With year-round perfect climate and unparalleled natural beauty, Southern California provides the ideal backdrop for rekindling the spirit and pampering the body.  The recent worldwide spa explosion is exemplified in San Diego,which boasts a bevy of spas with top-of-the-line treatments, first-class services and indulgent amenities. These luxurious escapes can be found throughout the region nestled against the dramatic Pacific coastline, perched high above the glittering downtown skyline, tucked into the Cuyamaca Mountains and set amidst the serenity of  lush inland canyons. Get ready to soothe your senses, inspire your soul, invigorate your step and energize your spirit. They don’t call this the Sunshine State for nothing. READ MORE (pdf download)
friday flashsback: unwinding in san diego
spa break: la costa
In what has become a cherished January tradition, I’m ducking into the spa at La Costa for a day of steam, massage, lunch, and sunning myself under the orange trees. Wake me when the cold snap in the northeast is done and dusted, please. Then again, don’t bother.
fit for a president
With panoramic views of San Diego’s surrounding cityscape and bay, the spacious Penthouse Presidential Suite at The US Grant is a rooftop aerie worthy of a President’s Day seal of approval. Built by Ulysses S. Grant, Jr. in honor of his father, the Civil War hero and 18th President of the United States, the hotel is one of the most historically significant locations in southern California. Added onto the hotel in 1939, the penthouse was originally built as a radio station, making its historical mark as the site from which President Franklin D. Roosevelt broadcast the first ‘fireside chat’ outside of the nation’s capital. Boasting a dining room, a separate salon, and an executive desk tailor-made for issuing edicts with a flourish, its presidential bona fides gets a further boost from having hosted 13 of this country’s Commanders-in-Chief.
live blog: the difference between ooh and ahh
Starbucks’ new 31-ounce Trenta iced beverage has finally made it to The Big Apple, following a successful rollout across America’s Frappuccino-starved Heartland. Is it me, or does Trenta make the already oversized Venti cup look downright demure in comparison? Oh, and the difference between ooh and ahh: that would be an additional seven inches ounces.
