ro explore – Page 2 – Royal Origin

London | RO Explore

2015 has been the year of traveling for me. I wanted to spread my wings a little bit this year ever since I had a long talk with my mom about how short life can be and one day I’ll have a family and it’ll be so difficult to see the world. My last trip for 2015 would be Europe with a tour company called EF College Break. It would be a 11 day trip going through London, Paris and Rome with everything planned out by the company from hotels to tour guides. Before taking off, I started using Los Angeles chauffeur services to make getting to the airport way easier, and it honestly made the whole travel vibe feel a lot more exciting. Today’s post will document the 3 days I was in London, we start out the trip with a layover in Toronto..

The Toronto airport is great. They have restaurants with phone charging stations at each table and this installation by Richard Serra. Tilted Spheres.

Ten hours later… I was finally in London! After meeting with some of the other people on the tour, our tour guide, Ludovic, took us straight into downtown London. We took the railways and ended up in a Harry Potter-esque train station.

A lot of deep escalator rides to get in and out of the subways.

First view in London, Picadilly Square.

Second view in London, a emo Snow White. I would be sad too with an ugly dress like that.

Candid of one of the trip consultants, Lucas and our tour director Ludovic.

London goes all out for Christmas decorations.

I had to get some fish and chips while I was here in London. Did not taste any different than getting it in the states. At least I can say I had it in London?

St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Buckingham Palace. Fun fact if the flag is up that means the Queen isn’t home.

Crowds of people getting ready for the changing of the guards.

I would like to imagine they were playing “We Dem Boyz” by Wiz Khalifa.

They got money here in London.

Big Ben at the Palace of Westminster.

Aerial view from the London Eye.

Modern glass buildings mixed with a little old school.

That tall building right there is The Shard. A place where you should dress nice and probably propose to your girlfriend.

I think this was lasagna.

Pasta and chicken.

Small ass night club.

Another trip consultant, Joe. Fun fact he is Matthew Mcconaughey’s third cousin or something.

The chef reppin’ LRG while mixing it with the pot.

Notting Hill street market where you can find some really old things.

Tea time with Lucas.

Ice cream time with Minh.

Crepes in London? Fuck it.

Watch out for pickpockets, they’ll steal your heart.

Camden Town.

Seems like anywhere with a street market was pretty lively.

Introducing Rashad, he was the first person I met on this trip. We were both stuck at the airport and trying to find a way to our hotel. Now he’s modeling in our FTP “pulled over” hoodie.

We went to Abbey Road to replicate the famous Beatles photo.

Back at Picadilly Square to look for something good to eat..

We ended up getting indian food at Masala Zone. Delicious food!

After dinner, we went to the top of The Shard to get a night view of the city.

The London bridge from The Shard.

The business district of London.

Rashad about to drop the hottest mixtape, this will be his album cover photo.

Lucas knocked out from the 3 days in London. Now we’re off to Paris!

December 26, 2015

3 Hours in Philly | RO Explore

After H2Oi, we decided to stop by Philadelphia since it was on the way to New York to try a real philly cheese steak and check out some tourists stuff. Jim and John rolled with us too and took us to all the cool spots in Philly.

John’s sick 350z rolling with us to Philly.

Ordering a cheese steak in Philadelphia you gotta be quick. Just say whiz with and that’s all you need to know.

We got a slice of pizza from down the street and it was bigger than a grown man’s arm.

I still dream of you.

Shavi made the Philly Taco with the gigantic pizza.

Jesus Christ…

Food porn…

The inside of a Philly Taco.

We stopped by the famous Love park to check out some skate boarding and the pink fountain.

Next was the Museum of Art and it is also the place where the famous steps that Rocky ran up on in the movie.

The historical Liberty Bell.

Welp that was 3 hours in Philadelphia. Thanks John and Jim for showing us around and we’ll see you soon! Back to Cali life.

October 25, 2015

2AM in New York | RO Explore

Photos of our adventures in the city that does not sleep.

