Auto Show - Los Angeles Convention Center

I can't think of the last time I've been to the Convention Center. My mouth dropped open when I drove by yesterday. They've really expanded and that place is HUGE! In fact, that entire center is going through major changes. It is now right next to the Staples Center, the Nokia Theatre and... well, I have to go back one day just to see all that's going on in that one area.



I went to the Auto Show that is being held there. It started yesterday and will be there through November 30, 2008. The L.A. Convention center is home to many large events and functions such as auto shows, career fairs, home expos, etc. It would be a good idea to check their schedule regularly just to see what's coming up in the future. You never know what you might stumble upon.

I took so many pictures I put some of them in a video for you to view. If you'd like to visit the auto show make sure you wear comfortable walking shoes. I was there three hours and that was without stopping to partake in some of the wonderful food I saw and smelled. Make a day of it. Adults - $10, children under 12 - free. Parking in the convention center lot $12.00 but you may find cheaper parking in the lots around the area.

Descanso Gardens

If you're looking for someplace to go, would like to take a walk among beautiful flowers and trees, consider the Descanso Gardens in La Canada Flintridge, just north of Pasadena. Of all of the botanical gardens I've been visiting, to date the Descanso Gardens is my favorite. 160 acres of nature and beautiful landscaping with plenty of ponds, waterfalls big and small, ponds, flowers, trees and more Koi than I've ever seen.

Imagine walking through a forest of trees shading you against the sun. In the midst of this forest you might find a bench to sit and soak in the sound of birds or a waterfall or small pond. Or wander along the grass paths in the five acre International Rose Garden with over 3,000 rose bushes and other plants and flower complete with benches, fountains, a running stream near a bench while dragon flies glide around looking for a spot to land.

What I like about Descanso Gardens is that unlike some of the other botanical gardens you don't have to walk past massive lawns or down long paths before you get to the next garden area. At Descanso Gardens, except for the Camelia Forest, there is a continuous flow of flowers, plants, ponds and water to engage your eyes and interest. For those who have a little problem walking you won't feel the strain of your walk because there are plenty of places to stop to admire flowers or sit and admire a running stream or pond filled with Koi.

Parking is free and admission is $8.00. Not bad for a place that has entertained me for a minimum of three hours per visit.

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium

I headed out thinking I was going to the same little museum at Cabrillo Beach that I went to as a kid on a field trip. Wrong! The building is still there but it's an office. What is now there in another building is the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium and I actually enjoyed it and would recommend it not just for something to do but for the kids.

The Cabrillo Marine Aquarium is hardly as big or as pretty as the Long Beach Aquarium but to me it was a more personal experience and not as crowded. You could literally put your nose to the glass and enjoy the different fish and sea life as if they were in a huge aquarium in your house. The plus to visiting this museum is the beach is right there to enjoy so you can really just make a day of it. Another plus is it is there is only a $5.00 donation and parking for the few hours I was there was only about $3.00. For me, someone who enjoys taking pictures, I didn't have to fight or wait to see anything then I got to go outside and take pictures of the beach and birds.




There may not be as many fish as the Long Beach Aquarium but they definitely have a few things the Long Beach Aquarium doesn't have like these beautifully colored sea slugs. Again, the kids there were having a ball and I've never seen so many star fish in my life of all varied colors and sizes.

At scheduled times they open up a section of the aquarium where you and/or the kids can pet the many star fish and anemone. From what I saw, the kids love it. There is also an exploration center.

THE LOS ANGELES ZOO

Image from http://www.lazoo.org

With all of the pictures I took I completely forgot to take one of the front entrance so I borrowed one from the Los Angeles Zoo website.

I don't think I've been to the Los Angeles Zoo since I was in high school on a field trip with my Biology class. The reason I specifically remember is that our bus was detained leaving because a couple of the kids broke into one of the vending machines and got caught. Just stupid!

The day was overcast and the mood of the rather cloudy day seemed to live in the animals because they were all either sleeping or lazy.


Some were complete no-shows and reminded me of the first Jurassic Park when they were taking the first tour and none of the animals were around. Thankfully it picked up and even though many were sleeping or lazy, I still got some really great photos.



Rather than do a slide show I put together a video of some of the pics. I hate that I had to leave so many of them out to narrow it down to 10 minutes. All in all, I hope you enjoy it and if nothing else, it makes you feel the need to visit your local zoo.

