Santa Clara College Tour

Being a junior at Bellarmine College Prep, Alex wanted to explore Santa Clara University as a possible college for engineering or finance. He registered for a 9:00am tour on February 29 (leap day)!

We arrived on time, parking in the garage near the Stephen C. Schott Admission building. Once registered, we were seated in a large conference room where Randy Wang - the undergraduate admissions director - highlighted the beautiful aspects of Santa Clara University and the steps in the admission process.

One exciting recommendation  Randy made was to avoid writing about concussions. He has received so many essays on the subject that he thought there might be a concussion epidemic.

He also suggested contacting your admission counselor and asking some interesting questions (and not "Hey, how are you doing?".

Questions to ask your Santa Clara admission counselor:

1. "Which Events Should I Attend to Learn About Campus Life at Santa Clara?"
2. "Are there Honors programs for Engineering  & Computer Science? The Santa Clara University website suggests that ACT 32+ above is required to be admitted. Is it true for Engineering Honors as well? Is there a separate application process to enroll in the Honors Program?"
3. "For the 5-year Master's Program in Engineering, are there thesis requirements, or is it a purely course-work driven program?"
4. "I am interested in taking some of my classes abroad. As an engineering major, will it be more difficult to study abroad? Do engineering classes abroad satisfy major requirements? Are they covered by tuition?"

According to Randy, 88% of Santa Clara undergraduates graduate within 4 years - compared to 33% of most 4-year universities.

Since Santa Clara is a Catholic University, it has "Mass" services for students (though participation is not required). However, graduation requirements dictate that all undergraduates complete 3 religious classes.

Our student tour guide (a recent Bellarmine graduate) showed us the insides of the Engineering, Arts & Letters, and Business buildings.

We visited the Benson Center Dining Hall and were impressed by the clear layout and the variety of dining options. It was significantly superior to the dining hall at my alma mater, Lehigh University.

The business building was exceptionally luxurious. It's much better than the classrooms at Lehigh University (where I did my undergraduate studies).

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Inna's Birthday Dinner at Evvia

For Inna's Birthday dinner, I made reservations at Evvia - one of our favorite Palo Alto restaurants.

Our dinner started with two glasses of sparkling wine and "Tzatziki & Pita."

We also ordered some freshly picked crimini mushrooms.

The mushrooms were incredibly delicious and one of our all-time favorites. Being conservative, I ordered "Moussaka" as my main entree. It came out freshly prepared and delicious! I am ready to go to Greece now!

Inna and Alex both selected a "Lamb Shank" for their entrees. We have tried this dish before, and it has always been outstanding.

As expected, the "Lamb Shank" was fantastic! For dessert, Inna selected the "Galaktoboureko," which was split onto multiple plates with a birthday candle for Inna. We also ordered hot black tea for everyone (to enjoy the dessert and to savor the special occasion).

We enjoyed our delicious dinner at Evvia and hope to be back again.

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Southern California College Tour

Since Alex, as a junior in high school, will be graduating from Bellarmine College Prep next year, we decided to tour well-respected colleges and universities in Southern California, to which he is considering applying.

Our plan was as follows:

Date		College / Activity	Tour Time	Hotel Location
Feb 15	Saturday	Cal Poly (on the drive to LA)		Kimpton Hotel, LA
Feb 16	Sunday	Getty Center, UCLA		Kimpton Hotel, LA
Feb 17	Monday	Getty Villa, Pepperdine	1:00pm - 3:00pm	Kimpton Hotel, LA
Feb 18	Tuesday	Occidental, Griffith Observatory	9:00 -11:00 am	Westin, San Diego
Feb 19	Wednesday	UCSD, Surfing	10:00am -12:00pm	Sportsman's, LA
Feb 20	Thursday	Universal Studios Hollywood	10:00am-6:00pm	Sportsman's, LA
Feb 21	Friday	USC, Huntington Library Gallery	8:30am-12:00pm	Sportsman's, LA
Feb 22	Saturday	LMU	11:00am	Home

Saturday, February 15, 2020

As we were late to wake up (we originally planned to leave our house by 9:00 a.m.), we packed and loaded our car at 10:45 a.m. There was a lot of motor vehicle traffic on US-101, and we arrived at California Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo at 2:20 p.m.

I found a parking garage for visitors at Parking Structure 131, off Grand Ave., via Pacheco Way. I installed a ParkMobile Parking App on my iPhone to purchase hourly parking. I initially reserved 2 hours of parking but extended it another 30 minutes when running late.

