Ahhhh Los Angeles.... it's been several years - 7 to be exact, since we last saw one another. After dealing with the nasty people at Hertz and the ridiculous traffic, I remember why I dreaded this trip.
Let's start with LAX.
Can we please have more than 3 stalls in the only restroom in each terminal? Regardless of time of day or night this place is jam packed with passengers - there's only so much these tiny facilities can handle. Other than the lack of facilities and very few seating areas or charging stations, it's not a terrible airport. I'm sure the story would be different if I had been connecting through a different terminal, but for the one stop it's ok.
Can we please have more than 3 stalls in the only restroom in each terminal? Regardless of time of day or night this place is jam packed with passengers - there's only so much these tiny facilities can handle. Other than the lack of facilities and very few seating areas or charging stations, it's not a terrible airport. I'm sure the story would be different if I had been connecting through a different terminal, but for the one stop it's ok.
I landed around 10pm local time; ran outside to catch the bus to the rental car counter. That ride took nearly an hour with all of the stops and traffic on airport property, maybe because I was at terminal 1. Once I arrived at Hertz, I learned my reservation wasn't on the outside board so I had to go in to see an agent. After waiting in line for what felt like an eternity, I was informed I didn't have a reservation. Not so! Instead of waiting patiently for me to pull my reservation, the counter agent tried to up sell me into a luxury car then got upset when I declined and asked her to give me a minute to find the information needed for the reservation. She literally got up and walked away for almost 10 minutes. After I gave her the reservation information and got things sorted, I had to walk across a very dark, sketchy parking lot to find the car. Cute little Jetta, must have been in the stars - I'd had Jetta's all week.
The 405 is under construction; it was a bumpy ride but that late at night the traffic was almost non-existent. I was well on my way to Camarillo, CA for the night where I stayed at the Hampton Inn where the staff were fantastic and my room was great.
I am absolutely in LOVE with Camarillo and Thousand Oaks (where I worked). What a stunning part of the state, heck, even the country. Breath taking. Relaxing. Perfect weather, low 80s, low humidity, chilly enough at night to sit by a fire pit if you wanted to.
I am absolutely in LOVE with Camarillo and Thousand Oaks (where I worked). What a stunning part of the state, heck, even the country. Breath taking. Relaxing. Perfect weather, low 80s, low humidity, chilly enough at night to sit by a fire pit if you wanted to.
While I was in town, I had the pleasure of working with some really amazing people. Highly intelligent, funny and genuine. That's what makes all of this travel and time away from a personal life worth it.
I of course, need to mention food here. Being an east coast girl, I am like a kid in a candy store here with so many options! Let's start with my favorite...
Do they even MAKE bad food?!? I think not. I am a bit of a creature of habit, I love a good cheeseburger.
Next, and still in the burger family:
Big Wave cheeseburger on wheat, fries and a coke?! Don't mind if I do...
Lastly, a bit of a departure from the norm for me, BBQ:
I had the Tri-tip sandwich with sides of slaw & mac-n-cheese, it was pretty good! There are several sauce options here, I went with Blonde. It amused me there was such a creature.
I left the LA area with a very different perspective than I had going into it; no city is without their own set of issues. So LA has crappy traffic and an "OK" airport. They also have fantastic people, beautiful scenery, great radio stations and good food. I'll visit again, but I will probably fly into Burbank or Ontario depending on where I'm going...
As always, this trip had to come to an end. I was on a red eye home to ATL out of LAX. While I was sitting in traffic on the 405, I thought "hey, they have great radio stations out here" - which might be why people just deal with the traffic, certainly made the 45 mile 2.5 hour trip more pleasant for me. If I had to sit in that mess every day I'd probably have even more road rage than I do.
OH! That reminds me... honkaholism. This is a thing!
The commercials for this crack me up, the honking quotes on the website are priceless. I think I need a honk suppressor for my own vehicle. I may even need a honkervention. Admitting you have a problem is the first step, isn't it?
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