvenation.

We settled on a Chakra Balancing Sound & Mediation. The teacher’s voice was so relaxing and I knew this was going to be a great start to our wellness weekend.

Earlier in the day as we explored the grounds, we stumbled upon a Gratitude class which really helped settle us into the intention of what it means to go on a wellness retreat.

Dining Experience:

Civana’s commitment to well-rounded wellness extends to its culinary offerings. I savored every bite of the thoughtfully crafted, nutritionally balanced meals at Terras, the resort’s signature restaurant. The farm-to-table concept ensures that each dish is a celebration of local flavors, contributing to the overall nourishment of the body and soul.

Day 2: Active Adventures and Inner Peace

Seed Market:

If you are a coffee and smoothie lover, Seed Market is the way to start fueling your day. The menu of smoothies is incredible! We tried all of them and they were each as delicious as the next. The Schroomy Cacao with a shot of espresso was to die for!

Outdoor Activities:

Eager to explore the natural beauty surrounding Civana, I set out on a guided hike through the enchanting desert trails. The resort’s commitment to sustainable tourism was evident as I immersed myself in the breathtaking landscapes while learning about the delicate ecosystem from knowledgeable guides.

Fitness and Yoga:

Civana Wellness caters to both adventure enthusiasts and those seeking gentle rejuvenation. I participated in invigorating Chakra Yoga class, allowing me to align my body and mind. The variety of activities ensured that every guest could find the perfect balance for their individual wellness journey.

Mindful Relaxation:

After an active day, I indulged in moments of mindful relaxation at the Civana Spa. The state-of-the-art facilities and skilled therapists offered a diverse range of healing treatments, leaving me with a profound sense of tranquility and balance.

New Year, New Vision:

I have never been one to journal. In fact I wouldn’t even know where to start. But the teacher for the Journaling class was phenomenal. She helped us tap into our deepest feelings and I felt rejuvenated after journaling for almost an hour! I am definitely going to make journaling part of my daily intentions for the next year.

Day 3: Farewell

Our last day was bittersweet. We spent such a relaxing time and we were so sad to leave! But we couldn’t leave without going to one final yoga class! It was the perfect way to end our day and a great way to reset before driving back home to San Diego!

As I bid farewell to Civana Wellness, I couldn’t help but reflect on the transformative experience that awaited every guest. This hidden sanctuary not only provided a luxurious escape but also served as a catalyst for personal well-being. Whether you’re a seasoned wellness traveler or a first-time seeker, Civana is a destination that will leave you refreshed, revitalized, and ready to take on the world, or in our case the New Year!

Final Tips & Cost

Be sure to schedule yourself in for as many classes as you can the first day and even the day before you arrive with their online system. You might find the classes have filled up and waiting to get off the waitlist is no fun!

We booked through the Amex Travel portal and took advantage of the 5x points and the additional perks so we spent a bit more than what it costs regularly.

We spent a total of $2,150.00, this included the stay for 4 people in a double queen room, $100 experience credit and $30 per person (max 2) for breakfast.

We also went right for New Years Eve so prices should be a bit cheaper!

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Room Update x Joshua Vides

So unless you’ve been living under a rock you know that Fendi just released the California Sky collection in collaboration visual artist Joshua Vides. The collection is super amazing and is the inspiration for how I finally decided to decorate my bedroom.

Now my bedroom was obviously decorated to my style which is very white very minimalistic very clean. My bags and shoes are on bookshelves – hello basic instablogger but whatever it looks nice!

The thing was there has always been something missing from my room. I have some art in my room like my baby Jeff Koons balloon dog and some prints I got while I was at his exhibit in Mexico City last year (You can read more about that here), but I haven’t put those up at all because I just didn’t really have a home for them. That is… until now! The only problem is I haven’t anything to hang them with so for now they’re framing my Balenciaga baseball cap and my Fendi monsters bag.

I started just with the door and then I saw the air vent and did that too. I thought of stopping there and making just a vignette but I got inspired the more I painted and I simply just kept going. Pretty soon the crown molding was painted black as well as the outline of my window. As I am writing this I am waiting for some arrows I got at the Dollar Tree to dry but let’s just say I have to fix the window because it came out pretty ratchet.

I repurposed a pretty ugly canvas which only had like an inspirational quote on it and painted the Fendi Caffe table design on it. It hangs over my bed now and on the wall next to it are three outlines for the prints I mentioned before which I have to figure out how to put up on the wall since they’re not glued to the canvas yet.

