Pico Rivera Travelodge

... I was closer to Compton than Hollywood. First Harlem then this **** hole of a place! I really know how to pick em! I arrived at the hostel about 6 hours later than I planned so spent the evening chilling out at the bar and sorting out some stuff online to do tomorrow. Was a stupid long drive and I was tired so I headed to my dorm and got my head down.

After working all day, too BART out to SFO and flew down to LA. Drove out to Whittier, where our hotel was. The neighborhoods around were a bit sketchy but the Whittier downtown was fine, like Montrose. White lights in the trees lining the streets, small boutiques and a few restaurants. Our hotel was fine -- not exciting but fine. Arrived around 9:30pm, so to bed.

... I would have walked there faster.

The check-in process was a breeze with the friendly and enthusiastic Platinum agent, on her third day in the job, without any prompting told me that I have been upgraded to a suite and that I had “complimentary ...

... when got there so we boarded in shirt sleeves witch is just a well as we didn't have any gear any way. Then it dump it down with snow so we spent a few days freezing our asses off but it was worth it for a few days of powder. On the way back we went via San Fransisco for a few days and then followed the pacific high way along the cost back to Los Angles.

... Drive - we didn't get out because we certainly can't afford to shop there. Dave had some work to catch up on at home, so Meghan took us to the beauty salon where we were pampered for the last time before we start roughing it. Feeling all lady-fied we headed home and started watching a film called The Reader with Kate Winslet which we stopped halfway through as we had dinner reservations at half 7. Before we left, Dave showed us his party trick of ...

... want dat hadden ze in het hotel ook niet. De 2 oudere dames in het Visitors Center zijn heel erg vriendelijk. We krijgen wat uitleg en een plannetje van de stad (maar een busplannetje hebben ze ook niet) en we mogen zelf zoveel brochures nemen als we willen. We kiezen wat we kunnen gebruiken en gaan dan naast het Visitors Center ontbijten in een Starbucks (keten die alle soorten koffie en gebak verkoopt) Tijdens het ontbijt bekijken we onze boekjes en plannen we wat ...

... Morro Bay (not worth staying there longer than one night), we headed straight to LA and our hotel at the LAX Airport. We had heard and read that LA wasn't really worth staying at for too long, but as we didn't have any great expectations we enjoyed ourselves there. We visited Universal Studios - where Rob wet his knickers on the rides and The Getty Center - where the view and architecture were amazing - don't ...

... The service was absolutely fantastic with substantial meals - I had rice and chicken on this leg. I had an hour in Hong Kong's modern airport before transferring to flight CX882 to Los Angeles. I always dread long haul flights and had to psych myself up to this one and take each hour of the 12 hour flight one at a time! The service on this flight was ok, and I empathsise with the flight attendants who have to do these long flights ...

... is just as effective!  He received a standing ovation at the end.  If you've never seen Howard speak before, it is truly something to be seen, and I believe this so much that I even recorded a few clips of him for you to watch (in my photo album).  Nothing major, but this will give you a taste of his speaking style. It was a day with lots of good information, good people, and lots of take home and think about.  Looking forward even more to tomorrow.

... and it is never more clear than at the park. but as long as the walls around the park keep Disney in and preserve outside some things as sacred, ancient, delicate, ugly and complex, Disneyland will continue to enchant me as a momentary refuge from all these things. It is a world of fantasy and escape, rendered so beautifully that it can reduce a grown and embittered nomad to a babbling, giggling, and very damp child.