Alexa Brooks - Lexagator Loves

Disney World For Disneyland Fans

September 3, 2017 · 15 Comments

The gorgeous Epcot view.. — The gorgeous Epcot view…

My first time in Disney World will be something I’ll remember for while. My husband and I had a deal if I went to Star Wars Celebration we would also spend a few days in Disney World. Of course I ended up loving celebration so it was a win for the both of us. Since we tend to go to Disneyland here in California we wanted the experience to be unique to Florida so we choose both Animal Kingdom and Epcot. Keep reading for some highlights of our trip.

I’m totally obsessed with the new DuckTales cartoon so I am so glad I took this picture! There were dozens of really cool Disney character topiaries all over Epcot which were fun to discover.

I’m a huge fan of Hawaii, Tiki, all things tropical and adorable so visiting the Polynesian Hotel was a must. I wished I was there during the day to take in all the hotel’s splendor but even at night the lobby is enchanting. I spent a moment in their shop BouTiki and bought a cute tropical top for myself and treats for loved ones at home. Next we made our way to Trader Sam’s Grog Gotto downstairs for a pre-dinner drink. As a fan of Anaheim’s cute Tiki bar Trader Sam’s I made sure we had time to enjoy the much hyped Polynesian Pearl. This drink comes in a cute pearl cup from a clam at the bar! Plus I heard there are magical Black pearls that you can get if you are lucky! The drink is a blend of RumChata, Grand Marnier, cinnamon, and tropical juices. Trader Sam’s Grotto in Florida had all the same magic as the California location much more space it was awesome not having to wait outside to get in!

I heard a lot of hype about the restaurant Ohana from everyone I spoke with so we booked a dinner the only spot we could secure at 10pm one night. Maybe it was because we had a late dinner but the pineapple bread was only OK. (The hype was real online for this item!) The bread pudding was quite good and thoroughly enjoyed the family style salad and chicken. Also we were treated to seeing the fireworks from the magic kingdom with piped in music when we arrived and a ukulele sing-along after. I loved the Tiki ambiance but might pass on this next time. Plus I heard you can get many items al la carte at other places in the hotel.

Hovito Mojtio with a "poison dart" — Hovito Mojtio with a “poison dart”

My sister in law and I hit up Disney Springs while my husband spent an additional day at Star Wars Celebration. Disney Springs is like Downtown Disney on steroids, much bigger and a lot more things to do. One unique thing at Disney Springs is that you can ride amphicars, which is a guided tour in a car that rides on land and floats in the water. These are beautiful and really neat to watch but with the price tag of $125, a bit too rich for my blood. As we walked around we took in all the shopping which varied from chain stores to more unique Disney specific shops. I discovered they had the store Basin which is popular for soaps and bath bombs. I personally love their chamomile solid shampoo bars. They are perfect for travel when you don’t have a ton of space. This store actually used to be at Downtown Disney in California but since went out of business.

Jock Lindsey's Hanger Bar Communication Nook! — Jock Lindsey’s Hanger Bar Communication Nook!

For lunch I knew we had to try Jock Lindsey’s Hanger Bar which is a Indiana Jones themed bar based on Jock who was a pilot in the movies. The decor and theme is almost overwhelming with clutter from Jock’s life as pilot inside. We decided to eat on the patio which had a amazing view of the water. I’d been hearing about the famous drink the hovito mojtio which was a pisco drink with fresh lime juice, mint, simple syrup topped with soda water. We also enjoyed some pork belly buns as a snack. One thing I should have kept in mind was keeping hydrated (especially with afternoon beverage) as I think I got overly dehydrated walking around and while Jock Lindsey’s food/beverages were great I went back to the hotel that day with a migraine.

