Well, the flight from London was long, like nearly 11 hours. As always the shopping airside (after security) at Heathrow’s terminal five was abuzz.
The gal’s favourite store there is Itsu, run by Pret-a-Manger founder Julian Metcalfe, healthy-healthy avocado and seaweed and sticky rice salad.
You know her favourite lounge (British Airways’ Gold). And the flight was made bearable by the airline’s lovely flat beds and its new Height Cuisine.
What was unbearable was the long-long immigration at Los Angeles, followed by the long-long line to pick up our Avis car.
That night, getting over jet lag was considerably helped by a couple of sips of NeuroSleep®, a drink put out by drinkneuro.com, one of the many companies founded by the East European blonde brain Diana Jenkins.
This drink – 35 calories in a 14.5 fluid ounce bottle – includes traces of L-theanine, Melatonin (not allowed in Germany or UK), 5-hydroxytryptophan, Taurine and Magnesium.
The following day, to Ojai, 90 minutes’ drive north-west of Los Angeles.
Ojai Valley Resort and Spa is 230 acres rolling landscape, lots of Spanish-type villas spread out around golf course, tennis, three (at least) pools, tennis, kids’ club and so on.
Headed down for the spa, wow, 28 treatment rooms, and in the VIP locker room, I found my designated locker already had a personalised welcome and a gift to-go.What a treat, as was Lanny’s superb Arcona treatment.
Dinner started with a tasting of heirloom tomatoes and crispy fried artichoke, went on to slow-slow braised beef shortribs.
It was frosty in the morning, here at 675 feet above sea level.
I was waved off at the gingerbread house that fills the front of one of many of the real-log fires at the resort.