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Marriott Newport Coast Villas is a fantastic place to vacation.  It is close to so many terrific locations. We were there during a recent heat wave and it could not have been more perfect.  The staff is amazing.  They help out in every way imaginable way. The view is terrific. From every direction the view is picture perfect. Our family was partial to the pool and the pool bar and grill. Now for the location of the property.  It is close to Laguna Beach, Newport Beach, Corona del Mar, and Crystal Cove State Beach.  Disneyland is also about 40 minutes away (depending on traffic). There are plenty of activities at the Marriott Villas but it is centrally located in Southern California.

Disneyland - does a fantastic job of decorating for Halloween!!!  Everything is all dressed up in halloween colors.  Disneyland knows how to celebrate. We were there during the daytime, so I can only imagine how enchanting it would look at night. I love Disneyland!!

San Diego just has so much to see.  So, here is a little information on Seaport Village.  The photo is of the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel.  An exceptional place to stay.  The Manchester Hyatt is at the edge of Seaport Village and in the downtown area too.  The views are gorgeous from all directions. Seaport Village has a lot of restaurants and shopping opportunities.  Also a wonderful place to walk.  All along the water - perfect. The USS Midway is very close too. The area is a delightful place to eat, walk and shop all adjacent to San Diego Bay. This weekend they had some type of triathlon going on and we found this wonderful signage. I love traveling around Southern California.  San Diego is great!!

Balboa Island is one of Southern California's little treasures.  I have always loved going to this island.  One of my favorite things about the Balboa is the bay walk all the way around the island. This photo show just how close everything is - bay, beach, walk way and benches.  This next one show the main shopping street on the island. I love benches and coffee. If you are traveling to Southern California, Balboa Island is a wonderful place to visit.  Either to stay or stroll around.  Marine street is the main shopping area on the island.  There are a few more shops down by the ferry. The ferry goes between the island and the peninsula. Back to Marine street there are a number of places to eat and drink.  And a number of clothing shops and knick knack shops.  All very beach oriented.  It is a beach vacation location. If you take the ferry across to the peninsula it is a very short walk to the ocean. During the hol...

As the sign says Roger's Gardens has nursery, patio, landscape, home accents, gifts, and holiday items.  The Farmhouse is a restaurant located within Roger's Gardens.  The restaurant is fantastic.  Reservations are a good idea. The real beauty of the place are the many paths wondering through the nursery. There are so many little gems like the Farmhouse Restaurant in Newport Beach, it is fun to have a blog to show them off.

What is more perfect than a milkshake and the ocean in the background.  Ruby's Shake Shack is on Pacific Coast Highway between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach.  On a sunny Calif day the view is perfect.  If you are vacationing in the area you must stop by. So if you find yourself driving down the Pacific Coast Highway save room for a milkshake.  Ruby's is the perfect place to stop.

I love Disneyland.  Everyone feels like kid again here.  We were at Disneyland yesterday during the time of the eclipse.  Everyone was either putting on their special glasses to view the event or the were working on seeing the shadow effects.  We didn't have special glasses but a very nice family from Uath let us use their special glasses. The small hole was showing the shadow effect better than the larger hole.  It was fun being in a crowd experiencing the eclipse. I enjoy Disneyland very much always have always will.  Here are some more photos of disneyland yesterday. Not sure if I have already mentioned before in an earlier post, but I love benches.  So of course another photo. More later!

Beautiful!! Yosemite is life changing in its beauty.  I recommend to anyone coming to California to drive through.  It is magical seeing it in person.  It is a perfect place to camp, hike, stroll and just be.  I haven't been to very many National Parks but I don't see how anything could be more breathtaking. I have posted a picture of Half Dome.  It looks a little squished in my post but the beauty of the place comes through.  As you walk through Yosemite Village you have to remind yourself to look up.  Yosemite Village is completely surrounded by spectacular mountains.  So when you stop and look up it takes your breath away. I enjoy writing posts about great places to go in California.  Yosemite is one of them.  I'm just going to add a few more pictures. This is a picture of the mist trail. No words are needed here.

Laguna Beach is such a charming place.  Today I was able to join three swimming friends of mine for lunch at Las Brisas Restaurant on Cliff Drive.  As the street implies, it is on the cliffs and has a beautiful view.  The food and service was very good and in August the weather is perfect for sitting outside and enjoying the beach.  So a wonderful Sunday to enjoy the California Coast. Tomorrow, I plan to have pictures from my walking path.  After lunch with friends, exercise is next on the calendar.

This photo is a picture of Avalon Harbor, green pier and swim float.  I thought it would be fitting to start my first blog with a picture of water, a beach, a pier,  and palm trees all on a romantic island. I have been lucky enough to go to Avalon every summer since I was 5 years old.  I met my husband in Avalon.  So, first blog picture is of Avalon, Catalina Island. Catalina, is an island off the coast of Southern California, about 27 miles from the mainland. This photo shows the bay from the walk up to the bell tower.  You can see private boats moored with the owners enjoying summer.  I've been told that Avalon resembles the mediterranean seaside towns.  After traveling to the Italian coast last year for the first time, I completely agree. So, this is my first post.