Ah, home again, home again after 6 days in L.A. If I were to describe my relationship with City of Angels, I’d have to say “it’s complicated.” On the one hand, I’m always excited at the prospect of visiting. On the other, when I’m actually there, I don’t experience the same joy that I do in other places. Don’t get me wrong, there are many things I like about it – I’m looking at you, sunshine – and I always have a good time when I’m there. And at the end, I’m always very ready to get back to New York. Of course, now that I’m back, I’m also thinking about when my next trip out west will be – see, complicated.
When I started writing this, I really struggled with how I would go about describing Los Angeles. Do I make it a straight travel blog with recommendations and favorites or do I give a more honest assessment of my personal experience? In the end, I decided to go with a more honest approach. These are my personal experiences, so why not lay it all on the line, right?
This last trip was great in so many ways – I caught up with friends I haven’t seen in years, I had some great food, my company put me up in an extremely nice hotel and we had a very successful week of work. It was also exhausting – the weather quite frankly was abysmal and I was there for work so I didn’t quite get to do or see all I would have liked. A few leisure days tacked onto the end would have been perfect, not only was that not possible due to work commitments but by the end I was clicking my heels together and reciting, “there’s no place like home.”
You see, I work in television and job opportunities abound in L.A., much more so than New York For this reason, I have many friends that have “gone west” as they say. Each time I visit, not a thought enters my mind to move there even as I listen to them wax poetic about how much happier they are than they were in NYC wearing big smiles on their faces and little sweaters on their bodies in the middle of February (because you see, they only own little sweaters). Or if it does enter my mind, it’s so brief that I barely register its existence. I just don’t see the appeal, well I see it, you’d have to be blind not to, I just don’t see the appeal for me.
I recently saw a headline of an article that L.A. is a great place to live but not so much to visit. It caught my attention as I was in L.A. at the time, something to do with the sprawling land, difficulty getting around, traffic, all that jazz. Maybe this is the problem, maybe I’m going about it all wrong. Maybe I pick up sticks and head to the left coast? Eh, maybe not…
The Birth of Tinsel Town – Abridged
How did LA become what it is today – the film and television capital of the world? So, long before Thomas Edison was a glint in anybody’s eye, the City of Los Angeles was formed by a Spanish colony in 1781. Americans started heading west with the California gold rush in 1850. Word of it’s ideal climate spread and more Americans flocked west for health reasons. It wasn’t until the late 1800s that filmmakers started to head west to escape Edison’s control of the film industry in New York and New Jersey. It certainly didn’t hurt that the weather and terrain were so perfect, you could film all year round without worrying about Mother Nature shutting you down. In 1913 Cecil B DeMille rented a barn in Hollywood for filmmaking and the industry blossomed from there – thus, the Hollywood we know today was born.
It’s Always Sunny in Los Angeles
I know I’ve already touched on this a few times but one of the most appealing things about L.A. is the weather. Relatively warm all year round, hardly any rainfall, a dry heat that’s cool at night. This all makes for perfect conditions for sleeping, eating outside and for taming frizzy hair. Nearly every establishment has outdoor seating with heat lamps for those cool nights, it really is a glorious thing.
Here’s the thing though, the weather is also getting worse in lovely, sunny L.A. Fires in the summer from the excessive dryness and now, abnormally large amounts of rainfall and extended periods of cold weather. I know 50-60 degrees sounds like nothing to those of us from colder climates but there were many moments where I hit a cloudy spot and seriously wondered why I didn’t bring my down coat and wool hat. I feel like I spent the entire 6 days trying to get warm, both outside and inside. The buildings just aren’t insulated enough to handle the cold and most places don’t have heating. Bring on the layers (upon layers) and red wine!
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
L.A. certainly has charms of its own but I’m not quite sure they’re my kind of charms. I will admit, I’ve not been to every neighborhood in L.A. So maybe there’s a good fit out there for me. As someone that appreciates historical architecture and ancient culture, L.A.’s sprawling, modern, desert landscape just doesn’t do it for me. Give me the cobblestoned streets and the gaslights and the wonky, crooked architecture – that’s what inspires wonder and joy in me. I really think my soul is from a different time and place but that’s another story.
