North America

Los Angeles: The City of Angels

I told you guys I’d make my way to Los Angeles one way or another!! And what did I get in return? Cold weather!! I didn’t have the opportunity to experience Los Angeles’ warm weather because a cold front decided that it wanted to sweep across the west in an attempt to ruin my vacation!! Its attempts were futile, and I enjoyed myself nonetheless. 

During my stay, my crew and I visited Hollywood, Santa Monica, and Venice. We purchased a ticket for the hop on/hop off bus which transported us to each of these locations. These tour buses stopped running early so we used Uber at night which is a very inexpensive mode of transportation. In Hollywood, we visited the walk of fame, the Chinese Theater, and observed the hollywood sign. Because the trip fell on Halloween weekend, there were a lot of Dia de Los Muertos events taking place. With the use of face paint, our faces were transformed into sugar skulls, and we headed to West Hollywood to enjoy the festivities and parade.  The parade was probably the highlight of my trip. LGBTQ community + Halloween + costumes = a good time!!

The remaining days, we ventured off to Santa Monica and Venice. They were both everything I imagined plus more. There was a mini theme park on the Santa Monica Pier that consisted of rollercoaster rides, a ferris wheel, and restaurants. The view from the pier was picturesque with the mountains overlooking the ocean. Now, we could not visit Venice and not stroll along the boardwalk. Venice was  an art lover’s paradise.  Murals decorated the walls, pop-up art galleries lined the boardwalk, vendors, performers… We even witnessed a man walking on broken glass. Yikes! For those of you that have a medical marijuana rx, you can get that on the boardwalk as well. Venice’s boardwalk caters to everybody’s interests.

Santa Monica Pier Venice

After a day of excitement, I rested my head at the JW Marriott LA Live. It was centrally located and was within walking distance to everything, including the Staples Center. If you have time, check out the Staples Center. Outside you will find statues of sports greats, such as Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Staples Center

Also within walking distance, I’m talking two blocks, is the Original Pantry Café. You know the food has to be delicious here if the line was outside.  This family restaurant prides itself on being open since 1924, and I can understand why!! I definitely recommend stopping here for a bite to eat. Did I miss anything? What would recommendations do you have for someone visiting Los Angeles?

Los Angeles

43 Comments

  • Esse D

    This just made me reminisce on my trip! We actually didn’t get to visit the Staples Center. I definitely need to go back and hit a few places I missed. I looooved everything about LA. ?

  • tatumskipper

    I heard Venice beach is awesome. Sucks that the cold front came in while you were there. I use to live in Florida so anything below 70 degrees is cold to me haha. I have a couple friends living out in LA and have been dying to go and explore! I know its a little over rated but I love to see for myself! I think there is a huge statue like that at City Walk in Orlando too! Glad you made the best of it!

      • nativevagabonds

        Eat as much as you can because the food is so good and flavorful (and for the most part, healthy). Oh, and take a hike! The Wisdom Tree is a great one to start with since it isn’t too strenuous or long. Definitely hit up LACMA and the Broad Museums and head to Malibu for the gorgeous views you can get from The Getty/The Villa. Have fun!

  • Kat

    This is great, I’m planning a trip to LA in a month or so and I kept wondering whether I needed a car or not. You answered my question! Good to know I’ll still get to see the sights and won’t have to spend a fortune in transport to do it.

    • Miss A&P

      With uber and the hop on hop off buses, a car isn’t necessary. Besides, I love using the public transportation system when I travel.

  • Candiss

    LA has been on my mind so much recently, for being a Californian its especially embarrassing its been 10 years since I’ve been down! Thanks for some extra motivation to make the trip!

  • Asmita

    That’s one city I always wanted to visit but never got a chance! Thanks for the wonderful post. I’ll surely be visiting LA in my next American trip. 🙂

    • Miss A&P

      I’m not sure where you’re located, but I often see reasonable flights from Asia and Europe to LA! Hopefully, you’ll be able to visit soon!!

    • Miss A&P

      Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to ride the coaster. It was so crowded there. Maybe I’ll have the opportunity to ride next time.

    • Miss A&P

      That tandem bike not only sounds fun, but like a great way to explore Santa Monica! I’m definitely looking into that next time!!

  • Rimsha

    Aw, that sucks that you got cold weather after all the excitement! I really hate it when you visit a city and the weather is disappointing. At least it didn’t rain though lol. And you seem to have had a fun time nonetheless 🙂

    • Miss A&P

      Right!!! It could’ve been worse I suppose. I don’t think I would’ve been able to deal with both the cold and the rain! Lol.

  • Jackie

    You totally have me ready to book another flight to LA! I’ve only ever been on short stints for work reasons or for a few days on a layover between new york and Asia so I never got to really delve into the city. I’ve visited Venice and downtown LA and Venice was handsdown my favorite area of the city.

    • Miss A&P

      Don’t you just hate when work gets in the way of exploration?! Lol. With summer approaching, there will be so much to do! You should just go ahead and book the flight!!?

  • Danik

    Haven’t been to LA yet but this does make it more appealing to me to go out there and visit it one day. I really want to see that Hollywood sign and see if I can kick them down (joking…I just want to hike there and take in the amazing views).

  • Always a Friday

    Shame about the weather but sounds like you still had an awesome time! Venice definitely sounds like my kind of place, thanks for the tip, will have to check it out when we make it there!

  • adriacareyperez

    I’ve been to so many places in the world, but have never explored the West Coast of the US. Dying to get to LA (especially Venice Beach–did you see any surf there?).

    • Miss A&P

      I definitely recommend it!! I didn’t see anyone surfing in Venice, but this could have been a result of the weather!

  • Jes

    Regardless of the weather it looks like you had a great time and managed to see a lot of interesting places. We’ll be venturing out to California this summer, so I’ll be sure to add some of the places you mentioned to our itinerary. 🙂

  • deafinitelywanderlust

    Haha I am a LA native and it’s great to hear about your experience in LA. Many people get shocked when we get cold weather once in a while but LA natives would become even more shocked whenever we get rainy days. Anyway that’s so cool that you got to visit the Pantry Cafe, my grandma used to go there when she was a little girl. My family and I go there once in a while for breakfast. Anyway hope you come back during warm weather and check out more of the LA spots.

    • Miss A&P

      I do plan to visit during the summer! Do you have any recommendations for me? Wow! The Pantry Cafe has been around for quite some time. I can understand why though!! On another note, I’m so glad you and your boyfriend are ok!!!

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