We arrived in Los Angeles after our 13 hour flight with not much sleep, but running on adrenaline.
Our driver picked us up at LAX at 7am for a quick scenic day in LA.
Los Angeles is a major city located in the state of California, USA. It is situated in the southern part of California, on the west coast of the United States. The city covers a significant area and is part of Los Angeles County, which is the most populous county in the United States. It has a population of 3.8 million people and is famous for its tall iconic palm trees.
Our first stop took us to the vibrant Venice Beach. With its colourful boardwalk, street performers, and a bohemian atmosphere. We walked along the Ocean Front Walk, and we saw amazing street murals, basket ball courts, skate parks to muscle beach bodybuilders showing off their strength. We were there pretty early but could see why this place is so popular with locals and tourists. Our guide explained how they filmed some scenes from the new Barbie movie here.
A short drive up the coast is iconic Santa Monica Pier.
This is a great place for a morning walk or to catch some stunning ocean views. From the iconic hand made carousel ride, arcade games, fishermen, van food, buskers, hat stands, Pacific Park Ferris Wheel, and a Trapeze school. They also have a Bubba Gum shrimp restaurant and it wouldn’t be complete without a Hot Dog on a Stick store. We stopped to get some coffee at a local coffee shop to perk us up and keep going.
Further on we arrive at in Beverly Hills. The city is famous for its sprawling mansions and estates, often featuring impressive gateways, long driveways, and extensive landscaping. Our driver showed us the witches house as they were adding the Halloween touch. It really did look like what I imagine a witches house would look like. Moving on to Rodeo Drive to all the upmarket shops where the rich and famous do their shopping. We went past the famous Beverly Wilshire Hotel, featured in the film “Pretty Woman.”
The next stop was Hollywood Boulevard and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Perhaps the most famous feature of Hollywood Boulevard.
It’s a sidewalk embedded with over 2,600 brass tiles with the names of famous actors, musicians, directors, and other entertainment industry professionals. Each star represents an individual’s significant contributions to the world of entertainment. Muhammad Ali’s was the only star in the wall , because he didn’t want anyone to step on his star. Walking on we saw the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. This historic movie palace, known for its ornate architecture, is famous for the handprints and footprints of celebrities in its forecourt. We also saw the famous Dolby Theatre, this venue hosts the Academy Awards (Oscars) ceremony. We passed by other sites but didn’t visit like the classic old El Capitan Theatre, the Hollywood Museum, Ripleys Believe or not, famous night clubs i.e the Viper Room. There were street performers and costumed characters along the boulevard, from superheroes to movie characters, offering photo opportunities for $$ and scammers offering free CD’s. We were warned by our guide about this scam before we arrived, which was handy to know.
Our guide had a great spot for us to view the famous Hollywood Sign, which was originally called Hollywood Land put there to sell the land in the hollywood hills in the early 1900’s.
By now, we had built up quite the appetite and thirst and our fatigue was firmly setting in. We headed to the Original Farmers Market for a variety of food options. From gourmet burgers, seafood, BBQ to ethnic cuisine, this place had it all. After some local icy cold beer and fish tacos we headed off to the ship and it was an hours drive to the shipping terminal. The freeways were really busy and cars were regularly slowing and stopping due to the congestion. You really needed to have your wits about you so luckily we were not driving!
We set sail on our ship at 5pm. The weather was ideal today, a warm 28 degrees. Our check in was smooth and we were grateful to be onboard. We cruise over 2200 nautical miles (over 4000klm’s) in a south westerly direction across the Northern Pacific to Hawaii, set to arrive on 28 October. The ever changing sea and weather conditions along the way will be both exciting and relaxing.
Virginia
2023-10-24
Wow,looks so fun. Glad you did a quick trip to see as much as you could in LA. Have fun on the ship. xx
Panther and Vicki
2023-10-24
Great photos ! Looks like an action packed day Now for those 10,000 steps a day
Cas
2023-10-25
Did not realise you were gadabouting again--loved seeing these photos--enjoy,stay safe and well Love "Auntie" Cas xo
Alice
2023-10-25
We loved LA. Enjoy your cruise 🚢 Safe travels.x