Traveling Ninja Notes: Hollywood!

My dear blog readers,

I'm sure you think that I have completely forgotten about you. In reality life has just been busy. I wrote this over a week ago but have only just gotten pictures sorted out. I'll do much better from now on I'm sure haha :) So now, to give you some stories:

When I decided to take a 3 week trip home this year, I thought it was time to be a bit of a tourist in my own country. Since I was flying in and out of Los Angeles, and had seen nothing of the city except for the airport (which I have grown to really dislike), it seemed like a good opportunity to plan a stopover and check the place out.

Given everything I wanted to do in the 3 weeks, I decided to only spend 2 nights, but it was enough by the end of that particular adventure. I did not see everything on my list, or anywhere close to everything possible, but I got a good look around and can now check that particular place in the world off of my list J

Planner that I am, I chose well ahead of time to book a rental car, with a GPS. Great plan, right? I’d have flexible transportation and a handy dandy gadget to direct me around the huge traffic filled confusing-to-navigate city (probably not so confusing if you really know your way around, like any place, but still). This was all an excellent plan until I got to the rental agency. The bonus to all this was that I managed to sleep on the flight. So I was tired but not exhausted. However, I found I was a bit short on patience when I had to wait 45 minutes for the free shuttle from the arrivals lounge to the rental agency. Yes it was free so I should not complain and yes it was my fault I missed it the first time since I did not flag down the driver, but that form of rational thinking did not equate in my tired brain.

So next hurdle: waiting in line to get my car. The line was long and the number of staff was short. But never mind. I had the pleasurable experience of observing those around me, including a family who “had such a long day because they’d just flown alllllll the way from Cleveland!” It was that moment I had to remind myself that long days are very relative ideas, as I felt that working all day before catching a 14-hour international flight was slightly more exhausting, but in their defense they were traveling with children.

Finally my turn and, guess what?? Free upgrade for yours truly. Now, often this is a bargain right? Well, I was only halfway thrilled with this because I went from a small car to a mid-size SUV (because they were out of cars) so all I’m thinking is “I have to parallel park THAT in downtown LA?” But never mind, extra space for my luggage, yay. But then, it happened. That feared moment for modern travellers: no GPS! They did have one for me, it just happened to be the last one, and it did not work. “No problem!” the guy said, they just wouldn’t charge me for it….and I could use my smartphone instead! I pointed out that would mean absurdly expensive data charges since I was an international traveler (the guy just kind of looked at me weird when I said that haha). Never fear, they had the solution: MapQuest! Being the out of country traveller with no other options I gratefully let them print direction to where I was headed for the night and decided I would figure the rest out along the way.

By this point it was getting into rush hour. But I only had to go 18 miles, not bad I thought. Well….an hour and a half later I was wondering what I had gotten myself into J First time driving in the US in some time, in a new vehicle in a new city with no GPS. But I made it! I only got lost 3 times! And even saw a couple of funny thing alongs the way. A smart car merged in front of me and had a vanity plate that said NOTDUMB. I laughed J

I spent the next couple of days exploring Hollywood and downtown Los Angeles. I spent more time in museums learning about the life of immigrant Americans or exploring Little Mexico (yum locally made food!!!) than doing the uber touristey things like tours to the Hollywood sign (although I did see it from a distance) or Universal Studios (does walking past it count?) but I enjoyed the time just the same. I was careful to look up directions before going anywhere and kept an eye out for places with free WiFi, just in case.

I think one of my favorite stops was the Griffith Observatory. The night was clear and the view really was spectacular. The city is positively huge, and the Observatory was a great way to appreciate the size. I also enjoyed spotting a couple of film crews as I was out and about. One had a group of guys in tweed jackets and old fashioned hats, with a lady looking straight out of the 50’s prepping to shoot something. I also found a lovely statue of Marilyn Monroe, and nearly got run over by Spiderman as he dashed off to save someone. Santa Monica Pier before heading back to the airport was a nice way to enjoy the sunshine and do some people watching.

See photos below. L.A. won’t be top of my list of places to visit again soon, but I am glad to have gone and enjoyed the time I had (when I stopped getting lost haha).