Once again, after trying and failing to obtain passes to Comic-Con, my daughter and I boarded the trolley and headed down to the Gaslamp Quarter in San Diego to immerse ourselves in the craziness that is Comic-Con culture. This year we decided to attack the event differently. In previous years, we started west and worked our way east, ending up at Petco Park, where there is non-badge-holder seating available for panels, late in the day. Instead, we left earlier, arriving downtown around 9:00 and started at the eastern edge of festivities and worked west. We didn’t get far, because there is just too much to do outside the Convention Center.

Hello Kitty Food Truck Outside Comic-Con in San Diego

Our first stop was under the bridge where food trucks and various interactive activities filled the parking lot. One food truck of note was the Hello Kitty Cafe, where you could purchase such goodies as Hello Kitty Bow Water for $3, or an assortment of doughnuts, petite cakes, or macaroons. They had the longest wait by far of any of the food trucks. Even the promise of a free pink totebag with any $25 purchase wasn’t enough to get me to stand in line for 45 minutes. We did, however, get in line for free swag from the local radio station — a poster and a sticker.

Alien Eyeware

Next we stopped by the Alienware tent to check out the goods and pick up a free pare of Alien Eyeware sunglasses, which I could only wear for about a block before I tripped over the curb. They’re not particularly functional, but they look super cool!

Free T-Shirt from TeeFury

From there we went over to Nerdist at Petco Park where my daughter won a free T-shirt from TeeFury, we got a bunch more swag, and I shook hands with author, Dan Casey, who was autographing copies of 100 Things Avengers Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die, and more importantly, he told me about his upcoming book, 100 Things Star Wars Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die. I pretty much squee’d over that.

Wil Wheaton and the Cast of Titansgrave

We were also able to catch part of the Titansgrave panel with Wil Wheaton and cast.

Tom DeLonge

But the highlight of my time there was being able to see Tom DeLonge, lead singer from Blink-182, who was there to promote his Poet Anderson franchise. I had a total fangirl moment.

We found lots of dressed-up people who were all too eager to pose.

At Comic-Con, Even the Buildings Dress Up

Even buildings join in the craziness, getting in costume.

Sharknado 3

And Sharknado 3 is really happening.

Zombies are Everywhere at Comic-Con

Once again zombies where everywhere. Everything from a boy scout camp offering to help us with our survival skills during the zombie apocalypse, to a walk through the set of the upcoming Fear the Walking Dead. Unfortunately, waiting in line and traipsing through the set meant we missed two panels. One with Daniel Radcliffe and the other Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies with the best Doctor ever, Matt Smith.

So next year, with or without coveted passes, we’re determined to spend at least two days enjoying the world that is Comic-Con outside the Convention Center.
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