Travel

Two parades and a movie house

 in General Fashion / Travel  tagged holidays 2025 / long beach / outfits / seal beach by

pictured: street scene Seal Beach before holiday parade / pesto pizza from “Slice of New York Pizza” on main street in Seal Beach / wearing: sunglasses / earrings / stripe tee / jeans / sneakers / nail polish / handbag / tote bag /

My daughter was marching in two holiday parades, so I made a quick trip down to Long Beach to cheer her on! The first parade was the holiday parade in Seal Beach. We parked in the beach lot and walked to Main Street where people had already set out chairs two rows deep by 3pm. So, we went back to the car, got our chairs from the trunk, and set up our third row spot. This was a crowded and festive parade!

Thankfully we were right in the middle of the fun and across the street from a pizza by the slice place, so dinner at our chairs it was! The pizza was yummy and we waited patiently for four hours to watch the parade. We brought our heavy coats and blankets since it gets quite chilly once the sun goes down.

If you plan to go next year, get there early with your chairs!

pictured: holiday decorations Belmont Shores in Long Beach / sushi from @Sushi / cookies from Foodology / wearing: sunglasses / earrings / black tee / scarf / jeans / sneakers / nail polish / handbag / tote bag /

Holiday parade number two was in Belmont Shores, Long Beach. After learning from the night before, we got down there at 2pm. Although there were signs stating no chairs until 4pm, people had claimed the front row by 3pm. Thankfully we were prepared and right there with them! We enjoyed a sushi meal near our chairs and then warm, freshly baked cookies at our chairs. What a fun parade!

Pro tip: free parking outside the beach parking lots. Loved that!

wearing: sunglasses / earrings / sweater / nail polish / jeans / handbag / sneakers /

OK, no trip to Long Beach is complete without fan-girling just a little bit. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is one of my favorite movies, so we found Ferris’s house and snapped a quick tourist pic in front of it. Hopefully the owners don’t mind. We were super quick and stayed on the street.

What I learned from this road trip: Arrive to parades four hours early to get good spots for your chairs. Bring water bottles and enjoy eating at your chairs. Wear sneakers since you will be walking a small distance with gear from your car to the spot you squat in. Have fun and make sure your phone battery is charged!

Looking forward to next year!

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you enjoy the holiday parades this year in your area.

XOXO

Cathy

pictured below: phone case / coffee and brunch at Zuzu’s Petals in Long Beach /

Hershey Antique Auto Museum and Hershey Gardens

 in General Fashion / Travel  tagged central pa / hershey / outfits / Pennsylvania by

wearing: sunglasses / earrings /scarf / coat (old, similar here) / nail polish / handbag / sweater / jeans / sneakers /

There is so much to do in Hershey, PA! It was so nice to be able to go back over Thanksgiving break and visit the Hershey Antique Auto Museum and also be able to stroll through Hershey Gardens and see all the beautiful Christmas decorations, holiday decorations, gardens, fall foliage, and roses. Despite being cold and wintery outside, the gardens were still beautiful. Love!

Hershey Antique Auto Museum | AACA Museum

We started our day at the Hershey Antique Auto Museum. I was impressed! There is a rotating exhibit near the entryway and the museum is full of automotive history packed onto three floors! There was even a small train section. It was really educational and fun. There were so many automotive brands I had never heard of, and a large number of unique vehicles. There was even a section all about Tucker! Now my dream car is a Tucker. I need to watch the movie. It sounds so amazing!

If you are ever in the Hershey area, I highly recommend visiting the Hershey Antique Auto Museum (AACA Museum) and taking the time to see all three floors. It is really an amazing place! Love!

Hershey Gardens

After visiting the AACA Museum, we went to Hershey Gardens. Despite being cold and winery outside, it was so nice to stroll through the gardens and see the beautiful, manicured flowers, plants, trees, etc. I definitely would like to return in the late spring when everything is in full bloom. It looks like the flowers and roses will be beautiful! In November, we caught the end of the fall foliage and a few roses remained for us to enjoy. The gardens were decorated for the holidays, so it was magical. Loved it!

Again, if you are in Hershey, PA, definitely visit Hershey Gardens! It is a beautiful walk, perfect chance for fresh air, and you will love the manicured gardens.

What I wore to Hershey PA:

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO

Cathy

Andy Warhol museum

 in General Fashion / Travel  tagged art / outfits / Pennsylvania / pittsburgh pa by

wearing: sunglasses / earrings / sweater / nail polish / jeans / handbag / sneakers /

I am a huge Andy Warhol fan. So, when I was in Pittsburgh, it was only natural that the Andy Warhol museum was must-see on my list!

The museum has six stories of fabulous art and history surrounding Warhol. I loved seeing his early art all the way through to his films. It was also fun seeing his personal belongings, his collection of Fiesta (yes! he had Fiesta plates etc.), autographed items from celebrities, commercial art, artists who were inspired by him, photo with the pope, and more!

I didn’t want to post too many pictures of his pieces here on the blog because I think it is much more interesting in person. His transition into film is extremely interesting too. I highly recommend going to the Andy Warhol museum in person. It is amazing and you won’t regret it!

You can learn more about the museum at Warhol.org. I highly recommend visiting!

Thanks for stopping by, and stay tuned for more from Pennsylvania on the blog!

XOXO
Cathy