SoCal At Last

We have been planning with trip for a few of years; ever since our friend got engaged in 2007 and announced that his wedding was scheduled for 2010! This was my first visit to LA and we had a carefully planned itinerary that included most of the must see tourist sights. We flew in to Burbank late on Thursday afternoon and checked into the Sheraton Hotel in Pasadena.

After a much awaited reunion with one of our very close friends we headed to explore Pasadena. Our hotel was very centrally located near Paseo Colorado and Old Pasadena, areas of outdoor shopping and dining. Being in the mood for some Asian food, we headed to P.F. Chang's at Paseo Colorado. Being relatively early for dinner enabled us to take advantage of the Happy Hour half off of drinks and appetizer specials. This genre American Chinese cuisine even got the stamp of approval from our native Chinese friend. Being scientists we had to visit the Caltech campus which was very close by. The science labs, which had full length windows offering passersby a complete view of the inside, was a novel concept for us.

On Friday, we got an early start and headed to Hollywood Boulevard. We walked along the Hollywood Walk of Fame, past Grauman's Egyptian and Chinese theaters, Kodak Theater, Roosevelt Hotel being complete tourists. Despite having seen the Hollywood sign countless times on tv, seeing in reality thrilled us so! Then we continued our drive on Sunset Boulevard passing through Beverly Hills, West Hollywood and headed to Santa Monica.

It was a perfect day to be outside strolling through shops and restaurants as we headed to the pier. On the way we had great tacos for lunch at La Salsa. The view of the Pacific ocean was absolutely beautiful and I was convinced by Nelson to try cycling with him on a tandem bike. We rented bikes (at only $6-10 for an hour and only a few dollars more for the whole day) and headed along the path towards Venice Beach passing through the original Muscle Beach. The boardwalks were very festive and vibrant, exactly the kind of atmosphere that I expected from Southern California.

In the late afternoon, we headed towards Malibu and the scenic route through Mulholland Drive. The water was cold so we didn't spend much time on the beach. The lookout points on Mulholland Drive offered us spectacular views of the San Fernando Valley. But I couldn't help noticing the severe fog that was present through the cities at all hours exacerbated by every new vehicle that was on the road. After driving past the LA Chinatown, which was mostly just stores and restaurants with some traditional decor we headed back for a late dinner in Old Pasadena. We met up with another couple and five of us had a good Italian meal along with a bottle of wine for less than $100 at Lousie's Trattoria.