straight west coastin'

after Chicago i had a week-long stint back in Kansas. it was crazy seeing old faces again and somewhat surreal being back at my old apartment as it felt like a second home. it was great catching up with mates, we went out a few nights and ended up in the football stadium on one.

San Fran
my trip was slowly winding down as i made my way to my final departure point, LA, however without a final departure date as i continued putting off re-booking my ticket! by this time i had been on the road for two months, so it was good staying with family in San Fran and enjoying some home comforts.

once again i did all the touristy stuff which was now habitual: Coit Tower, Lombard Street, Pier 39, Alcatraz, Chinatown, Golden Gate Bridge, 17 Mile Drive etc.

however what was most striking was San Fran's beauty. far away from the cold and grime of cities on the east coast, San Fran's mild year-round climate and hilly geography made it really special. the gentrified neighbourhoods were quaint with the colourful row houses and trams chugging up the seemingly impossibly steep hills. and as the city is on a peninsula, reaching the top of a hill and looking down on the cityscape, the ocean would created an awe-inspiring backdrop. definitely the most beautiful city in the States!

QUAINT

 

CUTE

 LA
2nd best city in the US!

the only impressions i had of Los Angeles were from the movies, namely Beverly Hills Cop, and the game Grand Theft Auto. these were that it was a gritty and crime-filled urban calamity, which i had been advised not to even visit. how quickly these ideas would be proven wrong...

the reason why i liked LA so much was for its diversity. you can find the whole spectrum of Americana in its urban sprawl (Greater Los Angeles County is like 10 cities combined with a population of around 18 million). from modern corporate America to its founding Spanish influences found in its Architecture, from the glitz of Hollywood to the grime of Compton ghettos, from the greed and excess of Rodeo Drive to the predominantly Mexican street markets, from the pristine Santa Monica Hills to the 16-lane highways, LA has it all.

MERCS IN BEL AIR

QUAD BIKES IN COMPTON

LA being LA, there were a ton of famous Hollywood icons to see. i visited LA City Hall which was used in the filming of the Superman TV series, the Bradbury Building which was used in the final scenes of Blade Runner, 2nd Street Tunnel used for a whole lot of music videos and Coke ads, and even bumped into Christian Slater - ahh La La Land!

a trip highlight would had to have been Venice Beach. Venice Beach was like visiting another world where you could escape the urban chaos, it was very eclectic. walking down from Santa Monica Boulevard where you find a bunch of high-end shops and trendy go-getter's, you are immersed in a distinctly opposite environment by the time you reach the cheap stalls and drugged out masses of Venice Beach. there were a ton of hawkers/bums and people trying to sell medicinal marijuana or their demo tapes. crazy vibe. it was a very interesting experience.

HIP-HOPPERS

HAWKERS

HIPPIES

San Diego
having only recently met Kurush at the Zoroastrian Congress in December, he was kind enough to put me up for a few nights and show me around SD. we checked out the night life, hit up San Diego Zoo and climbed a mountain, all in a weekend's work!

as SD is literally on the border with Mexico, we also hit up some authentic Mexican food which i couldn't get enough of. a trip highlight was an American bastardisation of a Mexican dish, carne asada fries, soooo good!

funnily enough my buddy i started this trip with in Orlando, Carl, i was destined to end it with. on the following and last weekend in the US we made a trip down from LA to SD to meet up with Kurush again. driving down on the 405 was an experience in itself! busiest highway in the US, 16 lanes across, cruising at 80 miles an hour! i hate driving in Sydney now, because nothing compares to the thrill of driving in the US!


KARL & CARL SHOW, BACK IN TOWN



THIS IS A HIGHWAY!

chi town

BEST CITY IN THE US!

a 22-hour train ride from Boston placed me at the hub of America's rail network, Chicago. 'best city in the US' may be a bit biased, but let me elaborate on why i like it so.

uniqueness - its advantageous location in the mid-west made it an important trading hub between the east and west coasts. not prescribing to either of these two stereotypes, it is uniquely mid-western and has real character.

