Saturday, August 2nd, 2008

It is about 10 PM (PST) and I am beat. I woke up at 5:30 AM (CST) this morning to get ready for my journey from Urbana, IL to San Diego, so I've had a long day. On our arrival a couple of us decided to go out to the zoo at Balboa Park. We took a couple of buses (#2 followed by #7), despite the advice from the hotel folks to take a cab for the same price. They were clearly wrong on that because Balboa Park was quite a drive, and all-day unlimited bus passes can be had for $5, a price that would be easily exceeded by cab fare to and back from the zoo.

The zoo was very nice and the weather was even nicer...warm and sunny but definitely not unbearably hot and humid like in C-U. This zoo is reknowned for its panda exhibit, which drew huge crowds today. Tickets to the zoo were $24.50 per adult (without bus rides or the air safari), and food inside the park was very expensive as well. We hiked (up and downhill) for at least 6 hours and then caught the bus back to Broadway and Fourth, from where we had another good 20 minute hike to the hotel. Along the way I picked up a chicken shawarma sandwich and a yogurt drink from an Iraqi restaurant in the Gaslamp District (very touristy nightlife area). I counted at least 3 Indian restaurants and a Brazilian steakhouse which smelled delicious from the outside. Other restaurants included a few sushi joints, Turkish, southern Spanish, Mexican, steakhouses, Irish, seafood joints, etc. There was a very beautiful hotel along the way too, although I forget its name now.

The Embassy, where we are staying is fairly close to the convention center (like a 10-min walk), and there is a 24-hr grocery store and restaurant nearby as well. The hotel also has a Starbucks and a seafood restaurant, although the restaurant is pricey!

I will end here today. The flights from Savoy to Chicago, and from there to San Diego were pretty uneventful. The teeny puddle-jumper we were on from Savoy to Chicago was very cramped and uncomfortable. Even the overhead bins were so tiny that my carry-on would not fit in the bin. I had to place it between my feet, and my feet then had nowhere to be placed. Luckily the flight from Savoy to Chicago only took 23 minutes! The next flight took about 3.5 hrs, and we flew over the mighty Mississippi River (to Moline, IL), then IA, KS, AZ (Phoenix), and CA. The landscape in AZ and CA was very dry and rocky/hilly. We saw numerous circular irrigated fields and irrigation canals that stretched for many miles.

Ok, more to come tomorrow (maybe). Good-night.