First time taking the subways in New York and it was so easy to use. Wish they had this kind of system in California.

For dinner we ate at Korilla BBQ, which I only know of is because of the great food truck race. They definitely lived up to their name for their Korean fusion food.

Bulgogi rice bowl with bacon kimchi fried rice and potato salad.

Shavi got the spicy pork burrito.

The goal of tonight was to see New York City at night and the best spot in the city was the Empire State Building. I’ll let the photos speak for themselves.

2AM with Jerald.

Grand Central Station.

Live in the moment Jerald.

America in one photo.

Time Square is lit.

Baes in New York.

24 hours of New York Pizza. Thanks New York for the 24 hours of fun.

October 17, 2015

Exploring Shinsaibashi | RO Explore

Japan is such an interesting country, there’s so much to do and travelling without a car is so easy. Our hotel was right in the middle of the city and walking distance to Shinsaibashi, so it became a ritual of ours to go to Shinsaibashi for all of our meals. Today, I’ll be showing you some of the stuff you can do that is walking distance from Shinsaibashi station.

Love walking through the colorful alleys of Japan.

Shinsaibashi is filled with Chinese tourists and is always busy during the day.

Amy and Sara posing in front of the famous Glico sign.

This old guy makes me want to eat here, I don’t even know what they serve.

Sara looks like she’s part of the family.

Getting some fresh takoyaki, which originated in Osaka.

JDM food porn.

Fresh.

Amy ordering ramen through a machine.

I can never have ramen in the United States again.

The ramen spots here are so cool.

City views.

Sara and the astronaut guy.

We got these crepes so many times during our stay in Shinsaibashi.

I was Sara’s personal photographer all week.

And Amy’s candid photographer too.

Crowded all day.

The first time seeing the Persian ice cream man. He plays with you for a while until he really gives you your ice cream.

I want to bring my kids to him one day.

Interesting statues..

They didn’t really need to make their eyes that slanted.

Taking a break before we go out again.

Breaks to me is another meal.

We visited a dog cafe where you can hang out with little dogs and get some coffee.

Sara and Amy are avid dog lovers and could not get over all of the cuteness.

People come to these things to relieve some stress mostly, pretty neat.

Sunsets in the city.

It was a good day in Shinsaibashi.

September 30, 2015

Lake Tahoe | RO Explore

Every time I travel up to Northern California, it’s always for a car show and it sucks because I don’t get to spend as much time with friends up here. Last weekend we switched it up, Nimo, Jimmy, Ashley and I drove up to go river rafting with Vinh, Rica and Clinton. W were to stay for the night in Lake Tahoe and then drive another hour to go river rafting down the American river.

Our first stop would be Pepper Lunch! Royal Origin’s go to spot in Milpitas.

Lol wut.

Vinh and Clinton the dabber boys.

Ashley got the number 1.

Nimo tried out the gravy version for the first time.

Gravy it up.

A man’s meal.

After lunch, we were well on our way to Lake Tahoe and took a pit stop in Pleasanton, CA for soft served ice cream at Meadowlark Dairy.

Looks basic, but Jesus Christ this thing was delicious.

Multiple photos of my pineapple and strawberry swirl, so you know it’s real.

Vinh with the deep throat.

This is the face of a guy that will get you sick after this trip.

Dem flares.

Big boss Vinh.

We started the grill immediately when we arrived at the cabin. Thanks Vinh for treating us with some bomb steaks.

There’s a BBQ with waygu beef, but Rica would rather have Chipotle.

Fucking fire.

We decided to head out to Lake Tahoe to try to take some star photos. It was ridiculously dark which made it easy to take these photos.

I usually spend a couple of hours shooting star photos, but with the freezing temperatures, we had to cut it short and start to head back.

Good night Nimo.

August 26, 2015

Forest Feels | RO Explore

Bomb breakfast and hiking. What more can you ask for on a Sunday? Today, I’ll be continuing our adventures in Vegas and like the weird people we are, we go to Vegas to go hiking at MT. Charleston.