One of the highlights of being at Epcot during the Flower & Garden Festival was some of the cool limited time activities at the park and one of those was a free tea tour put on by Twinings. You meet at the Tea Caddy shop in the U.K. Pavilion to put your name on the list and they give you a couple of laminated cards. The tour is about twenty minutes which guides you through their traditional Tea garden where there are tea cups set up with different ingredients grown for tea. Certainly you could do this on your own but we found the tour delightful. During the tour we learned that the company is 300 plus years old and started in 1706. Some other tea facts below:

Twinings made it through Boston tea party
Our guide was from Wales and noted that while Pumpkin Chai is huge here it is not popular at all in the U.K., in fact before she come to the US she had never had a pumpkin!
Twining forget to copyright Earl grey flavor, so you see it everywhere
Nyle from One Direction likes lemon and ginger flavor
Berry Fusion is their latest tea that has sangria base which is hibiscus flowers that make the pink color
Green Jasmine has no jasmine in it. The green tea leaves absorbs the smell
You can put tea bags in shoes to help absorb any bad smells (our tour guide admitted that stuffing shoes with tea bags is common practice for her back home)

As the tour ended back at the Tea Caddy we were able to try samples of iced tea and bring home a few packets of tea!

Disney is known for magic and I had no idea we’d be picked for a magical experience while at the Animal Kingdom. We only had a half day at this park but since Pandora wasn’t open yet we knew we could get through most of the rides and get back to the hotel in time for our flight. As we were about to end our day we saw that there was a performance available for their live version of the Lion King. We walked in the gates a women saw our buttons that said “1st visit” so she asked us if we wanted a special experience for the Lion King. Of course we said yes and found ourselves front row center to enjoy the show. I was very impressed with this show it’s Broadway level production and the actor/actresses are fantastic. There a few sections of acrobatics that were really entertaining as well. It was bizarre to have no one in front of us during the show and there were moments where the actors were so close I felt like they were singing right to me. If you make it to Animal Kingdom be sure not to miss this show, who knows maybe you’ll get picked to be in the front row too!

Overall, for only two days I thought we saw and experienced many unique things to Disneyworld. I can’t wait to go back and spend more time and possibly stay at Polynesian hotel which is now on my bucket list.

Finding “Wow” from Hawaii in the Bay Area

August 21, 2017 · 8 Comments

When my husband and I went on our honeymoon to Oahu and the Big Island a few years ago I had many things on my list to explore and one was in the north shore and permanent lemonade stand called wow wow lemonade. My husband was like all this fuss over a lemonade shop? We stopped in the shop and we immediately overwhelmed with the flavor selections, all fresh, organic, and most importantly locally sourced. I settled on berry lemonade which was sweet and refreshing plus bought the mason jar glass with plastic straw so I can use at home. Now I have even more chances for refills with wow wow lemonade now available in the east bay.

'Da Lemonade Stand

Similar to the Hawaiian stands they source most of their ingredients from local Norcal farms and stores. They use the strawberries from local farmers market in Alamo. The pop-up rotate flavors and every weekend depending on what is in season. The Sunday I visited they had coconut limeade and Mango Colada. If they had a storefront we would offer more flavors but because they are at a pop up location they can only offer a few flavors at a time because everything is fresh and handcrafted. The most popular flavors are Yee’s mango pineapple and for children under 10 the classic and strawberry are a big hit. Wow wow’s goal is to eventually secured a storefront and then they will offer their famous Acai bowls and smoothies. Honestly I can’t wait for that to happen!

Back in Hawaii the founders of wow wow wanted to create a company that was family focused and gave back to the community. That also applies to the Danville stand where This past year wow wow Danville given back 10% of sale profits made at Sycamore Valley Park to Tassajara Little League and to the Jake Javier Foundation. Wow wow also participates in our children’s school events (the Neri’s have three kids in Danville schools) by giving back in school auctions. All of their employees are local high school or college students.

So Obsessed With the Koosie

As you can imagine not all lemonade stand business is sweet, after all you can’t have lemonade without the lemons. The Neri’s have been trying to get into their own Danville Farmers market for over a year. The Pacific coast farmers market association that runs the market denied Wow Wow stating that they “don’t allow franchises”. It is something they are currently fighting against since Danville owned small business that gives 10% of their profits to help the community.

