LA Traffic (on 405)
I just got back from a week in Los Angeles. This is a city that a lot of people don’t like. I am not one of those people. Sure, the traffic sucks. The smog is bad. There can be a lot of superficiality and it is not the friendliest city in the U.S. But it is a beautiful, diverse destination that has a lot to offer to a visitor.
I have been to L.A. dozens of times, and yet it never is boring. One of the reasons that I went this time was for an exhibit at the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana (Orange County). They currently have an exhibit on the Terra Cotta Warriors that were discovered in Xi’an, China in 1974. It is the “largest exhibit of Emperor Qin’s Terra Cotta Army ever seen outside of China.” The history of the discovery of these Terra Cotta Warriors and what they represent is fascinating. This exhibit will be in California until October 12, 2008. After that, it will be heading to Houston and then to Washington, DC. My partner and I enjoyed it immensely. If you have any interest in the warriors, this is something you should go out of your way to see.
Usually when I go to L.A., I stay in West Hollywood, so that I can go out to the clubs that I like without having to worry about driving. This time, I split my time between two locations, neither of which I had stayed in before. We stayed with my partner’s sister for a few days in Santa Ana. It was especially convenient for going to the exhibit I mentioned earlier, as her house was only 4 miles from the museum. We also went to Laguna Beach and had dinner at Fisherman’s, right on the water. The food was great, but the view was even better!
Laguna Beach, CA
When we were finished with Orange County, we then moved to a small hotel in San Pedro, which is right near Long Beach. While we were there, we visited many of the beach communities, including Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach and Santa Monica. We took a lovely drive down the coast line from Santa Monica to Long Beach. The traffic is very bad, and it is slow going. But we had a convertible and fantastic weather, so the traffic was not a bother at all. It allowed us to enjoy the spectacular Southern California coast line.
We also spent an afternoon at the Farmer’s Market in Los Angeles. Right next door, there is a new outdoor shopping complex called the Grove. Between the two, we spent about 4 hours walking around. The Farmer’s Market has been going on at the corner of Fairfax and 3rd Street since 1934. It is filled with all kinds of food vendors, from Mexican to Korean to Cajun and everything in between. It also has really interesting grocers, meat vendors, and newsstands. The Grove is a modern style outdoor shopping “district.” It has the usual variety of stores that you will see in this type of shopping center, including Banana Republic and The Gap. It also has some higher end retail shops, such as Barney’s New York and Michael Kors. The setting is beautiful and the architecture that they created for this center is equally fascinating. I also enjoyed the fountain that they created that has synchronized water shows set to music (kind of like what they do at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, but on a smaller scale). I took some movies of one of the water shows. If you are interested in seeing them, let me know by e-mail and I will be happy to send you the movies.
The Getty Center
Our last full day in L.A., we went to the Getty Center. In all of the times that I have been to L.A., I have never gone to the Getty before, although I always wanted to. Well, it was worth the wait. Just to see the buildings and setting of this museum is worth the trip. The place is just gorgeous. It is hard to even describe how beautiful the museum itself is. While we were there, we got a little bonus for our L.A. visit – Southern California was hit by an earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale. I never even felt it, to tell you the truth. My partner did, as did some of the other patrons at the museum. Of course, it was all they talked about on the news that night. The largest quake to hit L.A. since the Northridge quake in 1994. But enough about that. Back to the Getty.
The collection of art, sculpture, photography and gardens at the Getty is quite beautiful. The collection spans centuries, with paintings that go back to the Renaissance and the Dutch Masters and work all the way up to the 20th Century. There was a large group of people that were huddled around van Gogh’s “Irises”. That was actually the hardest picture to get near. But there were plenty of other paintings that I loved. There is also a spectacular collection of furniture and furnishings from different periods,.
The Museum basically consists of five buildings that are built around a central courtyard. In each building, the second floor contains paintings and the first floor contains other kinds of art (such as rooms of furniture or sculpture or photography). Then there are the gardens. Wow. I think that if I lived in L.A., I would go to the Getty Center quite regularly just to bask in the sunshine and glory of these gardens. Needless to say, I really enjoyed going to the Getty and will most definitely go back in the future.
Hollywood Walk of Fame
After visiting the Getty, we took a drive to Hollywood. We went to the Hollywood and Highland Center, which is the home of the Kodak Theater (those of you who watch American Idol will know that the Kodak is where the Finale is held each year!). While this area is touristy, it is fun to visit. And this center is interesting (and quite huge). It’s a great place to people watch. You can see the Hollywood sign in the hills from here and the Hollywood Walk of Fame is right outside the center on Hollywood Boulevard.
So, in this time of expensive travel where many of us are deciding to do things here in the US instead of going overseas, don’t overlook Los Angeles. It is a great city and lots of fun!!
To see some of my photos of L.A., click here.