This project has inspired me loads. I am already a pretty creative person but sometimes I just have a block and I have no real concrete ideas or what I am doing just feels stale. Well right now I am feeling all of those creative juices flowing and I think I may be spiraling out of control and will probably end up with tons of arts and crafts that I don’t need and won’t have a place for but who knows we will see how long this creative run lasts.

Taking a poll, I am thinking of putting my plaster to good use and make my own Future Relics. Let me know what you think in the comments and if I should do a vlog on it too!

For now, my room feels a lot more like me and really all it took was seeing Joshua Vides work for Fendi. I know it’s kind of lame that all I am doing is copying his style but like imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. And like to be honest I would kind of kill to be his apprentice because his artwork is so cool and so simple yet so complex at the same time. Joshua Vides please make me your apprentice!!!!

Definitely take a look into his work Reality to Idea because it is AMAZEBALLS!!!

hurricane, utah: the mini guide

I have been dying to go to Utah for a few years now and I finally was able too! Thank you lockdown since I can travel to places in the USA that I’ve been wanting to go without sacrificing my paycheck. I could of course take the vacation time but honestly I don’t think it’s worth it right now. I am digressing though, I want to stay at the Amangiri so badly but I am not balling that hard just yet. This trip was super unplanned and it was extremely fun. I don’t recommend doing this trip unplanned though if you have a list of things you want to hash out that are pretty important when it comes to visiting the land of Zion National Park.

Before I go through the week and all the fun stuff that we did I have to say this was the most spur of the moment decision to go to Utah. A few weeks ago my uncle had said he and his family were going at the end of the month. We thought okay cool and that was the end of that. I had been looking for a few days how we could get to the Maldives since it’s one of the few places that remains open to American tourism. RIP all my vacation plans.

Fast forward to Sunday before we leave and my mom is on the phone with my grandma trying to convince her to go on vacation with us to Turkey since it is open for American tourism and we have our visa and our whole itinerary from when we were supposed to go a few months before. My grandma declines and tells my mom well why don’t you crash on your brother’s vacation…. if you know my mom then you know she didn’t need any more convincing.

So we call my uncle and he says he spend the night in Vegas and that we should catch up with him and stay the night. Now we all have work and responsibilities so we couldn’t just get up and leave that same day although I can assure you we totally would have. We cancelled all our things for the week and started to pack!

wearing: Xirena beau button down / xerision bike shorts / adidas / lululemon cap

THE WEEKENDER FILES GUIDE TO HURRICANE

Monday: Wake up at 8 a.m. and the drive there was incredible considering there was absolutely not traffic at all. We made it to Vegas around noon and caught up with the fam. We spent some time at the outlets buying a few last minute things for our trip and then we were on our way to Utah!

We stayed at the Sand Hollow Resort which is in Hurricane, Utah and is only 2 hours away from Vegas. The trip allows you to go through three states in the same day not bad at all! Once we dropped of our things at the resort we took some time to lounge by the pool and then went to pick up some groceries.

We stayed in separate rooms and we booked a double suite…..let me tell you the surprise that we got when we realized it was a huge one bedroom apartment with a full kitchen and washer/dryer. A total game changer when you can bring home clean clothes after a long vacation!

Tuesday: We’re just getting our bearings and getting used to the extreme dry heat of Utah and we spent the morning in the pool and then went just outside the resort in the late afternoon to check out the Beach at Sand Hollow. It’s a manmade lake with reddish orange sand that makes you feel like you’re on another planet.

We had booked dune buggies for 6 p.m. thinking it would be cooler and getting a bit darker around that time. Let me tell you this was not the case, it was still very very hot but it was so much fun! We went up the canyon to the “top of the world” and ended our dune buggie adventure by driving through the water at the beach. The water felt so cold because it is so hot out but really the water is around 85 degrees. We were drenched in water but the heat quickly dried us up.

Wednesday: Like I said our trip was super last minute and we didn’t get a chance to book the shuttle at Zion National Park so we could get up the mountain and go to all of the places where everyone typically takes photographs like the narrows all the way at the top.

We stayed on the Pa’rus Trail since this was our first time and we did have little ones with us. We still were able to wade in the water of the Virgin River and caught a glimpse of deer up close!

wearing: adidas / lululemon cap / xersion bike shorts / longchamp backpack / nike golf shirt

Thursday: Another relaxed day by the pool until about 4 p.m. when we rented some golf carts and drove around the golf course which has absolutely incredible views and is partially built into the canyon. Honestly it was beautiful and looked and felt like I was on the Cars ride at Disneyland.

