Live Well, Get Miles

VENICE BEACH Hotel Erwin Surf and skate culture inspired the decor in the hotel's 81 rooms and 38 suites. Graffiti-style art covers the doors, and safety-yellow metal partitions in the rooms display sunglasses for sale. Private balconies overlook the hopping Venice boardwalk. We especially love the pillow menu and the open-air rooftop lounge, which has views of the Pacific Ocean, 250 feet away. But what's with the fireplaces in the suites? Really, in Venice? 1697 Pacific Ave., 310/452-1111, jdvhotels.com, rooms from $179. LAX AIRPORT Custom Hotel Working hard to prove that airport hotels needn't be dull, the Custom employs a private shuttle that takes guests to and from LAX while playing techno music over silent Greta Garbo movies. Clearly, this place is a playground for grown-ups. DJs spin Afro-Cuban tunes at Hopscotch, the pool bar and grill with a fire pit, four cabanas, and vintage video games. Artistically inclined guests can borrow art supplies from the 12th-floor studio, Scribble. 8639 Lincoln Blvd., 310/645-0400, customhotel.com, rooms from $95. DOWNTOWN O Hotel This 68-room hotel sits in the heart of newly hot downtown L.A. Built in the 1920s, the steel-and-glass structure was recently renovated and now has a modern feel (think mood lighting that shines from under the beds and ergonomic desk chairs). The minimalist motif is mostly nice, except when it comes to things like cramped shower stalls. The on-site O Bar & Kitchen serves tapas and martinis until 11 p.m.—till 2 a.m. on weekends; a 7,000-square-foot underground lounge opens next spring. 819 S. Flower St., 213/623-9904, ohotelgroup.com, rooms from $129. HOLLYWOOD Hollywood Heights Hotel In prime Hollywood, this hotel is within three blocks of the Walk of Fame, Madame Tussauds (opening August 1), and Grauman's Chinese Theatre. The lobby mixes the contemporary—white metal-frame sofas and graphic-print rugs—with black-and-white photos of film stars like Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart. Low-key restaurant and bar Hideout serves pot pies, short ribs, and mac and cheese. 2005 N. Highland Ave., 323/876-8600, hollywoodheightshotel.com, rooms from $169. LOS FELIZ Los Feliz Lodge This group of 13 casitas was built in the 1920s as an enclave for the Paramount silent-film elite. The bungalows and villas—some of which still belong to full-time private residents—have amenities like stocked kitchens, washers, dryers, and French doors that lead to a communal patio. Los Feliz is a rare walkable neighborhood, and the Metro is only a five-minute stroll away. 1507 N. Hoover St., 877/660-4150, losfelizlodge.com, two-person bungalows from $150.

New Yorkers aren't exactly patient, but they're more than happy to wait in line at the Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream truck for flavors like pistachio, red currant, and vanilla made with barrel-aged pods—not to mention toppings like Michel Cluizel cocoa nibs, vodka-soaked cherries, and Slow Food-endorsed Sicilian nuts. In August, two more Van Leeuwen trucks hit the pavement—these equipped with espresso machines (vanleeuwenicecream.com, from $4). They'll join a growing army of mobile dessert peddlers catering as much to grown-ups as to kids. Elsewhere in Manhattan, The Treats Truck—which cruises on ecofriendly gas—sells more than 25 kinds of confections, including sugar cookies and cinnamon-spiked brownies. Its kid sister, Dot—a small white truck selling the same goodies—debuted last June (treatstruck.com, from $1). In New Haven, Conn., The Cupcake Truck makes a caramel cake with fleur de sel-flecked frosting, plus standards like chocolate and vanilla (followthatcupcake.com, $2). San Francisco's Waffle Mania uses artisanal dough from Belgium and dresses it up with whipped cream and chocolate. A second bus will roam Napa and Sonoma this summer (510/604-3009, from $3.50). The problem with a rolling shop, of course, is that you need lucky timing to satisfy your sweet tooth. Solution: Twitter. After six weeks in business, San Francisco's Crème Brûlée Cart had more than 1,000 followers of its tweets. The custards come in vanilla, dark-chocolate-Chambord, and Baileys, and they're sprinkled with sugar and torched on-site (twitter.com/cremebruleecart, $3). Miami's Feverish Ice Cream Truck, which spins tracks from local hip-hop and indie-rock artists, uses Twitter to tell the club crowd where to get their strawberry shortcakes and soy-based ice-cream sandwiches (twitter.com/feverishmiami, fudgesicle $2). In Portland, Ore., Sol Pops fans check their feeds to find the raspberry-nectarine and cucumber-lime-jalapeño popsicles sold from a fleet of 1970s tricycles (twitter.com/solpops, paleta $2).