We explored the Cal Poly campus, visiting multiple buildings. I liked the numerous beautiful beach volleyball courts near the PAC Center. My grandpa would have loved playing on them (and they were utterly unused most of the time).

We stepped in for a closer look as we heard music emanating from the PAC. A women's basketball game was ongoing, with a loud Cal Poly Marching Band playing. We stepped in for a quick look at the game and the band. PAC was not very busy, but many parents and fans were cheering on the teams.

After exploring the campus further, we ate lunch at The Avenue - a small food court with multiple fast-food vendors: Chick-fil-A, Bishop Craft Burgers, Student Choice, and Tu Taco.

I chose a bowl with chicken, white rice, veggies, and mild tomatoes from Tu Taco, similar to a bowl I usually order from Chipotle. Inna also selected tacos from Tu Taco, but Alex ordered a chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-A. The food was acceptable but not outstanding. Not many students were dining on Saturday afternoon, and most were dressed in shorts and t-shirts - the weather was so mild and warm for mid-February!

After our quick lunch, we wandered around the campus, looking at the various facilities, including engineering and computer science buildings. These buildings were much smaller than I expected at a large university. Eventually, we made our way to the John E. Kennedy Library. Although ugly from the outside, it seemed attractive, with a small open-air courtyard with benches and trees. As I had a splitting migraine, I rested a bit before returning to our car.

Inna found a well-rated Coffee shop in San Luis Obispo called Scout Coffee, and we stopped there for a quick snack before embarking on the 3-hour drive to Los Angeles.

I ordered an Affogato (coffee with ice cream) while Inna tried a delicious Matcha Latte. Later, Inna ordered some Earl Gray Tea for everyone.

While drinking at Scout Coffee, I walked to the nearby Rite-Aid to purchase extra-strength Tylenol for my migraine. It helped somewhat during the next 3 hours of our remaining drive to Los Angeles. Inna helped by driving the minivan the rest of the way in moderately heavy traffic.

We arrived at the Kimpton Hotel Palomar Beverly Hills, near UCLA's campus, at around 9:20 p.m. We chose this hotel to visit the nearby UCLA campus.

After checking in, (our original prepaid room was unavailable, so we were upgraded to a large suite #702). Settling in our large suite, we realized we were still hungry, so we decided to try the Double Take restaurant downstairs at the Kimpton Hotel.

I ordered a Tomato Bisque soup with goat cheese and croutons. Inna ordered the "Seafood Cobb Salad" (mixed greens, lump crab, salmon medallion, gulf shrimp, crispy bacon with ginger vinaigrette). Alex selected "The Burger" (custom beef grind, cheddar, butter lettuce, beefsteak tomato, “awesome sauce”). Our dinner entrees were unexpectedly delicious. Finishing with hot Earl Grey tea, we returned to our room and went to bed.

Sunday, February 16, 2020

After waking up, we ate breakfast at the well-rated Le Pain Quotidien in Westwood. Finishing a leisurely 10-minute walk from our hotel, we strolled in and ordered a few breakfast items.

Inna ordered the "Smoked Salmon Breakfast," a delicious set of thinly sliced salmon on bread. I ordered an omelet with mushrooms. Alex ordered an "Avocado Toast". We also ordered a large bread basket, which we munched on while waiting for our breakfast items to be prepared. It held a bit more bread than we expected!

After finishing breakfast, we walked to the nearby UCLA  campus. We would have preferred to join a student tour, but none were available this week.

We were unsure why, as UCLA's academic schedule showed no significant events.

UCLA WINTER QUARTER 2020
Quarter begins	Thursday, January 2
Instruction begins	Monday, January 6
Study list deadline (becomes official)	Friday, January 17
Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday	Monday, January 20
Presidents’ Day holiday	Monday, February 17
Instruction ends	Friday, March 13
Common final exams	Saturday-Sunday, March 14-15
Final examinations	Monday-Friday, March 16-20
Quarter ends	Friday, March 20

As we began our walk, we noticed the massive size of the multiple buildings (which consisted of the Wendy and Leonard Goldberg Medical Building, UCLA Orthopedics, and UCLA Medical Center Neonatology).

We continued our walk to Spaulding Field, where we saw young UCLA female athletes preparing to play Lacrosse. Reaching the end of the campus, we turned around and headed toward Dickson Court in the opposite direction (East).

We wanted to visit the extensive Powell Library, but its opening time on Sunday was 11:00am. We were too early! With so many rolling hills and stairs, Inna was tired and running out of breath.

