January 8 – 25 was the time I visited the USA with the family. I wanted to go during Vidcon Season in June but you know what they say, grab what you can. This trip, I visited 4 cities: San Fransisco, Seattle, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles, and 3 states: Washington, California, and Arizona. Sadly, this trip didnt allow me to meet any online friends because either:
- California is overrated to them
- They can’t afford to meet me
Over the trip, I’ve shared my experiences over in a forum site where most of my online friends who live in the country could see them and now, here is a polished entry about my trip.
The Plan
Schedule:
San Fransisco (Jan 8 – 12)
Seattle (Jan 12 – 17)
Las Vegas (Jan 17 – 20)
Los Angeles (Jan 20 – 25)
Budget: $1000 spending money
Accommodations: Motel, Relatives, Planet Hollywood Suite, Marriot Hotel (Anaheim), Air BNB (Hollywood)
First Impressions
Visiting the USA is like if the Philippines and Australia were merged together. Reasons for this is because the Philippines has some historical ties with the USA and some of the places I’ve visited just reminds me when I visited Australia for the first time. Everything I’ve seen so far just felt similar to a certain extent yet different at the same time. Nevertheless, it’s an interesting country. Just… not like how its described in the movies. Also it’s really… really cold… but slowly getting warmer as the days go by.
The Trip
My trip is pretty much like any tourist trip you could think off, mashed up with visiting relatives that I’ve never met or barely remember. A lot of my days were waking up really early (especially when going to the Grand Canyon) but overall, it’s worth it in the end. I pretty much went to the most suggested locations such as Alcatraz, Twin Peaks, Hoover Dam, Grand Canyon, Space Needle, Universal Studios, Disneyland… etc, but I was able to visit other places as well like the Place of Fine Art and a Ski area around the mountains of Seattle.
For accomodation, I was able to stay in different kinds of places. From Motels to Hotels and Suites to Air Bnb, and relatives, all were comfy and accomodating. I guess my fave accomodation was the Air BnB due to how close it was to Chinese Theatre and the Walk of Fame… also Netflix.
Most of our travelling was done by relatives, public transport, and Uber… lots of Ubers… like a lot.
Photography
The entire trip was a giant photography fest (except for Seattle).
Every landmark and place I’ve visited, there was an opportunity to take great pics. Some required tripods. However, there was one shot that I was unable to achieve to capture due to weather — a sunrise shot of San Fransisco over at Twin Peaks. It was 9 degrees and very foggy, not ideal weather conditions.
I was able to use a mix of 3 devices, my Canon 70D, Canon M6 and my iPhone X. All to which were used in different conditions. Where my 70D was to capture giant landmarks in San Fransisco and night photography over at Vegas, my M6 was used when I was in amusement parks or when I’m on the constant go, while my phone was used as back up and panoramic shots.
Food
The food varies from place to place. In Seattle, there was a Westfield which has a mini Philippine section and sold Jollibee, Chowking, Red Ribbon and a supermarket filled with products from the Philippines. The Jollibee literally reminded me of my old home country. It tasted really good. Other foods were interesting as well. A friend told me to try a corn dog over in Disney’s California Adventure since “It tastes like Freedom”. I tried a Pork Cutlet Obento Box over at LA Japangeles because of Yuri!!! On Ice (I wanted to try the bowl but my folks wanted me to stick to the Obento just in case I wouldn’t finish it).
But my fave meal of all time… was my dinner over at Hexx in Vegas.
The rib eye steak w/ fries was really good and they were willing to make me Mushroom Sauce after I enquired if they had any (they didn’t). This was the first meal where I was alone, no adults to pay… just me. I had a good view of the water show over at the Bellagio Fountain. The bill totalled around $64 USD and I tipped $25 since it was really good.
My friends and family were shook when I told the tale.
Fun and activities
Vegas to LA was where the fun actually began.
Over in Vegas, I tried the Slotzilla zipline which was amazing. It felt like I was flying and they provided GoPro cameras which allowed me to film and capture the moment. It was thrilling and it reminded of that one scene in Divergent where Tris was flying down Chicago. It was amazing… but it was when you’re about to stop that made me feel like I was going to fall off and die. The came the amusement parks. Everyone who has visited and lived in the USA would give me tones of info about the amusement parks over in LA. That they’re the most amazing place, with tiny flaws, but are worth going. I will admit, I did have fun. All 3 parks I’ve been through have their quirks and sorts but there are also some flaws.