HUNTINGTON LIBRARY & BOTANICAL GARDENS

Today I decided to get out and I went to the Huntington Library & Botanical Gardens in Pasadena. Well, actually it's not Pasadena it's San Marino which I just learned today. All this time I thought it was in Pasadena. Anyone in L.A. knows where Pasadena is (most famous for the Tournament of Roses Parade) and if you're going to visit L.A. and you don't know, it's about 12 miles north of downtown L.A.

There's a little too much background information to give so I'm just going to quote this from the site and suggest you take a look at the About Page. The history of the Huntington Library is pretty interesting and is actually a research and educational institution.

The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens is a collections-based research and educational institution established in 1919 by Henry E. and Arabella Huntington. Henry Huntington, a key figure in the development of Southern California in the early 20th century, was also an active collector of rare books and manuscripts, art, and plants. By the time he established the institution, he and his wife had amassed an extensive collection focusing on British and American history, literature, and art, as well as rare and spectacular plant specimens.

If you plan to go, make sure you're wearing your most comfortable walking shoes because there are 120 acres of theme gardens complete with an amazing variety of trees, plants and flowers. You can walk across the expanse of lawns to admire the fountains and statues, sit on the bench under the shade of a beautiful, massive tree, sit on a bench in the camelia garden, stop to have something to drink or nibble on at the Tea Room & Cafe. Step inside the Conservatory but a warning for the ladies. If you've got curls you want to keep you might want to stay outside. The moisture and waters spraying from the ceiling will mess up your hair.



There's Japanese Garden:



A Chinese Garden:


The Camelia Garden:



The slideshow below will give you a little more of some of the things you may see and mind you, I was there three hours walking a very leisurely pace and still didn't see everything. If you've never been, what are you waiting for? Even if you go alone, take you iPOD (I did), put your headphones on and just enjoy a beautiful day and some truly beautiful gardens. I've also got some macro shots of flowers from the gardens on my photo blog Eyes, Mind, Heart.

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?

THE GETTY MUSEUM

My venture this weekend was to the J. Paul Getty Museum. There are actually two museums, one in Malibu and one in Brentwood. The one in Malibu was opened in 1974 to resemble the Villa of Papyri but was closed for major renovation in 1997 and moved to Brentwood. When the museum in Brentwood was opened I'll never forget what a zoo it was. There were always reports about the masses of people flocking to the new museum. It has since tamed down but it is still really busy and many people wander through the rooms looking at the art, enjoying the outdoors.


There is a tram that will take you from the parking structure up the hill to the museum and it is the only way to get there. Admissions is free, parking was $8.00. It was overcast, cloudy and cold when I went and a heavy mist or drizzle welcomed us when we got off the tram at the top of the hills in Brentwood. I really liked that the museum provided umbrellas to use as you walk between the buildings. In the center between the buildings there is a kiosk that sells coffee, drinks and snacks. There is also a small cafe type cafeteria on the garden level with a large eating area.

There is a large variety of different types of art and I was glad I was allowed to take pictures with the exception of some rooms in which it wasn't allowed. Art has always been a small fascination of mine. I so admire the talent of the artists and the detail that does into the work. This was why I took Art History when I went to U.S.C. It's a wonderful experience to see these art treasures in person, to stand face to face with a Renoir, Millet or Van Gogh painting, admire the color intensity and realize these works of art have lasted so long.

I hope you enjoy the slideshow of the photos I took at the Getty Museum and that is will prompt you to do as I did - visit the Getty when you get a chance. $8.00 for parking is not a bad price at all to pay. I think it's a steal for a day's adventure.

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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.

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES

I worked in downtown Los Angeles most of my working years. My job prior to the one I have now, I worked on 3rd and Grand for nearly 20 years.

I remember old downtown L.A. when most of the "big" stores were on Broadway. I remember when the tallest building downtown was City Hall which is now dwarfed in comparison to other buildings and is no longer the heart of downtown. In this picture it's the smaller white building on the right that comes to a peak. I can vaguely even remember taking the trolley with my mother and the sparks from the wires which is probably why I remembered it from such a very young age. It was the place everyone went to shop and had the best movie theatres around.



Broadway now is run down and laden with nothing bus discount stores. All of the major stores moved west into places like the Broadway Plaza when malls became the new rage and building became skyscrapers. It has certain changed over the years but change isn't always a bad thing and the buildings are beautiful.

Pictured below are just some of the buildings and focal points of downtown Los Angeles - The Music Center, MOCA, the main library, Walt Disney Concert Hall. I will mention that the Water Court between the California Plaza towers is spectacular and host a string of evening concerts in the summer. There are pictures on the water court in the slideshow below.