What it lacks in antiquity, it more than makes up for in nature. The mountainous terrain is stunning, also great for hiking or biking. It’s right on the Pacific Ocean, so that means beach time all year round. The trees are magnificent – Palm and Cypress and a whole host of varieties that I don’t even know. The sunset views just can’t be beat. It really is a dream for outdoorsy people.
L.A. is a city that’s big on car culture which leads to my least favorite part of LA – the notoriously bad traffic. It’s stuff of legend, the unfortunate part is, it’s actually true. It’s the land where a 15 mile drive taking you over an hour is accepted as normal. I’ve been stuck in this traffic. I was once having lunch with a bunch of LA friends and they told me a horror story that has scarred me to this day – if you’re driving in LA and you see police lights ahead driving back and forth across the lanes of the highway, you might as well get comfortable. You see, it means there’s some kind of incident ahead and instead of blocking one lane so cars can slowly get by, they’ve shut the entire highway. So, no one is getting off and you’re most likely going to be there for hours. No thanks!
Hooray for Hollywood
One culture L.A. does have in abundance, one I can definitely get behind, is film culture. As both a lover of history and a big film aficionado, I can’t deny its appeal. The home of the legends of film – the old studio system, the exclusive parties that were a who’s who in Hollywood, the glitz and glamour and excessive lifestyles. It’s all so fascinating to me. I’ve spent countless hours reading those long, detailed articles in Vanity Fair’s Hollywood editions about the glory days of movies. Just as historical locations give me goosebumps at the idea of all that has gone before, thinking about the stories these buildings can tell and the people that have walked these streets is one of the things that keeps me coming back.
A Few Of My Favorite Things
Now that I’ve droned on, I wanted to share my absolute favorite things to do in L.A. One of my tops, other than catching up with friends, is to head to Santa Monica. Grab a table at an outside restaurant or cafe for some fish tacos and drink coconut milk out of an actual coconut. Check out the shops and vendors along the pedestrian street – 3rd Street. Then head to the ocean, walk along the beach, dip my toes in the Pacific and take a stroll on the pier. My college roommate and I went out there when we were 20, she got a temporary tattoo on that pier that a few years later would inspire my real tattoo.
This year, I finally made my way up to Griffith Observatory. On the top of Mount Hollywood, it really is a special spot. You make your way up a winding road with sharp turns through Griffith Park and finally up to the pinnacle. The views are spectacular – mountains to one side, the Pacific to the other and it’s the perfect spot to get a good look at the Hollywood sign. Within the building, is a wonderland of exhibits for anyone with even a remote interest in space including a planetarium. It’s like science eye candy – I love the interactive periodic table.
No blog of mine would be complete without food and drink recommendations – who would I be if I weren’t talking about food and drinks? First and foremost, I met up with a friend for dinner and I left the choice of restaurant in her worthy charge. What she chose has been the subject of my dreams – both sleeping and waking – ever since. SUGARFISH is a sushi restaurant that hit L.A. by storm and rather recently has expanded to New York. The fish is incredibly fresh, melt in your mouth, the rice top quality and the setting intimate. I highly recommend ordering the “Trust Me” – it’s just the right amount of food, trust me.
For a classy drink scene in West Hollywood, try Laurel Hardware. It’s ever so hiply located in a former hardware store. A friend that brought me there informed me that it’s the place to see and be seen in L.A. It really is a great spot. Dim, warm lighting, because celebs don’t want to dine in harsh lighting, and a charming outdoor area strewn with twinkle lights set the scene. The cocktail options were inviting, though I stuck to a lovely Malbec – because I was freezing! There is absolutely no doubt that it’s an upscale spot but, oddly, it did not feel stuffy.
