Time to visit another city in the USA, this time, we're in my favorite city in the West Coast, Los Angeles! In this travel post, I'll share with you some of the top places to visit in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles; the city of angels; La La Land; one of the largest cities in the United States of America, but it's more popularly known to Filipinos as the land of Hollywood where all the movie magic happens. But after visiting, I realized, Los Angeles is more than just about movies: it's a land of glitz, glamour, and a melting pot of cultures, interests, and entertainment!
Los Angeles is home to a lot of film and T.V. studios including Warner Brothers and Universal Studios to name a few. When it comes to shopping, Los Angeles is the place to be in the West Coast too for you will find here Rodeo Drive, dubbed as the 'most expensive shopping street' in the world. Food markets, a huge trend in food business right now, also had its roots in Los Angeles and the famous Farmers Markets. There's something for every traveler in the City of Angels and it was the perfect destination after almost a week in San Diego; the contrast was stark between San Diego's chill vibe and LA's hip, lively scene, and the city girl in me was excited!
GETTING TO LOS ANGELES FROM SAN DIEGO
There are a lot of ways to get to Los Angeles from San Diego, but here are the popular options: first is to fly to LA which will only take 20 minutes; second is to drive, which will only take you two hours. Third is via AMTRAK, a train system in the US that takes passengers around the USA.
We secured a ticket online through AMTRAK'S OFFICIAL WEBSITE. My uncle said that Amtrak operates as a daily train so we can buy tickets on the day of departure, but to be sure, we just bought online.
Our station of departure in San Diego was the Old Town Station. AMTRAK accepts luggages because a lot of tourists and locals use this to get around, even to far destinations. Limit for one luggage is 50lbs. Additional luggages and weight have corresponding fees.
The Amtrak train felt like an airplane! It was so clean, orderly, and lucky us, there weren't a lot of passengers during the time we traveled! There's also a cafe inside the train in case you get hungry.
Travel time from San Diego to LA is 3 hours because the train does multiple stops.
TBJ TIP: Stay on the left side of the train so you get the Pacific Ocean as your view on the way to LA.
The hotel we stayed in is Hometel Suites. It's one of the most affordable hotels near the center and has really good ratings. The hotel is owned by Koreans; it's clean, the area feels pretty safe, and it's only 15 minutes away from points of interests such as The Grove LA, LACMA, and Beverly Hills via Uber. Will surely stay in here again when I return to LA!
Now let's go around LA!
PLACES TO VISIT IN LOS ANGELES
LACMA
Los Angeles County Museum of Art is famous for the lamp post installation that we see all over influencer feeds on Instagram.
The lamp post installation is called Urban Lights; it's comprised of 120 lamp posts that date back to the 1920's and was conceptualized and created by Chris Burden, a Massachussetts born and raised artist who believed that art is a tool for change.
Urban Lights is great during night time as the lamps light up at night, but I think it's equally amazing during the day as well!
GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY
La La Land is one of my favorite movies so I really had to pass by Griffith Observatory, one of the locations in the movie.
Griffith Observatory is a planetarium: it's a museum, research center, and venue for various events, lectures, seminars, and workshops. Located on top of the hill, opposite the Hollywood sign, Griffith Observatory's location is a great spot to see the LA skyline.
Griffith Observatory was funded and founded in 1896 by Griffith J. Griffith who believed that mountaintops should be reserved to observatories. Griffith bough the location of the observatory as well as the area surrounding it not only to build this landmark, but to create a piece of protected land as well.
Going inside the observatory is free, but the shows in the theatre come at a price. Here's the pendulum, which is seen in one of La La Land's scenes.
Griffith Observatory is a great place to visit if you want to do something free in LA plus if you love anything science, geekery, and astronomy as well.
Griffith Observatory opens every week starting on Tuesdays.
HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD
If you want to experience the livelier part of LA, go to Hollywood Boulevard where you will get to experience entertainment through various street performers, shopping, food, and the Hollywood Walk Of Fame. It's so hard to take an instagrammable photo at the walk of fame because of the sheer number of people that pass it so just be ready for any picture!
TCL Chinese Theater; this is a historical landmark as a lot of mega hollywood movie premiers have taken place in this theatre. It's also beside the Dolby Theatre (formerly Kodak Theatre) where the Oscars are being held.
OTHER PLACES OF INTERESTS AND ACTIVITIES: Warner Brother's Studio tour, Universal Studios Tour, Hollywood Stars homes tours (but chances of spotting Hollywood actors are rare!)
Check out my USA itinerary:
That's it for LA! For our last day in LA tomorrow, let's go shopping and dining!
2 Comments
Hi Ms. M!! Pano po kayo napunta sa iba't ibang lugar? Did you rent a car? :)
ReplyDeleteHello! Uber! :)
DeleteLet me know what you think of this post! :)