Check-In to the Notorious Cecil Hotel in LA - Guest Post on Spooky Little Halloween

The Cecil Hotel in DTLA
[image source]

Last year I shared the 5 Spookiest Haunts in Orange County on Spooky Little Halloween's blog as part of her Travel Tuesday summer series. This series is really neat since it features many different Halloween bloggers sharing haunted locations from all over and it is just in time for summer vacations! I participated again this year, and my contribution to Spooky Little Halloween's Travel Tuesday features another dreadful destination right in the heart of downtown Los Angeles.

This time, I'm inviting you to check into the old Cecil Hotel (which is undergoing renovations and has been re-branded to Stay-on-Main to distance itself from its violent reputation). This historic landmark has a dark history filled with grisly murders, tragic deaths, and macabre mysteries, and is said to be one of the most haunted locations in LA. It has hosted serial killers (yes, plural), been the location of one of LA's most disturbing deaths in recent memory, and the dark halls have even inspired a season of American Horror Story. Check out an excerpt from my article on the Cecil below, then head to Spooky Little Halloween to read the rest of the article:

5 Spooky Haunts in Orange County, California - Guest Post on Spooky Little Halloween

Spooky Little Halloween is one of my favorite Halloween blogs, so I was very excited when I was invited to write a guest post for SLH's summertime #TravelTuesday feature. I decided to stick close to home and write about five spooky haunts in Orange County, featuring historic and haunted cemeteries, a mission home to several ghosts, a creepy canyon, and the "happiest place on earth" where many choose to spend eternity.

Here's a little taste from my article:

Spooky Travels: San Diego Mini Get-Away

San Diego's Museum of Man at Balboa Park

Apologies that I have not been updating as much as I would like here, but things have been so busy lately (in a good way) that I haven't had much spare time to do things I enjoy, like write here! I did want to share with you a mini get-away I was able to take last month. I recently got promoted at work, so I decided to treat myself to a quick weekend get-away in San Diego. San Diego isn't very far from me (about an hour and a half to two hours), but I hardly ever get down there. I had been wanting to try some new vegan restaurants down there, so I booked an AirBnB for Mister Spooky and I and we took a Friday off to visit SD.

Travelogue: Forests, Ferns, and Food on the Lost Coast and Beyond (Part 2)

If you haven't already, please check out Part 1 of the trip!

 Fern Canyon

The next day we drove up to one of the most magical places on earth, Fern Canyon. We got an early start from our cozy AirBnB, and drove up the 101 through foggy coastal landscapes, sunny prairies normally full of elk (sadly, we didn't see any), deep blue lagoons, and so many evergreen trees! Fern Canyon is located deep within Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, and from the 101 freeway you have to drive about 10 miles on dirt roads (and ford several small streams) to get there. It's an adventure from the start! What exactly is Fern Canyon? This description from the Redwoods website says it best: "Imagine walking through a narrow canyon where the walls are completely covered by luxuriant ferns and mosses and are dripping with moisture."

Yup, those are ferns covering the canyon walls, with trees creating a lush canopy

on the cliffs above.

I mean, just take a look at this place and try to tell me it's not heaven!! Fun fact: Steven Spielberg filmed some scenes from The Lost World: Jurassic Park in this prehistoric-looking canyon!

Travelogue: Forests, Ferns, and Food on the Lost Coast (Part 1)

I found heaven on earth! This is the Fleener Creek Trailhead on the
 Lost Coast near Ferndale, CA.

Sigh...can I please go on vacation again? A few weeks ago I had the loveliest of road trips up to Northern California's Lost Coast with Mister Spooky. We left in the dead of night, zooming up the empty freeways while blasting Perturbator, Morrissey, Make Them Suffer, Chelsea Wolfe, Carpenter Brut, and Lorna Shore. Our first big stop (besides rest areas and gas fill-ups) was Oakland, where we had the pleasure of breakfasting at Timeless Coffee Roasters (so much good food I had to put it all in a separate post HERE!) and taking a short stroll through the historic Mountain View Cemetery.

Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, CA

Then we were back on the road, driving the 101 freeway up into the redwoods and to our final destination of Ferndale, California. I actually grew up in the "Victorian Village" (so called for all of the gorgeous Victorian homes) and my Nonna (Italian for grandma) still lives on the sprawling ranch where I spent my youth. My parents recently moved back up there to take care of her, so I was excited to see them all. Plus, the ranch is very remote (you have to take a small road from town, then it's another five miles up a dirt road to get there) and there is nothing for miles and miles but trees upon trees (in other words, heaven). I loved growing up there surrounded by nature, and I'm not sure why I ever wanted to leave. Nevertheless, I was pretty pleased to have the opportunity to visit and share this special place with Mister Spooky.

Restaurant Review: Timeless Coffee Roasters in Oakland, CA

Timeless Coffee 

On our road trip up to NorCal for vacation, we drove through the night so we could arrive at Timeless Coffee Roasters in Oakland, California for breakfast! It was my first time visiting Timeless, and even after a long night of driving, I was soooooo excited to finally try out this all-vegan cafe that serves up breakfast, baked goodies, and, of course, coffee!

Loved the interior of Timeless!

We arrived around 9am, and the place was packed, with a long line at the counter. That only gave us more time to ogle the pastries behind the counter (such cakes! such pastries! so many other goodies!) and admire the cute decor. Gah, if I lived in Oakland I would be here every day!

Restaurant Review: Millennium in San Francisco, CA

I finally made it to Millennium in San Francisco! Toasting with an 
Ingrid Bergamot signature cocktail!

Millennium in San Francisco has been at the top of my vegan bucket list for a loooong time, but for one reason or another I just never made it there. With the news that the restaurant would be closing their current location permanently by May 1st, 2015 (newsflash: they recently announced they are raising funds through a Kickstarter campaign for a new location where they may re-open as early as this summer!), I didn't hold out much hope that I would ever be able to visit this historic vegan restaurant (they have been open since 1994!). However, as luck would have it, I needed to travel to San Francisco to go wedding dress shopping for my sister, and one of the first things I did after finalizing my trip was to book a reservation at Millennium!

31 Days of Halloween: Apple Festival in Julian, CA

Cute roadside pumpkin patch!

This past weekend I finally got to cross something off my bucket list...a trip to Julian, California to visit their world-famous apple orchards and attend their 100+ year-old apple festival! I have always wanted to visit Julian during the fall, when the colors on the leaves are changing, temperatures are cooler and the apples are ripe for picking!

Mister Spooky and I were actually visiting San Diego for a concert, and so did a little sight-seeing / food-eating there before heading up into the mountains to Julian. Our first stop on the way down was at Stone Brewing Company, a craft brewery that makes Arrogant Bastard and other awesome beers (that also happen to be vegan, huzzah!). When we arrived, we grabbed a few beers from their awesome bar and strolled their beautiful grounds. I got an Autumn Maple brew from The Bruery and sat in a shady spot overlooking their turtle pond - it was bliss! We then took a tour of their brewery where we learned all about their production and even had a beer tasting! So fun! For lunch, we dined at their restaurant since they had vegan options (huzzah again!)! I had the vegan tempeh shepard's pie and it was delicious!

NYC Travelogue (Part 2)

Yesterday I shared part one of my trip to New York City, and below you will find the continuation of my travelogue!

We left off after I had eaten myself silly through Manhattan and Brooklyn, strolled through Central Park and attended the goth/industrial Triton Festival...

NYC Travelogue (Part 1)

Hello Foolish Mortals,

I apologize for my absence…I am usually chock full of updates this time of year (the most wonderful time of the year!), but I recently got back from vacation and then got overwhelmed with work, etc. upon my return. I wish I could be permanently on vacation (doesn't everybody?)!

