Monday, July 23, 2012

Doing #RWA12 like a local: your guide to Anaheim

While I'm not officially attending the RWA National conference this week, I will be lurking around the bar and making an appearance at the Passionate Ink party!

As a resident of the OC ("Orange County" for those outside of Southern California) I wanted to impart some knowledge about the area around the hotel!
  • For any essentials you may have forgotten, there's a Target about a mile away from the Marriott. Here are the directions: http://goo.gl/maps/6Ar8
  • You cannot come to Southern California without getting good Mexican food! I would recommend one of the following places:
    • Alertos, 0.5 miles away. Their burritos are so filling!: http://goo.gl/maps/kMxG
    • Picantes, 3 miles away. Get their carnitas tacos!: http://goo.gl/maps/hBmOG
  • At the Anaheim Garden Walk, you can eat at Bubba Gump Shrimp, Cheesecake Factory, PF Chang's, California Pizza Kitchen, McCormick & Schmicks (for the big spender), and more:  http://goo.gl/maps/pBXB
    • The UltraLuxe Theater, offering IMAX AND a 21+ side to the theater with comfier seats, a more intimate theater, a robust menu, and alcoholic beverages--served to your movie seat!: http://www.ultrastarmovies.com/theaters/ultraluxe-anaheim-cinemas-at-gardenwalk/
    •  LUSH: enough said!
    • G-Stage: like Forever 21, great for hip, trendy clothing. They have a great Plus Size section!
  • The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have home games Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The Friday game has fireworks afterwards! Here's the schedule.
  • The House of Blues Anaheim (at Downtown Disney) is featuring Dashboard Confessional (Thursday), Relient K (Saturday), and their weekly Gospel Brunch (Sunday). Here's the calendar.
  • Downtown Disney is a great place to catch a movie, eat, hear live music, and grab souvenirs. Parking is free for up to three hours (get your stub validated!). Heads up--this will be SWAMPED Friday and Saturday nights, so make reservations if you want to eat there on a weekend night. Directions: http://goo.gl/maps/UDpa
  • Souvenirs and 7-11: Right up the street is a 7-11 that sells Disney sway AND just behind it on Harbor is a kitschy souvenir shop. Get your Anaheim, California, and Disney souvenirs here--it's cheaper and less crowded! Walking directions: http://goo.gl/maps/Bdecw
  • Bookstores: There's a B&N five miles away, and a couple used book stores
    • Barnes & Noble: http://goo.gl/maps/NP4v
    • Bookman: http://goo.gl/maps/6KTcK
    • Booktown USA (be warned, the owner can be a grumpy old man): http://goo.gl/maps/7aie
    • Book Carnival: http://goo.gl/maps/PI3nL
  • Doughnuts: Blueberry Doughnuts have become a "thing" in SoCal, and lucky for you TWO of the best places to grab them are nearby!
    • Mel's: http://goo.gl/maps/I4QDQ
    • M & M Doughnuts: http://goo.gl/maps/tSG8B 
 Hope that helps! If you're looking for anything else in particular, leave your question in the comments!

3 comments:

Ella Quinn said...

Thanks so much. Maybe I'll see you around.

Erin Nicholas said...

Nice guide, Sky! Makes me wish I was going to be there even MORE!
Erin

Kinsey Holley said...

Oh yeah. Me. I want to read this. I love Hawaii and Hawaii heroes and this looks like fun.