ALL LINES LEAD TO CHICAGO (TOP-CENTRE)

size - metropolitan Chicago is huge, with a population of 10 million, stretching across 3 states - wawaweewo! it's the largest city in the mid-west and 3rd largest in the US. this great expanse makes for a range of neighbourhoods like the poor and upmarket areas, hip and office areas etc. the diversity was amazing, and there were also some ghetto areas which looked pretty dope!

DOWNTOWN CHI TOWN

Architecture - quick history lesson: the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 pretty much razed the city, possibly considered a blessing in disguise for it was around this time that steel was becoming more commonly used and consequently Chicago was home to the first skyscraper. this innovation was a catalyst for the city's prominent Architecture still evident today.

JOHN HANCOCK CENTER

MARINA CITY

the urban fabric was incredibly rich - some of the oldest skyscrapers in the world juxtaposed by some of the tallest and most modern, the large open spaces, the art installations and surprisingly, the elevated railway lines. they were these rusted masses of steel sitting atop the street, hinting at the city's industrial past and throwing the street scape into a constant gloomy light. it felt like something out of a film noir movie, it was beautiful.

being an area in which Frank Lloyd Wright practised (greatest American Architect of the 21st Century) i got to see a lot of his buildings, notably his Prairie-style houses. taking a tour through his home and studio in Oak Park i got to see first-hand all the Wrightian principles i'd learnt at school, it was very memorable.

WRIGHT'S HOME AND STUDIO

art and museums - a lot of great museums and art galleries, good for expanding the mind. i was also told that during summer there are almost nightly concerts down at the Pritzker Pavilion (an outdoor music arena) which sounds pretty sick. 

PRITZKER PAVILION, FRANK GEHRY

THE BEAN

there was also a bunch of locals who showed me and a couple of Aussie mates a bit of the Chicago night life, and from what i gathered Chicagoans definitely know how to party! i think we all became lifelong friends in the course of one night thanks to dollar drinks and an infamous Facebook album. awesome bunch of people, showed us a great time, cheers!

can't wait to visit Chicago again, but until next time...

black people

we don't get many black people in Australia and i had little pre-conceived notions of them, except what i gathered from a lot of rap videos and stand-up comedians. these impressions were somewhat validated as i came to realise that black people are the coolest people out. they're really friendly, heaps funny and just so darn cool! they have swagger we all wish we had, gotta love black people.

east side

due to the extension of my trip, i had to cross the border into Canada and re-enter on a Visa Waiver. this proved to be quite stressful as i was rejected from entering into Canada on the first instance and had to spend the night at a Greyhound bus depot in Buffalo. second time i got through and after spending a week with family in Toronto was granted a Visa Waiver on my return to the States.

Washington D.C.
the nation's capital, the showcase of America's imperial mite! host to a bunch of government buildings, monuments, memorials and publicly-funded museums. a lot of must-see places, but most importantly, the White House, WWII Memorial, Washington Memorial (Obelisk), US Capitol (where parliament is held), Pool of Reflection (Forrest Gump) and Lincoln Memorial.

however what i liked most about Washington D.C. were the museums. although i have little to no interest in "air and space", the National Air and Space Museum was enthralling. so much interesting stuff in there i reckon i could've taken about two days soaking it all in instead of the few hours i had. other places i visited included the: National Building Museum, National Museum of American History, Natural History Museum, National Archives, all great and all free!

THE ORIGINAL WRIGHT BROTHERS PLANE

Philadelphia
Philadelphia, once the 2nd biggest city in the British Empire, is historically significant for its role in the American independence movement. hence i learnt a lot of American history whilst visiting all the sites, now immortalised, including where the Declaration of Independence was signed, the Liberty Bell rung at the announcement of independence, George Washington's house, and the parliament buildings when Philly was once the nation's capital... all good stuff.

IT'S KIND OF A BIG DEAL

aside from that, i fulfilled my dreams of running up the Rocky stairs and ate a Philly cheese steak, which was pretty shit considering it's just meat and cheese.

Boston
a free six-hour bus ride with Megabus saw me in Boston. a snow storm literally shut the city down, so i was stuck indoors for the first two days. afterwards however, just as in Philly there was a lot of history to be learnt, and this was best done along the Freedom Trail. this was literally a trail of red bricks that led you through downtown with a blurb on all the historic sites e.g. Paul Revere's house (big time American patriot), USS Constitution (world's oldest floating navy vessel), Bunker Hill monument (where the first Brits vs. American war took place)... all good stuff.

