Kelocity.com

A runner with an appetite for adventure!

An Evening in Downtown LA April 5, 2012

Filed under: Downtown,Food,Friends,Los Angeles — Kelocity @ 9:33 am
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Last weekend, Irving and I joined our friend Erica for a night on the town. We parked the car and spent an hour or so taking pictures at the Disney Concert Hall, then saw Green Day’s American Idiot, and later had dinner at one of downtown’s hotspots. It was awesome! We don’t spend nearly enough time exploring that area of LA and it was so fun to take it in as a tourist.
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The concert hall has so many great shapes and hidden corners, it photographs so well!
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Some of these pictures were taken by Erica, she’s got a great eye! Thanks Erica!
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Everyone needs a friend like this girl, she’s always game for anything. =)
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Soon-to-be Family of Three!
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When “Operation Photoshoot” commenced, we headed over to see the show! I am a huge Green Day fan so I was VERY excited to see the musical.
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Though it wasn’t quite what I expected (I was hoping for a little more of a plot), I still loved the music, the set and the performances. Baby was dancing inside there too!

Finally, we headed over to Bottega Louie for dinner and ‘drinks’. I started with the Green Tea Mojito (virgin, of course) and it was AMAZING! It tasted alcoholic and warranted small sips. It even had the authentic muddled mint at the bottom. So good! While we waited for a table, we drooled over the amazing bakery items. All of them looked straight out of a fairy tale.
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I ordered a simple pasta dish that honestly tasted like something I’d be served in Europe. It was PERFECT. The right amount of sweet with a little bit of salt. Totally fresh and cooked to perfection. Loved this!
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Irving got the Kobe Burger that also looked fantastic.
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I’ll be back there again soon! Especially for that mojito (and a macaroon!).
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What a night!

 

Holy Weekend, Batman! November 23, 2011

Filed under: Dining Out,Downtown,Friends,Galaxy,Los Angeles — Kelocity @ 7:06 am
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Hello world! What a crazy week so far! We’ve been going non-stop. Friday we went to Burbank’s Holiday Open House where stores and restaurants open their doors and offer free drinks, snacks and goodies. We met up with Erika and Timmy and explored some stores we hadn’t heard of before. Such a fun way to kick off the weekend.

Saturday morning, we met up with Erica for breakfast and a walk. Here’s a preview of the Banana Peanut Butter Crunch pancakes we all split for “dessert”. (Yep, those are Oreos on there).
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After a walk around a new neighborhood, we cleaned up and headed an hour north to a beautiful wedding in Camarillo.
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The setting was just gorgeous, it was at an old farmhouse. We had a blast and enjoyed the evening chatting with friends.
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But the cake! Oh, the cake! Each table had its own cake and it was love at first sight. It was everything you could want in a wedding cake. Rich, sugary buttercream frosting, chocolate cake, strawberries inside. All wrapped in a shell of white chocolate. I went back for an extra smear of frosting.
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On our way home, the 101 freeway got completely shut down just a few cars in front of us. We turned the car off and it took almost an hour for them to open up one lane again. Ridiculous.

Sunday morning, we got up and headed to the LA Auto Show downtown. We are thinking of replacing one or both of our cars in the next year or so it was a great opportunity to scope out some contenders. We were actually impressed by what we found. We have lots of research to do now.
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Sunday was POURING in LA. The rain came down in thick wet sheets. The kind of rain that has big droplets that soak you to the bone. On the way back to our car, we both stepped in a huge puddle and our socks and shoes were soaked. But we had to keep truckin’ because next up was the Major League Soccer Championship game! We got tickets months ago before we even knew which teams would be playing. Luckily our LA Galaxy made it in and we were excited to be in the stadium.  Our seats were not covered and we spent four hours outside looking like this:
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We made the best of it though and enjoyed the game. We were in the third row in the corner and had great views of Donovan stretching before the game.
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And then the game began! LA vs. Houston.
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Oh hey, David! Bend it like Beckham!
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In the end, we won 1-0 and the field erupted in celebration.
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And remember that trophy that we saw last weekend in the mall?
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There it is! Now officially in the hands of the LA Galaxy.
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Did you watch the game on ESPN? This game was like the superbowl of soccer. So cool to be able to see it in person.
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After, we did what any normal person would do after sitting in the rain for four hours…. we went to Chili’s for dinner. haha

I’m exhausted after typing all that. Looking forward to Thanksgiving! Safe travels during the holiday, everyone!