Since I can’t be forever on vacation, I wanted to share with you my vacation to New York City I took earlier this month! Mister Spooky and I jetted off to NYC for Triton Festival, a goth/industrial music festival held every year there. We've always wanted to go, and this year we decided to do it! Below you'll find my travelogue of the trip, though I want to share so much that I'll be breaking it down into several posts over the next few days.

Our vacation began with a red eye flight on Wednesday night that got us to New York in the early morning on Thursday. Our friend that lives there was gracious enough to meet us and show us the ways of the subway back to his place on Wall Street, where we stowed our luggage and went off to explore! The streets of Wall Street were eerily empty and hauntingly beautiful just as the sun was rising. Then we hopped the subway and ended up in the East Village near Sustainable NYC, so I took a look around at this adorable eco-shop and grabbed a vegan muffin to go!

White Trash Weekend at Hicksville Trailer Palace

Three trailers at Hicksville Trailer Palace - 

The Ingratrailor, The Fifi and The Lux

I finally got the chance to go back to Hicksville Trailer Palace for a friend's birthday a few weekends ago! I positively adored celebrating my own birthday there a year and a half ago (read about it here), so I was super-excited when our friend (go check out his web comic dot problems!) rented the whole place in honor of his birthday!

Hicksville is a small resort tucked far off the beaten path near Joshua Tree, California. They feature amazing restored Airstream trailers, each decorated in a different theme. They have a pool, archery, BB guns, fire pits, ping pong, a library, a jukebox loaded with cool tunes, and much more for their guests! I love going there and relaxing in the gorgeous desert! 

Let's start at the beginning of the trip, shall we? We went to Hicksville in late July, so I knew it was gonna be hot, hot, hot! I packed a cute sundress, new sunnies, and a witchy hat to protect my paleness from the sun, plus tons of sunblock (I use Trader Joe's cruelty-free 50 SPF sunblock spray, which is cruelty-free and vegan)!

I'm Back with Vacation Photos!

Hi boils and ghouls! I know, I know...long time no post. So much stuff to catch up on! I apologize for my absence...I was on vacation the first week of January (during which I had my birthday...yay!), but when I got back home I came down with the death flu that's going around and was pretty much out of commission for a week and a half. Then I had my belated birthday party to host and lots of work at my jobby-job to catch up on...leaving not much time for blogging!

I'm back now, and will definitely be posting more often in the coming weeks!

For my first post of the new year, I wanted to share some photos with you of my trip up to Northern California. Mister Spooky and I headed up there to visit my family and have a second Christmas. We headed up the 101 Highway early, early one rainy morning and got up to Napa County early afternoon. During our week stay we ate awesome food, hung out with my family, went on hikes, visited tons of old cemeteries and even did a day trip out to Bodega Bay.

Here are a few pics of the trip (if you follow me on Instagram - thespookyvegan - many of these may look familiar)!

Sunrise on the road

The beautiful tree (and presents) at my parent's house! They 

postponed Christmas so we could spend it together :)

 Cutest owl gift tag / wrapping paper from my sister

 Squeeeeeeee....got the Trick or Treat book!

Some more neat books I picked up on the trip.

 Creepy angel in a mausoleum - Tulocay Cemetery, Napa, CA

 Sunset in the cemetery - Tulocay Cemetery, Napa, CA

Gorgeous monument at Tulocay Cemetery in Napa, CA 

Tulocay Cemetery, Napa, CA

Annnnnnd this is how I spent NYE...wearing my old dinosaur

costume from when I was a kid! RAWR!

 We went to the Petrified Forest near Calistoga, CA (I had lived in the 

area for years and had never been) and it was pretty cool!

This area had been excavated to uncover the massive petrified tree

to the left in the photo.

Awesome found graffiti at the Petrified Forest - Go Vegan!

 1800s Pioneer Cemetery at Bothe-Napa Valley State Park

 1800s Pioneer Cemetery at Bothe-Napa Valley State Park

On the trail at Bothe-Napa Valley State Park

In honor of my birthday, I share with you this pic of me on my 2nd bday :)

 Finally made it to Ike's Place (Santa Rosa location)! Got their 

Vegan Ugly Owl sammie and OMG it was soooooooo delicious!

