Union — Attraction in Los Angeles

I feel a bit of prejudice when I go here. I think its nice there is a restaurant although the people can pay more, a surcharge of $1 that the city revenue can set aside for neglected homeless/roomless/friendless/disgarded/rejected individuals. Some of them are very kind and deserve to be treated with respect.

I felt like it was an intrusion of public domain that the courtyard was rented for a private function. And I didn't like the attempt at pandering for respect from the Mexican community when my homeless friend purchased $17.65 for burger(combo meal: fries, soda, burger) and worst burrito ever(no fries that it was supposed to have.) The guy who plays the nice Mexican mostly to Mexican customers there to show how 'family oriented' they are compared to others. And is totally underreporting taxes in a cash based business. I ask for a cup of water and he refuses only there to sell me $1 bottled water. I'm really not racist and I feel bad for judging some people but I gotta call it as I see it. Sheriff A of Maricopa has a point, Joe is Italian and there aren't so many Italians in LA or Phoenix. Then again while at the Grove last night for some reading time at Barnes and Noble..There are 2nd/3rd wives of Muslim dudes and they like to flaunt their materialism. Same goes for alot of Asian students and international students, they are getting free tuition, FAFSA loans and free tuition handouts when it is obvious that they would rather spend their money on clothes than tuition. This review is encompassing.

If I need a safe place, I should be treated with respect and courtesy by security or Sheriff deputies, not made fun of because of my clothes or hair. And I want to print out a counterfeit bus confirmation ticket so once in a while I can camp out there on the chairs, for instance to stay out of the rain because Kinkos needs to be brisk to keep people from being too comfortable. Also its fun to fool them with a fake bus ticket just as an excuse to stay there.

I am seeing who I am with this social experience/experiment. I have

I am currently traveling from Los Angeles to Chicago on Amtrak, and I'm only as far as New Mexico, yet this experience has already been shockingly appalling. As a solo minority woman, I expected a basic level of respect and safety—neither of which have been provided.

From the onset, the conductor has exhibited openly dismissive, disrespectful, and blatantly discriminatory behavior. He has repeatedly ignored my polite requests and spoken to me with open hostility. In stark contrast, he displayed warmth and attentiveness toward white passengers, making it painfully clear that his behavior toward me was racially motivated. Such behavior is utterly unacceptable and profoundly disturbing.

Additionally, the conditions onboard are beyond unsanitary. I discovered period blood smeared across a bathroom door, and upon notifying the conductor, I was rudely brushed aside and told dismissively that it was "not his problem." He didn’t even bother to guide me to another facility, leaving me humiliated and frustrated. This indifference to hygiene, especially in the midst of a long 50-hour journey, is utterly disgraceful.

Moreover, despite the train being virtually empty, when I asked politely for the seat beside me to be left open for safety and comfort, or at the very least to seat another woman beside me, the conductor responded with laughter, claiming the train was overbooked—a blatant lie given the car was visibly 99% empty. In an intentional act of spite, he then deliberately seated another passenger right beside me, further exacerbating my discomfort.

The journey was also disrupted by excessively loud, irrelevant PA announcements meant for internal communication among staff, completely disregarding passenger comfort and rest. Even expensive noise-canceling headphones couldn't block out this disturbance, leaving me with a severe headache.

Physically, the seats are unbearably uncomfortable. Even at just 5’4”, I find myself cramped, with severe back and leg pain due to the complete lack of adequate space. For the premium price I paid for this ticket, this experience is absolutely unacceptable.

This treatment has been degrading, disrespectful, and discriminatory. Amtrak has demonstrated utter disregard for customer well-being, sanitation, and basic human decency. This is without a doubt the worst travel experience of my life, and I will never again use this deplorable service. Immediate acknowledgment and rectification from Amtrak is required—not just an apology, but action to address the profound failures and discriminatory practices...

Took Amtrak from LA Union Station to Solana Beach in San Diego. It took about 2 hours and was a pleasant trip!

You can purchase tickets online, leave your car at Union Station (I believe $8 all day), and board from the platform onto the second floor (first floor is for handicap and other special exceptions).

The train has a bathroom (not the cleanest but not terrible and it has bathroom seat covers so that made it all great), a wall charger for the one sitting closest to the wall, WIFI, the chair reclines, foot rest, and a tray table. The train also has an area you can purchase food and drink from if you need it.

It's best to arrive about 15-20 min early to be able to claim a good seat on the train. We chose the window seat to view the beautiful ocean after passing Irvine and the rest of the trip to Solana Beach!

The train usher who checked our tickets was super cheery and helpful! He was an older gentleman and very well suited for his job! I heard him let some people know where their exit was and let a family know that a person was leaving next stop and that the ocean view was coming up so he would move them to the window seat to see it all!

The only part I didn't like was returning on the train from Solana Beach to Union Station at 7pm-ish and there were about 20+ rowdy and drunk people coming from the horse races. I heard cops were downstairs with them so that was good they were being monitored but they initially walked through the second floor trying to find seats. They were insanely loud and some of them stumbled upon the chairs. I know this cannot be prevented as public transportation includes a lot of inevitable variables.

Concerning Union Station, they have a random aquarium near the bathrooms and entrance, it’s gotten semi cleaner but still has urine smell when walking through the halls, and there are plenty staff available to help. Still many homeless inside and outside. But the abundance of staff at Union Station...