I got to get away from chilly San Francisco for a bit, on a little road trip through SoCal to celebrate mine and Spouse’s 11th wedding anniversary. It never ceases to amaze me how diverse the terrain and climates are within my home state, and on this trip I got to see some of the desert regions for the first time. We started off in Palm Desert for a friend’s birthday party and made our way back up north from there, stopping at Joshua Tree, LA, and Ojai along the way. Here’s a little photo dump and some highlights from the trip.

The town of Joshua Tree was this weird mix of big commercial business like a massive Walmart and then some quirky new age crystals stores. We stayed inside most of the time because it was so freakin hot! We only got to visit the Joshua Tree National Park at sunset and in the morning, because it was just so obnoxiously hot in the middle of the day. I would love to go back at a cooler time of the year to see more; there were so many interesting looking cacti and rock formations that I wish I had a chance to spend more time with without sweating out my entire body’s water content.

We stayed in the most perfectly decorated AirBnB in Joshua Tree that I did not take any good photos of but here is their Instagram. It was a millennial pink dream. We joked that it was haunted because a high pitched sound would emit from the hallway toilet at random times and the shower would start dripping in the middle of the night even though we never used it. Having a house ghost to keep us company in the middle of the desert somehow felt fitting.

Having a couple of days in LA felt really nice after a wild weekend in Palm Desert with our friends and melting away in the barren landscape of Joshua Tree. Oolong was especially relieved to be in LA where there were lots of grass patches and interesting flowering shrubs, after totally hating her time in the desert (hot sand, no grass, and the plants were all out to stab her). We stayed in Silver Lake, which is my favorite neighborhood in LA. The Silverlake Pool & Inn was so aesthetic and such a great location for nearby cafes and restaurants; Spouse spotted Steven Yeun at the Erewhon Market next door!

As usual, our time in LA revolved around food, including ordering Howlin’ Ray’s for delivery through Postmates and finally getting to eat a Bestia after years of trying to get a reservation there. Our meal at Bestia was INCREDIBLE and exceeded expectations. For a shared main, we ordered a slow roasted lamb neck with creme fraiche and baby gem lettuce. It arrived as a whole big meaty, simply-seasoned hunk of neck at our table, which we were instructed to eat by making mini lettuce wraps (like ssam!). I just thought this was such a unique presentation that really allowed the natural flavors of the ingredients to shine.

If you are looking for a place to get boba in Silver Lake, I think that the teas at Pine & Crane are super underrated. A strong tea flavor and not too sweet!

Ojai was so charming and everything I imagined it would be. A cute little town with lots of thrift stores, boutiques, and restaurants with beautiful patios; we spent an afternoon just walking around the main strip, popping into shops, and then getting some takeout to eat back in our Airstream. We stayed at Caravan Outpost, which is a collection of perfectly decorated Airstreams on lush grounds that feel like a desert oasis. I recommend staying here but I wish they provided some pots/pans and dishes to make use of the kitchens inside the caravans; I had packed dishes but not cookware so we had to look for a pan at a thrift store.

Do you have questions about Joshua Tree, Silver Lake in LA, or Ojai? Leave them in the comments below!