As you know, I have been in school in New York for the past few months. I have only seen my friends during the one week I went home for Spring break, but that wasn't enough time for us to really hang out much since I was also catching up with family. Now that I am back in California for the Summer my friends and I plan to do things we didn't get to do.
1. Travel Jar
The furthest place my friends and I have been to together is San Diego, which is only three hours away from where we live. This Summer we plan on taking it further into some different cities in California. We decided to make a travel jar in which we color code places based on the distance that we plan to go to.
We have three colors: Red for different major cities in California, Pink for different U.S. states, and Purple for different countries. We plan to choose one of each color each year and plan three trips that fit our schedules. For Summer we are doing our red and pink trips.
We plan on going to San Francisco for a few days together, and I'm excited because I love it there. We also plan on going to Las Vegas, Nevada in August before school starts for my 21st birthday.
2. Scenic Hikes
We made a list of hiking trails with beautiful scenic views that we plan to go to once every two weeks. These trails are mostly along the coast from Malibu to Laguna Beach. We also added some trails that would be fun to do at night. Hiking with friends is a great way to be active and have fun at the same time.
It can also be a great opportunity to capture great pictures with your friends!
3. Concerts and Festivals
In addition, we have made a list of concerts and festivals that we want to go to. We each have different taste in music, so we all agreed to each choose a concert or festival and we all have to go to it. So far we plan on going to Hard Summer in Fontana, CA, Northern Nights Music Festival in Cook Valley, CA, and the 2019 Wango Tango Concert in Carson, CA to see Taylor Swift, Jonas Brothers, Halsey, and other artists.
4. Girls Night
We all take turn hosting girls night where we watch movies, have snacks, drink, and just hang out together. Since we always take so long to decide on that movie to watch we each made a list so that we would be ready for the next sleepover.
Last week, my friends came over and we made some drinks, talked, and watched Crazy, Stupid, Love. Sometimes spending the night in is more fun than going out and it's just needed.
5. Disneyland and the OC Fair
These are two places that are more of an every Summer thing we do. We have to go to Disneyland together at least once every Summer, this is significant to us because this is where I and a couple of my closest friends became close friends.
My two friends became a couple of my best friends after we all I ditched my group (which I wasn't even close with anyway) when my friend Crystal invited me to hang out with her group on grad night. We hung out throughout the whole day and eventually it was down to just Crystal, Stephanie, and I at the end of the night.
We have been close friends ever since. The OC fair is just a place ever person from SoCal needs to go at least once, the main attraction is the butterfly room where you are in an outdoor netted area where there are hundreds of butterflies flying around and you get to be in close contact with them.
6. Sports Events
My friends and I aren't really much into sports but attending a sports event is always fun! My family bought season tickets for the Los Angeles Dodgers so I will be taking my friends with me a few times. I am a huge Dodger fan so I have been going to the games since I was little and I always have a great time at the stadium.
Baseball is like the only sport my family and I are into. Also, I have a friend named Ciara who is a cheerleader for the LA Clippers so she gets free tickets to the basketball games and she'll sometimes invite me. I don't really follow basketball but it is always fun going to see a game at the Staples Center with her, or even with other friends just to go watch her cheer.
7. Matching Tattoos
I have a few friends who I plan to get matching tattoos with and this Summer would be the perfect time to finally go do it. I recently got one with my friend Ciara during Spring break, so I want to get more with other friends who I also promised I would get one with. I plan on getting a tattoo with my sister, my cousin, and my best friend this Summer.