I wrote this post more than a year ago and for some reason it has been stuck in a draft folder. but I still believe this information is useful so her it goes.
My last visit to Los Angeles as part of my West Coast trip, but I honestly can’t condense it in one post because there is so much to cover.
We left San Francisco airport on our rental car around noon and made a detour to Carmel by the sea, such a charming place. We decided to have lunch at the Tree Cafe, family-owned for generations.
There was a little wait, but worth it because the service and the food were on point, and the prices hard to beat.
We left Carmel by the sea at 4 pm and decided to leave PCH scenic drive for another time of the year ( who knew COVID would mess up all our plans). Remember, we made this trip last week of December, and it gets dark pretty early. We were advised driving the Highway is boring, but we got to see Driscollis fields of berries, drove over the mountains covered with snow, and saw mountain sunset.
Once in LA, our visit was divided into two parts. We were set to a collaboration stay in downtown hotel Figueroa for a day before and on NY Eve and planned to spend New Year’s night there, so for the first part of our visit, we decided to stay in Beverly Hills. If you read my blog and follow me on Instagram, you probably know I am a big fan of hotels with history, and so we landed in a small boutique hotel called “the Crescent”. Let me tell you that it was love at first sight. They offer a fantastic brunch with salmon and avocado toast, hot scrambled egg with salsa, and some extras from chef selection every day.
The hotel has located a block very conveniently from rodeo drive and all shops and offers an amazing 5 o’clock wine hour for all guests. While you are at it, ask for chef specialties that night. We were thinking of dinner when the chef offered us a bowl of soup. You would say soup doesn’t fit within a perfect Rodeo Drive dining picture, but that was such good soup that we asked for more; I never thought something as simple as a soup could be so well crafted and tasty, and did I mention cold weather? That soup was so perfect for that moment. I discovered traveling without a plan is a very therapeutic experience. not having to rush anywhere being able to chat with locals was an excellent detox for my tired brain. (grad school is no joke)
The crescent hotel got me feeling I am in Beverly Hills. The decor with palm leaves and pink chairs, golden walls, and mirrored ceiling it so speaks old Hollywood.
On our third day in LA, we were set to stay in the Figueroa Hotel in Downtown LA. It is another historic property and has been there since it opened in 1926 by the YWCA as a safe haven for solo female travelers. It is located on Figueroa Street in Downtown LA. Originally it was a “women for women” project, and it keeps this mindset til today. You will probably find an exhibition of paintings or some other kind of art by women artists.
This hotel offers everything to put you in an old Hollywood mood. Golden tones mixed with dark wood, inviting bar, floor to ceiling chimney, and an inviting pool with a poolside restaurant and bar.
Oh, and a taco truck right in front, for your late-night cravings.
Being in Downtown has its perks. We were able to get virtually anywhere just by train paying $2,25. And after seeing the number of cars and traffic and wait for lines for parking in Santa Monica, that train is a blessing!
Places to visit and things you must do:
Hollywood Boulevard and Chinese Theater are kinds of a must. Even if you are an antitourist, it is fun to walk there and see all sorts of people; it feels like being in a movie.
Santa Monica Pier, no excuses, now that you have a train that takes you directly there.
Rodeo Drive for shopping and walking, it felt similar to being in Miami with all fancy sports cars except for paparazzi; we don’t have them down here.
The Grove is a cool outdoor mall that reminded me of Disney World Parks for some reason. They also have a farmers market that offers a variety of eats. And sunsets from there are gorgeous.
Museum of Dream Spaces – that’s the only place we paid to get in, and we got a Groupon, which gave us a cool discount. They also offer discounts at the door if you share on yelp. LA is full of all types of museums, big and small, and you can choose one at your taste. This one is located inside the mall, and we had fun times taking pictures inside. A tip: go at night. There will be no line, and they will let you go again if you want to repeat some pics. very instagrammable
LACMA lights installation– outdoors, free, better seen at night. I heard they don’t turn those lights on all the time, so I guess we were lucky. if you are looking for cinematic pictures with no people in them, you better wait till later hours ( or earlier in the morning before sunrise)
Disney Concert Hall and see if you can get to a concert ( we couldn’t, all was booked because of New Years’ Day), but just walking around and admiring the magic of modern architecture filled me enough.
Taco trucks in Koreatown! I asked several locals where are the best taco trucks, and 90% said in Koreatown. They didn’t have specifics on which one is better, but they all agreed that that area is to go for a real tasty taco! During my first visit to LA, I stayed at the Koreatown hotel, and I tasted tacos from several trucks, and I can agree with the locals. Those tacos are nothing like you have ever tasted. They are simple but outstanding. They will get you addicted to them.
Another fun thing which I started but could not finish because of the time is to visit places with painted wings and take photos with them. I promise I will do it on my next trip, and will post a list with addresses here.
One important thing to remember is that in winter, days are much shorter (much more than down here in Florida) and something I learned hard way. in LA because of the mountains it gets dark at about 5pm. My brain was definitely not prepared for that. Also as the sunrise for me is usually 3 hours earlier than on a West Coast I was waking up extremely early but going to bed earlier than usual. so thats something to consider. I am pretty sure that part of it is due to a cold weather and darkness.
I cant wait for all this COVID thing to be over and to be able to go back. there is so much more to do and to explore in wonderful City of Angels.