Start the day right with some coffee at Babystacks cafe.

Seduction faces.

Neel with that fresh cut.

Ryo with the signature Japanese murder smile.

Hayle looking normal for once.

Babystack’s pan cakes!

Loco moco.

Chivas, Aron and Nimo on that Filipino time.

While they waited for their table, we went to another Filipino spot for halo halo.

An hour of driving later, we made it to Mt. Charleston where it was the perfect cloudy weather for a hike.

Hayle enjoying the nature vibes.

Father and daughter dance off.

There was an earthquake..

After years of being in America, Ryo finally realized his love for me.

Gay marriage is legal now.

Squad shit.

Chivas the sloth.

The Wizard of OZ re-make.

We’ll be the first strip club that’s in the forest and all the poles are tree branches. We’ll call it “Morning Wood”.

Follow me to Morning Wood.

Hayyyyyyyyy lee.

A random wooden tee pee.

Find Ryo.

Sexy poses with Derek.

I told Derek, if he stood by these trees it would make for a good photo. HAHAH…

This wooden fence would make for excellent facebook/tinder profile photos..

Pizza after a long hike, we deserve this. Meat lovers at East Side Pizza.

Buffalo Chicken.

On the way back home, we decided to stop on the side of the 15 freeway to capture some astrophotography.

The stars were so lit. I wish this was my view every night.

Caught some light streaks of some shooting stars.

That orange light would be the moon.

I have never in my life seen the moon so bright and orange.

When I set my exposure too long on my camera, it made the area seem like day time.

Back to reality.

June 30, 2015

Food and Lines | Photo Story Telling

June 13, 2015

San Francisco

Hello all Royal Origin readers! My name is James Baxter and I’m happy to be coming aboard as one of Royal Origin’s newest bloggers. I am based out of Southern California and like to shoot portraits, automotive, and cityscapes. While those may be my areas of focus I shoot anything that catches my eye really; never leave your camera behind! I have been shooting for a little over a year now and I love it more and more with each passing day. I can’t wait to bring everyone more content for you all to enjoy! In the mean time, I leave with you this, my first trip of the year, San Francisco!

I told myself at the beginning of the year that I was going to travel more in 2015 and I made sure my first spot was going to be in one of my favorite cities, San Francisco.

I did not get wet taking this photo somehow.

On the first day I got to San Francisco it was raining really hard, so at the first sign of day break I went out and started exploring.

After hanging around the Golden Gate Bridge for a while and the surrounding area I decided to cross the bridge to venture into the woods.

Muir Woods Nation Forest is awesome and I recommend it to anyone who’s going to be in San Francisco.

Its about a two hour long hike if you do the whole trial but its totally worth it.

Muir Woods is just such a pretty peaceful pace, definitely a nice escape from the rush of Los Angeles.

On the way back over the bridge I decided to take some more pictures and wait until sundown.

It was getting really foggy the later it got, and thats actually a Cruise Ship going under the bridge.

San Francisco is an awesome city, unfortunately I went right in the middle of a huge storm and didn’t get to walk around much. That being said I’ll definitely be visiting again very soon. But San Francisco is just one of the many stops I’ll be taking this year and I can’t wait to share it all with you and bring you all more photos.

March 6, 2015

Random Day in LA | Food Adventures

Valentines Day is spent best with significant other or in this case your two single friends who had nothing else to do that day either. In the spur of the moment me and Abbitt decided to go on a trip with Shavi to check out his clinic that he’s opening in down town LA.

Looking for cool lines to take photos of was the objective of the day.

The build out of Shavi’s clinic is looking good. If you guys need some medical cards and need it in LA, this will be the spot to go to. Maybe we’ll sell our merch out of this spot.

The previous tenant had some cool art work on the walls.

Abbitt needs an answer.

After Shavi confirmed everything with his contractor, we were off to do some #ROExplore in LA.

Things change quickly here in LA, seems like they’re always building something.

The Hundreds. Love it.

First stop, we went to go eat at Wurstkuche where they have a variety of exotic sausages.

