The most important thing is that Kai has enjoyed his time at Exceptional Minds, and we received a very positive report from a staff member there on his performance. I'll have a separate post on that later.
But aside from the animation workshop at EM, we have had time in the late afternoons and evenings to see some of the area and do fun things.
We had a fun, exhausting, fun day at Universal Studios over the weekend.
We got there around 7:30 AM, and stayed for nine hours.
We all enjoyed the Jurassic World ride.
Kai said his favorite ride was the Revenge of the Mummy. When we rode that at Universal Studios Orlando several years ago, Kai thought it was too scary but he loved it this time. Guess he is growing up in a lot of ways.
More recently, we did the Warner Bros. Studio Tour which is a tour of their backlot, sets, costumes, and props.
Kai's favorite part was getting on the set of the Ellen show. (Apparently he watches it after he comes home from school and is a big fan).
My wife and I got a kick out of being on a recreation of the set of Friends.
The Warner Bros. Studio Tour was different than Universal, but fun in its own way.
One evening we went to Griffith Observatory to see the views and sunset.
If you squint, you can kind of see the Hollywood sign on the right in the next picture.
We also went to a few other places in and around downtown LA and Hollywood. With Kai, it is sometimes hard to tell what would interest him, and it was a bit surprising that he really enjoyed The Last Bookstore.
He took many photos of the unusual displays and collection of books. Here he is standing in the Tunnel of Books.
The bookstore is inside a building that used to be a bank. The collection of antique books is inside the old bank vault.
Afterward he said that this was one of his favorite stores ever. Quite a declaration, especially considering they didn't have any plushes.
Of course trying local foods is always something we try to do when we travel and we found some fun, interesting spots.
There was a yakiniku restaurant in "Little Osaka" where we grilled our own meats, just like in Japan.
And it was fun to go to the Original Farmer's Market where we each went to our own food stand. Kai had pizza, my wife had Singaporean, and I had Brazilian.
Still, the place that Kai called the "best food in LA" was a hole in the wall place for chicken wings. We got take-out from there twice and the wings were so good that I was too busy eating to take pictures, though Kai took this photo of their sign on the wall.
And so it has been a great two weeks. Kai said that he will miss it here. He even went so far as to say that he did not miss home. Wow, that is very unusual for him and it speaks to how much fun he had and how comfortable he has felt here.
In the past we have had some tough times with him on our vacations. So what made this one different? I think there are several factors.
First, it was great having a home base to come back to every day without having to pack up and drive to the next destination. It felt like we were home here.
We also had a pretty relaxed schedule. Kai usually had a few hours free in the morning before he would start his workshop at 10 AM. And then we usually gave him an hour afterward when he got home after 3:00. Still, we had enough time, and stayed so close to so many sights in Hollywood and downtown LA that we were still able to do a lot in the time we did venture out.
The great California weather was also a factor. It got hot in the Valley where we were, usually up into the 90s during mid afternoon. But the humidity wasn't so oppressive like it is in Japan, and it cools down quite a bit overnight. It was pleasantly cooler when we ventured to the coastal areas.
Kai seemed less anxious and stressed out. I think that he enjoyed Exceptional Minds was a huge factor toward that.
And so our time in California has come to an end.
For our last dinner, we went back to the Japanese restaurant we went to on our first night here - Iroha.
We are back out on the road in the morning to begin Phase 3 of our summer journey. I'll check back with you from the road.
Wow...a tremendous success. I think this trip was made so great because Kai did so well at the camp. I truly hope this opens up a great career path for Kai.
ReplyDeleteI love those pictures taken at the drop of such rides. You can capture some great moments that way.
I know you must be very proud of, and hopeful for, Kai.
I think this will be a defining moment for Kai, and so, a very memorable trip for all. And...there is more to come in your trip. I can almost not wait to hear where you go from here.
It's too early to tell if this is the start of a career path for Kai, but we're happy that he enjoyed his experience at EM. We'll have to see where he goes with it from here.
DeleteWe love the photos at the pinnacle moments of the rides! The expression on our faces in the above photo is priceless.
As I was planning our long trip, Phase 3 was the part I most looked forward to. But it is also the part I worry most about. By the time we are home we will have been gone a long time. And we won't have a home base during this last phase so it will be tougher in many ways. I'll just have to temper my expectations and be patient. :)