So if you are in the market for a delicious fresh lemonade please visit Wow Wow Lemonade at their stand in Alamo on Sundays from 9am-1pm.

Wow Wow Lemonade Danville Facebook

Wow Wow Lemonade Danville Instagram

5 Things I Learned At My 1st Star Wars Celebration

June 26, 2017 · 7 Comments

This past April my husband and I attended the Star Wars Celebration conference in Florida. The deal was we would attend this as long as we could spend a few days in Disney World as I was dying to go but have never been. I learned right off the bat that the Star Wars fan community is absolutely incredible, featuring people from all over the world that vary in age from little ones all the way to folks in their 70-80s. The Star Wars stories/characters have deeply touched us and the opportunity to walk among them at the conference tied everyone together. It’s not something I realized until I got there and met fans while waiting in line for a panel which brings me to the first thing I learned at my first “celebration.”

Get there early

At 11AM each day was the main “keynote” panel with the most popular being the last Jedi panel (where they debuted the new movie trailer). The first day we got in line at 6AM thinking that we might be able to get in to the main panel but learned that people had been sleeping at the convention center overnight to get a spot! Luckily two of the big main panels (the opening 40 years of Star Wars and The Last Jedi) had overflow rooms where it was live streamed on huge screens. Initially I was bummed out but since I have no desire to sleep on the convention center floor getting there early was the only way. Being in the streaming room had a major benefit which I’ll talk about later in my post too. We learned that there was some mix-up in the queue too where people that spent the night didn’t even get in due to the staff’s mistake! But they said it was a great experience otherwise wise and when the director of the last Jedi came to greet fans waiting they got free pizza autographs and pictures! Apparently he stayed three hours! So the moral of the story is get there early and be prepare to wait in line. We brought a chair and a blanket to sit on. Once the convention center opened we were led into another room to get into another main queue where we would get wristbands. Then my group took turns getting out of line to go to other queue for other panel wristbands later in the day. This was a great method as we pretty much saw everything we wanted to see. Highlights were the Mark Hamill Carrie Fisher tribute panel where we were about 4-5 rows back from the stage. We got in line 2 hours before the panel! It was such a sweet tribute and noticed quite a few tears in fans eyes. The other panel I loved was the Ray Park (Darth Maul) panel and the Billy Dee Williams panel.

Bring snacks, water, cash, and chargers

If you plan to go to the panels, especially the first keynote ones there is a lot of waiting in line. I ran out of water on the first day and waited 30 minutes to attempt to get to a water from a vending machine behind a patient storm trooper (his card kept getting declined). The moral of the story is bring extra water and cash for these frustrating machines. The snack department I had the forward thinking to make protein balls, trail mix, fruit snacks, RX bars, and Square Bars. We usually didn’t have lunch until 1PM or 2PM each day because we were attending the big keynote at noon and the snacks helped us from getting too hangry. My whole group each brought a external battery cases for our phones AND a battery grid. So key because the battery grid could charge our friends phones and devices!

Smooth Talkin' With Billy Dee Williams — Smooth Talkin’ With Billy Dee Williams

Utilize eBay and Hotel Shipping

I mentioned earlier about a special treat if you can get into the streaming panels which was limited edition Star Wars posters. I wasn’t expecting these at all and it was a amazing treat which made all the attendees feel special! One poster was of the last Jedi and the other was a numbered Carrie fisher tribute poster. Since my husband snagged these as well decided to list mine on eBay. In about a hour I sold them to stoked fan in Washington! It made me feel happy that someone else that couldn’t be there could enjoy them and I sold them for a fair price. My hotel had a USPS so I shipped them out that day. I noticed many attendees used this usps to ship home collectables and we ended up using it too. Makes a huge difference not to lug items on the plane!

Spend some time on the showroom floor

Star Wars celebration showroom floor is humongous! I think you could literally spend days there and not see everything. There were booths from Funko, Disney, Stance, Hallmark and more which featured Star Wars related items. The are Cosplay groups on the floor like the 501st Legion which is a international organization dedicated to the construction and wearing of accurate replicas of Star Wars costumes! The Legion now has over 10,000 active members worldwide, with over 17,000 approved costumes among them.