Disneyland
Disneyland is a good start. Its a must go since… well… it’s Disneyland! There was a mix of thrilling and calm rides and it’s a place for all ages. Sadly, due to construction, no parade. Disney’s California Adventure is very limited in rides but its very… grand. Radiator Springs was really cute and my fave ride of all time is there… the Guardians of the Galaxy Breakout. So much 4th wall breaking and screaming. Sadly, I couldn’t see the World of Color due to time restraints. Yeah, couldn’t be there the whole day since after asking advice from relatives who went and a friend who was just there months ago, Cali Adventure has so many significant closures that it was much more worth going to Disneyland first.
Tip of advice for anyone who plans to go: Master the Fast Pass System… trust me, it will save a lot of time!
Universal Studios
This has gave me lot of mixed feelings.
It’s a good park but I rather be in the one in Singapore. Most of the rides here are screen-based, meaning you’re sitting on a rocking chair whilst there’s a giant screen infront of you. It’s ok… but if almost every ride is like that… kinda a downer. Even the non-screen rollercoaster ride over in the Harry Potter area was also a downer. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey was really cool though. The Walking Dead attraction literally scared the shit out of me. Like if you go there with me, you will hear me curse in both English and Tagalog due to fear. Everything else were ok… but once again, giant screen being shoved at your face while sitting on a rocking chair. The shows and tours however were interesting for those aspiring to be filmmakers as it explains how production work and so forth.
Special Mentions
Alcatraz (San Fransisco)
Alcatraz was an interesting sight to see as it’s a prison on an island but also national park. The historical context about the prison was something that gave me interest since it was known as ‘the most inescapable prison’ in the USA. I’m aware on who Al Capone is, the famous mobster in the USA. But I didn’t know he was eventually caught and sent to that slammer. It was nice to hear stories about the place from people who used to work/lived/be arrested there via audio commentary. In the end, I got a book signed by one of the ex-convicts, William Baker. He was arrested for car robbery and when asked on of his fave moments in Alcatraz, it was leaving the place (Go Figure).
Pokemon HQ (Seattle)
Whilst in Seattle, I was able to visit the Pokemon HQ since I have a relative who works there. It was really cool seeing the place and I got some cool Pokèmerch in the end. It was a new building so not much decorations (but there will be soon). It kinda reminds me of old Club Penguin BTS videos back in 2011/12 since the building is really ergonomic and environment-friendly.
Also… SO MUCH PIKACHU PLUSHIES!!! It was really cute and I wanted one but I couldn’t (and they cost $90 – 100+ AUD on eBay).
Bellagio Water Show (Las Vegas)
It was spectacular. It goes in 15 minute intervals at night and the performance I saw, they played ‘My Heart Will Go On’ by Celine Dion and it was like seeing a ballet show done by water. It was very pretty and worth watching. Near the area are a bunch of people dressed up in costumes for photo ops (if you give a tip ofc).
Grand Canyon & Hover Dam (Arizona)
I went to the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam, and if I could be completely honest, Hoover Dam looks better in the Transformers movie. But Grand Canyon is something that it’s hard to describe. It was very scenic, but the weirdest/most morbid thought came up to my mind which I won’t say here. Climbing up small mounds of rocks were a challenge since I had my DSLR on me but it was worth it.
The Anaheim Convention Centre & LA Japangeles (Los Angeles)
I just saw where Vidcon gets held every year… and despite it not being Vidcon season, I can just imagine and picture based on vlogs that get uploaded and photos shared on social media, that it’s a pretty jammed packed event. This place reminded me why I wanted to pursuit YouTube… to be like my fave content creators with my own little twist. It reminded me why I enjoyed being a fan and why I worship YouTube as a growing new form of entertainment. This made me denounce my ‘LazyTown’ interest for one day (or a week) and I wanted to return to my ‘Demon Phannie’ phase of my life… GetLazy wasn’t happy.
LA Japangeles is the first ‘mini Japan’ I’ve ever seen. I wanted to go to the one in San Fransisco but time contraints prevented us in doing so. It was small so don’t expect it to be grand as a Chinatown, but it was worth visiting due to aesthetics.
Overall Thoughts
I could add more into this but there is so much to talk about that occurred in 18 days that its’ hard to condense it down into one blog post. But I had a lot of fun and it was worth going to. I do hope I get to go back (especially during Vidcon Season). I also want to visit other states as well such as Utah, Texas, Denver, and etc just to meet some online friends… shame they couldn’t visit me. But I enjoyed my trip and it was worth going to.
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