I took these photos when I spent a night/morning in Oakland while visiting my best friend Laura back in December. This was the perfect place to stop at on my long drive from Portland to LA since the Bay Area has much more to offer than any other place you see along the way. Although I was only in town for a very brief period of time, I enjoyed the opportunity to walk around and get a better sense of the neighborhood. I especially loved checking out the beautiful houses in the area, which were all quite festive with lights and flowers hanging off their porches and entrances. I was also very excited to find out that Laura lived near Blue Bottle, being the coffee aficionado that I am, especially since I had never been to one of their locations. The coffee was surely amazing, just as I had expected,  and this particular location was gorgeous, complete with high ceilings and and beautiful light fixtures. I’m looking forward to my next visit to Oakland so I can continue to explore this gorgeous city!