Los Angeles/San Diego - USA Living

The next morning I headed to downtown LA to go to the Central Market, visit Little Tokyo and just have a stroll around. Unfortunately, none of it was particularly appealing or worth visiting, I think.

I was hoping that the following day would be better, as it was time to check out Hollywood. The night before, I met two other travellers and we decided to start at Sunset Boulevard (bit disappointing), before walking over to the Walk of Fame. That was quite cool and buzzing, but it felt very touristy. Even taking the bus to the Griffith Observatory to get a view of the famous Hollywood sign was nice, but not something very memorable.

In the evening, we went to a LA Dodgers baseball game. It was a good game and I had fun sitting there, watching the game, the people, the food and everything else.

The next day was the 4th July, i.e. America's Independence Day. We headed to Venice Beach to have a couple of drinks, watched people and life pass by and simply soaked in the atmosphere. It was busy with a good vibe as people were happy and out and about in the sunshine.

In the evening, we watched the fireworks on the beach, which I would describe as very chaotic. There was absolutely no coordination and people set off fireworks from literally everywhere - the beach, the car park, the pier, from rooftops, among cars and people. I thought it was quite fun - even if dangerous - and some of the fireworks were really beautiful. But what I will take away from it is the chaos. A fun way to end my time in LA.

The next morning, all Germans in the hostel watched Germany play Spain in the Euros. At the end of the game, I was picked up by Faith, a travel friend I met in Antigua Guatemala 1.5 years ago and who lives in California. After drinking the biggest Margaritas of my life, we drove to her family close to San Diego, chilled out during the day and in the evening went to see an open air oldtimer exhibition and ended the day with some delicious pizza.

The next day was Faith's birthday, and we drove to the pretty Seaport Village in San Diego, drinking beers, eating very delicious tacos and admiring the atmosphere. It was a sunny day and we laughed a lot, enjoying each others' company, talking about all things travel and just living life in general. It was a really nice last full day in the US for me.

I enjoyed my time with Faith and her family much more than the few days in Los Angeles. San Diego might be worth another more in-depth shot, but I was glad to leave the US and continue my travels. Especially, as my next destination is my favorite place in the entire world and I cannot wait to go there again - Antigua in Guatemala.Read more