We saw a crowd of students at Schoenberg Hall, which was being used for Dance Auditions. We sneaked in to observe the ongoing auditions and then sneaked out.

From there, we walked to the Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden, where we enjoyed looking at all the sculptures.

There were not many students around. Perhaps they were still sleeping.

We decided to return to the Powell Libary just as it opened. It was empty as expected and prominent, though a bit old.

After visiting the library, we walked back to our Kimpton Hotel Palomar Beverly Hills,

After resting at our hotel, we took UberX to the famous Getty Center. (Getty Center has no admission fees but charges $20 per car for parking. We used UberX to avoid parking fees.

When we arrived at the Getty Center, we decided to focus on the main highlights of the Art exhibition. We saw several beautiful, original paintings by French impressionists: Renoir, Monet, Manet, and Degas. We also saw a couple of Van Goghs.

One of the rooms had several beautiful bronze sculptures from Auguste Rodin and Camille Claudel.

Continuing our tour, we decided to explore the beautiful gardens, including the Central, cactus, and multiple sculpture gardens.

These gardens were full of tourists as we strolled around, enjoying the beautiful weather and sunshine. At the end of our stroll,  we decided to have a quick snack and purchased a couple of pastries and coffee.

After finishing with  Getty Center, we ate dinner at Eataly Los Angeles. However, when I tried ordering UberX for our return trip, neither Inna nor I could get our iPhones to connect to the T&T Wireless network. There was a cellphone dead spot near the UberX drop-off/pick-up area. Fortunately, one of the Getty Center attendants suggested that I use the Getty Center WiFi, which was working (with fine reception), and I could order my UberX ride.

Our AT&T cellphone reception was relatively poor throughout our trip to Southern California (including Los Angeles, San Diego, Malibu, and Pasadena). Later on, I discovered that Alex used up all our cellphone plan's data (8GB) by watching surf forecasts on Surfline.com. This explained all of the data throttling encountered and the slow photo loading.

Eataly has been one of Alex's favorite restaurant chains. We have eaten at Eataly in Munich, Turin, New York, and Tokyo. We were eager to see how the Los Angeles branch was performing. When we arrived, there was already a line in the restaurant/sit-down area, so we were on a waiting list.

While we waited, we looked at the multiple varieties of cheese, beef, and other delicacies. We even found some exciting cookbooks. In about 20 minutes, I received a message on my cellphone that our table was ready, and we returned.

After reviewing the menu, I ordered the Tagliatelle all Bolognese pasta (24 Housemade tagliatelle, beef, and pork Ragù, Mutti Tomatoes, Parmigiano-Reggiano® DOP). Being a pizza connoisseur, Alex ordered the Margherita Verace TSG Pizza (San Marzano tomato sauce, mozzarella di buffalo, fresh basil, extra virgin olive oil).

Inna and I decided to share the Porcino pizza and my Tagliatelle pasta. The Porcini Pizza included  Mozzarella di bufala, bufala fondue, porcini mushrooms, bresaola, and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

The entrees were delicious, but we had not eaten them yet. We decided to share the "PIPA Pana Cotta" desert. It was scrumptious!

Alex was still hoping for a taste of gelato. So, we decided to walk to the floor below and try a few flavors of Eataly's delicate, freshly made gelato. The pistachio and chocolate flavors were incredibly delicious!

After finishing our dinner, we returned to the UberX pick-up spot in front of Eataly LA and ordered an UnberX for a return trip to our  Kimpton Hotel Palomar, Beverly Hills hotel.

At the Kimpton Hotel, Inna Alex and I played darts and Skeetball in the Double Take a restaurant, which had multiple games in its lounge.

Here is a video of Inna playing Skeetball:

Monday, February 17, 2020

In the morning, we woke up early, at around 7:00am, dressed, and drove 40 minutes to Malibu, where we hoped Alex could surf, eat breakfast, and eventually visit Pepperdine University. However, the waves were relatively small when we arrived, so Alex decided against surfing. (A few beginner surfers paddled on their Wavestorms and other soft-top boards).

After finding parking (which can be a challenge), we decided to eat breakfast at the Malibu Farm on the Malibu Pier.

The Malibu Farm restaurant, at the far end of the Malibu Pier, focuses on local ingredients. The prices for breakfast were much higher than I expected.

