June 20, 2016 - Best Trips for Dads & Daughters and a visit to Downtown Los Angeles

Elisa's Daily Scoop

5 Great Dad-Daughter Trips

NEW DAY/NEW WEEK!!

Had a great day yesterday celebrating Father's Day with the family.  We certainly lucked out with the weather.

Brunch was fantastic!!! I'll be telling you all about Chat Noir this coming Foodie Friday.
​

My sis and me with Dad (c)travelincousins.com

Grandpa and 3 of his grandchildren (c)travelincousins.com

In honor of Father's Day yesterday, let's take a look at Five Great Vacation ideas for Fathers and Daughters...

1. Beach Lovers
If your dad is a beach lover, a trip to the Caribbean is ideal for some great R&R.  Of course, if you are both on the active side, sunning and swimming is perfectly matched with snorkeling, fishing and diving!

2. The Great Outdoors
There are so many ways to enjoy nature together. A trip to one of the National Parks provides a plethora of outdoor experiences including hiking, great scenery and wildlife sightings.

For more adventure, try camping, which can provide quiet evenings for cooking and bonding together over a campfire.

Yellowstone North Rim Drive (c)travelincousins.com

3. Young at Heart
Who says you have to be a kid to enjoy a theme park vacation.  Disney and Universal can be even more fun as an adult with Dad, reminiscing about when you were Daddy's little girl.

Try visiting Disney World in the Fall during the Food & Wine Festival in Epcot, where you and Dad can eat and drink your way throughout the various country pavilions or hit the Speedway in Tomorrowland in the Magic Kingdom!

4. Wine Lovers
If you and your dad are wine aficionados, Napa Valley or even the North Fork of Long Island are the perfect destination for non-stop wine tasting.

Tomorrowland Speedway in Disney World's Magic Kingdom (c)travelincousinsn.com

5. Small Town Getaway
Sometimes the best vacations are the relaxing kind to a small town with all the comforts of home.  A bed and breakfast or family-run inn can be the perfect setting for a cozy vacay.

One of my favorite getaway destinations, several hours from New York is Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Home to a number of quaint little towns including Lititz, PA, which is filled with down-home comfort food and away from the hustle bustle of the big city.   

Today, the kids start their last week of the 2015-16 school year.  Two half days today and tomorrow and than only 2 hours on Wednesday for the final day of the term.  Wow - this year went by super fast!!

I know they are super psyched.  I'm even more excited that I do not have to make and pack lunches this week!

Have some more interesting information to share with you tomorrow about Croatia for Travelin' Tuesday.  

See ya back here!

-E
xoxo 

Tanya's Daily Scoop
NEXT TRIP DEPARTS IN: 12 DAYS

Hi Guys...
Happy 1st Day of Summer!

In front of the Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

Yesterday was the HOTTEST day of the year...and today is suppose to be ever HOTTER! 

Ugh - I don't know how I'm suppose to deal with this. And then Tuesday is suppose to be back down in the 80's (that's already hot enough in my book). As Dave puts it "the fever is gonna break"!
 
I personally wouldn't mind if we skipped summer altogether. I much more of a winter gal.
Bring me some snow and gimme my skis!! 

Last year at this time, on the day after Father's Day I was heading to Oslo, Norway on my journey to meet up with Elisa for our European Rail Trip.

Oslo in a Day for the Solo Traveler

Oslo, Norway (c)travelincousins.com

And to bring you quite a bit more current, yesterday we went to a lovely yummy breakfast at The Grain Cafe -

Breakfast time! (c)travelinscousins.com

And then spent the rest of Father's Day trying to keep cool.

​Our next stop was the Grammy Museum, which was so much more than I could've imagined.

The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

It was a great music filled, be boppin' few hours.

There were also plenty of fun interactive displays which really caught our attention and brought out the kid in all of us, as well as a wonderful Otis Redding exhibit - boy did that guy have such a great attitude, awesome talent and some amazing energy! ​

The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

Michael Jackson's Jacket - The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

To be honest with you guys (which I always am), I had quite a bit more fun than I had even imagined that I would at this museum.

Too much fun! The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

The Line Up - The Grammy Museum (c)travelinscousins.com

But then we stepped out into what felt like an over and were immediately BAKING!

​We didn't have far to go for lunch which was also downtown in the Grand Central Market -

Grand Central Market (c)travelinscousins.com

However our originally planned lunch stop - Ramen Hood had just closed (early), and I needed a back up plan - which I didn't have, but very quickly came up with one!! 

With food options GALORE but not necessarily vegan food options, I remembered that a vegan friend had recommended Golden Road Brewery - which had a location right inside the Grand Central Market.

So we strolled over there, placed an order to try lots of the available menu items and were quite happy with our selections...although the pretzels were rather salty!

Grand Central Market (c)travelinscousins.com

​After lunch we headed back out into downtown LA out the back entrance and found out that we were directly across the street from Angels Flight, a Los Angeles landmark funicular railway and “the Shortest Railway in the World” located in the Bunker Hill district.

Angels Flight (c)travelinscousins.com

Back in the day, Bunker Hill was one of the most fashionable neighborhoods in Los Angeles and the cars, Olivet and Sinai, ferried prominent citizens up and down the steep slope between Hill and Olive streets.

Angels Flight (c)travelinscousins.com

Originally built in 1901, as the Los Angeles Incline Railway, Angels Flight began at the west corner of Hill Street at Third and ran for two blocks uphill to its Olive Street terminus. 

• BUILT IN 1901 AND OPERATED TO 1969, THEN 1996 TO 2001

Then...

• MONDAY, March 15, 2010
  HISTORIC ANGELS FLIGHT™ RAILWAY REOPENS

Shortly after the reopening, Dave and I were lucky enough to visit and take a ride!

Angels Flight (c)travelinscousins.com

Angels Flight (c)travelinscousins.com

​But now it is currently listed as permanently CLOSED! 
CLICK HERE for more information on this historic landmark.

And now as far as today goes, aside from having to deal with extreme temperatures, we have the choir year end celebration party to attend this evening.

I'll be back tomorrow to let you know how well I survive...but chances are I'm gonna wilt today.

Ciao,
​-T