There is also another group called Mandalorian Mercs which is is a worldwide non-profit Star Wars costuming organization comprised of and operated by Star Wars fans and volunteers. It is the elite Mandalorian costuming organization. This group is a bit different from the 501 legion as they encourage members to make their costumes with their own personal touch to the costume. Example: we saw a Merch with a Chicago Cubs themed costume! Many of these costumes are based on Boba and Jango fet.

Another costume and booth I loved was Stormrunning. He is a fellow from the UK raising money for Make a wish all while running in Stormtrooper costume. He had a treadmill set up at celebration and his goal was to run 4 day back to back half marathon challenge! During celebration he raised $5,100 towards his $10k target. It really shows how amazing and generous Star Wars fans are. He took the time during his break to talk to my husband and I and was a really delightful person!

Meet some cool people… in line

I think you can figure a theme here, there is a lot of waiting and down time at celebration. But, there is a ton of opportunity to meet amazing people during the wait. For example while waiting to get into the exclusive Star Wars celebration store (the wait time from start to finish was over three hours!) we met a family from Indiana. They were regulars of Walt Disney world and since we were spending two days there they unloaded all their tips! While in line we worked on our itinerary and made dining reservations! They were so kind to share all their tips!

All and all I really had a great time at Star Wars celebration and hope I can attend in 2018!

Amazing Desserts From the Hilton Orlando

May The Zen Be With You: Zenfit In SF

May 17, 2017 · 12 Comments

door

If you have been following along I have been loving trying new fitness studios in the Bay Area. A new studio that just jumped on the scene is Zenfit just north of the financial district in North Beach.

Zenfit is more than a workout to me, in the several visits I have left lighter and more relaxed, something most workouts cannot claim. The work out is a blend of bootcamp, yoga, and ends with meditation all in 55 minutes. On different days you can get a varied workout as Mondays are focused on arms and abs, Tuesdays are gluten and legs, Wednesdays are full body, Thursday is chest, back, and legs, and Friday is legs and abs. Saturday and Sunday are focused on full body.

studio
The workout room is dark and candlelit which as soon as I enter I become more relaxed and able to focus on the upcoming workout. There is also a beautiful angel wing light installation on one wall that changes color. Near that wall are cubbies so you can easily stash your stuff. This is me is less stressful than lockers and there always seems to be room for ALL my stuff which includes my huge backpack with laptop and purse.

Check in at the front is also a breeze where there is also a dedicated bathroom and retail area. I love the tanks and I even bought one of their essential oil rollers. The scent includes bergamot, chamomile, ylang ylang, lavender, clary sage, and vetiver. It’s supposed to help ease anxiety and was exclusively made for the studio by a Bay Area yoga teacher. I appreciate the opportunity to be able to support local businesses.
Wings
After you stash your stuff the instructor will tell you what equipment you will need. It can vary from yoga blocks, bands, and weights. There are yoga mats neatly set up for your workout station. The session starts with a dynamic yoga stretch then moves in to the bootcamp portion which can include squats, burpees, and more to get your heart rate up. Even though the bootcamp portion is fairly quick (20 or so minutes) I always end it sweaty and ready for more yoga. I love that we do specific yoga moves and long stretches that target the areas we just worked. It feels very efficient. Then we sit on our mats while the instructor lightly sprays some essential oil throughout the room to meditate. The instructor guides us for these last 10-15 minutes to focus on the breath. My mind always wanders with noise of buses, etc so I have to really focus my mind back on the breathe which I think is a healthy thing to be able to do. Once the class ends you are invited to enjoy a quick cup of tea with your classmates after. I have left the class a few times with some new connections which is a nice thing to say in the busyness of SF!

