I'm travelling to... (insert name of city or country here)

I was going to simply post about my upcoming travels and ask if any of you folks have any advice for me (or if you live nearby), but let's open it up to anyone who will be travelling soon!

Where, when, and why are you travelling?
Have you done a lot of research on the area or are you just going to wing it?
Would you ever meet up with someone from the TFP if they lived in the area?

I am moving to New Zealand and have done my research, but en route i'll be spending a couple nights in Los Angeles. Originally I wanted to stop in Vancouver but I just got an amazingly priced ticket to LA and went for it. I'm leaving here on Feb 28th. I know basically nothing about LA, but that's part of the adventure. I don't typically enjoy huge cities, and i'm not into pop/celebrity culture, but i'm sure the city will have something for a science/nature nerd like me. I'll be staying in a Hermosa beach airbnb. Anyone here from LA? What should I do with two days to see the city?

 

Miami Beach!
Fantastic place that we have visited many times before.
Great weather, great beach and lots of wonderful restaurants to choose from with a boardwalk that makes everything walking distance.

 

@Poetry needs a PM from you. She's an LA guru.

 

Are you going to have a rental car? The beaches are great from Hermosa to Santa Monica. There is a Griffith Observatory, but I've never been there. Look into it to see if it is even open to the public. There is the TV studios and different TV shows. I don't know. I had a good time in LA, but it is up to individual tastes as to what is good there.


I'm going to Disney World! With toddlers and family... I've been there before, but it has been a while, and not with little kids (4, 4, 2).

 

Going to Chicago for the first time in April. If you identify as any sort of artist, it's probably a good idea, no??
Going to NYC in May to do fieldwork, but, as if I needed a reason.
Contemplating a crazy cheap Asia trip in October...@baraka_guru you should come with me.

I'm very self-conscious about the amount of travel I've done on the one hand, but I also know travel is the domain of the privileged, so it balances out. This is a really big year of finding myself, and I think I can pull it all off financially, so I'm goin' for it.

 

Having been hosted by multiple TFPers on my roadtrip two summers ago, I know the value of TFP and traveling. I'm also a Los Angeles native and can tell you an ungodly amount of things about this city.

Number One: If you're doing LA and are staying in Hermosa (which is far the fuck away from everything while still being in the city), you need a rental car.


Number Two: Science/nature interests aside, what type of things do you normally enjoy seeing/doing when traveling?

 

The reason I chose Hermosa Beach is because there was a lovely airbnb there and it was close to the airport. Although looking at it now it doesn't seem as close as I thought. I wasn't going to rent a car but looking at the public transportation route, which may include a taxi anyway, maybe I should? I just don't really love driving in places I don't know, or really busy places. I love driving in general but i've been living in Newfoundland for the past few years, LA is nothing like i'm used to. So yeah, i'm a little scared.

When travelling I mostly like to feel the vibe of a place, do things like take public transit (I love subway systems but have only experienced the ones in Toronto, Montreal, and London), walk down the streets, and then do the touristy stuff like science centres and stuff. Only there for two days though. I like all the suggestions so far, and the only addition that I may do is see the dodgers stadium. I'm not a huge sports fan in general but I LOVE baseball, so that might be cool.

So yeah, to rent a car or to not rent a car. Maybe I won't do anything and just sit on the beach all day, which is only 4 blocks from where i'm staying.

I did check out TV tapings and none of the shows ive even heard of are taping while i'm there. I thought going to Big Bang Theory or Ellen might be cool but alas, it was not meant to be.

 

Going to Central Florida next week. Flying in to Tampa Tuesday night, staying in The Villages and wandering around for a week. Hope to see a friend of ours in Orlando, plus a bunch of family and some spring training baseball. Boy, do I need this break from work!

 

I'll be in Albuquerque Thurs-Sun

 

Just got back from Santa Clara Cuba....beautiful island, beautiful beach beautiful weather and the people are grateful, nice and the food wasn't the best but its Cuba. Had a great time!

 

I'll be in Denver Thurs-Sun. Was supposed to be Thurs - Tues, but wires got crossed and BabyDaddy who so graciously used his frequent flyer miles to book our flights changed this flight too when I only needed him to change our ABQ tickets.

 

going to Vancouver Canada for a soccer game ....my over 55 team vs our northern cousins.....Saturday

they will come down to Seattle in Sept.........10 years of International Friendly's ....xoxoxoo