First stop - Los Angeles

So, Wednesday morning my dad drops me off at the airport at 6am to catch a 740am flight to LA. As I'm boarding the plane, I realize that I'm leaving Orlando for 2 months. Reality hits and what a feeling...I'm heading to China! Before catching my flight to Beijing, I decided to spend a day in LA site seeing. Let me tell you, if you haven't been to LA, it's a huge city that is alive at all hours of the day. I had the 2 best "tour guides" in the city of angels. Gage picked me up from the airport and immediately started giving me the tour of his town. We headed to Runyon Canyon for a quick hike and when we reached the top, you see the city stretching out as far as the eye can see. Afterwards, we headed around town, to the different districts (W. Hollywood, Hollywood, Sunset Blvd. Moholland Dr., the Valley) and then ended at a small coffee shop for some tea in the afternoon. I caught my first glimpse of a Hollywood star...well he wasn't that well know, it was the young kid from the tv show "7th Heaven". Not sure the actors name, but he was sitting there with some friends drinking coffee. (No I was not star-stuck and did not ask for an autograph). Later that evening, I ended up over at my friends place in North Hollywood. Hector and I sat around and chatted for a few hours before taking an evening drive down Moholland Dr. I highly recommend (if you're ever in LA) to view the city at night from the top of Runyon Canyon. It's an amazing view...all the different boroughs are lit up (Century City, the Valley, NOHO, Hollywood, etc.) Afterwards, Hector treated to my last burger in the states at In and Out Burger. DELICIOUS!!!! Then, after eating all that greasy food, we walked a few blocks to his Jiu Jitsu school to meet one of his teachers, Chris Lisandro. We spent a short time there talking to the students and watching some of them grapple and practice arm and leg locks.

Today, Gage and I are going to tour the city again...maybe even hit Venice beach to catch some Hippie action. Then it's off to the airport for a 1240am flight to Beijing.

I want to thank both Hector and Gage for their hospitality and willingness to show me around. You guys are the best!!!

"You stay classy San Diego"