The deets: J.Crew hat; Urban Outfitter sunnies; Rebecca Minkoff jelly sandals; Star Mela bag; ASOS cover-up; VS swimsuit.

I know my hair is looking pretty wild creature could be living in there-chic in these photos, but my motto was really to go all natural the whole trip. It just felt right to wake up, skip makeup & any hair grooming. It worked well especially when you use a hat (and have a spray tan). These were taken coming back from breakfast at Blonda down the street from our Resort. The french toast there was literally five inches high! All the places we stopped at had beautiful views so naturally I had to stop and snap a few shots of my second beach day outfit...#memories.

The deets: Lulu's dress; Sam Edelman "Gigi" sandals; Rebecca Minkoff bag; Ray-Ban sunnies; Knox Thomas Desgins "E" rose-gold bar necklace.

Okay so I apologize for the quality of the outfit photos, the fog was crazy and my lens had a hard time keeping condensation off of it. Also sorry in advance for the length of this post but I could go on forever about the delicious storm of awesome that was the Flavors of San Juan food tour. I would say it's an absolute MUST if you are in the area.

The day started out pretty foggy although it didn't rain the whole day. We started off the tour by popping into Aromas, a locally owned (by the Martin family - #livinlavidaloca) cafe that had delicious coffee (actually the coffee pretty much everywhere was amazing since the beans come from the island) and mallorcas. It was my first experience with a mallorca, which is a sweet pastry filled with savory cheese and meat, so strangely tasty! It's like the PR version of a bagel. We then popped into Senor Paleta, a specialty popsicle shop - the Nutella one was my choice and it was out of this world good.

After some pretty views and a few blocks of walking through beautiful the old colorful buildings and Pigeon Park we stopped at Café El Punto for empanadillas & ceviche. I also was able to pick up some local art, they had all kinds of pretty crafts by local artists covering the walls for purchase.

For the main course we got to make our own mufongo (local staple) at Rosa de Triana with a mortar and pestle and everything! It was hard to eat by this point but I powered through beacause..deliciousness.

For dessert we stopped at Chocobar at Casa Cortés which is Old San Juan's only chocolatier. We had a strange traditional Puerto Rican combination which is chocolate paired with cheese and hot cocoa. You hold them together and dip them in until the chocolate and cheese start to melt, then eat. Again, a strange savory sweet combo - but somehow it worked.

Lastly we went to The Mezzanine at St. Germain for the BEST pina-coladas I have ever had. Period.  

As you can deduce, we were super stuffed after our eat-fest. We decided to walk around a little after since we still had so much of the day left and needed some exercise. The old St. Crisobal fort was a short walk from the end of the tour to we hit that up. There were some crazy beautiful views up there and Mike was super into the history stuff. I wish I could do this all again, I HIGHLY recommend it!

The deets: J.Crew cover-up, flips, and hat; Star Mela bag; Ray-Ban sunnies; ASOS bikini.

Take me back to paradise! I just spent five days in gorgeous Puerto Rico. We stayed at La Concha per a friends suggestion and it did NOT disappoint. It was only a short cab ride to Old San Juan, it had a casino inside and pretty good restaurants in walking distance. It also had a private beach, which as you can see here, totally awful. Just kidding! It was FABULOUS. I have post vacation depression right now but here are some pictures of my first beach day outfit.

Each year before I hightail it to somewhere warm and beachy, I share my essentials for the trip (last year, year before). Here are the ones I have brought with me to Puerto Rico this week.

1. This cover up is so cute and soooo affordable. I don't really understand people that buy these glamorous pricey ones when they just get wet and sandy. No.

2. I searched high and low for the perfect beach bag, this one was just the right amount of colorful, tasseled, and roomy to make the cut (here are other Star Mela options).

3. I definitely wanted leather flip flops in a neutral tone. Rubber/plastic ones are great but tend to break on me in the sand. I wanted something a little tougher and chicer (aka not rainbows) and ended up on these.

4. Ray-Ban mirrored aviators because they are great with anything.

5. A straw hat that goes with most things for extra sun protection.

6. Actual sun protection, love these two sunscreen products for my body and lips.

7. Not really a beach necessity but I don't go anywhere tropical without this scent. It's just glorious and makes me instantly feel like I'm on vacation because it floods my mind with warm memories, even at home!