Dixie Leather Works After learning his trade from Lakota Indians and harness makers, Phil Phillips opened a studio here, where he crafts and sells hats, belts, and a 66-piece collection of bags named after the books of the Bible. 306 N. 7th St., 800/888-5183, dlwleathers.com. Aphrodite Gallery Jeweler Julie Shaw moved to town in 2004 and promptly opened a gallery and guest room in a classic Greek Revival house. Her collection includes aromatherapy perfumes, sculptures, and her own necklaces. Count Hillary Clinton as one of her fans. 503 N. 7th St., 270/444-6871. The Mary Jane Inn The leopard-print sofa and photographs of Africa may seem out of place in this 1873 Victorian house, but everything makes sense when you meet the owners, Monica and Paul Bilak. They spent three years working in East Africa and now spend their free time tending to guests at the inn and working on humanitarian projects. They only have one suite for guests, but it's grand, with 12-foot-high ceilings and a private porch. 502 N. 6th St., 270/443-5316, maryjaneinn.com, $95. The Egg & I Gallery owner and hotelier Carol Gabany uses an air pump to drain the yolk from eggs, and then makes a quiche and gets to work carving animals, geisha, and pop-culture celebrities into the shells. A likeness of Jackie O. was done on a chicken egg, but Gabany also works with duck, goose, and emu eggs. Above the gallery, she rents out two guest suites. 335 N. 6th St., 270/443-6323, eggandiarts.com, suites from $95. Max's Brick Oven Café Paducah was a meat-and-potatoes town when Max Bastani showed up in 1998. He set up shop in a warehouse with an oven imported from Italy and started turning out artisanal pizzas—perfect with bartender Jay Sullivan's vodka/pineapple specialty, Max's Relaxers. 112 Market House Sq., 270/575-3473, pizzas from $10.50.

When Pablo Picasso moved to Provence in his 70s in 1959, it was partly to escape the glare of public life in Cannes, but mostly to be closer to Ste.-Victoire, the mountain near Aix-en-Provence that served as the subject of more than 40 paintings by Paul Cézanne, whom Picasso called "my one and only master." After buying Château de Vauvenargues, at the base of the mountain, Picasso contacted his dealer, Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler. "I have just bought Cézanne's Ste.-Victoire," he boasted. "Which one?" the dealer asked, assuming Picasso was referring to a painting. "The original!" the artist replied. Together with Jacqueline Roque, the lover he picked up at a pottery studio and later married, Picasso lived in the 13th-century estate until 1961. It's been off-limits to the public ever since, but through September 27, fans can finally get an inside look. Brushes and paints lie scattered around Picasso's studio, and the mandolin that appears in many of his paintings is in his bedroom. In the garden, the couple's gravestones sit side by side—Picasso's is topped with his 1933 sculpture Woman With a Vase. Advance reservations have sold out, but same-day tickets go on sale each morning at 8:30 a.m. at the Hôtel de Valori (36 rue Cardinale, Aix-en-Provence, 011-33/4-42-16-10-91, $10.25). Although Cézanne and Picasso never worked together—they were 42 years apart in age—the two artists shared a fascination with shifting perspectives. Cézanne often painted the same subject several times, in different lights, and Picasso played with perspective in his cubist works. The "Picasso-Cézanne" show at the Musée Granet, in Aix-en-Provence, is the first to examine the connection in such depth. Two Cézanne pieces from Picasso's private collection are on display, including a version of Five Bathers, from a series that inspired Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. And works from Picasso's period of Cézannian cubism, like Woman With a Mandolin, show the older man's influence. The biggest draw is a series of paintings that Picasso completed at the château. You can reserve tickets online via museegranet-aixenprovence.fr (through Sept. 27, place St. Jean de Malte, Aix-en-Provence, 011-33/4-42-52-87-97, $13.25). Many other shows across the region will also celebrate Picasso (see picassoenprovencecotedazur.com). One of the most fascinating is at the Cathédrale d'Images, in Les Baux-de-Provence. Fifty years ago, Picasso acted in Jean Cocteau's Testament of Orpheus, filmed in a limestone quarry here. This summer the quarry, now a cave-like gallery, is home to a Picasso exhibit in which his paintings are projected onto the irregular stone walls, which reach up to 40 feet high, and accompanied by music from Miles Davis and Vivaldi. It's an entirely new perspective on Picasso's work (rte. de Maillane, 011-33/4-90-54-38-65, cathedrale-images.com, $10, through Jan. 3). And When You're Done With the Art SLEEP La Bastide de Cabriès All 12 rooms in this 15th-century manor have views of the Provençal countryside (rue du Lac, Domaine du Lac Bleu, Cabriès, 011-33/4-42-69-07-81, bastidecabries.com, from $125). Le Mas d'Entremont With a park, a pond, a tree-lined swimming pool, a tennis court, and a gym, you could spend an entire weekend exploring this estate (315 rte. d'Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, 011-33/4-42-17-42-42, masdentremont.com, from $198). EAT Le Bistro Latin The spot for updated takes on rustic Provençal classics. The steak comes with caramelized cabbage, and the crème brûlée is flavored with vanilla from Madagascar (18 rue de la Couronne, Aix-en-Provence, 011-33/4-42-38-22-88, three-course menu from $30). DON'T MISS Stock up on calissons, a favorite local candy made from almonds, crystallized melon, and orange peel ground together into a pointy oval shape. Béchard sells them in pretty red or white boxes (12 cours Mirabeau, Aix-en-Provence, 011-33/4-42-26-06-78, $4.50 for 100 grams).