Vegetarian smoked apple sage, lamb and many different flavors of sausages.

The restaurant had a nice place to eat with a bar.

A DJ set up at the entrance and a private dining area that you can reserve for a big party.

The order number looked like awards to us. Shavi happily accepting his award for 3rd place hair style in the building.

Abbitt checking out the anodize work on the awards.

I got the lamb with Mediterranean spices with caramelized onions.

Shavi got the rattlesnake and rabbit with jalapenos and Belgian fries.

Abbitt got the bratwurst.

Sausage party.

These fries with chipotle aioli and bleu cheese walnut and bacon sauce was so good. Overall, the food was good and the place had a very chill ambiance to eat at and you can get wasted while waiting for your sausages.

We stumbled upon an ice cream truck on the way back to our car and decided to try it.

This ice cream truck ended up being amazing. The ice cream truck was Van Leeuwen and they make excellent mint chocolate chip and earl grey tea ice cream.

Abbitt mesmerized by his ice cream.

We did a little stroll around the neighborhood and spotted this coffee shop.

We got to this street where we shot Neel’s LS400 last year and they developed the place super quick. The area was unrecognizable at first.

While driving around LA, we looked up the top ten free things to do in LA and Vista Hermosa park was one of the spots to check out. On the way there we went through Little Tokyo and spotted a friend.

Karl was going to Jason Mark to pick up his shoes and had time to kick it with us before his Valentine’s date.

It was my first time seeing Karl’s Porsche on his new set of Work Meisters and damn did it look fresh.

Too bad the lighting was bad at the park and I didn’t bring a tripod to light paint properly.

Karl decided to join us to check out Vista Hermosa park.

We were asked by a couple to help them set up their camera settings for the perfect photo. They ended up asking us if we could help take a photo of their friend because he was going to propose to his girlfriend. Congrats to the lovely couple in this photo!

After the park, we saw this cool arcade down the street in Echo Park. It actually ended up being a parlor with old school pin ball machines. Pretty neat.

Our last visit would be to Barrio Fiesta where Jerald works. He let us check out his RC350 while he was cooking and damn this car is nice.

Red leather for RC350s with the F Sport package.

Touch pad mouse for navigation.

The instrument panel is what I love the most about the newer Lexuses.

Jerald took me out for a cruise to TPumps a new boba shop that originated from San Francisco.

Jerald’s been through a lot last year, glad he’s putting himself back together.

This was a lot better than I expected. All their milk teas was lactose free, so I can fully enjoy them without running to the restroom afterwards.

New boy band, we named ourselves the THREE PUMPS.

Today was a good day.

February 19, 2015

Food Truck Meets | Food Adventures

On today’s food adventures, we took out your woman crush Wednesdays, Sara and Hayle to eat some delicious wieners.

The ladies getting mesmerized by the wieners.

First time Sara wasn’t ready for a photo and Vinh was.

Hayle also always alert for a photo op.

Dogzilla one of my favorite food trucks of all time. I’ve been eating here since 2010 when they would be stationed in front of Sam Ash on Beach blvd. Crazy how fast time passes, but their food is still amazing.

Sara telling us about her patients who get worms in their vagina’s right before our food came out.

I got the spicy dogzilla combo with an egg on top.

How it looks with no egg.

I hope when you google image search Sara Choi this photo pops up.

Some more shots of the deliciousness.

It’s a wiener party.

The next stop would be Porko Rico BBQ. Get it? Puerto Rico – Porko Rico.

When bae is about to buy you food.

I got the pillager pulled pork. The center was flavorful, but the bun was over bearing and dry. It made it hard to consume after a while and I just ended up eating the center only.

Vinh got the captain porko fries which was the better option among our two orders. They really mastered slow smoked pork here at Porko Rico BBQ.

Last on the list was Meow Meow Cafe, we’ve been here a couple times in the past and it was amazing, but I heard from Alyssa who lives down the street that this place changed ownership and is not as great anymore. Well, she was right…