Megan Singleton: BloggerAtLarge.com writer on her experience in Santa Monica in California

Megan Singleton's continued her journey into Santa Monica, California - and she's been taking in the sights, sounds and rooftop bars.

She's been working her way through the area's best-reviewed restaurants and eateries, and she's even experienced the infamous driverless taxis in the region.

Read more about Megan's experience here. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudgin
from News Talks, EDB.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Travel Time Now and I'm joined by Megan Singleton, blogger
at large. Good morning morning, talking Santa Monica today, and
I'm quite intrigued by the self driving way More cars,
the taxis that are driving around Los Angeles. Did you
get in one?

Speaker 3 (00:31):
I did not get in one. I actually didn't even
know what they were. So I'm standing at the pedestrian
crossing seeing this car that's got like a big whirligig
on top and spinny things on each of the four
lights on all the corners, and going, what the heck
is that? And this lady that was sort of standing
behind me, she just started laughing at me because I
whipped out a camera and started videoing it because it

(00:53):
had no driver in it. She said, oh yeah, and
then just drive as taxis, and she just carried on.
I was like, honestly, I fell on my grandmother when
she first discovered the Internet. I just looked at gobsmack,
filmed the whole thing, and then saw them all the time.
So there's over a hundred of these Waymo cars driving
around Los Angeles within one hundred and twenty square miles.

(01:16):
I just walked everywhere because I was just in Santa
Monica and they don't actually drive to the airport to
lax so or I would have maybe tried it, But
you know, I was just listening to you guys discuss
it on the panel. I was asking my hotel manager
about them because he rides in them. He said, look,
they're really quite slow because they follow the speed limit

(01:37):
and they obey all the rules. There's no nipping up
the inside laying to duck into the gap. So he's like, yeah,
they're all right.

Speaker 2 (01:47):
They're affordable, are they, you know, compared to another option?

Speaker 3 (01:51):
Yeah, well I have I haven't downloaded the app, but
I've just written up a quick blog post because I
heard you talking about the panel, so my fingers were
whipping over the keyboard. I have put a link to
the app to download it. So it's owned by Google
and Jaguar and Toyota are involved, and you download the
app and you hail it just like an uber. I
don't know the cost. I would say it's very comparable

(02:12):
or people wouldn't do it might even be cheaper. They
don't have to pay a driver so I have to
check that. But they are every where they pull in.
I watched another one pull into a gap. Cars are
all backed up beside. It had put its hazard lights on.
A man popped in the back. That's another question. Would
you get in the front when you're in the pasta set?
Would you get in the back? I don't know, is

(02:33):
he The car pulled out and off it went, and
the man went somewhere else, so intriguing, Yeah.

Speaker 1 (02:40):
And there went.

Speaker 2 (02:41):
You had twenty four hours in Santa Monica. Isn't that
long enough suit?

Speaker 1 (02:45):
No?

Speaker 3 (02:46):
Absolutely not. But it was my probably twelve visit. It
had been a long time between drinks. I have to say,
so I have really done an overhaul to a blog post.
I've got on fabulous places to eat and drink in
Santa Monica. There's actually and down Third Street Promenade. Some
people will remember that shopping area. There's a lot of
closed up stores. There's a lot of papered over windows.

(03:08):
I said to one girl, this is sort of COVID,
and she said, well, no, because sometimes it's just last
week and they're gone, and you don't know if they
popped up somewhere else or that there's no sign to
say we've moved. So it's changed a lot, but I
would say there's a lot of new openings, a lot
of restaurants and bars along with specially because they make
the most of those sunset views over the Pacific Ocean.

(03:29):
It's an absolutely divine part of La to stay. It's
probably my favorite. So I've updated that with some epic
places to visit.

Speaker 2 (03:36):
Brilliant and maybe you can talk us through places to
dine and wine next week. Thank you so much, Meg,
and appreciate it.

Speaker 1 (03:43):
For more from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudkin, listen
live to news talks they'd be from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio