Jess P. & Jess P. - Reunited!

Jess P. and Jess P. have reunited! One of my best friends Jess came to visit me. Having her plan a trip down has been in the works since I moved to Florida, and we finally got to see it through. Getting to host and show my all my favorite people my life down here is always a surreal experience.

To sum up our time together in two words: minimal sleep – LOL. We surely made the most of our time together, and our heads hit the pillow every night at 3:30am like clockwork. When we are together, there is no stopping us from having fun.

We kicked off our first night by making the best build-your own taco bar, accompanied by chips and queso, and spicy grapefruit and mango margaritas – YUM. I then got to introduce Jess to my friend Barbara who was celebrating her 30th birthday all weekend long. It was a blast! I got to meet a bunch of amazing new people that I am excited to continue to hang out with and get to know. We got to join in on Barbara's festivities at her apartment and out on the town. She catered Chick-Fil-A for us all, and our party favors were chicken sandwiches to take home. It was a genius move! Since moving down here, I have not had the chance to explore Ft. Lauderdale's downtown and nightlife. We were able to dine at YOLO Restaurant & Lounge, which had delicious food and artsy drinks with flower garnishes. They even had a flaming tree outside for décor. It was spectacular! We danced the night away at Rhythm & Vine. The DJ played such an awesome variety of music that we could not get enough of.

I took Jess to the best coffee shop in south Florida – Deke's in Delray. After taking one sip, she now understands the hype. Additional south Florida go-to spots we ventured to included, Square Grouper Tiki Bar in Jupiter. A storm rolled in pretty early on, and the entire crowd took cover under the covered bar to wait until things cleared up. It gave Jess and I plenty of time to book fun excursions for our upcoming summer vacation in Europe (stay tuned). We also went to Whit's Frozen Custard, which is a must-try for anyone with a sweet tooth. We even shopped until we dropped at the gorgeous Aventura Mall for our trip to Europe.

New places we adventured to and tried together included Takato in Ft. Lauderdale – a Japanese-Korean fusion restaurant that my mom suggested and discovered on social media. It exceeded our expectations. We are hoping to return during the daytime to enjoy the oceanfront view. Nonetheless, it was stunning at night too. We shut the place down and were the last customers – LOL. Both the customer service and food were exceptional. The staff were so attentive and friendly. They even poured our soy sauce for us! We ordered an array of items to try, which included their Korean Zombie (a rum, plum soju, grapefruit juice, passion fruit, Korean plum extract and lime cocktail), their Sarang-hae Colada (a vodka, lychee puree, coconut, cranberry bitters, lemon, and rose water cocktail), a spicy yellowtail maki roll, a salmon avocado maki roll, edamame, duck bao buns, and crispy tuna. I am a sushi lover, and have not been able to find a quality sushi restaurant down here yet. Takato took the cake and is on my top list of favorites now.

We almost ended the weekend by driving down to Miami for our final night, but decided it was a perfect plan for Jess' next visit. We ended the weekend instead by going to Tin Roof in Delray, which was such a lively atmosphere, and a spot I'll return to for sure.

Our time together flew by, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to host Jess, and cannot wait until she returns. Stay tuned for our next adventures together this summer in Europe!

“There is an unspoken bond you create with the friends you travel with.” – Kristen Sarah

Remember to stay humble and kind, always!

Follow me on my personal social media platforms to stay up-to-date with my every day life:

Instagram: jess_puch

TikTok: jesspuch

xo –Jess