NOTE: This entry is part of a series in which I fly over 40,000 miles in two years. Read the introduction here.
I’ve just had the time of my life. After this second trip I’m finding myself becoming addicted to the idea of traveling. I’d like to make this clear: I don’t have the ‘travel bug’. I’m simply doing this to face my fears and it’s becoming a very rewarding experience.
This time I went to Los Angeles and stayed in Hollywood and Santa Monica. I was also unexpectedly able to visit San Diego.
- Routing: BUF-CLT-MCO-LAX-DEN-AUS-IAD-BUF (plus driving YYZ-BUF and back)
- Mileage and Cost: 6698 miles for $230 equals 3.43 cents per mile (target: less than 5 cpm)
- Remaining: 26403 miles in 1 year and 249 days
- Goofs: (1) Running out of batteries on my camera and missing out on taking some very good pictures. Always carry more than you need in this case. (2) Buying movie tickets days in advance and then missing out on hanging out with new friends (even though ‘Avatar’ was a great flick). Don’t make your plans on the ground so rigid that they can’t be changed.
- Travel tips: (1) When you’re at an airport find and grab a seat next to a power outlet. Plug in your iPod even if it seems full. You’ll be glad you did when you’re running low a few hours later. (2) Whether you travel or not go and shell out ten bucks for Skullcandy “Ink’d” earphones. They sound decent but their real draw is that they cut noise as much as earplugs do. (3) Buy a travel-sized bottle of hand sanitizer and apply them to your feet, socks and the soles in your shoes every few hours to make them stop smelling.
- Soundtrack: Pop
- The great: Hiking, pubbing and clubbing in Hollywood and the cities and beaches of San Diego and Santa Monica.
- The good: Hollywood Walk of Fame, Runyon Canyon, Grauman’s Chinese Theater and the Santa Monica Pier.
- The bad: Universal City is extremely tacky. I also regret not having enough time to visit everything, particularly Venice Beach, the Griffith Observatory and the Getty Center.
Its been an awesome experience to leave everything behind for a few days and meet great human beings somewhere else across the globe. I’m glad I’m trying to face my fears. Lets see what the future holds. Next trip of 40,000 miles: New York City in a month from now! Yeah, I’ll be playing Empire State of Mind all the way there.
To read detailed trip notes for this journey please click here to continue.