We had been talking about doing star gazing a few days before but it wasn’t happening anywhere near where we were nor was it the season apparently. We got so incredibly lucky though because the Astronomy Club was doing free stargazing for those staying at the resort! Let me tell you this was so unexpected and it was an amazing experience because we were able to see the planets aligned with the moon! It was beautiful and I wish I had gotten a photo of the other planets and not just the moon.

Photo taken on night mode on the Iphone you can see the scorpio constellation to the right, the moon in the center and saturn and jupiter on the left.

Friday: Last day and we’re on our way out but not before we make another stop in Vegas for food and some more shopping!

THE QUICK GUIDE

+ where we stayed: Sand Hollow Resort – this resort is great for families and if you love golf the course is incredible and has stunning views of Zion in the distance and the red rocks in the other direction.

+ where we ate: the area is not very populated but the city isn’t too far from the resort, we went to Smith’s marketplace (it’s a Kroger brand), Walmart and Target. We didn’t just eat in our apartments though, we did venture out when we were in Zion and we also ate at the Resort’s restaurant The Grille. While you’re in Zion of course some places are closed because of the Coronavirus but Porter’s is super good! On our last day night we went to the Resort’s restaurant and let me tell you definitely share a pizza or two they are enormous and we ordered that and basically one of everything on the menu since we were a large party but it was way toooo much food. So heed my warning just get the pizza it was absolutely incredible! The Grille views are also just as incredible you get sweeping views of Zion National Park in the distance.

+ what we did: Zion National Park – we stayed on the Pa’rus Trail because it is easy and we missed out on the shuttle to get to the top of the park and go through the Narrows. If you’re planning on doing all of that be sure to either get there at park opening or get your tickets the month before.

We rented Dune Buggies at the resort with Mad Moose Rentals and let me tell you it is so much fun and you get all sandy and you can finish off your ride by cooling off at the lake.

Stargazing – we were incredibly lucky to be at the resort at the exact moment where this was going to happen. If you can do it there are other places where you can do this such as at Bryce Canyon.

Golf Cart – we rented a golf cart and took a drive through the canyon and the beautiful golf course. A rental is only $25 and you pretty much can take it out all day but we only took it out for a few hours because the heat is death.

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Turmeric Bread: the recipe

The votes are in! You all decided you wanted me to do a blog post on this super easy turmeric bread recipe! I mean look at how gorgeous this loaf turned out! And on my first try no less.


Skip to Recipe

This recipe has 7 ingredients and if you bake a lot you will definitely have all these ingredients, less the turmeric. But let’s be real everyone went through a turmeric latte, golden milk phase so this is a perfect way to use that spice that’s probably been sitting in your pantry forever!

I was so excited to bake this bread, as it had been on my mind for a few days. I was just hoping to have some time to finally make it! My mom loved it so much that she said I should never make it again because she was going to sit and eat the whole loaf!

The finished product turned out absolutely beautifully golden, deliciously airy and a great crust! I tapped the bottom of the loaf and like all good bread sounded hollow once I tapped it. Major success! Try out this recipe and tag me in it!I would love to see all you try out this recipe!

Ingredients:

4 cups of all purpose flour plus extra for dusting

2 teaspoons of salt

1/2 teaspoon of turmeric

2 1/4 teaspoon of yeast

3 tablespoons of olive oil

1 1/3 of tepid water

1. Mix the flour, turmeric, salt and yeast in a large bowl. Pour in 300ml lukewarm water and the oil.

2. Stir to create a loose dough.
3. Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface.
NOTE: the turmeric can stain, so if using a wooden or porous surface, line it with cling wrap.
4. Knead for about 10 mins (or use a stand mixer with a dough hook) until smooth.
5. Form into a ball and place into a lightly oiled bowl, then cover with cling wrap or a clean tea towel and leave to rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
6. Knock back the dough by punching the air out and folding the dough over.
7. Form the dough into a ball and place onto a lightly oiled cookie sheet. Cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap and leave to rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
8. Preheat the oven to 430F / 220C. Lightly dust the bread with flour and cut a cross into the top. Place in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until it turns golden and if you knock the bottom it sounds hollow. Cool completely on a wire rack before cutting.

