This past fall break I traveled to San Diego for the PRSSA International Conference. It was a fortunate opportunity to be able to travel there all expenses paid by Elon.  I traveled with two other girls who I really did not know but we had ourselves a time. Our personalities really meshed together well.

Thursday, October 19 

We left Elon at 3:00 and headed to RDU Airport. Around 10 a.m. we landed in San Diego. As we were approaching the landing the pilot quickly started to go back up in the air. It was very scary for two minutes until the pilot went on the loudspeaker to announce that he approached the landing wrong. Once we finally landed, we ubered to the Grand Hyatt Hotel. We immediately were ready to take on the city. I came in with prior research per usual but also asked the front desk people for recommendations. The first stop was Puesto. We had delicious tacos, salsa and chips! Our waitress was amazing. We got to talking and the next thing we know we had a free corn dip at our table. We also asked for her recommendations and she told us her friend would give us free wine at the Hotel del Coronado. Like what! Of course, the Hotel was on our list of things to do so we went there for dinner! 

After lunch, we walk around the nearby area around the Seaport Village. We saw the famous Kissing Sailor Statue. After we headed back to the hotel to get our room and shortly headed over to Little Italy. We paid about 5 dollars round trip on the trolly. We enjoyed ice cream at Salt and Straws and just started talking with people on the street. We met a guy around our age who dropped out of college to live in a van in San Diego working for a nonprofit. What a vibe and a story! After walking around Little Italy we made our way back to the hotel to then make our way to the Hotel del Coronado to eat there. We took the ferry over and then ubered to the hotel. It was really beautiful and worth it! We spoke with the bartender who was awesome and gave us the hookup for free wine and a burrata appetizer. 

Friday, October 20

We woke up and headed to La Jolla. We ate brunch at Cody's La Jolla which was beyond delicious and then we headed to see the sea lions. So well worth it. They were so close to us! After walking along the cove we then ubered to Pacific Beach to walk around and ride bikes along the beach and the bay. Definitely worth renting bikes. The area almost reminded me of Long Beach, NY. Then we made our way back to the hotel to start the conference! 

Saturday, October 19

We spent the majority of the day at the conference. Here are some bigger takeaways I received: 

• “The best way to predict the future is to create it” -Kaye Sweetser
• Understanding of the Communications and Public Affairs department at Disney World 
• Importance of internal comradery for new and exciting things happening within the company
• “What’s not teachable is attitude”
•  “Impressions and stats don’t pay the bills” - President of Nebo

On Saturday night, Vanessa, our new friend, and Olivia and I headed to the Gaslamp Quarter for dinner. I ended up getting a free dinner which was exciting but it also had hair in it. The District was within walking distance from the hotel. There were a ton of restaurants and bars. It was really a move. After our free dinner, we got ice cream at Ghiradelli! 

Sunday, October 20

Key takeaways from Erika Prime, Taco Bells’ Social and Digital Marketing session:

• When it comes to social media, it is oversaturated and you are competing with culture, not competitors 
• Need to have different content for each channel 
• When it comes to influencers, just provide the free opportunity and see if they will share content 

After the conference, we spent time by the pool and then ate dinner at Harbour House with our Elon advisor for PRSSA. It was a great opportunity to hear about her experiences. Then we headed back to the hotel and Olivia shared her insights on astrology with us! 

Monday, October 21

We woke up at 6:15 am to eat at the Seaview Restaurant in the Hyatt for breakfast. They offered a $21 and $28 buffet. We ended up doing al a cart for it to be the cheaper option but of course, it was not! I got an omelet for $14 and then a small bowl of fruit for $8. Fruit for $8 is a joke. I was fuming. I do not recommend. 

Other fun things to do that we did not have time for: 

• In N Out
• Petco Park Stadium 
• San Diego Zoo 
• Balboa Park