Comic Con!

Comic Con in 2012
Kevin Dooley
Flickr/Creative Commons

Being in San Diego, I'm almost front and center for the world famous San Diego Comic Con. Unfortunately, getting a badge there is very difficult. There are other giveaways and you can volunteer, but even those opportunities can disappear faster than they come. It also turns the downtown area into a complete madhouse. So, it doesn't look I'll be going over there this year.

Luckily, our local media does hours and hours of live shows and interviews while Comic Con is going on. I swear they interview just about everyone there, plus they have a lot of inside shots and interesting facts. So, living in this town has some perks.

If you're planning to go down to gawk at all the people, please keep these tips in mind:

• The streets will be so packed that it will be hard for you to see anyone
• The front door area of the convention center is usually blocked from view unless you're on that side of the street, so you won't really see anyone
• There are also signs and exhibits that block views
• Many of the nearby restaurants will be packed and may have restricted access
• Off-site Comic Con presentations (like that at the library) usually require you to have a badge unless otherwise noted (the library does have one Comic Con presentation open to the public, but the rest are closed)
• Unless you have a badge, your chance of seeing a celebrity in that area is slim

So, your best bet is to watch the local news stations if you want to see anyone or anything interesting if you don't have a badge. However, you might want to go downtown if:

• You like to watch the gawkers
• You like the party atmosphere
• To tell people that you were there
• To perhaps see something interesting (by chance)

If you go, be aware that selfie-sticks are not allowed, even when viewing from across the street. Also, good luck getting there by car. Try taking public transport, which will probably be packed early in the morning.

Edit:

OK, a friend of mine pointed this out on her Instagram account. It's free and not too far from Comic Con if you want to go.

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