 

The October Recap! November 3, 2011

Filed under: Food,Friends,Los Angeles — Kelocity @ 8:25 am
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Hi friends! Sorry, I know it’s been a few weeks since blogging last! I’m here! We’ve just been insanely busy. We haven’t been home for more than two weekends in a row since the beginning of June. Now that it’s November, it’s starting to catch up with me. I’m excited to stay put for a couple of weeks now.

But let’s rewind. Back on October 22, we went with our friends Janet and Noah (and baby) and Erika and Timmy (and baby) to a pumpkin patch up in Simi Valley. Irving and I started this tradition years ago and called it “The Fall Festival of Love”.
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We had a great time walking around the farm and seeing all the animals. They had all kinds of animals to look at and feed.
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Even though it’s 90* in LA, who says you can’t at least pretend it’s fall here?
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We attempted to find our way out of the corn maze, but six adults and two kids wasn’t enough to figure it out. We got lost for half an hour and then decided to walk back out the entrance in favor of grabbing lunch instead. HAHA Maybe next year!
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We had a GREAT time with our friends enjoying the morning together.  (PS. why didn’t we get a group picture?!)
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One weekend later, we took the Amtrak train down to San Diego to meet up with Jake and Janie (Irving’s aunt and uncle). We spent the weekend relaxing by the pool, taking walks along the beach and exploring Coronado Island. (I know, tough life, right?)
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While New England was getting a blizzard, we were napping poolside. My mom and sister kept texting me pictures of the snow.
(I know it was mean, but I texted back a picture of a palm tree). haha
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The rest of our weekend was spent watching this guy. He talked back to us and mimicked our actions, it was so cool!
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Finally, Halloween night was a BLAST. We had some friends over and hung out before walking around the neighborhood.
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Doesn’t your trick-or-treat night look like this?
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There were parties in the streets, DJs spinning in front yards, haunted houses to enter and plenty of awesome decorations to see.
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This guy had a whole pirate ship in his front yard!
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We had so much fun walking around with our friends. We were out for two hours and could have done a couple more, but we were getting tired.
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So there you have it. The cliff-notes version of where we’ve been for the past few weeks. Regular blogging should return soon.

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The winner of the Football Snacks giveaway is Janie! I’ll notify you via email. Thanks!

 

