California Road Trip

On the Way to Yosemite

2015-06-24T22:30:00.000-07:00

I had no idea what I was getting myself into while driving into Yosemite National Park. It was around seven in the morning and we had gotten into Yosemite fairly quickly as there weren't many people about that early in the morning. It was the end of the snow season and it was absolutely freezing. The roads winded back and forth for hours with mountain and endless forest views. I couldn't help but think how amazing it was that pioneers used to navigate through thick forests and between mountains back in the day.

If only I had the courage to slide down the ice deposits!

The view of Yosemite's amazing mountains coming into view!

Although I look extremely tired (I was!) the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. The view was so mesmerizing it was almost difficult to believe it was real. It looked like a real life painting! With barely anyone around at this time of day, we didn't have to struggle to take photos or wait for a bus loads of tourists to unload their passengers. We had this amazing view of nature all to ourselves and it was absolutely fantastic!!!

The Mountain View

2015-06-20T01:23:00.000-07:00

I often see photos of mist and clouds over mountains but I never had the chance to experience the sight myself until recently. Nothing could be more peaceful than just sitting on top of a mountain all by yourself and the people you surround yourself with. We were away from all the tourists (and their ugly giant family campers) and we had this surreal sight all to our itty-bitty little selves. This specific stop was in the mountains of the Sequoia National Forest heading towards the largest tree in the world, the General Sherman. As you will see throughout the photos of my different blog posts, at times the sun was shining and there wasn't any need for coats and hats while other times it was nearly impossible to stand without being completely covered in warm garments!

The first two photos show the sun setting and our Sequoia adventure coming to an end. The next two photos show the amazing mountain top covered in snow and me enjoying the warmth of the sun.

Enjoying the fresh air in the mountains one last time before leaving!! We sat staring at this view for a good amount of time before someone else came and visited the area for a little while. They soon left and we were completely alone again. The sounds of birds that I had never heard before was in the air and the the smell of pine was extremely fragrant!

ATTENTION TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY PROPERLY PLAN AN ENGAGEMENT MOMENT: This spot could be the perfect place to ask your special someone to marry you. See? I just made it easy for you!

Your welcome. :)

Unfortunately we had to leave this amazing place. I did buy a park entry pass for a year though... so don't you think I won't be back Sequoias! BUT... bye bye, for now, Mr. Sherman!! You will be greatly missed!

If you found this post interesting you can see my other posts on the Sequoia National Forest through these links:

1. The World's Largest Tree

2. On Top of a Hill Searching for an Adventure

You can find admission fee prices here.

Be aware that some of the major attractions are closed during the winter times or any other time it snows heavily. Make sure to use a car with tire chains if snow is present, and most importantly be safe and follow the set speed limits. As a biologist and someone who loves wildlife I was saddened to see many people not respecting or following the rules of the park. For this reason I MUST say, please respect the wildlife and all the effort made by numerous ecological biologists and wildlife preservation specialists by staying on the designated trails and do not move items from within the forest in a joined effort to preserve all wildlife and the natural habitat.

If you have any photos of your trip to the Sequoia National Forest, or any other adventure you may have had recently that you would like to share, I would love to see them, so please paste a link down below in the comment section!

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The World's Largest Tree

2015-06-12T00:43:00.002-07:00

Sequoia National Forest, California.

The amazing smell of pine in fresh, crisp cold air is, in my opinion, one of the world's most amazing gifts to us. I was lucky enough to have a chance to visit a place that provides this wonderful gift on top of a mountain elevated 5,000 feet above sea level. In the Sequoia National Forest you are surrounded with all the fresh forest scents, sounds of nature, and have the ability to snag yourself some really amazing Instagram photos while you're at it!

I was freezing, obviously, because it was snowing. There were many people around, to which I tried my best to avoid, all trying to have the chance to see the world's largest tree, the General Sherman. After hiking up a snowy path in the middle of the forest there it was standing proud as the biggest sequoia tree around! Although I didn't have a chance to get a good picture with the tree in the background I have to admit I was really confused upon having seen the General Sherman because it is given the title of the largest tree in the world.

The General Sherman, being 2,500 years old, is indeed the largest tree in the world but not based off of it's height or width and instead it's volume. It's definitely an impressive sight to see, but I honestly expected it's width to be large enough to have a minibus go through it like in some of the tree photos I've seen in the past. Don't be fooled though, this tree has claimed it's place in history and it definitely deserves a spot in the books!

The General Grant was also a sight to see and it was amazing to have the chance to see both this tree and the General Sherman. The comparison between both the trees is difficult to make because both of them are very tall and almost equal in width. If you had limited time in this forest I would recommend making the time to see both of these amazing trees and taking the time to admire what amazing things the world produces. If it's snowing I would recommend driving to both the trees instead of walking because cars were sliding and it can be slightly dangerrrrrous and they are quite far apart from one another.

There is always time for tree time!

For anyone interested...I stayed warm in a Nastygal jacket, a New Look structured wool
hat, and my Forever 21 scarf.

More posts and photos on my Sequoia National Forest trip click on the following links below:
1. The Mountain View
2. On Top of a Hill Searching for an Adventure

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Desert Dreams

2015-06-09T01:01:00.000-07:00

https://instagram.com/hebaakleh/

Joshua Tree, California.

