San Francisco on the Cheap

It wasn't quite as cheap as the $14 Jet Blue flight that we took last time, but we were pleased as punch to pay $48 for our Virgin America flight to San Francisco in late April.

If you haven't flown Virgin America yet, do it. Do it now. Now, I said! It's like Jet Blue on steroids -- everything great about Jet Blue but even greater. It is hands down my favorite airline ever.

With its lavender neon and ambient music, the Virgin America cabin makes you feel like you should've brought your light sticks and ecstasy.

Even without any chemical help, however, you'll be in ecstasy thanks to the great entertainment system.


We arrived at our $1 hotel late that night. Yes, $1 for a room that's usually $339.

During his frequent perusal of travel blogs and other travel-related sites, Mr. Monkey came across an "April Fool's deal" offered by The Orchard Hotel. For a few select Fridays, you could book a room for just $1. Mr. Monkey was no fool. He snatched up a night immediately.

Between this and the $48 flight, we just had to go to San Francisco even though we'd gone just a few weeks before.

The Orchard Hotel was lovely. I took this photo the next morning when it was light out.

As I stepped back to get a better shot, I tumbled off the curbed and sprained both of my ankles. Both. The doorman watched in horror as I fell. I totally ate it, but my camera came out unscathed -- even as I collapsed, I held up my little baby. Must. Save. Camera.

I wore ankle braces the rest of the trip. Sexy. And it wasn't even a good photo. Stupid.

At least the $1 room was for real. See?

By the time we'd settled in, we were starving. It was past midnight. We had no choice but to go to Lori's Diner, a nearby local chain that was open and surprisingly busy.

This was called "San Francisco's Best Corned Beef Hash" ($10.95). I don't think so.

Side of sausage. Palatable enough.

The "Taco Ole Omelet" ($10.50) with vegetarian chili, avocado, salsa, monterey jack cheese and sour cream.


Yuck.

Still, we were happy. $1. San. Francisco. Hotel. Room. Yeah.

Next: An atrocious deli, flying car parts on the Golden Gate Bridge, and a woodsy walk.

Nickel and Time Warp

The Nickel Diner's red storefront pops amidst downtown's gray concrete.

The interior hearkens back to simpler days.

The restaurant buzzes with hustle and bustle. Service is brisk but pleasant and polite. Currently, The Nickel Diner serves only breakfast and lunch and is closed Monday and Tuesday, but there are plans to add a dinner and late-night menu.

Scrambled eggs, bacon, Italian sausage, potatoes, pepperjack cheese, avocado, and salsa comprise the Hangover Helper ($9.50). The dish is hearty and delicious, and the salsa is quite magnificent.

The bacon, spinach, roasted garlic, and goat cheese scramble ($8.50) will also delight any breakfast fan. The creaminess of the goat cheese pairs wonderfully with the savory bacon.

Having opened in late August, The Nickel Diner is off to a lovely start. We look forward to the addition of evening eats.

Reliable Standard Fare

With all the light streaming into the loft this morning, you'd think I'd wake up earlier than 11:30.

Nope.

Today was all about relaxing. We did a really good job of it. After rolling out of bed, I walked to The Standard with Mr. Monkey for brunch. For the record, Mr. Monkey had been up for hours, but he was vewwy vewwy quiet while I slept. He is the bestest.


I have always loved the look of the 24-hour diner at The Standard in all its sunny bright yellowness.

Mr. Monkey ordered a large fresh watermelon juice ($6). We got the last glass available, which wasn't quite full, so it was on the house.

We shared an appetizer of Moroccan crab and artichoke cakes, mint yogurt, and tiny mixed greens ($12). Fabulously fresh and meaty.


I got the Spanish frittata with chorizo, onion, tomato, and jack cheese and mixed greens ($14). Loved this. A lot. The onions were especially good -- sweet and caramelized to perfection.


Mr. Monkey chowed on the pesto chicken sandwich with arugula, tomato, and mozzarella ($12). Good sandwich, although it could've been a tad more flavorful. We both added some Tabasco to our respective halves. (Yes, we split everything!) The fries were, as always, hot little sticks of awesomeness.

'Twas a yummy way to start my late-starting day.

Girls on Film

I haven't had a girls-only weekend since my bachelorette weekend, so this weekend was a welcome diversion, especially in between two tough workweeks. It was only fitting that we went to San Diego, just like I had two years ago for my bachelorette weekend.

Several girls had gone down to San Diego on Friday, and a few of us joined them Saturday. My Saturday started out with a trip to Albertson's with tater and CBB for bottled water. $3.99 for 24 bottles of Crystal Geyser! Score!