FOLLOW THE RED BRICK ROAD, IF YOU CAN FIND IT

didn't make it to the Red Sox stadium but caught an NBA and NHL game, which were sick! Americans love their sport! the stadium went off, people just kept shouting and dancing whenever the music came on! haha not to mention the 4 fights in the first 30sec of the hockey game, it was sick!

ICE HOCKEY

also visited Harvard University, America's oldest university, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a neighbouring rival. MIT was way cooler than Harvard  for the number of sweet buildings it had. all big name Architect's have left their mark on MIT including Frank Gehry, Alvar Aalto, I.M. Pei, Eero Saarinen and Steven Hall. i don't think you could find such a collection of buildings anywhere else in the world, it was amazing!

STATA CENTER, FRANK GEHRY

KRESGE AUDITORIUM, EERO SAARINEN

travelling

travelling the States is awesome! i was due to fly home on the 27th of jan, but have extended my stay till late-feb sometime. as i have just graduated from university and have no real commitments back home, i feel it is a great opportunity to spend my time seeing all that i wish to see over here. this will no doubt blow any remnants of a budget i had, but i think it's worth it for another few weeks.

my itinerary is extremely sketchy. sometimes i find myself waking up in a new city, opening a lonely planet or jumping on the net to see what's on offer and then going for it. i think this is a great way to travel, not having a fixed itinerary. i have some family and contacts around the country, but for the most part i will be travelling on my own. staying in hostels is also sweet because you get to meet and hang out with a bunch of characters from all over the world. (it's especially sweet when you meet some Aussies and hear the accent!)

i can't praise any more highly the travel experience. the feeling of independence, the people you meet, new experiences, developing life skills…. all that good stuff comes with the job, it is awesome!

furthermore, America is so diverse, each state can almost feel like a different country - there's just so much to see! it's also extremely well inter-connected and very easily accessible. trip advisor, hostel world, megabus, greyhound and amtrak, are all i've been using to plan my stays like a few days in advance. for example, i only decided to go to Washington D.C. from Toronto three days ago when i found buses were only $15, for an 11 hour bus ride!

so i will be visiting D.C., Philadelphia, and Boston in another week or so before making my way to the west coast via Chicago and Kansas. i’m really looking forward to hitting up Kansas for one final week of partying (9-14th feb)!

big apple

so good it had to be named twice by the English Duke of York: New York, New York! what can i say, most definitely one of the best places i have ever visited!

i was in NYC for a week, which was a good amount of time, but you could easily spend a month there and not even see half of what it has to offer. NYC is vast with its 5 distinct boroughs, but the subway is extremely cheap and effective. i stayed in a hostel with a few British blokes from KU, and did all the requisite touristy stuff which was great!

standouts for me would've been the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and the sobering September 11 Memorial Museum. escaping the bustle of the city with a jog through the massive central park was also quite memorable, the land is believed to be valued at over $500 billion! soo many famous places, it was hard to believe that i was actually in the thick of it!

compared to the mid-west, people in NY are quite cold. i was so used to getting friendly receptions back in Kansas (being a foreigner) but in NY i copped a bit more attitude instead. in a city of 8 million, New Yorkers constantly seem to be in a rush maintaining their worker-day lives. it seems like living there would sap a lot of energy out of you just because it's constantly buzzing.

TIMES SQUARE



CENTRAL PARK

SEINFELD

CHARGED BY THE BULL

MOMA

MOMA

so what's so good about Texas?

from what i've seen of the US, i like Texas the best. i’m not entirely sure why, except that it just feels like a place i want to be.

per capita, Dallas has the most amount of restaurants in the world, and Houston the most amount of shopping centres, which says something about the disposable income of Texans. this is largely due to the fact that there's a lot of oil in Texas, and consequently lower taxes. it could just be that a bright-eyed boy from small-town Sydney like me likes the scale of it all, EVERYTHING’S bigger!

Texas has a coulourful past and is rich in diversity. they had fiercely libertarian values (previously independent from the US) and this is still quite apparent. i think i just like the Texas attitude which can be aptly summated with "Americaaa, fuck yeah!"

TEXAS STAR