Pasadena 2022

 A brief outline of my experiences in Pasadena 2022 so I don't forget about what happened.

Day 0 (Thursday):

Departed Changi airport for LAX at ~8pm. 16 hour flight and -16 hours time difference meant that I arrived approximately at LAX at the same time I departed from Changi.

Watched the entire final season of B99 on the plane. Went through immigration, waited quite long to collect the luggage at the carousel. Exited the departure lounge and found that there wasn't much around. An airport convenience store and a coffee bean which was closed. 

Went outside and took the LAX FlyAway buses to downtown LA (Union station). Got off at Union station to the immediate and very strong odour of weed. Went to the nearby booth to pay for the trip. Walked into Union station to buy our TAP card (7-day pass) only to find out that none of the machines would accept card. The only bills on me were $100 bills which were not accepted either. Had to go to a convenience store within the station to buy some stuff (flamin' hot cheetos) to get smaller change. Eventually bought our cards and got on the metro to Pasadena.

Walked from Del Mar station to the hotel. Checked in and went out for a walk in search of food at around 10pm.  Remaining places that were still open were drive through only (Del Taco, Mcdonalds, Jack in a box). Settled for some bottled drinks from the nearby gas station. Girl at the gas station suggested some food delivery apps but they all required a local number. 

Day 1:

Had breakfast at King Taco and walked around old town Pasadena. Took a metro to downtown LA to visit the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Had lunch at In-n-Out (walking distance away) which was pretty crowded but still managed to find some seats.

Went back to the Walk of Fame and decided to find a place to see the Hollywood sign. Found that the sign can be seen from Griffith Observatory. Took a metro and switched to a bus (that was free for that day?) to the observatory. Took some pictures and checked out the inside to see some astronomy displays. The wait for the bus back was rather long.

Took the metro to downtown LA and walked for a bit along S Broadway. Took a bus to Little Tokyo for some Gong Cha. Waited for another bus to Chinatown and walked for a bit before taking the metro back to Pasadena (Chinatown -> Memorial Park). Tookaway Dirt Dog for dinner. 

Day 2:

Tutorials during the morning and afternoon. Went to Cava at Lake Ave for lunch. Ordered la spicy chicken Pita. Left midway through the second tutorial as I was too tired. Walked into Trader Joe's and Target to see what they had. Went back to catch up with some sleep. Woke up at 9pm and took away nachos at Lucky Boy for dinner. Was too much to finish.

Day 3:

Tutorials during the morning and afternoon. Had Panda Express at Lake Ave for lunch (Fried rice with broccoli beef and orange chicken). Took an ART test after lunch. Left midway through the second session. Had plans to go to Glendale for dinner. Took a bus to the old town and found a hobby store which I browsed for a bit (The Retro Store). Realized that the 7-day pass doesn't work for the bus to Glendale so I hurried to the nearby Memorial Park station to add some value to the card. Missed the express bus by a few minutes on the way back and had to wait for the non-express one. 

Put our name in queue for The Cheesecake Factory and walked around the nearby area and mall. Bought share tea and went to have dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. Took the express bus back to Pasadena. 

Day 4 (Monday):

Attended talks all day. Walked towards Ginger and Spice and then to Urth Caffe for lunch but both places were out of space. Settled for King Taco. 

Late dinner at Urth Caffe. Ordered a pot roast quesadilla. 

Day 5:

Morning started off with a breakfast session where I had a really incredible breakfast croissant sandwich. Attended talks for most of the day. Had lunch at Chipotle (Barbacoa bowl) and Bubble Tea (Tpumps) after that. Dinner was a night event. Lots of people and they ran out of food and closed the bar counter too early. 

Day 6:

Had to do an ART test in the morning. Attended talks for most of the day. Had The Cheesecake Factory for lunch. Went back for a nap in the afternoon. Decided to walk around a bit to find a quiet place to sit down. Ended up at the Starbucks in Target but they didn't allow dine-in. Found another Starbucks at Ralph's which was not too far away. Bought some girl scout cookies upon entering. Realized that they didn't have seating either. Bought a drink and went back for the evening event. No dinner that day except for some cheese and biscuits provided due to being too full from lunch. 

Day 7:

Attended talks for the first half of the day. Went for a short walk to the City Hall and Memorial Park. Had lunch at Lunasia Dim Sum House and rushed off for a tour of some labs. Found a nice spot to sit down for a rest and was approached by a fellow attendee of the event. Spoke for a bit and went to get bubble tea. Decided to have dinner together but I had to go back to the hotel to use the washroom. The other guy decided to pass on dinner at the last minute so I went on my own. 

Took the metro and walked to Gus's BBQ. They had ran out of brisket so I got the ribs instead. Walked approximately 4km (2 metro stops) back to the hotel. Along the way, I encountered a carpark full of expensive looking cars with a tons of people (mostly asians) standing about. Not long after, a police helicopter appeared overhead with a searchlight, and people starting driving out of the carpark. 

Day 8:

Had planned for two activities but left a little late due to some procrastination. Went to Chipotle for an early lunch and walked to Huntington Gardens. Paid the entry fee and got a drink from the nearby cafe. Entered the compound and explored the library, old living quarters, art gallery, and various gardens. Left around 4pm and tried to go to the start point of the Altadena Las Flores Trailhead. 

Walked to Allen station and dropped into a nearby grocer to change for some smaller denominations. Took the metro to Lake and missed the bus that was going towards the trail. I slowly realized that I was not going to be able to walk the entire distance in time. Went to a nearby convenience store for some water and downloaded Lyft, hoping that they would accept an international number. To my surprise, it did. Ordered a ride to the start of the trail.

Hiked for a bit and went off trail briefly. Found my way back onto the trail and asked some of the people descending for some directions. They mentioned that it was unlikely that I will be able to reach the top before it gets dark, which is potentially dangerous due to the narrow paths, steep slopes, and possible encounters of mountain lions. I went up as far as I was comfortable with given the amount of daylight I had, and then descended back to Lake Ave. Decided I would go back to Gus's BBQ for dinner.

Walked down to Altadena and while trying for a Lyft ride but realized that it would be too difficult to get a ride. Decided to take a bus instead even though the wait was a little long. Tipped a nearby busking musician while walking to the bus stop. Bus eventually brought me to the metro station (despite making a long detour to Lincoln first) where I called for a Lyft ride to Gus's. This time, I managed to order the Brisket and added on a beer sampler.  Took the metro back to the hotel. 

Day 9:

Had donuts in the morning for breakfast (Lêberry Bakery & Donut) and came across the largest croissants I have ever seen. Got some bubble tea as well.

Met up with a new friend who drove us to NorthRidge where we had some fried chicken and did some shopping at Kohl's. Went to Glendale after that for more shopping and some Share Tea. Returned to the hotel to find that Kohl's did not remove the tag from one of the clothes. Went to Target and asked them if they would remove it and they did. Did some shopping at Target and the nearby Ralph's before walking to a Taco Truck for dinner. 

Day 10:

Packed up and checked out of the hotel. Was deciding between going up a mountain trail or going to downtown LA. Decided on going to downtown LA and checking out the La Brea tar pits. Had hotpot for lunch and took the metro downtown. Realized  that I was running a little short on time and only stayed at La Brea for about 30 minutes before getting a Lyft ride to KTown. Managed to get some Bubble Tea (YiFang Oolong milk tea with taro pearls) before taking the metro back. 

Called for a Lyft to LAX to get another ART test done before returning. Final meal before departure was KFC at the departure lounge.