Palm Springs, I love you.

"wanna go somewhere warm?" -dev.

It was snowing again in Chicago, the poor sunwarmth deprived southern californian (at heart) needed her rays of sunshine, dammit, and was asking me for help.  Well now, since I’m not ever one to turn down a mission (I think I’d make for an awesome espionage, don’t you?) nor such a fun opportunity for some one-on-one time with my bestie, the planning commenced immediately.  

It had been OVER A YEAR since Devon and I last saw each other; hugging, then waving as she and her brand-new husband departed for their much deserved honeymoon. They were embarking on a primely scheduled furlough to the Mayan Riviera (Rivieran Maya?), temporarily escaping the bitter-bitter chill of Chicago. I imagine the newlyweds to have soaked up as much warmth as possible, laying in the sunshine like little lizards desperate for survival. Outside of its significance to the marriage, however, I neglected to notice how important that trip was for my friend.

Flash-forward a full calendar year, subtract a well-planned trip south, and you have yourself a sad-face dev, shivering against the bitter/bitter winds.  Oh dear.

I think we fixed her.

Sun therapy.

Our planning was last-minute and hodge-podged, with the only clear priority of soaking in some sun and relaxing our eyes on one body of water or another.  The time difference between California and Chicago is seemingly minimal at only two hours, but our schedules seem to make staying on the phone for our historic 4 hour conversations difficult these days (it’s true, 4 hours on the phone used to be a total norm). My accessibility during daytime hours is spectacular as I work from the road most days, but by the time my day wraps up, I usually throw my phone into the corner of some deep, dark drawer, get in a nap or two, and dive into some solid hours of nighttime television...which sounds dirty, but I’m talking Gossip Girls, House, Greys, AmIdol, etc. 

Devon, on the other hand, is office-bound and phone-limited during the days and perfectly active during non-work hours.  But through emails, text messages, and an occasional voicemail or two, we managed to plan a quick weekend getaway to PALM SPRINGS!

Our agenda was simple:

1. Sit by pool.

2. Repeat.

this is me, being a good friend.  

life is always AWESOME from the pink raft perspective.

((hey...the people in the background look naked.))

We identified a resort with the best pool, comfy beds, and strong spa menu.  We booked flights totally last minute, but were scheduled to come in at almost identical times on Thursday evening.  We even identified a handful of eateries to enjoy if we could possibly tear ourselves away from the place.

our swanky room.

most comfy bed i've ever slept in (on?).

sarah lyman jumped at the last minute notification

 to get some dev-les time.

thanks for making it out, sarah!

And as I’m typing this up on my plane ride back to SFO, I have to say, we did a spectacular job of planning such a solid “girlfriend getaway”!  I use the term "planning" loosely. 

geeking out, poolside.

delicious breakfast, poolside. 

hanging with lyman, poolside.

sensing a theme here? :)

i think we would've slept poolside overnight if we could.

The Riviera of Palm Springs (a review)

pros

service was terrific!!

towels were huge + fluffy

pool was PERFECT!!

great variety of poolside loungers (queen sized beds!)

lots of ice water with lemon and lime to imbibe all day long

yummy food all around

AWESOME decor

solid people watching

cool spa services, Balinese based (?)

our pool boy brought water to us when we were in the pool

close enough to lots of restaurants and bars 

full size beds on the deck!

cons ... these were harder to come by

may get overcrowded during prime season (ie spring break + memorial day)

a couple of staff members were kind of weird, but they were overshadowed by cool ones.

turnover of front desk staff @ 9pm led to lots of waiting time for assistance

sun may have been too strong...uh...is that a con?

Yummy bkfst @ Norma's. 

Lemon ricotta pancakes, artichoke bennnies.

Delightful.

Our focus on maintaining sustenance for our rigorous schedule allowed us to enjoy: fresh tacos, amazing guacamole, a Palm Springs frozen yogurt taste test (cactusberry won for me), some HUGE burgers from Tylers, and an unending supply of ice cold lemon/lime water from the poolboys. Holla!!  Not to mention a hurried breakfast @ Norma's before catching flights back to reality.

best spring break ever, may 2009.

I miss devs on a regular basis, but seeing her for a few days straight made me realize I just need to make more of an effort to gain face time with the cutie lady.  We both had career shifts last year (hers probably more significant than my own) and had lots to catch up on!  Staying up until 4am once a year ain’t gonna cut it so calendar evaluation is going to be a must.  How are your autumns, Chicagoans?  :)

--correction: she just reminded me that we saw each other last june for holly's wedding. that's when devon punched me so i obviously tried to extinguish that memory from my brain. makes the story better if it had been a full year, right?  :) --