First Stop - Santa Monica 

Santa Monica is a nearby neighbourhood from LA. From beautiful sandy beaches, fun amusements at the pier, gourmet restaurants and nearby hiking trails, Santa Monica is somewhere you want to make a stop for your road trip.

What We Did / Ate

There are so many things you can do here in Santa Monica, and of course, all the iconic spots/ scenes you can recall from numerous Hollywood movies. Just spare some time walking around this neighbourhood, grab a beer in one of the restaurants, people watch and enjoy. 

For Lunch, we opted for the Big Dean's Ocean Front Cafe where they served DELICIOUS burgers and fries. After lunch, we started driving down to Solvang.

Solvang is a charming little town with plenty of Danish heritage. Located in the Santa Ynez valley, it also has easy access to many vineyards in the area.

What We Did / Ate

There are many small local wine cellar, Danish bakery, windmill, souvenir shops, B&B, etc... in the area. With only few hours before dinner, we strolled around the main streets and grab some quick Danish snacks.

Afterwards, we visited the Old Mission Santa Ines which was established over 200 years ago tracing back to early Spanish settlements in the area. Not sure if it is just me... but it kind of reminded me of some scene from Westworld.




For dinner, we went to First & Oak which gave us an amazing tasting menu experience. Staff were very helpful and knowledgeable; the food was imaginative and incredibly delicious. Not a bad start to our trip huh!

Source: http://firstandoak.com/

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