El Mercadito Mariachi
3425 E 1st St, Los Angeles, CA
Santacon invaded Los Angeles more than 10 years ago, and in that time has grown in numbers from under a hundred to more than 500*. We've corralled and caroled all over this fine city (and county!), and we've had so much fun, we're doing it again!** Are you READY SANTA!? WE HOPE SO!
*500 sleigh passes sold, but not everyone takes the sleighs! You try counting a sea of Santas.
**As many of the epic blasts from the past as we can cram into one long day!
- Follow @lasanta on twitter. This is *the* way to stay informed tomorrow. The route is not publicised. YFollowing @lasanta to find out where we are if you are joining late.
- Read the Rules and be a Good Santa. http://www.heathervescent.com/santacon/the-rules.html
- Download the songbook RIGHT NOW to your phone or print your own at home. http://plaidtherapy.com/santa/LA_Santa_Songbook_2013.pdf
- Santacon begins at 11am tomorrow at El Mercadito Mariachi 3425 E 1st St, Los Angeles, CA
- If you choose to travel by car, park at your most convenient Metro stop and take the Gold line to the Indiana stop. Then walk north up Indiana and left (west) onto 1st St. If you see 3rd St, you went the wrong way.
- If you choose to avoid the hassle of driving at all, Santa has two nifty presents to offer: both Lyft and Uber have provided promo codes that will earn Santa first-time-user credits! See the ride-share section below for more details!
- Be sure to have a Metro TAP day and buy a Metro Day Pass ($5) for EACH PERSON. The Metro does not allow sharing of TAP cards.
- It is a long day. Pace yourself and be sure to bring whatever your need for 12+ hours,and while you're at it, bring some to share with Santa. The Metro runs until about 2am, the ride-share companies until 4am.
Some tips to make your adventure more awesome:
- Bring cash (closing your check might leave Santa behind!)
- Print out Santa fliers if ya want to spread holiday....cheer?
- Don't drink your own alcohol in restaurants/bars, especially beer in cans or bottles that they don't sell (they can lose their liqueur license)
- Throw away your trash on the sleighs (trash bags provided)
- Use the buddy system - no Santa left behind!
- Bring extra Santa hats to spread holiday cheer and when we're on the metro and can handle more Santas, use them to recruit new Santas!
- Wear comfortable shoes.
- Wear something under your Santa jacket (in case it gets warm and you want to take it off) and bring warm layers to wear after dark when it cools off.
- Cheap Santa suits often itch. If so, wear a light layer underneath your suit for an itch-free day!
Ride-share Info
Be an on-top-of-it Santa and download the apps, set up the profiles and enter the codes before you leave the comfort of your own home and sobriety... that way you're all set to begin blowing minds the moment you step out your front door! You could take one of these cars to your nearest metro station, or all the way to El Mercadito! The codes only work for first-time users, so if you've already used one of the services, here's a chance to try the other! Pro-Santa-tip: Ask the members of your posse if they've ever used either service and, if not, convince them to try it and use the codes! Everybody wins!
- LYFT: USE THIS CODE: LASANTA for $20 towards your first ride with Lyft!
- How it works:Download the Lyft app at: get.lyft.com/lyftoff/ (or find it in your app store; available in for iphone and android only)
- Go to the "Payments" section and enter the promo code: LASANTA
- Available to New Users only (those who've never taken a Lyft and never redeemed a code)
- Request a Lyft when you need a ride!
- UBER: Download and use the app: fl9cl - $20 off first ride, new users only.
And this reminder of the Santacon 'rules:
REMEMBER THE ANSWER IS: SANTA
It's very important how we deal with the public, private security, and most importantly, LEO. If asked, this is how you should answer:
- Who's in charge? SANTA
- Who are you with? SANTA
- What organization are you with? SANTA
- Who organized this? SANTA
- Who just puked in that trashcan? SANTA
Honestly, there are those folks who figure honesty is the best policy and that's fine. The aforementioned statements are true.
- Don't quote a web address
- Don't point out someone
- Don't give out a name
- Don't supply an e-mail address
- Don't hand out a phone number