I went on. a quick trip with my family a few days ago. My mom has been itching to get away to a beach. In order to convince me to come along, she allowed me to pick which beach we went to.

For me, this all came down to where to stay. I searched for AirBnBs near the beach in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. In the end, I found the perfect little place in Okaloosa, FL. No, I’d never heard about Okalossa before this, but that mattered none.

I’ve always been very picky about the places that I stay in when I travel. I love design/decor and seeing how people put places together. That’s a big part of travel for me. The other part is trying new restaurants. Since I’m eating in a new way, the former has become even more important.

That couldn’t have been more true on this trip.

As I stepped into the Airbnb, I knew that I’d made the right choice. It was serene, worldly, idyllic, comfortable and clean. I spent a lot of time lounging and eating on the outdoor deck. The beautifully selected plates made me not miss going out to eat at a restaurant. The kitchen was its own adventure.

I’d checked out the restaurant scene beforehand and knew that there wouldn’t be much that I could eat out. So having a space that was inspiring in its own way was super important. I’ve learned from tons of experience that traveling is when it’s hardest to stick with a new way of eating. The way to beat this is to stay in a great place with a beautiful kitchen.

Regrettably, I didn’t take any photos of the kitchen. I didn’t think about how key this was when I first walked in. I was too in love with the books and caught up trying to figure out how to get to the beach. Hopefully the photo above of me devouring a mango will suffice.