+ Rosemary Focaccia

Mental Health during Quarantine

Is it just me or has this quarantine been the most stressful time. After working 8am to 10 ok on miscellaneous items it finally got to me. I finished yesterday early around 8 pm and decided that I was going to take the next day as a break from the hundreds of projects I’ve been having to work on since quarantine has started.

I’m not going to sit here and barrage you with things that you need to buy to make your life more zen. I have been getting so bored with bloggers telling me that I need Ashwaganda or whatever that even is to be more relaxed.

I’m going to give you a breakdown of what my day was like and you might even learn that everything you need to relax is in your quarantine zone a.k.a home!

8:30 Coffee!! I can’t start my day without coffee so this is a must but do whatever you need for a pick me up in the morning! Matcha, lemon water, regular water, literally whatever as long as it works for you!

9:00 Breakfast time! I didn’t do anything crazy no healthy bowls with thousands of ingredients you need to find in the peaks of the Himalayas or whatever just plain old eggs and potatoes!

10:00 Zoom school time! I was the behind the scenes for my mom’s class!

11:00 Going back to my earlier rant about becoming YT famous: my mom is a preschool teacher, and now she has had to start doing classes via Zoom and making videos for the time they are out of class. This is where project no. 1 of the day comes in. I sewed my mom the cutest little owl for her morning song with the kids! I took a break from technology and didn’t get to record it but I will do another post if you guys are interested in learning how to make one! It was so easy and fun!!

1:00 It has been a long day of being inside and it is time for a walk outside!! I hadn’t realized how I took fresh air for granted. Being inside all day for work and then getting home from work it was just my normal. Doesn’t matter if you get a breeze in your house by having the windows open it just is not the same as being outside.

3:00 While my mom is starting dinner and my sister has work to do I work on project no. 2 of the day! (Although let’s be real this took me like three days to finish). I have recently become obsessed with embroidery, my fave is carlyowensembroidery! How cute are those eyes! For my second project of the day I decided to take a crack at embroidery by doing a red lip for my mom’s new chic black facemask! Again I did not record this but if anyone is interested I can do a tutorial on another post or even on YT!

4:00 Linner time! To be honest I don’t remember what we even ate, but with all this extra time on our hands we have been getting creative in the kitchen! Check out Half Baked Harvest’s 20 minute Thai Peanut Chicken Ramen recipe. This recipe was a hit and you should definitely try it out as well!

6:00 I unfortunately couldn’t get away from technology the whole day and did have to log on for class for an hour but it wasn’t terrible. I survived!

7:00 It’s Wednesday and you know what that means? My latest Reese Witherspoon OBSESSION: Little Fires Everywhere on Hulu.

So my day was pretty jam packed but it was filled with things that I like to do! I obviously have a day job and took some time here and there to check emails on my phone to make sure I wasn’t missing anything important but let me tell you taking a break in the middle of the week to give my neck and back a break from the tech hunch!

I felt so much better at the end of the day and the next morning I felt refreshed enough to continue with my non-stop grind!

Has anyone else been taking on several hats during this quarantine? Let me know in the comments below! Until next time!

Colorado – The Mini Guide

Colorado: The mini Guide

It’s the start of the New year and I am back to reality sitting at my desk at work wishing I could be back on my magical vacation.

Being in Colorado was like being at Disneyland, especially Vail! It had just snowed before we got there and it was absolutely breathtaking driving up the mountains to get there. Once you’re in the town it’s like if you stepped into a huge version of the Matterhorn! Swiss chalets everywhere and a cute bustling center filled with shoppers and snow sport junkies alike.

I was only in Colorado for a few days but they were the right amount for a First trip to explore a new place. You especially need to get acclimated since the elevation is super high! I don’t recommend staying just for a weekend because you’ll spend the whole time with altitude sickness like my sister did.

Wednesday: We took an early morning flight to arrive around 10 am to allow us time to check in to the hotel (we stayed at the Ritz Carlton) and explore the city. We traveled New Year’s Day so pretty much everything was closed but there were still people walking around the 16th Street Mall. Don’t get me wrong though a lot of things are closed for seemingly no reason when you need them to be open! Most places are closed at 5.

We went back to the hotel after having breakfast at The Earl. The place was cute but the food wasn’t exceptional for the price so I don’t really recommend it. Once at the hotel we passed out for two hours because altitude sickness makes you drowsy!