After perusing the menu, I ordered the "Surfer Rancheros" with a "Mocha Latte." Inna decided on the "Salmon Scramble" (ricotta, baby potatoes, country wheat toast). Alex ordered a caramel latte with a "Breakfast Burrito" (scrambled eggs, chicken sausage, black beans, cheese, onions, guacamole). For almost $100, it was delicious but quite expensive.

Since the surf was still inadequate, we enjoyed the nearby Getty Villa. Fortunately, Inna made reservations for a 10:30am tour (just in case), and we arrived at 10:40am (just in time).

J. Paul Getty (an oil tycoon) fell in love with beautiful villas in Italy and decided to build a replica in Malibu. The Getty Villa is modeled on the Villa of the Papyri at Herculaneum in Italy.

The villa looks beautiful and contains multiple archaeological artifacts, including:

• Beautiful statues from Italy (Hercules), 125 A.D.
• Ancient Pottery from Ancient Greece
• Reliefs from Assyria

In addition, the villa has a long, shallow pool surrounded by beautiful gardens and fountains. From our previous visits to Italy, especially to Villa d'Este near Rome, we saw a lot of similarities between d'Este and Getty, especially the Mosaic water fountain in the corner of the villa.

We drove back to Malibu at noon for a scheduled college tour at  Pepperdine. Our tour guide - Cole - a Pepperdine Senior and a Philosophy major, guided us around the beautiful campus.

Cole talked about the beautiful foreign exchange program at Pepperdine.

He spent a year overseas with a host family in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He thought his experience added a lot to his understanding of philosophy.

Overall, the Pepperdine campus is gorgeous, with incredible overlooks of the Pacific Ocean. All of the buildings have a modern, clean look. Class sizes are small,l and professors often eat dinner or invite students to dinner at their homes (since about 30% of them live on campus). The cafeteria was spacious, with an excellent selection of entrees.

Cole showed us a women's dorm room. Students share a house with separate bedrooms (2 beds/room) and a shared space. A resident lives with the students and arranges activities to help students get to know each other. These residences have strict visitation hours and do not allow alcohol.

Pepperdine has excellent academics (50th ranking) and high rates of admission to Medical Schools (80%)and Dental Colleges (100%).

After the campus tour, we stopped by for lunch in Malibu. After looking at multiple reviews, we settled on eating lunch at the Marmalade Cafe (we hoped to eat Gelato at Grom nearby):

I ordered the split pea soup (slow-cooked split peas with hearty vegetable broth & herbs) and a Chicken Piccata (tender chicken breast filets sautéed in white wine, lemon & caper, finished with butter & Italian parsley, and spaghettini. I enjoyed my split pea soup but was less excited bout the chicken entree.

Inna ordered the wild Mushroom soup (rich & creamy bisque with wild mushrooms) and Avocado Toast. She really liked the soup but was less excited about the Avocado toast.

Alex selected the Colorado Lamb Burger (Grass-fed Colorado Lamb patty grilled & topped with mozzarella cheese, baby arugula, roasted garlic mayo, and pickled red onion on a toasted ciabatta roll).

After lunch, we walked over to the Grom Gelateria, but it closed right before us due to technical difficulties. We would like to sample gelato there!

After exploring nearby surf shops (where we learned that the best surfing in Malibu is in September), we drove back to Kimpton Hotel Palomar Beverly Hills. There was lots of traffic on the road back to our hotel, and it took us 50 minutes to return to our Kimpton Hotel from Malibu.

After resting in the hotel, we decided to eat a late dinner at Double Take restaurant at our hotel.
I ordered a Seafood Cobb Salad with English breakfast tea. Alex and Inna ordered tea and a few snacks.

After dinner, Inna, Alex, and I played Skeeball, Darts, and Shuffleboard. In Skeeball, I scored a high of 300, Inna scored 280, and Alex scored 310!

Tuesday, February 18, 2020

We woke up early in the morning and drove to Occidental College, planning to arrive in time for our guided tour scheduled for 9:00am.

We arrived on time at 9:00am, parking our Toyota minivan on the outskirts of Occidental. Oxy (often called) had multiple party balloons to guide the incoming visitors to the main center. At the center (by Thorne Hall), a complimentary continental breakfast was offered for all visitors. We selected a few pastries (croissants) and fruit salad with hot coffee, sitting at a round table with other prospective students.

After the tour, a student-led tour guide showed us the campus facilities, including the main sports field,  which showcased some of Occidental's facilities (including the library, dining hall, and living quarters).

  A shrine was set up to honor Barack Obama, who attended Occidental for 2 years before transferring to Columbia. I did not really like the look or condition of Occidental facilities.

