Hello, my darlings!
What a lovely day - warm, clear, no smog, bright and full of discoveries. As usual, my poor weak Capetonian eyes couldn't handle the harsh light (it reminds me of Greece a bit), but no matter, that's what snazzy sunnies are for, no?
Places I visited today:
1. Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills
2. Griffith Observatory
3. Sunset Blvd
4. Silverlake (the Hipster Capital)
So I did a lot today, but I think my favourite thing was my walk from the Greek Theatre up to the Griffith Observatory in Griffith Park. Well, 'hike' is a strong word.
It's bladdy marvelous up there! You can see the whole city, with its clusters of skycrapers (that's Downtown LA in the picture); it has no end, at least, not that I could see. I was able to get a better sense of where everything is in relation to everything else, so I'm beginning to get my bearings.
I really like the observatory itself, with its old domed ceilings (for the telescopes, see?) and white walls. Inside, there's a planetarium with an exhibition on our galaxy, and all the other galaxies in and around our galactic neighbourhood. It made me feel like an ant, so it was a good, healthy dose of perspective.
I also saw the Hollywood sign for the first time! Touristy, I know, but hey, I'm a tourist.
I think the funniest thing that happened today was when we crossed paths with Kevin Bacon on our way up the observatory. Just to set the scene, five minutes before, we see a long-haired hippy-looking hiker walking towards us:
Me: [To hiker] Hi!
Hiker: [Nonplussed silence, continues walking]
Me: [To R] Oh. Don't you guys have that unspoken rule here?
R: [Looking at me funny] What rule?
Me: In Cape Town, when you see other hikers, you greet them. It's hiking etiquette.
R: No, that's not a thing.
Me: Oh.
[Five minutes later, Kevin Bacon walks past with his dog and gives us a smile]
[Pregnant pause]
Me: [Hysterical whisper] Was that Kevin Bacon????
R: Yeah, why didn't you say hi? Thought that was a rule or something.
Moral of the story? Greet other hikers. Even when it's not social etiquette in the country you're in. Oh, and then we saw him coming back from the Observatory too, but I was too shy to chase after him for his autograph. The poor guy probably just wanted to walk his dog in peace.
Here are some pictures from Beverly Hills (apparently you can't go to LA and not go to Rodeo Drive). I strolled through Tiffany's and Prada, but was too self-conscious about my sneakers to do more. There's a cupcake shop just off Rodeo that has a cupcake ATM. No jokes. We also stopped in at a macrobiotic cafe for a ginger lemonade. SO GOOD.
Phew, that's a lot of pictures of me in one go! That last one is at 2 Rodeo Drive. Apparently it's in a lot of movies. I just did it because everyone else was doing it and I needed to prove to R how conformist and not-hipster I am. Also, if I ever do see it in a movie, at least I've got this photo.
After Griffith Observatory, we went to Silverlake, which is apparently a hipster haven. I can see why. The streets are lined with funky, brightly painted vintage everything stores and quirky cool cafes. I saw a spice shop, a comic book shop, a record and vinyl store, and some adorkable cafes. We bought some gelato (R has an ongoing love affair with ice-cream) and mosied along Sunset Blvd. THE Sunset Blvd. Not the section with the strip clubs though.
All in all, it was a lovely day. We rounded it off with dinner at a Persian restaurant with R's family. DEEEEEELICIOUS.
I took more photos than I posted here. Check out the gallery if these don't cut it. Or facebook. Or instagram.
Lots of love to all of you. Have a great week!
xx