Weekend of Venues in LA

This was a very very very big weekend. Saurab and I went to LA to meet my parents, start introducing LA cousins from both sides to each other...and most daunting, look at wedding venues. My brother, Anuj. flew out from Chicago to LA with us. Imagine a boy in his young 20's in a mini van driving with his parents, sister and to-be brother-in-law sitting through California traffic to look at wedding venues. He's a real trooper. He wanted to be a part of this process, and for this I am gratefully touched. He surprises me from time to time! :-)

My parents were thrilled to see us, and the night with the cousins went very very very well. I wish I had the sense to take some pictures of that evening, but we totally forgot. We had Roma, Sameer, Sunit, Nidhi, Suketu, Smita, Mitalee Mayur there from my side, and Sid and Vaishali from Saurab's side. It was great fun! Thanks everyone for coming out.

Now for the wedding venues. Let me start by saying I have NO idea what I was thinking when I had planned an itinerary to see more than one venue a day!!! No idea. Chicago has muddled my memory of LA traffic.

Day 1: We landed Thursday, and after seeing a doctor because I was so sick, we went straight to South Orange County to visit the Laguna Cliffs Marriott. Yes, a hotel....for the girl who did not want any hotels. I know. BUT, it did have stunning views of the ocean, and looked like it was enveloped in nature, so we went to go see it. I liked it - there were some pros and cons, but I liked the place. They also do a TON of Indian weddings there, so they know what they are doing. The part that cracked me up, was a massage for the bride and groom being included after the wedding ceremony - Saurab cringed - he hates the thought of a massage - it pains him to even think about. Interestingly enough, even given the massage, he thought it was a great place to have the ceremony and reception.

Day 2: Friday. Morning. We met with a family friend, Hiren Mody of Party Rental King. Hiren has the largest warehouse of indian wedding supplies and decorations. He gave us really good ideas and considerations for planners and locations.

Afternoon: Today our goal was to go to the LA area. We had planned to also go to a few venues in Palos Verdes, but given that there were wild fires breaking out there, it probably wasn't the best timing. Instead we went to Casa Del Mar. This is a GORGEOUS historic hotel right in Santa Monica on the beach. Everything from the lobby to the ballroom to the archways reflect and old world majestic charm. It is a stunning place, and it's small enough to be cozy, and large enough to hold a crowd of 250 to 300 people. The reception at this place would be in their beautiful ballroom. The wedding, due to the nature of a fire being in an Indian ceremony, would have to be outside. The only outside for them is right on the beach - literally on the sand. Could be a definite possibility. We wanted ocean and nature....there is nothing closer than this. However, it is a public Santa Monica beach. This has some definite implications.

Afternoon Continued. We were next supposed to drive all the way to Huntington Beach to see Hyatt Huntington Beach Resort . The place looks stunning on line. Huge, but stunning. And yes, another hotel. They are right on Pacific Coast Highway, and have enormous garden space for the outside ceremony. They are large though....which means multiple weddings on any given night. And this is a hotel-y as it gets. But, on the beach, tons of gardens, beautiful property. Our largest issue is that we were completely locked in traffic and never made it to see this place. Our party was that night, and there was no way we could be late. So, I'll either have to go back or get all of the cost information over the phone and decide based on Internet pictures and send my parents down to see it.

Day 3: We only had half of our Saturday to look at venues because Saurab and I needed to drive all the way down the coast to San Diego to attend a wedding (the original reason we were in California this weekend to begin with!). So we set out on a journey to Malibu early in the day to go see Rancho Sol Del Pacifico, a private estate perched on the hills of Malibu overlooking the ocean and the mountains. Finding this place was no easy task - thank goodness for Garmin. Once you find the street to turn on from PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) it is a steep windy narrow road ALL the way up the hill till you get to this 26 acre estate. When we got there Sony Pictures was shooting a film there, so there was already chaos. We finally found the owner, Al, who is the nicest and friendliest man ever! He showed us the property and in our conversations I learned that there are quite a few Indian weddings that get done there. Everything is outside...if you look at the pictures on their website, there is a separate area for the mandap.....where the ceremony takes place, and a separate outdoor area (kind of like a pavilion) for the reception. Both sites have sweeping views of the mountains and the Pacific Ocean. However, you are so high up that the ocean can be seen, but not heard. An additional consideration is that, where as a hotel would provide staff, tables, chairs, equipment, china, etc etc.....this is a rental of the grounds....so everything - I mean EVERYTHING would have to be rented and brought in. Everything except the horse and the wine! The unique thing about Al and his estate is that he already has 80 horses that Saurab can choose from to ride in on his bharat. And Al has also gotten into the winery business....there are three varieties of grapes he grows on his vineyards in the 26 acres....and when we sampled the wine it was DELICIOUS. These two extras (along with many other not so exciting extras) are all additional fees, of course...but they are there if we so choose.

Day 4: Sunday. This was our day to relax. I didn't want to think about weddings, venues, flowers, photographers....nothing. So, we spent the day having breakfast on Coronado Island, renting a sailboat and cruising around the harbor for a while, going to La Jolla and sitting on top of the world overlooking the entire ocean (and being above the clouds at times) on the cliffs, and then having a fabulous dinner on the ocean at the Chart House in Cardiff. It was such a exciting, yet hectic weekend that it felt like this day was our honeymoon. It was SO relaxing.

But, as my friends know, my mind was stirring. Saurab and I had a decided top choice for a location out of the ones we considered the whole weekend, but seeing all the places on the water in San Diego made me wonder if I should have been considering San Diego as a destination!!! He was ready to kill me at that point! :-) I did have to check and see if there were any locations that made sense. We stayed at the Mariott in Downtown San Diego, and they had an absolutely beautiful grassy area that jutted out like a peninsula on the harbor. This would be PERFECT for a ceremony, surrounded by water. Alas, I found out the Marriott doesn't own that land...it's called the Embarcadero and it's a public park....which means getting a permit from the city....which means BIG hassle. It's still not 100% put to rest in my mind, but I do understand that getting married in San Diego would be challenging. It's just far enough away from LA to make things inconvenient....possibly. I don't know. Maybe.

Anyway, that was our weekend. At this point, we have not secured a location, but there is definitely a top choice among our options. I would love to know which one you think we chose and why?

I'll let you know what we have chosen after we secure the venue....I don't want to jinx myself! :-)