For the exact opposite end of the spectrum, I urge you to try In-N-Out Burger! Yes, it’s a fast food chain but it’s a quality fast food chain. The burger was so flavorful, I went for Animal Style because why not, and I hear the milkshakes aren’t to be missed. The fries were just okay but you can smother them in cheese or get them well-done which makes everything better. Plus, the entire scene surrounding the place is an experience – not only are the restaurants always completely packed but the drive up windows have lines wrapped around the building and into the streets. And I was there at 9:30 at night.
I had some time to kill in between arriving in L.A. and checking into my Airbnb for my first night. In researching brunch places, I found Ysabel. It had great reviews and wasn’t very far from my Airbnb so I thought I’d check it out. Well, it turned out to be much nicer than I anticipated – coming straight from the airport in my leggings and hoodie, toting my bags, I felt just a wee bit underdressed. It’s a lovely spot – you walk through an ivy covered doorway to an outer conservatory. Once you walk through the wide open french doors to the inside area, there’s a bar followed by several rooms for dining. I sat at the bar, wrote my blog and had eggs sunnyside up over roasted wild mushrooms all covered in hollandaise sauce with a cappuccino and Aperol Spritz. Not a bad way to kill a few hours.
Since I was out there for work, my company put me up in the W Hollywood. I normally wouldn’t book such a swanky spot unless I was truly treating myself but it really does put other, ahem, more modest hotel chains to shame. It’s almost spoiled me, can I go back to my modest accommodations after this? The answer is, “yes” but do I want to? That’s a “no” for me, dawg. From the lobby with a lovely bar and lounge area, including an outdoor bar with fire pits and flat screens, to the immaculately kept room with everything I could possibly need and wet deck on the roof with lounge chairs and pool, it was paradise. The hospitality is top notch, I can’t tell you how many warm, friendly greetings I got. In the end, I think the shower was my favorite – when I grow up, I want a shower just like that one.
A studio tour is always fun. A few years ago, I got a private studio tour of the Disney lot in Burbank – I’m not special, I just worked with Disney at the time. If you can swing a tour of Disney, I can’t recommend it enough. For anyone that’s grown up watching Disney movies, it’s one of those moments that gives you chills. This is where it all started. Where Walt talked P.L. Travers into making Mary Poppins into a musical and the Sherman brothers penned the beautiful “Feed the Birds.” It’s where Dumbo, Bambi and Snow White all came to life. It’s both our childhoods and our adult lives wrapped with a magical bow.
Until We Meet Again…
I’ve already decided my next trip to L.A. will be in a warmer month and it will be a leisurely long weekend. With that in mind, I’d love to see friends I wasn’t able to catch up with on this last whirlwind trip. I’ve also been wanting to hit Venice Beach. I tried to fit it in this trip and it just didn’t happen but that’s okay because it’ll definitely be better in warm weather. I’m all for its Bohemian spirit, the eclectic shops, fun street performers and the buildings covered in colorful murals. For the all important food need, I’d love to try Grand Central Market in Downtown L.A. You guys know I love a food hall and this one has some quality eats in it. I stumbled upon it quite by accident, the car I was taking to the airport drove by it and it had a big sign that said food hall at the entrance. That was enough to pique my interest to learn more.
Here’s Lookin’ At You, Kid
I’ll leave you with a moment from my last full day in L.A. that I think accurately sums up my feelings. I was in the business hub, Downtown L.A., a considerably grittier metropolitan area. An area most L.A. residents would never go out of their way to hang out in. As we were driving down the old, narrow, gridded streets with tall-ish buildings and cute shops and restaurants,I said to my Lyft driver, “Oh, this is a lot nicer than I remember it. I like the vibe.” It was in that moment it all became clear, the reason my east coast transplant friends love L.A., is the very same reason I don’t – it’s simply not New York. That doesn’t mean it’s not wonderful in its own right. And it also doesn’t mean we won’t see each other again L.A. – every relationship needs some time apart after all.
So, what do you guys think? Have you been to L.A.? Love it or hate it? Leave a comment! And until next time – cheers!
Adventures of a New Yorker traveling the world.
Adventures of a New Yorker traveling the world.