After the guided tour, we decided to attend some free lectures. Inna and Alex participated in a lecture on Mind and Memory. They enjoyed the lecture a lot.

I attended a lecture on Information Security, listening to the math professor describe the differences between symmetric and asymmetric encryption and authentication. Asymmetric encryption is used to transfer keys between two parties. After this, all communication is done using symmetric encryption (AES). He also discussed the hashing function (SHA-256), which enables a computer to authenticate images.

For lunch, we decided to try some Armenian lunch entrees at the Papillion International Bakery in Glendale, where we sampled some delicious Armenian delicacies.

From here, we decided to drive to the Griffith Observatory. We enjoyed watching Foucault's Pendulum and the Tesla Coil. Then, we watched "Water is Life" at the Planetarium. I fell asleep during the showing (I must have been exhausted), and Inna had to nudge me to wake me.

After the educational film, we enjoyed the spectacular views of the famous "Hollywood" sign and started on our drive to San Diego. The drive was horrible, owing to the hefty traffic.

After 3 hours (usually a 2-hour drive), we parked near our favorite San Diego restaurant - Extraordinary Desserts. Alex ordered a BLT sandwich, while Inna and I shared a large "Cobb Salad for 2" and tomato bisque soup. The salad was too large, and we ate only half of it.

For desserts, I selected "Bread Pudding," while Alex and Inna's slices were chosen from two different cakes: "White Chocolate Linzer Torte" and "La Bete Noire."

The desserts were delicious, and we wished we had enough extra space in our stomachs to accommodate more.

After dinner, we checked in at the Westin Hotel. Valet parking was $50/day - quite expensive, but we were tired and decided to spare the time looking for cheaper parking. When checking in, my Westin agent upgraded our room, but the twin beds turned out to be smaller than we are used to (our home bed is a California King).

Wednesday, February 19, 2020

After a quick breakfast at Westin  Hotel (muffins and coffee for me, croissants for Alex and Inna), we dove to the University of San Diego - UCSD - for the 10:00am college tour.

We arrived at 9:50am in the parking lot P781. At first, I wanted to park at another parking lot, but Inna convinced me to park at the designated spot for incoming visitors. From there, I paid $4.00 for parking and took the bus shuttle to the main UCSD campus. There was a long line of students waiting to board the shuttle. The ride to the main campus took about 15 minutes (longer than expected).

We were late for our 10:00am student tour. The Admissions panel had an entire room of people. After explaining the average ACT score (28-32) and the weighted GPA: 4.02 - 4.28) for incoming admitted students, the undergraduate admissions director answered questions from the audience.

To summarize, the 30,600 undergraduate students' admission rate is 31%. For transfer students, the admission rate is 49%. Class size is usually 19, but some can be as high as 400 students.
In the incoming class, 68% are freshmen (seniors from high school), while 32% are transfer students from other colleges.

Different residence halls have additional graduation requirements. Some have multiple writing requirements, while others have other class requirements. Unlike most private colleges, UC runs on a quarter system (instead of a semester system).  Quarters consist of 10 weeks of classes and 1 week of finals. The UC system has 4 quarters: winter, spring, summer, and fall (with the summer quarter being optional).

After this informative session, we were split into multiple groups and assigned to a student tour guide. Our tour guide, Kristin,  majoring in biology, led us on a walk around the UCSD campus. She studied abroad in Paris and plans to have another semester in Berlin.

She explained that on-campus housing is guaranteed for the first 2 years. However, there is plenty of housing off-campus for juniors and seniors. As a surfer, she also explained that surfing is best during storms in March.

As we finished our guided tour late, we decided to skip our scheduled tour of the University of San Diego and instead spend time at La Jolla.

After driving to La Jolla, we decided to eat lunch at Shorehouse Kitchen. I ordered a California Omelet, while Inna selected the Maple Fried Chicken Breakfast Sandwich, and Alex picked the
Cheeseburger.

 I enjoyed my omelet, and Inna and Alex also enjoyed their entrees. Inna and Alex also drank "Dulce de Leche Chai Lattes" while I was refreshed with plain hot coffee.

After lunch, we parked our minivan a few blocks from La Jolla Beach. Alex decided to try surfing at  La Jolla. I let him borrow my Firewire Spitfire 6'6" shortboard to surf the small 3-4 foot waves.

Alex decided to surf for 90 minutes, so while he surfed from 3:00pm to 4:30pm, Inna and I strolled up and down La Jolla beach.

