Ok yeah it’s been awhile my faithful reader(s?). Sorry but I had issues with the free wireless at my hostel. It just wouldn’t play nice with my lappy. Plus I was tired from living and loving LA! Yes finally I am in LaLa Land! So I will try to update you now. It may take some time...
Day 1 (a very long day indeed)
Finally! My first flight in a 747-400, my first time crossing the International Date Line and my first time in the USA. Checking in for NZ6 I was so excited to tell the woman who asked that my destination was Los Angeles.
My plane was delayed due to engineering issues (duct taping a wing back on or something like that I guess). It was supposed to take off at 7.15pm but we finally did at 8.45pm.
I had a window seat and there was nobody in the middle, in the aisle seat there was an aussie guy who had talked his way on to the flight after his Qantas flight was cancelled. So I was like if you didn’t I would have had the whole row to myself and he was like yeah but he was a nice guy so it was all good.
Well for me, he had a connecting flight to Chicago that I am pretty sure he didn’t make due to his first flight being cancelled and this one delayed. Poor bloke.
I had big plans to watch movies, but I didn’t feel that good and had a headache. So I mostly just tried to sleep which you really need to do anyway on the flight or you are just gonna be a wreck on arrival.
I did watch 2 movies, Sex and the City and Borat.
Arriving into LA we flew for ages over the huge grey city before landing at LAX.
I actually found it pretty easy to get into the country. I didn’t get the rubber glove treatment or anything, just the standard photo and fingerprinting. I felt quite neglected really.
I caught a shuttle to my hostel so saw some of Westchester and Marina Del Ray on the way to Santa Monica.
After finding my hostel room (with a top bunk of course) I gathered the will to move and went for a walk to the pier.
Sitting at the end of the pier listening to a busker was cool. I achieved my goal of riding on a carousel. Yep I was the oldest person riding one of those horses up and down. But hey it’s not like they have an age limit.
Walking on the beach they have the lifeguard towers and everything, so I couldn’t get the Baywatch theme song out of my head. Actually I seem to find a song for a lot of places here. And I keep going wow a school bus, just like on TV or wow a fire hydrant. Yeah it’s a bit sad.
On my walk I found veg nirvana also known as wholefoods market. OMG the veg products they have here. Just the soy (or rice or coconut milk) ice cream flavours alone make me want to stay. Not just chocolate or vanilla here. Oh no they have chocolate fudge brownie, carrot cake, butter pecan...
Day 2
After making myself stay up until bed time to try and reset my body I set out the next day with an Irish lass from my dorm room. We caught a bus but missed our stop so got off in West Hollywood and walked back to Beverly Hills. We kinda got a bit lost but hey it was upmarket lost baby!
We found
We then wandered along
After a detour to a starbucks we got back on Wilshire and found a bus that took us to a bus that took us to Hollywood.
I wrote my name on a star, the store didn’t have chalk so I used crayon. While my Irish accomplice was like if you get caught your on your own. After looking around the area we set out along Hollywood Blvd looking for a vegan restaurant.
We ended up walking thru a rather dodgy part of town but the restaurant was worth it. I had heard of a place in LA that does chicken and waffles so I got the vegan version of pancakes and mock chicken. It was pretty good.
We walked back to Hollywood and Highland area and found an information booth that told us the buses were about to stop running so we better start. So we ran for a bus and managed to catch a couple back to Santa Monica
with only a small issue of buses not stopping at the stop we thought it would. We went for the stop with our destination listed so of course it stopped at the one up the street with nothing listed.
I spent these days hanging around Santa Monica. It’s a great area with some great vegan food places. I did some shopping, walked to Venice Beach and just relaxed. I did think I should do more to see all the LA has to offer but then I would think well I am on vacation and its ok to take it easy and just relax and enjoy myself and the local area.
I changed rooms at the hostel as I wanted a bottom bunk, the girl in the bunk above me was really weird. One time I was in the shower and she totally pulled the curtain back on me (it was lame they didn’t have shower stalls) and was like oh sorry I thought you were a man WTF!??!
So anyway we got a new roommate and she introduced herself to the crazy chick (who had been pacing around the room) and asked her what her name was. The freaky cow was like “are you related to Tom or Harry?” (I forget the actual names) and then she took off out of the room. apparently she went down to reception to complain that the new girl was a registered sex offender (seriously!) and the new chick went down upset about her being a total nut job and worried she was responsible for her missing camera. So the crazy chick got kicked out. Apparently she was a total drug addict and as I pointed out to the new chick (lets call her Olive) we know she is a sex offender but an unregistered one...
Day 6
I got a ticket for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno online and Olive decided to come along and see if she could get one at the show.
We took public transport to the show which wouldn’t have been so bad if we had started off by catching the right bus...
Figured out it was the wrong bus when we got kicked off it at Union Station. So we asked some very nice people what to do and ended up taking the subway and then another bus. We arrived at NBC studios in Burbank just in time to get Olive a ticket and line up. After travelling all the way to the USA and battling the LA metro system who did we see on Leno but a bloody aussie. Yes the guest was Rove McManus! He was pretty funny thou and I enjoyed the whole show. I even watched it again on TV when I got back to the hostel.
Day 7
The hostel runs trips to the Getty centre on Thursdays so I signed up. It’s a pretty impressive place. I did the architecture tour and then wandered into the closest gallery. The guard told me where the best paintings were so I went and looked at some very expensive art by names I recognised.
That night a woman from my hostel room was doing tarot cards so I got her to do mine. I am far too sceptical to believe in it but it was fun. So apparently I am going to have a husband and a baby boy. We will live in Europe and I will split with the hubby over money issues. Oh and this is supposed to happen in the next 5 years. Guess I should get ready by clearing the cobwebs out of my coochie...
Day 8
I booked a tour to Universal Studios as I didn’t feel like spending a few hours on a bus getting there. I ended up being the only passenger in the van, such luxury!
I managed to see everything I wanted to, although I ended up on the last tram of the day for the studio tour.
My favourite ride was the first (and last) one I did, The Simpsons it scared me the first time when you are like falling off a rollercoaster but its great coz its like you are right in there with them.
It was Halloween and the Americans totally go all out for it. I was tired and didn’t have a costume so didn’t go out even thou I heard there was a great parade in West Hollywood (the gay area of course darling). I was glad I didn’t go when a girl from my room told me she ended up stranded there and got a ride back with strangers. Dodgy!
Day 9
It was time to brave the buses alone so I got me a day pass and set out.
First stop was Beverly Hills where I took the trolley ride. I sat at the back next to the guide and she told me extra info like where the celebs live (I know which door to knock on when I wanna be a star). There were so many nice houses I didn’t know which one to choose.
On
So after that rather long break I headed to Hyland and after walking along it found a bus that took me to
I wanted to check out the hand and foot prints at the Chinese Theatre. But this plan was foiled by a premiere that was taking place at the time. Well that’s something interesting too right. Not that I had heard of the movie, someone told me it was called Che.
So I caught a bus down sunset and walked up the strip.
Then I walked along La Cienega (love that name) to
Day 10
I got a shuttle to LAX and then went to arrivals and found another to Anaheim. It was cheaper and easier that way. But I will blog about my Disney days later as this is long enough already!
