We love traveling, give us more spare time and more money...... and we will be doing a lot more of it. Been to many interesting places but as we both are passionate about design the choice was quite simple.
1. This came as a surprise to us as well that Los Angeles would capture our hearts and make our number 1 spot as a holiday destinations this were a city that has a lot more to offer than we originally thought when it comes to architecture, as home of Frank O Gehry and some of his masterpieces like the Walt Disney Concert hall the to die for villas in the hills, and all those shops with perfect interiors and staff along Rodeo drive. We also went to Santa Monica Beach. And had a look in one of the many thrift store that sells costumes from TV Shows and movies. For such a huge city it was surprisingly calm and relaxing. A very nice summer holiday spot with something for everyone's liking.
Here we stayed at the magnificent Thompson Hotel Beverly Hills. Rihanna had just been there a few weeks before us to open this new hotspot. How fabulous is that. See pictures above.
2. It was a tight squeeze between the top 2 destinations. San Fransisco definitively deserves a mention. We loved it here as much that we often talk about maybe making it our home for a year or two.It had that homely feel to it, not to big, not to small, not to pretentious. We loved all the sights, shopping, the combination of the different parts of the city which such different feels and atmosphere to them. We stayed both in the Kabuki in Japan town and the Mandarin Oriental in the financial district, where we stayed on the 39th floor with breathtaking views of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz. Of course we took a trip Sideways to the wine country. We strongly recommend Sanaoma (neighbor valley to Napa) as a destination on its own. We visited the Sebastini Winery.
Although we did not stay at this hotel I liked it a lot, and want to stay there next time, especially since it is just down the street from the art gallery SFMOMA, which I really loved, but unfortunately I could not get any tickets for the Frida Kahlo exhibition, as it was sold out for days. It is the St Regis Hotel, see pictures below.
3.If fancy a romantic weekend in dramatic Reykjavik, we strongly recommend the 101 Hotel, cool design, central with lovely local food, good wine and atmosphere. We actually got a really good deal through Elle Interior for the trip, when the hotel just opened in 2004. We do recommend visiting the Blue Lagoon on the way to the Airport, to re energize and pamper yourself before leaving this fantastic island of Geysers, Glaciers, Volcanoes and home to Bjork, which would be essential to have on your i pod for the journey.