Iris: A Party for the Eyes October 5, 2011

Filed under: Hollywood Events,Los Angeles — Kelocity @ 10:08 pm
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Irving and I love going to Cirque shows. Vegas is known for its out-of-this-world shows with dazzling costumes, incredible acts and gorgeous sets.  We’ve seen Zumanity and KA and really liked them both. It’s always the highlight of a trip to Sin City.
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But now we don’t have to drive four hours to Nevada to catch an amazing stage show. Hollywood now has its very own resident Cirque show. Introducing: IRIS.
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We’ve been itching to see this show since we first heard about it two years ago. Unlike the shows in Vegas, IRIS didn’t have a building designed around the performance. Instead, they had to use the existing space inside the Kodak Theater and retrofit it to their needs. It was a three year process that involved a $40 million excavation project to create room for the sets they had in mind.
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The two hour show is comprised of human artists, mechanical props, film, light, music and sound all interacting with each other in the most magical way you can imagine. The execution is flawless and you really are transported out of reality and into a whimsical world that will catch your breath and hold it til the very end.
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There are 72 cast members, 200 costumes, 20 projectors and more than 300 stage cues throughout the show. There are times when you don’t know where to look because there is so much going on at once. You can look left, right, up or down and your eyes will be fascinated with what they can see.
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The acts were impressive, it is truly amazing what the body is capable of. It’s the human aspect that really impresses me. There is risk, fear and adrenaline involved in all of the performances. It’s the “how do they do that” questions that mesmerizes the audience.The circus has evolved into a fantastical and glamorous occasion and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the marriage between people and technology. 
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The above image represented a film strip. The actors all moved in identical unison and it looked like you watching a movie. IRIS is located in the Kodak Theater which is in the heart of Hollywood. The whole show is about the evolution of the movie industry and it made me giddy to witness it right where the magic originally happened.
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One of my favorite acts was the Cops and Robbers sequence. It plays out like a Dick Tracey skit. The good guys and the bad guys in battle with each other. The pursuit of justice and the evasion of getting caught. I won’t spoil the details in case you get the pleasure of viewing it live, but trampolines were involved and it was so cool to watch!
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After the show, I was invited to join a blogger’s Q&A with two of the performers, Andrew and Kevin Atherton. They are identical twins who perform aerial tricks on the straps together. They both got involved with gymnastics at age 7 and joined Cirque when they were 24. They were with Varekai for 8 1/2 years before joining the cast of IRIS. In those years, they never missed a single performance due to sickness. These guys really love what they do and you can tell they are very proud to be a part of this show.
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They talked about how what they do does involve a bit of risk, but they trust each other with their lives. They said that some people dream of being able to fly and they get to do it for a living.
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The performers get a lot of freedom to choreograph their own acts and the music was added later. Danny Elfman, who has scored numerous blockbuster films (The Hunger Games, Alice in Wonderland, Chicago, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) also scored IRIS. It must have been quite a challenge to not have locked video to work with like he was used to. The music was such an important role in the show and it was very well done.
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IRIS will be playing in the Kodak Theater for more than a decade and I already can’t wait to see it again. The performances evolve over time and no two shows are alike. As cast members are added, new talents will be written into the show. Whether you’re an LA local or a visiting tourist, it’s a must see. For tickets, visit www.cirquedusoleil.com/IRIS .

PS: I went to Circus school last year to learn how to swing from the trapeze! Click here for my pictures! What do you think? Should I audition for Cirque?

 

Tickets were provided to us, but as usual, all opinions are my own.

 

Ghetto Klown: Call your Bank and Press 2 October 4, 2011

Filed under: Celebs,Hollywood Events,Los Angeles — Kelocity @ 5:59 am
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“If you want to learn Spanish, call your bank and press 2”. That was my favorite of the many great jokes we heard John Leguizamo tell Sunday night during his performance of Ghetto Klown. We were invited to the press opening of of the show, which has just come off Broadway. Irving and I are both huge fans of John Leguizamo and were really excited to see him back on the stage.
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Ghetto Klown was written and performed by John himself. He weaves hilarious stories of his youth in with his tough family history as he struggled to become the person he knows he wants to be.
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John comes from Latino descent and growing up in Jackson Heights, New York was far from easy for his family. He’s a great writer and knows how to tell a great story. When he talked about the harder moments in his life, it was almost uncomfortable to watch. As if he brought you inside a life that you weren’t supposed to see. But that is one of the reasons that makes the show outstanding. It was real. It was raw. It was personal. And he’s brave enough to share it with the world.

I don’t even think this show can be reviewed as a show. You can’t review a person’s life. His stories opened up his vulnerable side when he talked about how he was at war with himself, torn between his personal and professional life. Finding that balance and believing in himself.  I especially loved hearing about his experience in Romeo + Juliet since it’s my favorite movie. He even acted out some of his lines from the movie. I got chills.

The stage was phenomenal. At first it didn’t look like much. Just a desk, a few chairs and projector. But the way the space was used was really unique and impressive. He intertwined video, slides and sound effects to make the stories come to life for the audience.

The theater house, The Montalban Theater, is old and gritty, located in the heart of Hollywood. I can’t think of a more perfect venue for a show like this. The show runs through October 16th and tickets can be found here.
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I love the concept of “Everybody has a Story” and it’s always a treat to hear someone tell theirs… and tell it well. It also makes me reflect on my own life. What’s MY story? What actions along the way have defined my life? Any play that makes you ask yourself questions like that is a winner in my book.