The rug sale outside was most intriguing. I really wanted CBB to crouch down to pretend to be a cheetah, but tater's mimicking of the woman was the best I could do.

The very thoughtful CBB did, however, take this opportunity to give me the cutest little belated birthday gift -- a Paul Frank key cap! I love that she understands that I don't like just any monkey. Some people can't seem to get this into their puny little heads. I like Julius! No other monkey will do! Thank you, CBB! I love it!

When we arrived at Hotel Solamar, we were greeted with personalized goodie bags made by a few of our OC friends. Inside these bags were candy, a muffin, and a personalized tumbler. So cute and perfect for our weekend!

Hotel Solamar was pretty cool. I liked our room very much.

After we got settled a bit, we headed out to the pool to hang out with the girls who were already there.

We dined on a bunch of tasty goodies in our cabana.

Pool activities varied. Some were active.

Some were not.

Some defied classification.

Pool time was followed by short naps, chilling out with magazines, and/or chatting. Room 406 was having a nice quiet little afternoon until it was attacked by a bunch of wild animals!

Hotel Solamar has interesting bathrobes, to say the least. I was laughing so hard during all of this! Eventually, we Room 406ers put on our animal-print robes, too, and we took a group picture with Katie's tripod cam.

Then it was time to get ready to go out.

I'm not really sure why, but everyone in this room wanted a photo with me.

In the hall, on the way to the elevator, we saw the Grossest. Sight. Ever.

We waited in the lobby for some laggers.

Then we headed to an Irish pub for grub.

Dinnertime is fun with these girls!

Cat and LYB were particularly expressive. Why? "It's my thing!"

Outside the restaurant, we convinced a hapless pedestrian to take our picture.

10Years and APK were delighted to discover the Philippine Library Museum.

The Gaslamp District is great because you can walk everywhere.

Altitude Sky Bar and Garden Lounge was our first destination.

It had a great view...

...fun bartenders who made delicious drinks...

...popped collars...

...iPod commercial-like screens...

...and good times!

When we got outside, Young Love was accosted by a tall woman who was ecstatic to run into another tall woman.

Funny enough, the weird tall woman was accompanied by a short friend, so that short friend and our very own Mrs50% jumped into the photo, too. Hilarious.

Next stop was the Hard Rock rooftop.

We were intrigued by this girl's failure to commit to her daring fashion choice. If you're going to wear a plunging neckline, do it. Don't wear a crappy white cotton racerback underneath it.

Mrs50% had a blast dancing on our little mattress.

But she was dejected when she was told she couldn't.

No mattress-dancing notwithstanding, more good times ensued.

Post-Hard Rock, some of us went for late-night eats, and some of us opted for more late-night festivities. It's not hard to guess which group I joined.

Maryjane's Coffee Shop was exactly what our late-night-eats group needed.

Here's the Piggy Group in our hotel lobby after the late-night foodfest.

The Piggy Group then further split up into the Sleepy Group and Go-Out-for-More-Fun Group. Can you guess which group I opted for this time?

My dear roommates and I retired to Room 406 for a good night's rest; we were the lightweights who went to bed at 2:00 a.m. So began our happy title of Drama-Free Zone. The heaviest discussion we had that night was whether we were night or morning showerers, and then we created the Clean Bed and the Dirty Bed. (I was in the Clean Bed, in case you were wondering.)

I woke up around 9:45 a.m. briefly and then went back to sleep and then woke up again not long after around 10ish. Everyone was still asleep when I went to take my second shower. I'm weird like that. Near the end of my shower, I got a knock on the bathroom door, telling me to come out. When I came out, we had visitors! We all had a good time chatting, laughing, and drinking much needed bottled water before we all got ready for the day.

A few girls had left earlier that morning (without saying goodbye to Room 406 -- for shame!), but the rest of us had our last meal together in San Diego at Broadway Taco Company.

My carnitas and carne asada tacos really hit the spot, and the carne asada fries across the table from me were pretty damn good morning-after treats, too. The only things that would've made lunch even better were (1) air conditioning and (2) no crazy old lady poking us in our backs, asking whether or not we were "staying here," whatever that meant.

Bellies filled and bodies hydrated, we bid each other adieu and headed back home to reality. I'm so weak-sauce that I'm totally tired now, but I'm elated I got to spend time with these girls before my crazy workweek begins again.

Awesome weekend. To those who couldn't make it, I missed you. To those who did make it, thanks for getting me out of my rut. I really needed this. Hugs to all!