Chasen’s Personal Blog

Europe

Mon, 29 Dec 2025 21:15:16 -0800

Hugo and I were really fortunate to spend five weeks in Europe this year.

We got to:

I can’t wait for our next ~~European~~ adventure.

Virgin Atlantic

Mon, 29 Dec 2025 19:25:31 -0800

We loved our flights between LAX and London on Virgin Atlantic. Hugo scored a great deal (with points and cash for taxes/fees) between the two cities.

We got off to a great start on our flight to London. Before the flight, we went to the clubhouse at LAX, and then enjoyed our business-class seats on the way to London.

Leaving London was a different ballgame entirely, in the best way possible.

Our ride took us to a private entrance for Virgin. We rubbed shoulders with some celebs on our way in through private security.

While waiting for our flight, the waiters in the lounge took care of us, including bringing us a little desert because I had mentioned that it was Hugo’s birthday month.

The flight back home was fun too. We departed at 2pm-ish London time so staying awake was our primary goal. We hung out in the shared lounge area in business class and made friends with other locals coming back to LA.

If you’re going to Europe, I think it’s such a treat to find a points deal for a business-class flight and really enjoy yourself. Of course we would’ve been fine in economy seats, but it was a real joy to know that we hadn’t paid much cash to get upgraded into a premium experience.

London

Mon, 29 Dec 2025 18:55:10 -0800

Our trip to London was split into two parts: four nights on our way into Europe, and two nights after Spain on our way out.

Here are all my posts:

Greenwich (Queen’s House and the Prime Meridian)
River Thames (we took a boat!)
Dishoom (delicious Indian food)
Tower of London (historical sight-seeing)
Lounge Bohemia (eclectic drinks)
Notting Hill (touristy sight-seeing)
The Churchill Arms (classic pub)
The Devonshire (delicious Guinness)
Sky Garden Bars (nighttime views of the city)
The Park Room (traditional Afternoon Tea)
Bentley’s Oyster Bar & Grill (delicious seafood)
favorite shots from walking around London ()

Somehow we lucked into beautiful weather on our first and second trips. Since the weather was good, I loved the pub culture of grabbing a beer and hanging outside.

For our first trip, we stayed at an Airbnb which was fine while we were there, but incredibly sketchy after we checked out (asking us how we reviewed them before leaving their review). Bethnal Green was a cute neighborhood and we loved the coffee place nearby.

On our return trip, Hugo and I stayed at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House. It was a real treat to stay in a hotel after 32 days in Airbnb’s.

Six days is obviously not enough time to do even a fraction of what’s available in London. It was really expensive, so I’m not excited to go back on my own dime, but I’d love to revel in the city again.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 20:54:01 -0800

Here are some of my favorite shots from walking around London.

Pictured: Coal Drops Yard in King’s Cross, The Ten Bells in Spitalfields, St Dunstan-in-the-West on Fleet Street, the Rivington Street car park in Shoreditch, Leadenhall Market, Regent Street, and Bond Street.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 19:55:42 -0800

For our last meal in London, we went to Bentley’s Oyster Bar & Grill, sat at the bar, and enjoyed a delicious meal of oysters, crab, and fish & chips.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 18:57:00 -0800

On our last full day in London, we had traditional Afternoon Tea at The Park Room in the JW Marriott Grosvenor House.

It was expensive, but a really calm, delicious experience. We took some to go (in a very cute takeaway box) because we had just come from Dishoom.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 17:45:25 -0800

For our second-to-last night in London, we booked a reservation for “drinks and light bites in Sky Garden Bars.”

I thought it was going to be a cozy bar—it was actually more of a club! We had a couple drinks and walked around the building to see London at night.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 16:38:20 -0800

We popped into The Devonshire for Guinness twice during our trip (at the beginning and the end). We didn’t have food, but we enjoyed the liveliness of the cozy bar. Amazing that the building is almost as old as the United States.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 15:45:59 -0800

After Notting Hill, we wandered down to The Churchill Arms. It’s so pretty from the outside! The inside was decorated for Victory in Europe Day (VE Day), which was about a week after we popped in.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 12:02:02 -0800

We made a little trip out to Notting Hill and wandered around without a plan. We saw what is maybe the blue door and took a peek inside the bookshop.

