We spent most of the fourth day of our trip (Thursday) at the expo.
I had another night with not much sleep, and like the day before, I woke up right before 6:00, hoping it would be later in the day, ugh. Being up early gave me some time to work on blog posts and Instagram stuff though. (I only mention my sleep because it seems to be a pattern of me getting very little sleep when I travel and coming back exhausted.)
Before we went to the expo, we checked out of our first Airbnb (we stayed at one close to the expo for the first part of the trip then switched to a touristy area for the second) and then I searched for a place to eat breakfast and redeem our evening dining experience with something new. Ha.
I found Atticus Cafe, which had a regular menu, and a vegan part on the menu. We knew it would be good when we walked in – it smelled delicious! I got the scramble (and a tea), which came with the spiciest soyrizo I’ve ever had, whoa.
We drove to the expo afterward. We knew to go straight to the ballpark for parking, but had a hard time getting there – there was even more traffic than the day before, and we drove right by the shuttle drop off and it was super backed up because it was the rideshare drop off too.
Ugh.
When we got to the ballpark we had to walk pretty far to get to the back of the shuttle line, and were probably still behind 1,000 people! No joke! We eventually decided to walk the 2.5 miles to get there. In the sun.
While we were walking the Airbnb host called to let me know I left my Kindle there. Gah! That is what I get for leaving it under my pillow. She mailed it to me a few days later. I feel so naked without my Kindle! I use the Kindle app on my phone and it’s just not the same.
More of the expo opened on Thursday, and it was a busy day. We visited at least 15 booths on purpose to either meet our brand partners or try new products, then probably visited another 100 booths. Out of maybe a thousand? For real, there are SO many exhibitors there!
It was a successful day (although I was so spent by the end). We had a lot of fun chatting with our business partners. We didn’t try any new product we loved as Meati, though!
We stayed until the expo closed at 6:00 (we got there at noon) and walked back to the car. We got about 23,000 steps in that day!
Then we drove toward our new Airbnb, in West Hollywood, with a planned stop at Real Food Daily for dinner. I was excited to order from an all vegan restaurant but feeling really rundown – my left nostril was clogged the day before, then my right one on Thursday and my right eye kept watering. Gah. Anyway.
We ordered Impossible Burger eggrolls that were amazing, then I got some Fettucine (pretty good!) and greens, and Steven got the club sandwich and a salad. Oh! And a delicious strawberry shake to take to the Airbnb.
Sigh. So this new Airbnb was WEIRD. Definitely someone’s house that they live in and left for us to be here. Fridge full of food, not super clean, beach towels as our towels to use, their stuff everywhere, no place to hang anything, non-functioning light switches, no batteries in the remote, etc. I will definitely be leaving a review* because no one mentioned that in their reviews except for someone who booked after us! I was a bit skeeved, but think it’s because I had just come from such a nice clean place.
*I left the review this morning. Ha, the host texted me and asked for a 5 star review and said they’d give me 5 stars too. Um, no. The place was fine but does not deserve 5 stars.
Oooh I want those eggrolls! And the spicy soyrizo.
Boo to the “not 5 star” Airbnb. I’ve had such good luck with the ones that I’ve stayed at.
OMG the eggrolls. They were f*cking amazing.
I have been so hit or miss with Airbnbs! I’m glad you’ve had good luck. And I am glad our first one was nice!
I have gotten some nasty messages from Air BnB owners when I’ve left honest reviews that weren’t 100% positive. It’s enough that I think I’m going to stop using them and start using VRBO. It’s just that I want future guests to know what to expect – if they don’t think that those are dealbreakers for them, they can make a decision with full information. What a bummer way to end your vacation.
23,000 steps! Your feet must have really been speaking to you by the end of the day!
Oh interesting! DMs in the system or to your cell? I do NOT like that they have my cell number! And exactly – I just want people to know what the space is like! I am not going to be cruel or lie!
Surprisingly, they were not that bad! I did bring a brand new pair of shoes for the trip though! Ha!
Ugh, I’m sorry for the crappy Airbnb experience! When I was looking for a cabin on VRBO, I fell down a rabbit hole of reading reviews of cabins and some of the responses from the owners were VICIOUS. Like, I get it. It’s not fun to read a review that’s not 100% positive but being ugly in a review does not make me want to book with you!
Walking 2.5 miles in the sun and then being in the expo all day! Whew. That’s an experience, for sure.
Oh gosh, yes! It would not make me want to book with someone who stoops to that level too. Sometimes it’s explanatory, but sometimes it’s not and you just need to let the comment be! I am not the type to say mean things just to say them!
Right? Gah. Ha.
My feet hurt just reading this.
And, the AirBnB thing with not leaving a five star review and then being stalked/harassed by the owner? Not. Cool. ESPECIALLY because it was so gross. Bleah.
My mom always leaves a 5 star review because she doesn’t want to be blacklisted and have other owners reject her request to rent. I have no idea if that happens but I’m similarly cowed by the Uber app and rating my drivers. If I give < 5 stars it starts hounding me to up the rating. Sigh.
Ha! Surprisingly, my feet did not hurt!
Right? I was worried they were going to bug me after I didn’t leave a 5 star review, but thankfully, they didn’t. Bizarre. She had already left her review of me before I left mine, so I wasn’t worried about that, but I get that! But I also HAD to be honest about this place, LOL.