After getting a really good rest on the flight to LA, I have no troubles with jet lag, although the time difference is only really 7 hours from Sydney, or 5 from Christchurch where I’ve spent the last week. I wake up easily this morning at 8:15 am and head downstairs for a coffee. I enjoy what, so far, has been the most expensive small coffee and croissant in my life $44 NZD for both, ouch.

After breakfast, I had some time to spare, so I went for a walk around Downtown LA. I walked randomly, crossing each road in whichever direction the first crosswalk to light up would point me in. I found myself at the city library and took a look around before heading up the steps to the banking tower. I got a good view over the road to the old library before wandering back to the hostel, stopping by 7-Eleven on the way.

Getting from the backpackers to the central station was easy as I’d picked up an LA metro Tap card the day before. I made it to the station with enough time to explore the old building and surrounds, and grabbed a coffee from Starbucks to drink on the train.

The train ride from LA to SD was a fantastic experience, I’m really glad I didn’t fly domestic from LA. I sat on the right hand side of the train and I saw the LA skyline receding in the distance before seeing a great view of the Pacific Ocean which I’d crossed in a 14 hour flight the day before.

I arrived at the Santa Fe depot and immediately the atmosphere in San Diego felt exciting and friendly. I’m really looking forward to checking out the city at this point. I checked into my new backpackers hostel, my home for the next 4 nights. The guy in reception was super cool and gave me a tour of the building, they have chilled out common areas, a kitchen with free pancakes for breakfast, and group activities each night.

I went out to explore Little Italy San Diego, and decided to get a bite to eat. I heard that there’s an Italian deli which makes a killer sub so I headed off in that direction. I didn’t get very far though, I walked past a bar with a sign saying happy hour would be for another 20 min, and they were offering $5 USD pints. With punk music coming out the window, sun streaming into the bar and about 20 taps lined up on the wall, how can I say no to that??

The San Diego IPA on tap at 3 Punk Ales was an amazing find. The old school IPA I’d been looking for since about 2018 when The Institution in Christchurch had one IPA or another consistently on their rotating taps. Every time, it would be a new beer never before tried, and possibly never again to be found. I felt like I was back there again, drinking IPA before the hazys and sweet beers took over the scene.

I’m told that the $5 pints will continue after happy hour with a Mexican lager on tap. The local baseball team is playing and they offer up this beer whenever the team is on. I feel a dangerous situation coming on, so I decide I better get that sub in me before carrying on.

It’s true, the subs at Mona Lisa deli are incredible, their bread is fresh as, soft, crusty, delicious. There’s plenty of meat and crunchy salads, and the dressing is perfect too. It takes me a good 20 minutes to eat this thing, it’s about the size of my arm!

Back at 3 Punk Ales, I hook into a Mexican lager and watch what I think might be the first baseball game I’ve seen for real in my life. Unfortunately the local team doesn’t win the game, but I’m told that the opposition from Houston is a really good team so it would have been a difficult match.

I wander down the waterfront and spot what I think would be a cool place for a skate tomorrow, I’ll have to find a board rental shop. My walk ends up being quite a long one, taking me almost to Gas Lamp Quarter, south of Downtown San Diego.

On my way back I find yet another cool spot, this time it’s Bottlecraft Little Italy. They’re like a craft beer bottle store, but with another 20 ish taps lined up along the wall. This place reminds me of Hippo in Melbourne, and it has the cool vibes to match. I pull up a spot at the bar and chat with the bartender and then one of the locals too. This is just like hanging out in Christchurch and talking with random travelers, except now it’s my turn to be the foreigner learning about the city.

It’s past midnight by the time I sneak back into the backpackers, and I’m glad to have that water bottle I picked up this morning from 7-Eleven in DTLA. All in all, what a great day to start off with a new city.