As an aside—I loved seeing the mix of colorful homes and stretches of all-white buildings throughout the neighborhood.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 11:04:00 -0800

While walking around Shoreditch, we stumbled across Lounge Bohemia, which I can only describe as a retro, speakeasy-vibes, pretentious-but-enjoyable experience.

They “required” a reservation but let us sit down anyway. We tried a few of the tasting menus and the “drinks” were truly unique.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 10:09:55 -0800

We took a Yeoman Warder guided tour of the Tower of London. It took a couple hours but it was neat to walk around, feel the bloody history, and see the Crown Jewels.

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 09:06:42 -0800

In London, we visited two Dishoom locations (Shoreditch and Carnaby) as bookends to our Europe trip. Expensive, but a delicious treat.

Houston 2025

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 08:13:00 -0800

Houston was a fun little weekend getaway that I wouldn’t mind returning to again.

We went for the Cowboy Carter Tour but also enjoyed:

The Pit Room (delicious barbecue)
Behind Closed Doors (cute speakeasy)
Houston Pride (impromptu!)
Cherry (fun dance party)
Angel Share (great food and drinks)
8^th Wonder Brewery (fun brewery with THC drinks)
Hugo’s (good brunch)

We went to the breakfast klub multiple times, but apparently never early enough to beat the long, long lines.

Cowboy Carter Tour

Sat, 27 Dec 2025 19:41:53 -0800

We left for Europe the day that Beyoncé started her Cowboy Carter Tour, and she came to Europe right as we were leaving, so of course we had to make a trip to Houston to see her live.

Seeing Beyoncé bring her music to life is such a joy. The crowd is too—everyone decked out in their cowboy outfits and being a part of the tour’s theme. We are the visuals.

On the first Houston night, the car that she rode as part of 16 Carriages malfunctioned (video). It’s amazing that no one was hurt and she kept performing before being lowered down.

We saw her on night two, and we were disappointed that she didn’t play 16 Carriages. She is such a great vocalist—even though she didn’t have visuals, I wish she had just sang it with her band.

Sat, 27 Dec 2025 10:13:01 -0800

Houston’s Behind Closed Doors was such a cute little treat. We went to the back to the find the restroom… and stumbled upon rainbow arches, one of which gave way to a hidden bar with delicious cocktails.

Sat, 27 Dec 2025 10:06:24 -0800

No better time than the holidays to catch up on some blogging! Let’s go back to Houston and London…

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 19:36:23 -0800

The weekend we were in Houston just happened to be Pride Houston, and thus I ended up going to my first pride event. 🏳️‍🌈

Sat, 28 Jun 2025 17:44:54 -0800

The Pit Room. 📍

The line for The Pit Room was long (maybe an hour?) but it was totally worth it. Amazing brisket and ribs.

Sat, 28 Jun 2025 07:53:00 -0800

📍

I knew that I would lose steam in posting photos from Europe if I didn’t get them mostly done while I was there… and I was right! 🙈

Off to Houston for a little Beyoncé and birthday celebration for Hugo. ✈️

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 20:43:37 -0800

We made it back up the River Thames and got some great views of iconic London buildings.

We started near Canary Wharf, passed under London Bridge with the Shard nearby, then went by the Walkie-Talkie, Tower Bridge, and finally saw the London Eye before reaching Westminster.

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 07:10:15 -0800

On our first full day, we walked through Greenwich Market and stumbled upon the Armada Portrait at the Queen’s House!

Then we walked through Greenwich Park and uphill to the Royal Observatory. We didn’t go inside but it was cool to see the skyline view and straddle the Prime Meridian (for free)!

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 20:50:09 -0800

Take me back to April 28 ✈️ Hugo got us business-class seats on Virgin Atlantic to and from London.

Spain

Sun, 15 Jun 2025 20:23:17 -0800

Here’s an index of all the cities we visited in Spain:

…and a couple other posts I wrote:

We spent four weeks on the mainland and we absolutely loved it. I’m so glad we were able to spend a week each in València, Sevilla, and Málaga. We only had a few days each in Granada and Madrid; more of a whetting of our appetite for those cities.

I can’t wait to go back one day.

Sat, 14 Jun 2025 19:05:52 -0800

We saw anti-tourist art in most of the Spanish cities we visited. I certainly understand the sentiment—housing, gentrification, cultural erosion, etc.—these are real problems. On the flip side, we saw shops and talked to locals that were happy to have the extra business. It’s a tough balance.