San Francisco Trip and NEWSIES the Musical!

Let me start by saying Blogger is being really rude and uncooperative today, so sorry if things get a little weird...
If you follow me on instagram or twitter (@carinamdee ;) you know that this last weekend I had a super quick trip with some of my family to San Francisco and saw a performance of Newsies.

If you're not familiar with Newsies, it is one of my favorite movies ever, starring a young Christian Bale and a lot of amazing songs and dance moves. It is a movie that everyone in my family is obsessed with, and can recite every line and lyric because we have seen it approximately eight hundred times. 

It is now a broadway play which is touring around the country, and landed in San Fran for a few weeks. My sister happens to live in the SF area, and so us California local girls headed over to catch a show!

Car trip selfie numero uno, the start of the trip. My madre, two of my sisters and my littlest niece. Sorry mom about your eyes.

Backward carseats mean I couldn't see my little Em's the whole way, which was pretty sad because look at her! The cutest.

I had to improvise a little lunch situation of chips and avocado, without utensils or a bowl. I could totally survive in the wild.

We arrived at my sister and brother in laws house, hung out for a bit then headed out for an early dinner as we didn't actually eat any lunch. Unless you count the chips and avocado. Her house had the coolest peep hole, so naturally we took a picture with it. 

I became especially grateful on this trip of my families acceptance of me and all my weirdness. Sometime you just have to let go of your inhibitions for a photo opportunity, you'll see what I mean as we go throughout this post....

Back to dinner though, we search yelp for a restaurant that was celiac friendly and landed on this place, Grill & Vine which ended up being located inside of a hotel called the Weston.

They had a gluten free menu, and worked with me on all of my current dietary restrictions. I ordered the salmon, which was delicious despite me requesting it to be without many major ingredients.

Next we headed over to Ikea, where I had high expectations that were not met at all. I guess when you don't go somewhere for several years, you start to idealize it a bit. Also when you can no longer eat the meatballs or Daim candies, it's a little sadder. But I still ended up with a bag full of stuff, so....

The second I walked into Ikea, I was cursing myself for what I got myself into...I can't even handle going into a grocery store how on earth would this diseased body of mine handle a giant three story chopping experience!

But, I made it! I made it with only a slight discomfort and no blackouts or pass outs.

I also made it thought the streets of San Fran at a racing speed. 

When we got the tickets several months ago, I wasn't sure how I would handle it. The last several weeks though, I have been seeing a new natural doctor taking a million supplements and following a very strict diet. 

Something is apparently working, so that's the best news of this whole post! 

We headed back to the house, got some shut eye and prepared for the show on Saturday! Before we headed into the city, we grabbed an incredibly fast lunch at Chipotle where I had the saddest burrito bowl ever to live. I got the weirdest look from the lady making it. I think she expected the pitiful bowl of rice, beans and lettuce to belong to a six year old, not a grown women.

To make it sadder, I had to top it with my own avocado.

Road to the city selfie! Sorry again mom, but good job keeping your eyes on the road.

We got into the city without any trouble, but there was a St. Patricks day parade that that had just ended and the streets that weren't blocked off were incredibly crowded. 

After taking a million years to get into a parking lot, we speed walked through some sketchy streets to get to the theatre in time. We ended up getting there a couple minutes late (along with about fifty other people) but got seated in time for the second scene.

It was at the Orpheum Theatre, and I got the opportunity to have a different seat for the first and second acts. Our tickets were for the balcony, but do to one of my sisters being on crutches they offered her a seat in the handicap zone on the ground level so she wouldn't have to go up the stairs. I sat there with her during the first half, then switched seats with my mom the second half. 

Honestly, I don't feel like one seat was better then the other. 

The only difference was the angle at which you were watching it, straight on or looking down a bit. 

The problem I had with below, was that I couldn't stop thinking about how if the building collapsed, I would be the first one to get crushed and I also kept getting distracted by the closed captioning screen. I just couldn't look away!

Walking in up top, I got the same height anxiety that I get whenever I go to a stadium or sit in bleachers. Sitting down though, I didn't have any problems.
Just goes to show, that extra money spent on floor seats isn't necessarily always worth it..

This was the only photo I got inside the theatre. You aren't supposed to take any pictures of the show, and I couldn't even sneak one in because there were ushers everywhere!  

On the way out we snagged a quick picture with a couple of the stars, who were fresh off the stage and had the sweat to prove it! We initially went over to the guy in the newsie hat, who was incredibly nice, then the other guy jumped in too! 

(they guy on the left plays Mush, and also the understudy for Davey and Crutchie..the one on the right is aDelancey brother and the understudy for Jack.)

Those two particular sisters are the shortest in my family, and the dancers are struggling a bit in the height department, so I look like a total giant. 

Story of my life.

 We then went out to take some more pictures and tried are hardest to get a good Newsie jump in, and nailed it so hard. 

After about fifty takes we gave up, but thanks to the crowd for cheering us on! Also thanks to Julie for making a fool out of herself with me!

We tried you guys, so hard.

Just couldn't get us all at the same time. (but Elise in this one, thumbs up)

Cool walls are meant to be photographed in front of, even if some of you are really embarrassed about it and sketchy people are walking around.

Sorry DeDe for embarrassing you with our tourist antics.

We made it through the sketchy streets filled with concerning people, drug propositions and not so mysterious liquids on the sidewalk...and back to our car!

Also thanks to the random dude (a normal fella, not a creeper) in the parking lot for the words of encouragement as I danced through the street. Means a lot to me. 

We got out of the city a whole lot quicker then we got in, made a quick stop to trade DeDe in for the baby and headed home!

Sorry again mother, and to you too blurry sisters.

On the way home, we sang along to the original Newsies soundtrack at the top of our lungs and then I kept everybody's tired spirits up with my amazing car-eoke and never-ending dance moves.

There was a comment made at some point along the lines of, when is Carina ever not dancing, and truer words were never spoken. Bad dancing is a passion very deep in my soul.

It was a lot of fun, and I would definitely recommend Newsies (both the movie and the play) to any one! 

I'm already looking forward to seeing it again, because I loved it so much!

I also have a list of things I want to go back and do in the city, so another trip there will definitely be happening!

This is me right here, right now in my new shirt, listening to the Newsies soundtrack. (If you were wondering)

Enjoy! xoxo

(p.s. Also thanks to my wonderful mother who prompted this trip, you are the bestest! )

{Tomorrow they may wrap fishes in it...but I was a star for one whole minute!}