After our nap we were pretty hungry and realized it was probably time to go get some food again so we ventured back to 16th Street mall where shocker almost nothing was open. We ended up at Giordanos which is a Chicago favorite! You can even have pizzas shipped to you from them!

Thursday: Second day in Denver and we spent the day roaming around the city. We met up with one of my sisters friends and had coffee at Little Owl Coffee. I had a strawberry croissant that was just wow. Definitely worth the $5 I spent on it!

Later on we stopped by the Denver Milk Market which is a super cute food and retail hall. So many great options to choose from and Happy Hour at their bar did not disappoint! We bought a cheese pizza, our three burgers, two orders of fries, a cocktail and a beer for about $35 dollars.

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Weekend in Memory Lane

It’s been a minute since the days where our family would spend every weekend in Los Angeles. We would spend the weekend to visit my aunt at her gallery and eat at the best restaurants LA has to offer.

This weekend we decided to do just that and relive some great memories at some of our favorite places.

If you don’t care to read the full post and just want my recs scroll down to the bottom!

We deviated a little from our usual stays in Beverly Hills to stay closer to my sister who goes to school at Pepperdine in Malibu. The Four Seasons Westlake is a hidden oasis in the middle of the hills near Calabazas and Hidden Hills. They’ve been remodeling so not all the rooms look like they’re out of an elegant 1950’s hotel anymore but we stayed in one of the more “historic” suites. Bright yellow walls with white crown molding and gorgeous oak furniture. The bathroom has a shower and bathtub both marble. For those of you who know me, I am a sucker for marble.

The hotel has a beautiful views of Malibu/Topanga canyons and the facilities are gorgeous. I wish I had time to take some cute pictures in front of their waterfall. Those pictures would have been precious!

For dinner we went to the Palm Restaurant. Getting there was a pretty hilarious ordeal. We were worried about being late for our reservation and were zipping through LA traffic to get there even though it was about 9 pm! Once we drove past it to find parking my grandma stated “Where did you bring me this isn’t the Palm!”

Now I’ve been to this specific Palm location with her sometime over 12 years ago and granted it was slightly different then since Beverly Hills is always changing. But anyway we got there and my grandma just had to ask if this was indeed the Palm where she would spend almost every weekend about 30 years ago. They told her that this particular restaurant had originally been on Sunset but parts of the original building and it’s celebrity drawings were in this new location.

Anyway we were there because my grandma just could not get the thought of their famous Veal Chop out of her mind. And at 16 ounces it’s a huge cut! My grandma can’t eat that much anymore so you better believe that I ate mine and what she left of hers which was quite a lot! Despite her having eaten almost 3/4 of it!

How juicy does this veal chop look!?

We had tiramisu for dessert and I can tell you that it is incredible! The mascarpone is delicate and the taste isn’t overpoweringly sweet. No good picture of it because we just devoured it!

The next day we had breakfast at another Beverly Hills icon. The Ivy! Both old and new Hollywood stars are known to hang out here and why wouldn’t they when the food is absolutely incredible. Sipping champagne while you wait for your table is simply a luxe extra that makes anyone feel like a celebrity. Don’t even get me started on the scones! Are you a lover of the breadbasket before a meal? Well you will never think of those the same after having these scones, they are to die for! I know I went for breakfast but I always get the spaghetti and meatballs. I am a creature of habit and what can I say I absolutely love theirs.

Sultana scones with raspberry jam and butter.

After breakfast we went down to Rodeo Drive so I could pick up some things from Saint Laurent Rive Droite for our works white elephant. Not going to do any spoilers in case anyone from work reads this but just know that you all will be fighting over these gifts!

Last item on our mini vacation in memory lane was the iconic Beverlywood Bakery. This is your corner Russian/Jewish bakery for all your challah, bear claw, babka and black white cookie needs. I am of course biased but it’s only because I have been coming here for 20 something years now. Wow does that statement make me feel old! Anyway this black and white cookie is to die for and no matter where I go and try new cookes, this will hands down always be my favorite.

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Killer Pizza from Mars

It sounds like the worst yet best Sci Fi eighties film. And it’s not completely wrong! This pizza shop in Oceanside looks like it is straight out of the eighties and it is absolutely incredible?

This place seems so out of place in this strip mall in Oceanside but let me tell you it is an absolute experience!

It’s alien theme transports you to Route 66, Area 51 or Roswell! The place is amazing and looks straight out of an eighties Sci Fi movie, old school arcade games included!

