Open Los Angeles Photo Gallery To me LA is either a place that you either love or hate. Perhaps because it took me a while to like it! LA is a balance of those that belong or at least want to be a part of tinsel town, about a hundred thousand tourists and four million people of all kinds of heritage and wealth.
As with many cities there is a China town, but LA has towns specifically for ethnicity. Compton, famous for guys that have to have their jeans hanging below their arses (just to prove they can afford Calvins) is for Mexican gangsters as is Hill Side and Inglewood for Afro-Americans. As for the Orientals who could be Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, Phillipino etc, they are not content with Chinatown or little Saigon, they just seem to be everywhere. Orientals always seem to hang out in big crowds and rarely contain their volume when all I want to do is chill-out with my cuppa tea. But perhaps every single oriental just has a problem with me?
LA is just truly a magnate to all types of people. LA is 4million people in a huge sprawl of suburbia that goes on and on for miles. Public transport is virtually non-existent which means if you want to get around (no pun with the Beach Boys) it is necessary to have a ve-hicle. That means that everyone has one too. As a warning rush hour is from 3-7pm. Don’t ask me about the mornings, I leave that for people that need to go slow.
As a well travelled European, I find it easy to say that character is usually more attached to towns with history; it gives the city some depth and a gravitational field to bring together whatever is exciting. LA proves that being old can be a limitation of character, because there is nothing old in LA. I recently heard about a petition to save an old house on Venice Beach from being demolished. I heard it wasn’t much to look at but at 65yrs old, it was the oldest structure in the neighbourhood. That means everything is new. So much is shiny and have you ever heard anyone say that their old sunglasses are vintage Dolce et Bananas? Should you be interested in something hundreds of years old when there is a new one? What about carrying a dog the size of a rat in your handbag? New!
One place that is celebrating it’s heritage is Farmer’s Market. At 75years old, you may also hear it being called the original one, because there are a lot of fakes around here! We went there early on a Saturday morning and found things starting to open at about 10am. Just because it is old doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have to look new because it is nicely polished and it is also congealed to the very nice “The Grove” mall with a cinema to boot.
So if you are nervous about going somewhere old, this place still has a Barnes and Noble to keep your blood pressure down. As the mall is outside (it rarely rains) the fountain is replaced with a lake and a small grassy lawn to sprawl out on and drink delightful coffees. I would love to show you some images, but somehow they disappointingly were never got copied from the memory card. But I am more interested in telling you about the Farmer’s Market.
There is a nice selection of cutsey shops including a “Taschen” book store, who make visual or coffee table books; I have quite a few! There are also small yet flash looking delis and a big fresh world food section selling anything from brittle (nuts covered in a hard caramel) and other sweets/candies to pastries, doughnuts, to decent meals including noodles and of course crepes.
A must do in LA is visit the Hollywood sign. It is possible to see the Hollywood sign from a lot of LA which means it is possible to see a lot of LA from the Hollywood sign. The sign itself was historically a symbol of achievement for struggling actors, of all types of film. The sign is famous for being succeeded by “Hills” but fewer people realise the sign has been replaced. Sculpturist, Bill Mack bought the old one and later painted portraits of actors from the golden age of cinema on them. http://billmack.outdoorclick.com/index.php/hollywood_sign they were bought for staggering figures by those that wanted a real piece of decaying Hollywood.
I recommend the hike in daytime as the trek is a 1mile trek up a dusty road. It is necessary to put in an effort to receive reward, but would it be as enjoyable if fifty thousand other people were there made accessible via a cable car? Well, perhaps a cable car would be fun, but not a tour bus! A second recommendation is be prepared and take a big bottle of water as you are exposed to the LA sun. We parked at the bottom and jumped over a gate with a notice suggesting walking to the sign is forbidden. Sod that! Next, a cop drives down the track and winds his window down. I am expecting at least a slap on the wrists, but he is more interested in my camera! It was interesting to work out what place was where and to think Santa Monica Beach recognisable by it’s pier and big wheel was so distant, yet still LA.
From here it is possible to switch tracks and walk to the Griffith Observatory. It is about 2miles of probably the only countryside within 20miles, but just take the car! The Griffith Observatory was built in 1916 and used to look at the stars. This is completely ironic, because it is impossible to see any star through the smog and light pollution! It is named after Welsh Griffith J. Griffith who donated the land to create a park for the people of Los Angeles. On December 12, 1912, he offered the City of Los Angeles $100,000 for an observatory, fully owned and operated by the City of Los Angeles. Griffith's plan for the observatory would include an astronomical telescope open to free viewing.
The Observatory is an art nouveau classic and a real beauty. There is a bit of a museum and a big planetarium. But more importantly, there is a fantastic view over the city. If you have just been to the Hollywood sign, then stay here to see LA at night. It is quite a spectacle to see parallel lines converge beyond where the eye can see. Believe me, it is a lot to take in.