Here is a short Nikion P9000 video I recorded of Alex's surfing:


We enjoyed the beautiful scenery, the fantastic weather, and the mostly empty beach. What a wonderful, warm winter day!

After surfing, we ate dinner early in La Jolla to avoid the crazy traffic on our return to Los Angeles. Looking at multiple nearby restaurants, Inna picked the well-rated Piatti Italian Restaurant nearby.

Since the weather was fine, we decided to enjoy our dinner outdoors, on the restaurant's patio (near a heat lamp). After looking at the menu, Inna picked the "Risotto," while I selected the special "Pasta," and Alex chose the "Margherita Pizza," with an "Affogato" drink.

The dinner was delicious, and we enjoyed it. We ordered a slice of cake and hot black tea for dessert. We had a lovely time.

With the traffic decreasing, we started our return drive to Los Angeles around 6:40pm. Fortunately, traffic was lighter than expected, and we arrived back in Los Angeles at 8:45pm - in about two hours.

We checked into Sportsman's Lodge, a randomly selected hotel we were assigned by hotwire.com.
Compared to Kimpton Hotel Palomar Beverly Hills, our previous hotel, Sportman's Lodge, was a few stars lower. However, it wasn't cheap, with self-parking at $25 daily.

During our brief stay there, we encountered a lot of construction noise (coming from the outside), loud neighbors (the walls are relatively thin), a film crew tearing down, and poorly working elevators. Fortunately, there were no rats, so all was well!

Located quite close to Universal Studios Hollywood, we used the hotel's free shuttle service to drop us off and pick us up at Universal Studios the next day.

I pre-purchased Universal Studios Hollywood tickets using the Groupon app on my iPhone to save on ticket costs. $109/day for an adult vs. $139 at Universal Studios. For 3 adults, I kept $90 - not bad at all.

Thursday, February 20, 2020

We drove for breakfast in the morning to the nearby Le Pain Quotidien. After parking on the curb, I  ordered a pot of coffee with milk, a "matcha muffin," and a "pain au raisin" pastry. The "matcha" muffin was not as delicious as expected (I usually crave Japanese matcha), but the "pain au raisin" was fantastic. Inna and Alex ordered egg croissants with ham & cheese and hot black tea. After finishing breakfast, we returned to our Sportsman's Lodge hotel.

We waited for the shuttle from our Sportsman's Lodge to Universal Studios at 9:30am. Our hotel was only about 15 minutes away, and our shuttle at Universal dropped us off at around 9:45.

Once we passed the security line and showed our pre-purchased online tickets on the iPhone, we looked at the monitors to see the waiting times for popular rides and attractions.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter had short waiting times, so we headed there. Our first ride was the "Forbidden Journey" ride. As we walked through the replica of Hogwarts Castle, we marveled at the talking/moving paintings and the various oddities, like the talking "Sorting Hat." Eventually, after about 30 minutes, we arrived at our ride. "Forbidden Journey" is a roller-coaster simulator, and it was fun to fly behind Harry Potter, following his broomstick, avoiding fire-breathing dragons and other popular characters.

With the ride ended, we walked over to the "Flight of the Hippogriff" - a small rollercoaster nearby. The waiting time was too long for this 30-second ride. Since we did not plan to return to Harry Potter, we decided to wait it out. If we return to Universal Studios, we will skip this ride.

Despite being February, it was hot (in the high 70s or low 80s Fahrenheit), so we decided to refresh in cold butterbeer - a thick, cream soda-like drink with a creamy butterscotch froth. I selected the frozen/slushy version, while Alex and Inna chose the cold soda. For sugar-flavored water, it was expensive.

While drinking Butterbeer, we explored some of the Harry Potter shops, including "Owl Post," "Zonko's Joke Shop," and "Ollivanders." Eventually, we exited the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and walked over to Krustyland to get in line for the "Simpsons Ride."

The wait for the "Simpsons Ride" was really long - almost 50 minutes. I was impatient, as I did not recall enjoying the last time. The ride consisted of another simulator (like Harry Potter). Overall, it was a big waste of time.

After stopping at the nearby restroom, we ate lunch at The Three Broomsticks in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

I ordered a "Shepherd's meat pie" with a garden salad and pumpkin juice. Alex and Inna selected Fish and chips with butterbeer.

Fortunately, it was not very busy, and we were able to find a free table to sit at. The food was acceptable and not overly expensive for a theme park. (I would have preferred to eat lunch at Le Pain Quotidien).

