Postcard from San Diego: Sights from the Media Shuttle

SAN DIEGO — As a sports journalist, one of the highlights is following teams around the country and visiting places that you've never been before. In my case with covering Alabama basketball, the last two weeks have allowed me to experience two new cities.

In last week's case, it was Tampa as the Crimson Tide traveled to the 2022 SEC Tournament. While that trip didn't last long as Alabama fell to Vanderbilt in its opening game, this weekend shows a tad more promise as it plays its first game in the NCAA Tournament in San Diego.

As someone that had never been to San Diego before, I'll fully admit that the extent of my knowledge about the city went about as far as the San Diego Padres, the then-San Diego Chargers and the classic comedy movie 'Anchorman'. With our first day was packed to the brim with traveling and heading to the arena, my cowriter Katie Windham and myself didn't have much time to experience the city, but we promise to do so in the coming days.

Our flight left Atlanta at roughly 11 a.m. ET, landing in San Diego at approximately 12:50 p.m. PST. From there, we headed straight to the media hotel to check in, then promptly headed to Viejas Arena on the campus of San Diego State, where Alabama's opening round game is to be hosted.

Along the way, I noted that California is an absolutely beautiful state, and this was just in a quick media shuttle ride to the stadium.

In the video located at the top of the page, you'll see the highlights from the shuttle trip, including a shot of the media hotel, progress on SDSU's new football stadium under construction, fraternity and sorority row and a shot of us approaching the basketball arena.

One thing of note is how much construction SDSU's campus is under, a sign of both growth and progress.

As I stated earlier, I've never been to San Diego before. That being said, Thursday's first day in the city has left me wanting more. Katie and I plan to explore more of the city in the coming days, and promise to provide you with more coverage of the sights and sounds.

For now, check out the photos below and the video above regarding our first day in San Diego, and stay tuned over the next several days as we travel around this beautiful city.

Gallery: Highlights from Flight/San Diego Arrival