Tea
The deets
Zenfit
1020 Kearny St, San Francisco, CA 94133
$23 first class
10 day unlimited $39 that includes 2 guest passes
$29 a session
5 pack $135
10 class pack $260

Explore & Chill In Carmel

May 10, 2017 · 12 Comments

A few months ago my husband mentioned that his photography teacher would be hosting a workshop in the Monterey/Carmel area and that he and our mutual friend were planning to attend. Since it made most sense to split a room three ways I decided to tag along to enjoy that beautiful area while they were snapping photos.

We chose the amazing Hyatt Regency in Monterey due to points and we really enjoyed our last visit. We battled Friday traffic and arrives late that evening happy to cozy up my their fireplace to enjoy a quick bite. It was also nice that they had a little jazz trio playing too which feels very rare for that area.

We woke early the next day to quickly workout then my husband set off for his photography adventure. I took my time getting ready then decided to head into to Monterey for breakfast. During my yelp search I found a place that boasted fresh banana bread and acai bowls so I had to try it! The Aloha Coffee and Cafe was started by Richard and Mai Dunnunk after they had a brief stay in Hawaii. While in Hawaii they fell in love with Kona coffee as well as acai and specialty waffles. I ordered a acai bowl and one of their homemade banana bread slices to cozy up by the window with my kindle. I loved both, the bread was warmed and reminded me of the Royal Hawaiian banana bread. The cafe had a cute modern feel that boasted a free wi-fi. Not a place to be in a hurry as most items are made to order but I would highly recommend for a nice breakfast.

I had a afternoon tour at the Tor House so I spent a few hours wandering downtown Carmel but I’ll get to that in a second. The Tor House offers tours on Friday and Saturdays with admission being $12 for adults and $7 for children. The home was built by hand by poet Robinson Jeffers in 1918. He gathered huge granite boulders (which the home was known for) were drawn by horses carriages from the little cove below the house. The design was modeled after a tudor barn in England and was set low to the ground to withstand winters.

Later in 1920 Jeffers decided to built a tower for his wife that he called Hawk Tower. It was completed in four years and was built by Jeffers entirely. Many celebrities were guests of the Jeffers family in the Tor House. Among them were Sinclair Lewis, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Langston Hughes, Charles Lindbergh, George Gershwin and Charlie Chaplin. Later visitors have included William Everson, Robert Bly, Czeslow Milosz and Edward Abbey.

It was overwhelming touring this site with the beauty of Carmel, Jeffers’ poetry, and realizing he moved these giant boulders himself . Even more crazy I was the only person on the tour! That made it even more special and I had to pay attention the whole time.

I spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around downtown Carmel. The town is famous for unique art galleries and upscale boutique shopping. I checked out several art galleries, boutiques, and my personal favorite the Cottage Of Sweets.

One of my favorite art galleries I checked out that day was the Rodrigue studio. This gallery opened in 1991 and features art of the the big blue dog by George Rodrigue. Rodrigue is from Louisiana and you see the blue dog every where in New Orleans so it was fun for me to see the art closer to home. George and his wife Wendy met in Carmel in 1997 and have a home there when they aren’t in Louisiana.

Once my husband was done with his photography adventure we had dinner reservations at il Grillo (which means cricket in Italian). The restaurant is owned by Emanuele and Anna Bartolini and was opened in 2015. The menu focuses of rustic Italian food. The couple also owns La Balena which is another lovely Italian place in Carmel. il Grillo is lovely and completely cozy only a few small tables so not great for a large group. You also must make your reservations in advance and be willing to eat late (our reservation was for 8:30).

We started our meal with burrata toast. The picture do not do the toast justice, it was lovely. For my entree I had the ricotta gnocchi with kale. The gnocchi had amazing texture and taste! So yummy. But let’s be real I was kinda saving myself for dessert. We settled on a plate of their delicious Italian cookies. My favorite was the raspberry thumbprint cookies. With full bellies we went back to our hotel to crash and take off early back to the Bay Area the next morning.

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Disney World For Disneyland Fans

Finding “Wow” from Hawaii in the Bay Area

5 Things I Learned At My 1st Star Wars Celebration

May The Zen Be With You: Zenfit In SF

Explore & Chill In Carmel

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