We saw a show in the planetarium hosted by a chap who eagerly introduced himself as Tom Smidt. Looking straight through his show business, second hand car sales man smile, we could see that he loved his job! He reminded me of the typical character parodied on “The Simpsons” but I suppose it is important to remember we are in LA! We watched a show about the stars and as we tipped back in our seats, looked at various projections of stars on the ceiling with a narrative. I suppose if you want to see stars in LA, this is just a good a place as any!
We complemented our visit with a small meal at the distinctively named “Café At The End Of The Universe”. Wolfgang Puck, we love you, you devised the recipe to our butternut squash soup. So good we asked for the recipe and made some later.
Slightly down the hill is “Greek Theatre” also constructed by Mr Griffith. It is a small for an American outdoor theatre or arena; it shows many famous live bands, but generally for the middle aged.
And if you believed there was no culture in LA, let me inform you about the Getty museums. The Villa brings some very old Roman, Greek and Etruscans to LA. The museum offers renaissance paintings, rooms from 18c Europe to more contemporary exhibitions. The museum sits gracefully on a hill to the west of Bel Air and above the 405freeway. The architecture is very pleasing to the eye with sandstone throughout.
The Villa, in Pacific Palisades, near Malibu is just north of LA and on the PCH which makes it super easy to pop in. Knowing Getty picture Library, I was interested to find out more about this empire and discovered Mr Getty was bought an oil rig by his father for his 18th birthday. Three years later he retired and became part of the jet set. Much of his hard earned cash was spent purchasing artefacts from the ancient and classical worlds. He opened a museum on the current location to display the artefacts attracting 1000 visitors a year.
Being infatuated by the Roman world, he later built a Roman country villa, based on one discovered buried near Pompeii. Isn’t that so LA? I want a Roman villa and because I can I will! For his sins, he never saw his house completed. Although, it doesn’t stop us from enjoying it and all the relics it houses. Adjoined to the house is an open air amphitheatre with translations of Greek, Roman, ancient and more contemporary plays in the summer months. As an added bonus, other than $10 for parking, entry is free! Theatre is $7.
If you are British, then you will know how important it is to come back home with a sun tan! Then make way for the beach. You have a few to choose from and each comes with complementary crystal white sand and sunset views over the pacific. Venice is supposedly the home of “Baywatch” and “Muscle Beach”. It is more of a yard than a beach and I was surprised to see no big guns lifting engine blocks; only a scrawny teenage boy hovering over the fence.
The promenade is littered with cafés, trashy tattoo artists and $5 t-shirt stores, which along with an exceedingly large collection of bums makes good people watching. The sand stretches over 200m from the promenade to the shoreline and you may be surprised to hear that if you laze on the beach, you maybe the only one.
It is a “must do” to rent a “beach cruiser” push bike. They often have huge handlebars, are beautifully painted, require back pedalling to brake and generally only have one gear; cruising doesn’t involve going up hills. I was amused to see low riders; a three wheel push bike more akin to three year olds.
The lifeguard shelters are a local landmark and are scattered along the entire Californian coastline. To me they are quintessentially Californian and I keep expecting to see Pamela Anderson bouncing around with her red plastic thing!
A gentle stroll to the north will take you to Santa Monica Beach. The landscape is much the same but the populace is a little classier. Santa Monica has a few more amusements with a pier, big wheel and rollercoaster. You are more likely to recognise Santa Monica Beach from movies than any other.
Further up the coast lies Pacific Palisades, and then Malibu. With their exclusive sea views, they are famous for being homes for the ridiculously rich. Decide how much you really want one; built on loose shingle the rain can create landslides. I can’t have sympathy for someone who spends a fortune on a house that has a significantly high chance of collapsing.
Sitting on Malibu Beach lends itself a slight weirdness. The feeling of being exposed to glorious sunshine and the cuddled feeling of warm humid air upon the skin feels tremendous. The sight of the gorgeous blue, the familiar yellow tinged air lingering above the horizon. The humid air forcing an earthier and bassier sound. The sound of our feet banging on the sand as we run hand in hand with excitement towards the lapping shore. And the sound of our voices is the only sound.
The beach is magnificent and as far as the eye can see in both directions are less people than the fingers I am holding high. Wow! Two girls are lonesome sunbathers; surfers must be web surfing; although Channel 4 news focus pull a rubber clad guy stomping out of the yonder; a bunch of guys are circling an innocently poised bikini clad girl; with reflectors and cameras. Why? How come? I don’t understand, I don’t care; we have this vast expanse of beautiful, expensive sand to ourselves (nearly).
I realise now, it does exist. As we drive further north, we soon become engulfed by the southern Californian countryside. As the hummingbird flies, we are 20 miles from the completely different world known as downtown LA.
We drive to an enclave of a beach that reminds me what summer holidays were like as a child. The road is a hollow through Eucalyptus and other tropical trees. At the bottom, we are met by a symbol of our coastal road trip, an “Airstream Trailer” The perfect and most elegant way to travel the roads of the USA. This one fully embracing it’s symbolic aluminium shell was adequately made to look like home; with a post box, and bright plastic things. It looks magnificent and I as much as anyone would love an “Airstream” but, with such a fantastic view over the sea, why look over the car park?
