Los Angeles

Los Angeles:

Los Angeles is a beautiful and vibrant place with lots of interesting areas, and of course many famous places to visit! It is a very big, very spread out city so be prepared for long bus rides and transferring between buses to make your way around!

Santa Monica:

Santa Monica was a great place to stay, its right by the beach and is a really lively area with lots of shops, bars and restaurants. Maybe it was because I was staying in the area, but it was my favourite part of LA. I really liked the 3rd street promenade and the farmers market, where you can buy fresh fruit and veg as well as yummy cakes and pies! The Santa Monica Pier is very touristy but really nice to have a walk along and you can take a ride on the famous carousel or ferris wheel. The beaches are a great place to chill out in the day and there is a cycle path all the way along the beach front so you can hire bicycles or roller-skates and take in the views as you explore! The Cirque Du Soleil were here during my stay and their big top was very impressive next to the pier!

Cycle to Venice Beach:

Hire a bicycle for the day and take a ride along the cycle path that follows the beach front all the way to Venice beach. It only takes about 20-30 minutes in total and is a very flat easy cycle. You will see the famous muscle beach, surfers and skate parks along your way! Venice beach is a really interesting area with lots of interesting characters to watch out for! You can take a stroll along the promenade and look at the trinket stalls, graffiti and take in the interesting people you will come across! There are plenty of cafes you can relax in or pack a picnic and spend your day on the beach watching the surfers! There are a lot of homeless people in this area and you will be hassled to hand over your pennies, so be prepared for that! And if you are hiring a bike, make sure you have got a lock to keep it safe whilst you relax on the beach. You can also cycle in the opposite direction from Venice beach, along Santa Monica beach and this will bring you to a much quieter part of the beach.

Visit Hollywood:

It's a must when visiting LA, however a little disappointing in my eyes... I had imagined a huge and glamourous place, when in reality its a very small area full of tourist attractions and people dressed up in (not very convincing) outfits of superheroes and movie stars asking for money in return for a photograph! However, its part of the fun I guess and I would recommend going to see the Chinese Theatre, the hand prints and the walk of fame. You can also see the Hollywood sign from the Hollywood Highland Centre, however it is from a distance! There are some museums, like Madame Tussauds and Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum, so if you are interested in that kind of thing you could explore these!

Do A Tour:

A good way to fit in all the sights is to do a bus tour. There are lots of tour companies selling different types of tours. I did a City Tour of LA which included Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Stars Homes, Hollywood, Sunset strip, Rodeo Drive and Bel Air. The company I used was Los Angeles Sightseeing and you get a discount if you are staying at the Santa Monica HI Hostel!

Shopping in Melrose:

I spent a day shopping in Melrose, which is where you will find lots of vintage shops, boutiques and independent shops and cafes. I got there about 11am and it was very quiet. It is definitely an afternoon place and many of the shops won't open till 12 noon. Once the shops open up its a lively and interesting area to explore! To get there I took the 704 bus from Santa Monica & Ocean to Santa Monica and Fairfax. I then walked south down Fairfax to Melrose. At Melrose take a left and walk a few blocks along to reach the start of the shopping area.

Food:

One place I have to recommend is Musha, which is at Wilshire and 5th, Santa Monica. I was introduced to this place by a local guy I met on the airport shuttle on my way into Santa Monica and it was definitely worth the visit! The food is amazing and its very reasonably priced. Also you can sit at the bar and watch them prepare the sushi, which is especially nice if you are dining alone! I would recommend trying the Kakuni (4 hour pork served with potato and egg) and the lobster roll. I also tried the tempura shrimp which was also excellent! They also have nice little touches like bringing a segmented orange with your bill and giving you a home wrapped pack of sweets when you leave.