LAKE ARROWHEAD

One of the things most people love about Los Angeles is that within an hour or two drive you can reach anything - mountains, dessert, ocean, beaches. There's Lake Arrowhead, Mt. Baldy, Mammoth, the Angeles Forest, etc. You can sail, swim, surf, jet ski, water ski, snow ski, snowboard, off-road and 4-wheel, visit museums, botanical gardens, ghost towns and numerous amusement parks. The only problem is getting there and how many people will be there when you are. If you don't leave early and beat the crowds your experience may be, well a crowded one.


I took a trip to Lake Arrowhead for the first time, packed a lunch and thought I would find a spot near the lake to sit, enjoy the view and take some pictures. Wrong! Either there simply was no way down to the lake unless you were a resident or having never been there before I just could not find it. I found one spot above the lake where I could stop and take some pictures. The rest of the time I just drove around the lake getting lost because of the way the funky roads went around the lake.

I was so disappointed that most views of the lake were obstructed by the tons and tons of rooftops of homes around the lake that appeared to go right down to the very edge of the lake. Lake Arrowhead is known for vacation rentals. I've often thought of renting one but am not sure I would do so now. It's not at all what I imagined. It is definitely beautiful but parts of it are so very dry and I can see why it is in such danger during fire season. The delightful thin was there was still snow on the grown and if you look closely in a couple of the pictures you can see the snow.


Why do we as people destroy the beautiful nature of something like a lake or beach by building homes right on it? Why do people with money have the right to obstruct the public from accessing beaches and lakes that should be open to everyone?

LA BREA TAR PITS MUSEUM

The La Brea Tar Pits is known for having the largest and most diverse collection of extinct plants and animals from 10,000 to 40,00 years ago.

If you remember or saw the movie Volcano with Tommy Lee Jones, the volcano erupted near the La Brea Tar Pits which is located in the Wilshire district of Los Angeles.


There is a paleontologist lab inside of the museum where you can actually watch some of the paleongologist cleaning the fossils. They are still excavating fossils.


The pond in front of the museum, which is the tar pit, contains life size replicas of some extinct animals. It still smells of tar that trapped these animals and you can see bubbles forming on the surface. The tar preserved these bones/fossils in pristene condition.

Imagine this tar pit in the heart of Los Angeles. Stand facing the tar pit and imagine none of the buildings and none of the traffic around you - just wide open land with extinct animals roaming free. Imagine them coming to this watering hole and finding it a trap from which they can't escape. Their bones are still being excavated in the heart of this city for us to view and study.

COOKIN' CREOLE

Image from http://www.mystcritic.com

One of these days I'm going to get out and do the restaurant reviews as part of my re-discovery around L.A. For now I was just going to mention Harold & Belle's because I know it's a very popular spot and I've never heard anything but favorable reviews about it. But I found a website that reviews the best creole restaurants around L.A. I thought, why just suggest one. You can check out his link and get a few more places to try.

I'm going to try it myself one day... you'll see.

Note that the mystcritic.com where I got the picture gave a great review of Harold & Belle's as well. You never know what else they might recommend.

UNIVERSAL CITY WALK

Universal City Walk or just CityWalk is like a cross between a shopping center and an amusement park without the rides. It's bright, colorful, entertaining, lots of shopping and lots of choices to eat. Of course, if you want the theme park it's there too at the end of CityWalk - Universal Studios. All wrapped up in one place is an amusement park, shopping, restaurants, nightclubs and movie theatre. It can be your daytime or evening source of entertaiment. It's great for a date or someplace you can go alone if you just feel like something to do or want to do a little shopping.

The cool thing about CityWalk is that you can take it all in or just take some of it in. Feel like a movie and something to eat? You can't really beat the surroundings for something different from the same old neighborhood movie theatre. Feel like some musical entertainment? Why not take in B.B. King's House of Blues?

It was a beautiful day in L.A. and a beautiful day to take a stroll around CityWalk with a cup of Starbucks or Coffee Bean, check out the stores, sit and have something to eat outdoors, all while a perfectly clear blue sky loomed above. It's colorful, it's lively, it's relaxing, it's definitely something to see and some place to go.

The slideshow below is a collection of my pictures of my day at CityWalk and hopefully a reason why you should plan to just get in your car, take a drive up the 110 Fwy and visit CityWalk.

OLVERA STREET

Olvera Street was my first stop in my quest to rediscover Los Angeles. I haven't been to Olvera Street in a very long time and I thorougly enjoyed my little outing. Olvera Street is a Mexican marketplace and a popular little spot in L.A. It's located across from Union Station (the train station) and the original main post office. It was just as I expected it to be, lively and crowded. The original pueblo was built in 1741 by the forty-four settlers of Los Angeles and is also known as El Pueblo Historic Monument. For more of the history of Olvera Street click here. If you're looking for authentic Mexican food, wares and a taste of history, the famous Olvera Street is the place to go. It is only one block long but is lined with authentic Mexican wares, restaurants and cafes. In addition to the authentic wares you can also find souvenirs, toys for the kids, leather purses for as low as $20. Be entertained on the weekend by mariachis and bollero musicians. If you're interested in visiting Olvera Street I suggest checking out their link for a map, directions and possible fiestas and events like Cinco de Mayo. Here is a slideshow to show you a little of what to expect.