Day 14 / One cute afternoon

After reading my chronicle of our visit to The Hive, I know many of you think I'm overreacting, I’m a drama queen or something like that. I’M NOT.

You can see the tweet from #lagordaconchudaesa here:

Look carefully the message she speaks ONLY about food, she did not even say our names but she does not forget to say PIZZA or CHOCOLATES.

BTW, Work perk? QHdP... Work, pork...

Whatever, after lunch, we went to a coffee and after take a few huuuuuge ones we remember that the Coffee shops do not have bathrooms. OMFG Can you believe that? We had to use the restroom of a gas station which certainly had no friendly employees.

Then we went with “Coffee cupcake” to one Shopping Mall. (YES we are addicted to shopping). Was a lovely evening with our German friend. We enjoying a snack together and then Eugenia and I left to the train station because that evening we had scheduled the trip to San Diego.

It was hard to say goodbye to Jana but I wish that life would soon rejoin us. We arrived at the station, with our tongue out, and the train started to move before our asses was comfortable in the seats.

San Diego... there we go!!!

Day 14 / The Hive second chance

Around noon we meet Coffee at The Hive’s door. When I say The Hive, I say “the new one” because, as we all know, “the original one” was closed in March. Sadly, the new place located next to the original, is not the same at all.

Anyway our trip would never have been complete if we didn’t go there. This time it was also our second chance for The Hive because we made our first before going to Las Vegas.
The place was open and Robbie and James were working when we arrived. An old proverb says: “the first impression is the only that counts”... Our first impression there was YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE.

Immediately we decided to change our strategy. As I said before was about noon so, we decided to go and return with a giant pizza and drinks.

I am still not sure, even now, if something changed in my first impression however I am sure of one thing “Music soothes the savage beast” and “Pizza soothes the The Hive members”. (Especialmente a la #gordaconchudaesa). I mean she takes about 10 minutes to greet us when we got to the place and less than 2 minutes to get dishes for pizza. LOL.

We had lunch sitting on the mythical pink sofa after that when we went for a coffee.

Before we left James tweet this message for the rest of the Echelon at home.

We went out after mission accomplished feeling deep in our hearts YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE.

Day 13 / Coffee Cupcake’s Day

The most important of “the day 13” was that I met “Coffee Cupcake”. “Coffee Cupcake” is not a place to drink coffee and eat cakes, “Coffee Cupcake” or just “Coffee” is the nickname of my dear friend "Jana". Her friends got her that nickname for obvious reasons... she drinks coffee all day and loves cakes.

I might also add that she is sweet and tender like a cake and at the same time she is so fun to keep you awake like a coffee.

I had met Coffee before, in Kyte, but I had never seen her face to face. Jana lives in Germany, she went to LA to help his artist friend to prepare an exhibition.

Eugenia and I went that night to the exhibition to meet her.

The place of the exhibition looked like a lesbian’s convention but Phill’s work is very good.


We were very tired so we share a few drinks and snacks with our friend and we went to sleep.

We agreed to find us the next day to visit The Hive

Before Coffee Cupcake’s Day

Before beginning the story of our “day 13”, I forgot to tell you a couple of incidents at airports.

Incident 1 Eugenia "The Terrorist" - Location: Tucson Airport.

The counter clerk for the airline, when I tried to check in, gave me my boarding pass but when I ask for Eugenia’s pass he shook his head and said: WE HAVE A PROBLEM. I thought of course we have a problem WE DO NOT HAVE TIME SIR.

The employee tried to explain that Eugenia's name was on an FBI list of terrorism suspects and for that reason could not board the plane until to check that information. I like the “designated translator” told my friend the news. Of course she thought it was a joke... that was not.

Eugenia is a very common name and she have a very common last name too, she is Eugenia Rodriguez (a kind of John Smith in U.S. version). But the problem is even worse because she have two nationalities and obviously two passports... this was TOO MUCH for poor employee. He spend almost an hour to check my Eugenia Rodriguez was not the Eugenia Rogriguez that the FBI was looking for.

Incident 2 - Paola "The dangerous drug dealer" - Location: Phoenix Airport.

I was starred the second incident in the baggage check line in Phoenix Airport. When my luggage cross the scanners, a security man approached wondering to who was that suitcase. The suitcase was mine and I had to accompany them for a revision.

I almost died of laughter when I realized they were doing drug testing with my chimbote milk candy. LOL

Day 12/ Come back to L.A.

We went back to LA from Tucson with a stopover in Phoenix, however nobody told us we would have to change planes.