After lunch, we decided to watch the "Kung Fu Panda" movie nearby, which uses special effects, such as vibrating chairs and water spray, during the movie. We all enjoyed the short, fun "Kung Fu Panda"  movie.

When we finished, we looked at the screens, announcing wait times. The "Revenge of the Mummy" ride had 20-minute wait times, so we took the escalators downstairs to the lower level. After a short wait, we were strapped into the rollercoaster. Unlike many rollercoasters, this one accelerates fast and in the dark. It was the best ride at Universal! We really enjoyed it.

Inna loves animals esp, especially dogs. With Universal Animal Actors playing a show at 3:30pm, we rushed out of "Revenge of the Mummy," arriving at the stadium just in time. The animal show has not changed a lot (from last time). We saw well-trained birds, cats, dogs, and pigs display their obedient behaviors. It was entertaining.

About 20 minutes later, we decided to finish with the Universal Studio Tour at 4:00pm. After waiting for about 30 minutes, we boarded a long trolley bus, stopping by various Hollywood sets. We saw the usual "Jaws", "Fast and Furious", "Bates Motel", and many of the currently playing shows.

Here is a short video clip from "Jaws" on the Universal Studio Tour:


When we finished, it was already 5:30pm. We did not have time for the WaterWorld show. The Jurassic Park ride was closed. We also did not have time for Walking Dead, Minions, or Transformers.

We decided to look for dinner at the Universal Studio Walk. We considered Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, but Bud chose to play it safe and eat sushi at Wasabi Sushi, where we ate sushi many years ago.

For our dinner at Wasabi Sushi at the Universal Studio Walk, we ordered the following items:

• 3 hot green teas
• 3 miso soups
• Mixed Tempura (shrimp, broccoli)
• Gyoza
• Takoyaki
• California Roll
• Firecracker Roll
• Bank Roll

The sushi was acceptable but not as delicious as we remembered. It was not even close to what we enjoyed in Tokyo's Fish Market.

After dinner, we boarded our shuttle to Sportman's Lodge at 7:00pm, returning at about 7:30pm.

Since we did not have time to eat ice cream or gelato, we decided to find something delicious nearby. After checking Yelp.com, I decided to try Fatamorgana Gelato. This gelateria has so many exciting flavors (that I've never seen before). After sampling multiple flavors, Inna and I shared a cup with 3 flavors. The Pistachio Bronte (Sicilian Pistachio) was the best flavor by far. However, Grom Gelateria and Eataly are far superior in flavor, consistency, and quality.

Alex tried multiple types of chocolate gelato, including gianduja. They were not terrible, but nothing to rave about. Also, the portions provided were tiny (scoops are little)

On the drive back to our Sportsman's Lodge hotel, we stopped for boba tea at Brit Bobba. Alex and Inna ordered Coco's Cocktail (English Breakfast + Fruit Notes + Milk + Blueberry Popping Boba). I selected the Rose Latte with Bobba. It was delicious.

Friday, February 21, 2020

After waking up at 6:00am, I showered and dressed. Alex and Inna also woke up reluctantly. We stopped by at nearby Philz Coffee for a "So Good" coffee with a muffin.

Since we arranged an 8:30am tour of USC, we departed Philz at around 8:00 am for the required 45-minute drive to USC. Our designated visitor USC parking was in the 620 USC McCarthy Way parking garage.

We arrived on time and parked for $14/day in the parking garage. We walked over to the Ronald Tutor Campus Center (TCC). After checking in, we waited a bit and then walked to a Seeley Mudd building with a larger auditorium to accommodate all prospective parents and students.

We listened to the presentation by Jonna German (jgerman@usc.edu). The presentation was boring. It did not discuss the high cost of USC tuition or admission percentages. The UC San Diego presentation was far more informative.

After the talk (at about 9:30am), we were assigned John McDonnell, a student guide, who led us around the beautiful, flat USC campus, highlighting the notable buildings. We noticed lots of skateboards and bicycles. Freshmen are allowed to own cars on campus (unlike most UC schools). Housing is guaranteed for the first 2 years.

We saw a metro stop on campus so one could quickly head to the beach, avoiding the heavy Los Angeles downtown traffic. John was an excellent guide, walking backward and entertaining us with many of his stories of campus life.