 Also tried this at Ike's...it was like drinking a peppermint stick! NOM!

Old abandoned Haunted House (or what's left of it) - somewhere

on the road to Bodega Bay

Old cemetery we found on the way to Bodega Bay

Had an amazing four-course fancy dinner at Jole in Calistoga, CA.

Jole isn't a vegan restaurant, but their chef created a custom vegan

four-course menu for me! It was so delicious!

 The view from this place was unreal! I could see all of the valley!

Spring Mountain Road, St. Helena, CA

 Old Pioneer Cemetery in Calistoga, CA 

I had never been to this cemetery, so I was excited I finally went! 

Lots of old, old tombstones that you could barely read anymore.

 Oh hi there! Me in the Old Pioneer Cemetery in Calistoga, CA

 Still my favorite grave...."Darling" in St. Helena Cemetery - 

St. Helena, CA

It was a much needed getaway for both me and Mister Spooky and I'm so glad I was able to see my family and just relax!

Halloweentime 2012 at Disneyland

Hiya boils and ghouls! Apologies for the absence after Halloween, but my family was in town so I was busy hanging out with them and taking some well-deserved vacation time to boot! And what do you do when your family visits SoCal during Halloween? Take them to the Happiest Place on Earth, of course!

It has become an annual tradition to visit Disneyland around Halloween with my family and it is my favorite time of year to visit the park (obviously!)! All their Halloween decorations are so cute, they really showcase their villains and both Disneyland and California Adventure are made to look spooky for the holiday. This year we went on Halloween Eve (October 30th), so it felt even more special to go on the day before Halloween. The park was surprisingly empty, the weather was gorgeous and we took our time enjoying both Disneyland and California Adventure.

Below you'll find photos from my day at Disneyland featuring lots of their Halloween decorations!

Yay! Halloweentime!

The Great Mickey Pumpkin welcomes everyone on 

Main Street

 Festive display on Main Street

Scream Team sweatshirt

So many amazing-looking treats! (of course none

of them were vegan, though...boo!)

Walt, Mickey, the Castle and Pumpkins!

 The Halloween Tree in Frontierland

The Halloween Tree plaque honoring Ray Bradbury

More Halloween Tree!

Halloween carriage in Frontierland

More spooky cute (but non-vegan) noms!

 Frontierland was set up with all kinds of cute Halloween

decor and activities, like this pumpkinhead

Just look at those adorable Halloween banners!

 Vinylmation Halloween 2012 Mickey

 Maleficent (my fave Disney villain) in 

Sleeping Beauty's Castle

Ghost Micky lanterns, gummi candy corn, pumpkin ears!

California Adventure had a great Frankenweenie 

exhibit up...hopefully I'll do a separate post on it soon!

 Trick or Treat Minnie

 A pumpkin carver in Frontierland

Festive signs leading the way to Halloween goodies

 Favorite place! Haunted Mansion, all decked out

for The Nightmare Before Christmas

 More Mansion madness

 Rawr

Pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere!

Such adorable hats, all featuring a Disney villain!

 Halloweentime at night

 Love the Haunted Mansion at night! We were the

last ones they let on for the final ride at closing time!

It was so cool to ride without a crowd!

 The Halloween Tree at night

 Jack Skellington pumpkin

 Love, love, love the Disney balloons! They had a 

spiderweb design on them, too!

This store had ravens in the chandeliers and tons

of Halloween decorations along their top shelves

Witchy Minnie

Another display in Frontierland

 Sleeping Beauty's Castle all lit up at night

Until next time, pumpkin Mickey!

It was a great day and even though I didn't take pics of their vegan offerings, their veggie gumbo in New Orleans Square is vegan and there are tons of other noms you can find throughout the park that are vegan too! Mainly, though, I wanted to feature all the cool Halloween decorations the parks had out. 

Hope you enjoyed and I certainly can't wait to go back next October!