I saw this on CNN today and thought I'd share it here as this has become the seal thread. http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/v...y-sea-lion-cuddles.youtube-j-r-gilkinson.html A young sea lion near Newport Beach was apparently tired of swimming so he climbed up into a boat and then proceeded to cuddle with one of the people on board. He was practically acting like a pet dog.
Too true...the little bar district outside of the base I was last stationed in had three within walking distance of one another. And this was in Japan.
If you do Disneyland, totally up to you, make it a whole day. That's in Orange County. For LA County, I'd stick to the coast cities - Santa Monica, Venice, (or Newport Beach if you're still in OC) etc. - but if you want some cool culture with a view do the Getty Museum (where part of STiD was filmed) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Paul_Getty_Museum http://www.getty.edu/museum/ The museum is free (parking is not) and the views are pretty damn good from the garden. It's also easy access to Santa Monica from there, just up the freeway a bit. 3rd St. Promenade is a nice place to shot near the beach and pier. OR Also you could try Griffith Park for more history and views. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Griffith_Observatory http://www.griffithobservatory.org/obshist.html If you're a baseball fan, Dodger Stadium is in LA, Angel Stadium in Anaheim. Hollywood isn't my thing. I can't recommend anything. I can't really endorse much downtown either unless the LA Int'l Auto Show is going on. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_angeles
OOH. I enjoyed the Queen Mary, in Long Beach. And I have fond memories of La Cave bar/restaurant in Costa Mesa(?).
Downtown L.A. has a lot of cool architecture, including the Bradbury Building, which served as JS Sebastian's home in Blade Runner. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradbury_Building Other cool downtown attractions: Museum of Contemporary Art Disney Hall Little Tokyo (including the Nisei Museum) Chinatown Alameda district (Union Station, Olvera St./The Plaza, Philippe's French Dip) the original Tommy's (a burger that is even better if more rare than In-N-Out) Downtown L.A. is really very cool, but does tend to be off the usual tourist agenda. You will see real Angelenos there, and you will also see something that supposedly doesn't exist -- throngs of people walking.
I see that whilst Face and Gul have provided numerous LA suggestions, it would appear no one proposes going to the places NWA, Snoop, Ice Cube and now Kendrick Lamar have been telling me about for years. Maybe my face won't fit in Compton or Watts. Pulled the trigger the other night, California I'll be seeing ya late July! The beach boys told me years ago that California girls are the cutest girls in the world.....
Kinda held off talking about Orange County, but Newport Beach is indeed beautiful, it is the epitome of what a "California Beach" is supposed to be. To me, the stretch from Newport Beach to San Clemente is home, and there are many a sight to be seen between the two. Heck, Laguna Beach alone has one hundred things to do.
There's not really anything there worth seeing, but you'd probably be fine (40 years ago, not so much).
Yea, Im only playing. Cant say it was on my list. As much as im a music fan, i dont feel the need to go live and feel the atmosphere of where the music was made bullshit that muso's come out with. Sunset strip and the history and studios there might be fun but a residential area...... Hotels booked in SF& LV, hire car booked, Alcatraz tour booked. Going to look into more tonight. Oh, any recomendations for the following? - Napa tour - Area to stay in San Diego. Gaslight quarter?? - Santa Monica v Venis beach? - Where to find a decent viewing spot in LA, you know the ones in a million movies, up on a hill with the city suburbs beneath you panning into the sky scrapers of downtown LA? - Any must try restaurants anywhere on my route, we are both big foodies!
Santa Monica -- Venice is really only interesting for a short while. A few canals and a bunch of freaks are only so interesting. There are a few places like that. My favorite is actually at Dodger Stadium, which is perched on a hill overlooking downtown. However, that only works if you go to a game and pick the cheap seats. Griffith Park has some great views, and also some other items of interest like the observatory and planetarium. The all time classic view of movie fame is probably best achieved by driving Mulholand Drive.
gul's right on... Griffith Observatory has a great view and it's been used in countless movies (Yes Man, The Rocketeer, Rebel Without a Cause all come immediately to mind). Mulholland Drive is probably a can't-miss, especially if you can go at night.
Hire someone to take you around In your rental. They usually have a good idea of where to go and are cheaper than a limo. Have the driver call ahead at Peju and get into the back room. It's awesome.
I did Alcatraz in April - beautiful day. Worth the 30 bucks. Drive the 29. Exit the 80 at 12 West and then hang a right at the T to stay on 29. Winery row through Napa and St. Helena. Just pick and choose. FYI: tastings are getting costly there now. Last year stayed at the Hard Rock in the gaslamp. Neat place to hang out - can walk to fisherman's wharf - but no beach access (drive). Right next to PetCo park - home of the SD Padres. Personally prefer Santa Monica - more to do/see. Pier, 3rd Street, Beach Griffith Park. Mullholland Drive in the Hollywood hills is another movie view site, though I can't direct you there off the top of my head. SF has great food options - North Beach area for Italian. Lots of waterfront fish places. Napa is also renowned for food. Napa - Brix or Mustards on St. Helena Highway (29). I'm fairly certain I went to Brix after getting engaged up the street at the Harvest Inn (pretty nice hotel on same road). SD - Find some Mexican food (same with LA).