California is well known for it's beaches, but I don't believe people really know it for its deserts and it's amazing sunsets. Just a little over two hours outside of Los Angeles is the Joshua Tree National Park. Although the orangish, pinky, and clear blue skied sunset and the idea of a desert may give the impression that Joshua Tree was warm, I can say with confidence that my fingers were about to freeze off from the chilled air. What is not shown here or in any photo that I have are the sights we saw after the sun had set. On our way driving deeper into the forest there was snow and it became considerably colder, hence my thick Primark Christmas jumper (don't even care :p), the Billabong beanie, and the Russian fur hat.

I paired my Russian hat with a faux fur bag that was gifted to me by my brother. I'm sure the bag had no problem staying warm as it also enjoyed the sunset. :p

It seems like everyone was watching the sunset, including the moon!

You can watch my horribly made video on YouTube of this day. It's nothing much, but it was a practice video as I've never edited or shot a video myself before. You can check it out here: Desert Sunset Video

Heba getting ready to leave this beautiful view in hopes to catch another just over the mountains. As a side note, I personally believe only amazing people drive Mini Coopers so I decided to snag one when I had the chance to do so.

That's the end of this blog post. I really enjoyed this day because it was spontaneous and I was so lucky to have had the chance to see that amazing sunset. California you have stolen my heart, but that's alright. I love you anyway. *proud moment*

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On Top of a Hill Searching For an Adventure

2015-06-07T15:20:00.002-07:00

Fresno, California. On Top of a Hill Searching For an Adventure

During my stay in Fresno, California I tried to look for local things to do. Although there isn't much to actually do in the city of Fresno there are quite a lot of adventures just beyond Fresno that are worth considering.

On my adventure I thought it was a road trip heaven heading to northern California. Most people seem to be extremely interested in Los Angeles but all of California's adventurous possibilities are hidden away in mountains and hills and cannot be accessed through major highways or roads or near any major airports. It's probably best that many people don't know about these hidden adventures because who in the end of the day loves a crowd of tourists?

Also, to any of you that are interested: all of my outfit details will be listed out throughout the blog post.

After an extremely early start (and barely any sleep from the night before) we headed out on the road again. The photos shown here are shots of the view on the way to the Sequoia National Forest. The sun had just begun peaking out and created an amazing halo effect around everything. Although I was extremely tired I couldn't help but take a moment to close my eyes (not sleep :p) and smile. :)

California is well known for being extremely hot, but in the north this isn't always the case. It's absolutely freezing in the morning even though it's not raining and snow is not within sight. I couldn't help but layer up and use some of my vintage pieces to accessorize my outfit. Shown here is a vintage western/Native American inspired handbag to which I ADORE. If you plan on "stealing" this handbag from me the replacement had better be damn right fantastic!

As you can see I'm not exaggerating the freezing wind on the hills as we ascended 14,505 feet above sea level to reach the national forest. I wore my Element dress, my grey sweater from JC Penny, and my Primark blue and white Christmas jumper (don't care what time of year it was- deal with it :p). I accessorized my outfit with a New Look classic wool structured fedora hat. I also added a New Look elephant necklace charm onto a vintage Taurus necklace for my perfect amount of bling.

After finally making it to the Sequoia National Forest we spotted snow (obviously) and the most beautiful trees which forced us to appreciate how wonderful nature really is. We couldn't help but snag a few shots with the first large tree we saw. In the photo above I look rather small compared to nature. The smell of the pine trees and the crisp air was extremely memorable.

Overall, it was an adventure on it's own to get to the Sequoia National Forest. I would recommend the trip there to anyone who has the patience to drive 25 miles an hour for 2 hours straight along icy roads and scenic views.

Many more blog posts to come on my Sequoia National Forest adventure. Stay tuned!

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The Ritz Carlton. Dana Point, California.

2015-06-06T22:33:00.003-07:00

The Ritz Carlton. Dana Point, California.

On my drive down Pacific Coast Highway I came across the Ritz Carlton and I couldn't help but notice this beach area the hotel is surrounded by. As you can see it was such an amazing view and the colors of the sky are those of a relaxing California sunset.

What most attracted me to this little beach area was the hill you had to walk down in order to get to the sandy beach. I quickly understood why the Ritz Carlton is located in Dana Point. Although not shown in the photos, the shore was very clean and quiet. The Ritz golf carts can be used to move guests of the hotel down from the top of the hill where the hotel is located to the bottom near the beach. Anyone can utilize this golf cart, as we did :p, to move to and from the Ritz even if you aren't a guest staying at the hotel. The advantage of this was to avoid walking up the dreadful hill to the hotel and a chance to view the hotel a little bit/enjoy the views that the guests had during their stay.

We were there for only a short period of time and I was able to get a few shots of the sky. It is really a perfect destination for pretty much anyone. It can be extremely romantic or such an amazing time to spend with friends or family. You have to pay for parking and you must be able to walk down the hill in order to get to the beach from the parking lot. Many of the locals walk their dogs on the grassy bits leading to the beach, but beware, no dogs are allowed on the actual beach.There are barbecues for use near the beach and plenty of space to swim around since there aren't too many people as I noted earlier. If you're planning on making it down to Orange County on your road trip in California I would definitely recommend this beach as a MUST on your visit. Depending on the traffic from L.A. I would say it's about 2 hours away if you don't get stuck in traffic (good luck with that!).

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