Posted by Nicole

Yesterday was such a busy day! My normal weekend routine includes sitting around, doing homework, watching TV, hanging with friends, and going out at night. This Saturday was a lot different, but in a good way.

I woke up nice and early (8:50), took a shower, and had breakfast while waiting for my friends to meet me.

I read comics while I ate and saw a funny one that reminded me of my sis.

Change “cookies” to cupcakes/icecream/froyo and it basically describes our life. Sorry, Mom!

Soon enough, I hopped in the car with my friends and we were off to hike to the top of the Hollywood sign. Along for the ride was my friend Allison (who I’ll be living with next year yayyy!!!!), James (lives on my dorm floor), and Jordi (James’ roommate from Spain that plays for the USC tennis team).

We saw some pretty sites along the way…

So many palm trees

And the scientology celebrity center. CREEEEPPPYYY.

The weather cleared up and it was sunny out by the time we reached the hike entrance.

Up we went!

Me and Allison ^

James and Jordi ^

The whole gang. And some wind.

Then we went back down and got some better pictures.

The hike totaled to about 3.5 miles and it was a great day. Side note: If you’re planning on hiking to the sign, go early because it gets packed in the afternoon. We reached the top at noon and there were already tourist groups on the trails.

After the hike, we quickly decided on a place to eat lunch. Our choice:

The Oaks Gourmet

1915 North Bronson Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90068

At first I thought that The Oaks Gourmet was a place to buy wine, beer, and cheese.

Luckily, the market also had a bakery and kitchen! They had a lot of great options on their menu, and the food was delicious.

Allison and I decided to split two dishes.

Roasted Beet, Sherried Fig & Humboldt Fog- Golden Beets, Baby Spinach, Toasted Walnuts, Fuji Apple, Roasted Beet & Poppy Seed Vinaigrette- $10

The salad was good, but neither of us were fans of the beets. It was my first time trying figs and I was impressed! I’ll have to experiment with them in the future…

The real winner of lunch was our sandwich. The menu had more than one vegetarian option, but I’m sure glad we chose this one.

Fresh Veggies on Cranberry-Walnut Toast- Cucumber, Avocado, Tomato, Shaved Fennel, Red Onion, Artichoke Hearts, Sprouts & Chive Cream Cheese- $9

It was AMAZING. All the veggies went perfectly with the fruity, dense toast. And any sandwich with cream cheese is a winner in my book. Definitely recreating this!

(James and Jordi got burgers, and they said they were amazing. I didn’t take pictures.)

We headed back to school, Allison and I attempted to watch “Crazy Stupid Love,” but ended up napping. I slept for 2 hours straight on a couch… Guess I was tired?

The rest of the day was fun too, but I’ll post about that a bit later.

Hope you’re enjoying your weekend!

- Nicole

Q4U: Have you ever hiked to the top of the Hollywood Sign? If not, favorite hiking place!?