Going to California...Pennsylvania, that is...

Yep, there is a California, PA and I am headed to it tomorrow. Supposedly it's 20-minutes from where I am tonight...the Hampton Inn in Belle Vernon, PA. It took us two hours to get here from the Pittsburgh Airport which is about one hour and 15-minutes longer than it should have taken us. Two of my colleagues and I are here to visit the site where our summer seminar is being held this July. We've rented a car and a GPS system. That apparently sucks. Because it said "reaching your destination, on right" when we were smack dab in the middle of nowhere. Thank goodness my colleague had her iPhone and Google App. It got us to our final destination tonight...the Hampton Inn.

This place is a trip...it's positioned strategically at the parking lot of a Walmart and down the street from a Kmart. There's a Big Lots and Payless Shoes within sight. We're in BARGAIN central, apparently. We had a late dinner at Sonny's Grille, which looks like a converted Long John Silvers. (ETA: It WAS a LJS..at least according to Yelp! LOL!) But the food was tasty, actually. I had blackened tuna and baked baby potatoes and a nice salad. I also had the caramel apple pie. Delish! We normally stay at Hiltons or Renaissance Hotels when we travel for work, but this Hampton Inn was the best hotel in the area (which is why we're staying here and not in California, I guess). It's fine and honestly, what I like about this level of hotel is FREE WiFi access and free breakfast! You have to pay $19.99 for both at a Hilton!

I have to say this is my first trip to Pennsylvania and it's pretty. But it also looks sort of shabby. Maybe that's just according to my Western eyes since being from the West Coast and now, living in the midWest, we don't have towns as old as the ones here. Let's just say that many of the buildings look worse for the wear. Anyway, it'll be interesting to see what California, PA looks like. We're headed to California University of Pennsylvania bright and early tomorrow. And then sprint back to the airport so I can fly home to Tulsa. My colleagues have elected to stay an extra night in Pittsburgh, but I intend to be in my own bed by midnight!