-Where to stay in San Diego depends on what you're looking to do. The Gas Lamp is a good place to look at as it is billed as the historic heart of the city (the area is named after the old 19th century gas street lamps which have now been converted over to electricity) but it really is a touristy area filled with touristy things to do. Most of the locals hardly go there unless they're looking to go out at night drinking and I find most of the restaurants to be over priced and only so-so as they mostly cater to convention goers, people attending baseball games, or tourists. Still, the location is very central to all of the major attractions but the upscale beach resorts are going to mostly be in North County or across the bay in Coronado. -I prefer Venice as it is more funky and yet more real if you know what I mean. Santa Monica is more upscale and has better restaurants. -The best viewing spot is in the Hollywood hills right up where they have the famous Hollywood sign but you'll find, officially any way, that those areas are off limits to the public due to the fact that so many kids used to throw parties up there and this upset the area home owners. -For must visit restaurants: The French Laundry in Yountville (Napa) for sure and you can't go wrong visiting anything on this list: http://www.thedailymeal.com/24-best-restaurants-california-slideshow An under rated favorite of mine (which is on that list) is the Hitching Post 2 in Buellton near Santa Barbara. They serve authentic as it gets Santa Maria style BBQ using the traditional (in central California) fire pits filled with red oak logs. It is entirely different from southern BBQ and is the only true west coast style of BBQ. My only complaint with that list is they don't seem to even consider anything south of L.A. or east of the coastal areas. If you like I can come up with some suggestions for the San Diego area though you may do better going to Chowhound.com's San Diego subforum and hearing them fight over which places are the best.
Oh, I forgot. If you end up going to Berkley then Chez Panisse has been a famous standby there serving an all fresh & local cuisine for about 40 years now. It has garned a lot of favorable national reviews but most of them from the 70's and 80's. It's still worth checking out if you find yourself in the east bay.
WRT Mulholland, it's a very famous scenic drive outside of L.A. and many of the local exotic car clubs regulars go there to drive their exotics and show off. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1qIpprjFWs I've heard some people call it the Ferrari traffic jam on Saturday mornings. :libertystatue:
Hey, if ya'll are headed to SD and want tickets to the zoo or SeaWorld, I could buy them on my base, and save ya'll some money... Military members can buy zoo tickets for half off through our morale office. PM me if you're interested.
LA question, Santa Monica hotels are coming in mental prices (probably due to location and time of year). Do I need to be staying in Santa Monica? Should I be staying closer to the west Hollywood stuff, or potentially even a non tourist area, but drive or public transport to where we need to get too. For example decent hotel prices in Culver City which looks to border Santa Monica (about 2miles). Obviously I would rather pay over the odds and stay in a nice place than find I'm staying a night in downtown Gangland LA. Also, how bad are your average US roadhouse motels? (Not limited to LA with this question) I've got some really nice hotels booked up, but Im not too bothered with high quality hotels on a night stop on a road trip. Anna, I'll pm you when I get a chance, sounds good though.
Keeping in mind that L.A. traffic is insane pretty much 24/7, best bet might be to decide which area you'll be spending the most time in. If it's Santa Monica/Westside, you're right - a Culver City hotel would be a much better choice than a Santa Monica hotel price-wise, and both cities have their own good, reliable bus systems: Culver City Santa Monica both of which stop near LAX, if you're flying in there (you'll want to take the free shuttle bus that goes to "Parking Lot C" and ask to be let off at the city bus stop). This is by way of saying that cabbing it on the West Side is pricey as well. Also, since I'm guessing you and the Missus are likely as sun-sensitive as I am, I can't stress this enough: Wear sunblock. Even if it's overcast (high cloud this time of year, a.k.a. "June Gloom"; it doesn't rain, but the mornings can be gray), because believe it or not, some of us can burn even then. This will also sound bizarre, but if you're planning to be out at night near the beach, bring a windbreaker/light sweater. It does get a bit cool, even in the summer.
Totally agree on the sunscreen, although I managed to avoid getting cooked in Vegas last July! Are you LA? If so, 2 days to see various sites, experience the place, what would you do??
Transplant from NY to Santa Monica 13 years ago, but I imagine my tastes are different from yours. Even after all this time, I haven't done the Universal Tour, etc. Mostly do local stuff. We've got our own symphony orchestra, lots of - free - art galleries (there are the snooty ones as well, but who needs 'em?), plenty of biking and the proverbial beach to walk on (nicest for me in the off-season when the sun's not quite as threatening), and more restaurants in more ethnic varieties than you'll find this side of the DS9 Promenade. If you're of a spiritual bent or just need silence, a lake, and some turtles, there's the Lake Shrine Temple on our northern border. I agree with others that the Santa Monica Pier and environs are more interesting than Venice, unless you've got the time to walk the entire boardwalk between. Which is not to say that isn't a fun trip in itself, if you're into people-watching - surfers, body builders, the ball court where White Men Can't Jump and a lot of episodes of NCIS: Los Angeles have been shot, ganja shops, tacky tie-dye clothing shops, street people, musicians (if you're really lucky there'll be a drum circle down by the tide line). Check out the sandpipers dancing among the waves at dusk, too. The Pier's got the predictable kiddie rides and arcade (although the Ferris wheel's entirely solar-powered, and the vintage carousel was used in the Newman/Redford flick The Sting). Food available from the corndog stand at beach level to the snooty overpriced seafood places at either end of the Pier, to my favorite: http://www.rustyssurfranch.com/ Would offer to meet you there for lunch (MikeH and RickDeckard can give you reviews), but I'm probably going to be out of town myself while you're here. Maybe next time.
G, you been to the Getty yet? Culver City is plenty close to Santa Monica. Fuck, you can stay in Encino or Sherman Oaks and just drive over the 405 to Santa Monica or 134/101 to Hollywood.
Coupla times. Need to get back there soon. It's about equivalent to the Met in NY...you'd have to live there to see it all. Please, please don't inflict the 405 on anyone who doesn't have to be on it, particularly with all the construction for the Expo extension going on right now.
