Birthday Fun

Another year down!  Yep, that is right, I was lucky enough to have another birthday under my belt. Oh man, I felt like a little kid in a candy store. There are so many things to do in LA, just an endless option of funness. I thought that San Diego would be a fun trip, or maybe Disneyland or maybe the Hearst Castle, who knows! However, with the release of Titanic in 3D, I thought that going to see a ship similar to it in real life would be the best bet.

We started the day with a big run in the sun then headed over to Porto’s. As you have probably read from other posts, this place is absolutely amazing. It’s like a well oiled machine, super efficient, super cheap, and super delicious.

With chocolate croissants and coffee in our bellies, we headed down to Long Beach to check out the Queen Mary. I have always heard about it from shows like America’s Most Haunted, and Top Places to See Before You Die and I really wanted to check it out.

It was sunny and gorgeous and all I could think about was how I just wanted to get out a deck chair with Catching Fire and sun bathe

Infirmary, deck, death aboard, captain's quarters

The ship itself was so much fun! Seeing all of the original decks and art deco salons sends you back into time where you just want to listen to some Dave Brubeck and watch a Judy Garland film.

One of the tours that you are able to do is the Ghosts and Legends tour. It is a little bit cheesy, but it is more affordable than doing the one at midnight with a psychic. Since the Queen Mary is now a floating hotel that has been through 1,000 voyages and has seen war, it is no surprise that there are reportedly over 150 spirits lurking about the ship.  

First class hallway

One of the spots that we stopped at was the first and second class swimming pool. This area is now closed off to guests except on tours; however, it is never truly empty. In the first class swimming pool, which has been closed for several decades, there have been several sightings of women in 1930’s swimming suits wandering the decks near the pool. Wet foot prints have been seen going around the pool and into the changing room, along with the sounds of laughter and splashing.  

One of the ginarmous propellers under water

After several hours walking around the ship, we decided to move on. We headed into the downtown part of Long Beach to go see the house used in the show Dexter. It is a private residence, but I couldn’t be this close to it and not check it out for myself and all the creepiness that I know went on in it…even if it was just for TV

Dexter's House

Following the sight of Rita’s death, we ventured up to Sprinkle’s Cupcake in Beverly Hills for my birthday “cake”. Again, there was a crazy long line. The ATM was temporarily shut down so that they could restock it with the delicacies.

Brown Sugar Pralines, Banana, Peanut Butter Chocolate, and Blake Lively’s S’mores. Since we had not eaten anything else but the croissant earlier that morning, we had to hold off on these babies for a bit.

From top left to right: Banana, Brown Sugar Pralines, Peanut Butter Chocolate, S'mores



Now for some real food. Swingers. Swingers is this amazing little diner over on Beverly. It’s an all day diner with lots of vegan options. I needed something green in me ASAP. The vegan cobb salad did just the trick.  A perfect portion of greens, grilled tofu, vegan cheese, crispy onions, avocado, tomatoes, carrots, corn and tahini dressing. Of course onion rings were order for a starter. We didn’t want to be too healthy now did we?