Of course change planes means having to leave and re-enter the boarding area and that means TIME and there is almost NO TIME between flights. LA REPUTISIMA MADRE QUE LOS RECONTRAMIL PARIO!!! (Sorry i don’t want to traslate that). So we run again.


After this marathon to catch our second flight we arrived in LA.

That afternoon we went to Hollywood to see the famous stars and the iconic sign in the hills.


Eugenia take photos of each of the stars she saw including people who she did not know. I take only 2 pics and one of them was for my sister in law Gaby. We walked a long time in the area.

While we were walking aimlessly, we find a store, than our words could be defined as a “Disneyland for music lovers” a miracle called Amoeba.

If you're a music lover, you live in LA and you do not know Amoeba, very wrong for you, you should know about this place. Located on 6400 Sunset Blvd. Amoeba is the the World's Largest Independently Owned Record Store. My brother, surely, would have called “God make a music store”. We bought everything we could find of Mars.

In front of this store we find a very nice restaurant where we had lunch. The owner is an Argetinean who living in LA for many years.

In the afternoon we tried, without results, to approach to the Hollywood Sign for taking better pictures.

The Hollywood Sign: It’s more than just nine white letters spelling out a city’s name; it’s one of the world’s most evocative symbols – a universal metaphor for ambition, success, glamour …for this dazzling place, industry and dream we call H-O-L-L-Y-W-O-O-D but damn this thing is in the ass of the world.

Day 11 / Tucson Episode 2

The concert was OK but the people OMG seems they play rough in Tucson. We met some girls from Mexico and we promised them we would come close to the stage. It was not an easy job but it was worth the effort.

Obviously we got near the stage... Mexican girls lost their way. I think there were too many blows and thrusts for them. Argentines are warriors is in our blood is part of our DNA.

Anyway at one point I lost my sight Eugenia and, when I met her again, she was hitting and cursing in two languages to a poor child which had the damn idea jumping over the heads of the audience.

The set list wasn’t very extensive but we enjoyed every minute. It was a completely different experience to the show in Las Vegas. In Tucson we could feel “the heat of the crowds” and to be honest we felt the feet, fists and an occasional hand in private places from the crowd. HAHAHA!!! Seriously... we could feel it.

During the concert the echelon of Phoenix lined up to the sign copies. We did not have CDs we could not buy CDs neither... but thank God Jeremy exist on this earth.

“Little” Jeremy was the genius who managed to get me in that line. I will remember this wonderful moment for a long time. THANKS JEREMY!!!

Our guys signed my echelon flag. Here a picture of this unique moment.

How we come back to the hotel is another story... but that night was wonderful. We love you brothers and sisters of the echelon.

Day 11 / Mesa – Phoenix -Tucson

The day began with a useless trip to Phoenix. We wanted to go from Mesa to Tucson. The receptionist at the hotel bought bus ticket’s to us from Phoenix but the first stop road to Tucson is Mesa so... Why she did not buy tickets from Mesa? I know people here in U.S. used the car until to go to buy bread but i think, at least people who work in service to the tourist, should know that there is a bus stop one block away.

Anyway 3 hours later we arrived in Tucson. We went to leave our luggage to the hotel, to eat something and then began the tortuous task of arriving at the premises of the festival.

Believe me this place was in the middle of NOWHERE. We use a bus then another bus and we were still very far. Almost two hours later we were in a place called, affectionately by locals, T.T.T or Triple T that means Tucson Truck Terminal. Two beautiful girls who hardly speak English in a Truck Terminal, can you imagine that scene? Truck drivers looked at us as if they had never seen a woman. LOL!!!

We immediately decided it would take a taxi, we do not care whatever was the rate. On the desk we ask them to call one by phone. When she said that two girls wanted a taxi I could hear the other side of the line TWO GIRLS??? HAHAHAHA is a fact they never seen a woman there.

The taxi’s driver liked carousels... que HdP I would liked to kill him but the only thing I wanted was to get to that DAMN place.

When we finally arrived we find Jeremy. Jeremy is an echelon of Phoenix who also was at the concert in Las Vegas.

He wanted to know my opinion of the show and the support bands. I was so concise and lapidary – I hate Neon Trees and I really enjoy Street Drum Corps. I told him and I add I loooooooooooooove Bobby Alt. He looked at me and replied – Bobby is right here, want you to know him? OMG why not?

That way we met the brothers Alt. Wooooohooo... and Bobby’s little dog of course.