But is the pizza killer? OH MY GOD you bet! This is definitely not a fancy place by any means and you won’t find anything but your basics when it comes to pizza but it’s just so good you can’t

How did I come across this place? Well my boyfriend is originally from Oceanside and apparently this was one of his childhood favorites. And I can definitely see why! The decor is a nerdy dream and who doesn’t love pizza!help but gobble up every single slice.

If you’re ever in San Diego and happen to hang out in Oceanside Killer Pizza from Mars is the ish!

Sorry there’s no good pictures but like it was so good that I honestly couldn’t even remember to get a shot of it!

10th Annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic

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Mexico City: the travel guide

Mexico City – The Guide

I’ve been to Mexico City several times now and each time I go I discover something new and incredible. The first time I landed in this magical city we hired a driver to get us around the city and take us to the main important things. We only had three days so we were on a bit of a time crunch. I wish I could remember well our full itinerary but I will try and update this as soon as I can get a chance to look at my pictures from our first time.

The second time I came I was on a layover to Oaxaca with my sister. We had only a few hours to kill but thankfully it was early morning and this busy city was still sleepy and quiet. We went to breakfast at an incredibly beautiful place whose name slips my mind currently however, I will update this as soon as I can look back at the pictures.

Fast forward to this week. Again I only had about 36 hours in Mexico City, but I managed to see and experience so much just like the first time.

Monday: We landed relatively early, about 3 p.m. local time. We headed straight to the hotel which was about an hour and a half away from the airport. This sounds like it is really far, but trust me it really isn’t… It’s just the Mexico City traffic. Expect to be sitting in an uber for at least twenty minutes depending on your destination of course, Normally, tourists stay in the hotels close to the city center, however, I was lucky enough to snag a room at the Hilton MexIco City Santa Fe for the 60th anniversary of Barbie (TM). Click here to see the blog post just for the hotel. Later that night we went out to dinner. I’ll name the place but I wouldn’t give it my stamp of approval nor would i recommend going there. Tori Tori is a Japanese restaurant with strong cocktails and a beautiful atmosphere (which I do approve of) but the food was subpar and you could go to any corner sushi shop and eat better for cheaper.

Tuesday: We were up early this morning to get to Toetihuacan which is where the pyramids are. This archaeological site is about an hour and a half away from the hotel we were in at Santa Fe, however if you’re staying in the city center it will only be about an hour. Entrance fee is 75 MXN ($3.85 USD). There are five entrances, we went to gate 5, simply because it was the entrance closest to the restaurant we were going to have dinner at once we climbed the pyramids. There are two pyramids which you can climb, the sun and the moon pyramid, and a third palace structure for the god Quetzacoatl, this was a recent discovery and tours to this portion aren’t ready yet since archaeologists are still diggin up the site! A great reason to come back and visit! Climbing the pyramids is a feat but it is so worth it when you reach the top.

12:30 p.m.: Lunch time! You all know how much I love eating! I have known about this particular restaurant for a few years now, but I wasn’t able to go since we had limited time on the previous trips. The restaurant is La Gruta, it is in an underground cave. It is a spiritual experience having lunch inside this cave. Once you are done eating you can have your waiter light your candle and you are welcome to climb up the stairwell to place your candle in an inner portion of the cave. Lunch here won’t set you back much (approx. $40 USD, for lunch for two people) and you even get to experience a spiritual cleansing ritual!

7:00 p.m.: Once we got back to the hotel we decided to go to the movies. This is by no means a Mexican experience unless you consider spending $15 USD for two people to watch a movie at the Cinepolis VIP a true Mexican experience.

Wednesday: Last day in Mexico City! Always bittersweet leaving but there are always so many reasons to come back and explore. We headed out after breakfast to go check out the Jeff Koons & Marcel Duchamp exhibit that was at the Jumex Museum.It was just as spectacular as you could imagine. Jeff Koons can make bronze look like plastic which is just wow.

This restaurant was incredible and definitely gained its spot as #13 of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants. There is a seperate post just for this restaurant because it deserves it. I even had a celebrity sighting while I was there! Salma Hayek! She was so nice and absolutely stunning! This experience lasts about 3-4 hours since it was a 7 course menu so if you go make sure to keep some time open between any other things you may want to do.

After lunch we headed to the hotel to grab our things and head to the airport. This experience was incredible and there is always something new to explore in this beautiful city.

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sugaring: the down low

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