At about 10:45, our tour ended, and we decided to proceed to a discussion with an admission counselor at the Viterbi College of Engineering. The USC admission rate is 9%, with 410 spaces for freshmen and 110 spaces for transfer students. Despite 20,000 undergraduate students, the Viterbi College of Engineering only has 600+ students. (I expected more students in Engineering).
Our admission counselor mentioned that only about 9% of students switch out of Engineering completely; there are no weed-out classes.

Most incoming freshmen do not really know the kind of engineering they want to focus on. Changing from one type of engineering to another is relatively standard. While USC does not have a co-op program, many internship opportunities are possible.

After the engineering discussion, we walked to the USC Village to sample one of the dining establishments. After looking at the various choices, we settled on Cava, which looked like a carbon copy of Chipotle.

I ordered a bowl with chicken and vegetables, and Alex and Inna did the same. We then walked around campus to find a table. The bowl was quite delicious.

After lunch, we drove to the Huntington Library, Art, Museum, and Botanical Garden. We had about half a day to explore the beautiful gardens - not enough time for the extensive collection of gardens, the art museum, and the library.

At first, we walked over to the Chinese Garden. It was as beautiful as I recall (the last time I visited many years ago).

We took a short snack break at the Chinese Garden, drinking some hot tea.

After finishing with the Chinese Garden, we discovered a nearby Japanese Garden. It was also beautiful, with a bridge, waterfalls, banzai trees, and even a zen garden.

I enjoyed strolling through the relaxing Japanese garden.

As we were running out of time, we decided to hurry to the nearby Desert Garden, which a Huntington Garden guide recommended.

While walking around the garden, a short rain bursts us from the cloudy sky. Since the rain was so unexpected, Inna and I continued to walk around and take photos (while Alex sought cover in the trees). Fortunately, the rain ended as quickly as it started.

I encountered a small rabbit munching on grass as I explored the desert garden. We were quickly running out of time. The Huntington Gardens closed at 5:00pm, and we wanted to stay another hour.

Since Alex expressed interest in visiting the California Institute of Technology (less than a mile away), we decided to drive over and do our own unguided tour.

After parking on campus, we walked around the relatively small campus (in comparison to UCLA). We wanted to see the library, but it required special keycard access, which we did not have.

We decided to stop by for coffee and snacks in the R|O cafe. Inna had a bit of a headache and needed a break. We drank some coffee. It was nothing special.

As traffic back to Los Angeles would be horrible, we decided to look for dinner nearby. After checking Yelp.com, I found the well-regarded Nick's South Lake Ave nearby.

We drove over and were led to the back (not the best table) after waiting for a table. Since everyone was tired and hungry, Alex and Inna ordered New England Clam Chowder for their appetizer.

At first, I wanted to order "Rae's Chicken Pot Pie," but the waiter told me it was unavailable (so I ordered a flatbread). However, he later came over and said that a fresh batch of pot pies was available, so I switched my order back. The "chicken pot pie" came out freshly baked and delicious.

Inna ordered the Prosciutto and Pear flatbread, and it was delicious.

Alex ordered the Avocado Flatbread and liked it very much.

Alex ordered a Hot Fudge Sundae for dessert while Inna and I shared the humongous slice of Lemon Cake. I was impressed by the delicious dinner.

Saturday, February 22, 2020

In the morning, we packed our belongings and loaded up our minivan. We decided to have our final breakfast at the nearby Le Pain Quotidien.

After breakfast, we drove for our 11:00am college tour at LMU (Loyola Marymount University).

The campus was gorgeous, with immaculate lawns overlooking the Pacific Ocean nearby.

The campus is lovely, but I wonder about the quality of the academics - in comparison to the University of California. The film program is top-notch. I didn't know that one could major in film or screenwriting.

After the tour, we drove back to San Jose. It was a long, 5-hour drive back. We decided to eat lunch in San Jose, stopping at our usual Chipotle.

College Tour Report Card

Best College Campus

1. USC (flat, clean, new buildings, exceptional facilities)
2. UCLA (large, beautiful, hilly campus in Westwood)
3. UC San Diego (near La Jolla Beach)
4. Pepperdine (very hilly, close to the beach)
5. LMU (near the beach, relatively flat)
6. Cal Poly (hilly but close to San Jose and reasonably close to Pismo Beach) 
7. Occidental College

Best College Location

1. UCLA (Westwood)
2. Pepperdine (Malibu)
3. UC San Diego (La Jolla)
4. LMU
5. Cal Poly
6. USC
7. Occidental College

Best College Tour Guide

1. USC (John McDonnell)
2. UC San Diego (Kristin)
3. Pepperdine (Cole)
4. LMU
5. Occidental

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