Downtown Los Angeles

Another adventure today: exploring downtown Los Angeles via the Metrolink. Some of the pics are sideways... sorry.

The Metro to Union Station.

Take the Red Line to Little Tokyo

Walk down to the City Hall

And to Grand Central Market

Pupusas

Went over the bridge

To China Town and Calle Olvera

Went back and ate Udon noodles and had some beer.

Surf City 5k

Surf City 5k!!

I have completed a 5k obstacle course before, but this is my first time running (or jogging) a full 5k. 

My final time 45:56 minutes for 3.16 miles. 

I got nervous near the end, because I have never jogged beyond 2.5 miles, and so I slowed down.  

Update:  Now that I know I can do a 5k, I am working on getting a faster running time, and pushing towards a 10k.  The other day, I did 3 miles in 42:54 minutes. Slowly, but surely! 

Los Angeles....

I spent the entire summer, explaining to people I was from Los Angeles, and in doing so, trying to explain Los Angeles to them.  In comparison, New York City is denser and more populated than the City of Los Angeles (not Los Angeles City), but LA is much more than the city...  People from the cities that make up East LA, or the Greater Los Angeles area, all consider themselves as a part of LA.  So, taking that into consideration, LA, including LA County, is significantly larger than NYC... and a bit more complicated.

This article was an interesting comparison of Los Angeles and New York City...

http://www.buzzfeed.com/iang18/10-things-to-get-over-about-los-angeles-and-10-thi-eg04?fb_comment_id=fbc_573223459400663_5329597_573741299348879#f2b45d674c

One quote from the article:
"L.A. intimidates people because they're afraid to admit it's better than where they're from. In L.A., we order bagels from people that don't yell at us. We don't care if your pizza is better. We like ours, but we like yours, too. We legally smoke weed, we surf, we go to work in flip-flops and we drive Priuses. We work hard, we're laid back, we eat avocados and we do yoga. We respect N.Y., and don't even expect it back. That's how we roll."

New York has a great amount of history and mystique to it, and you will never be bored there. The thing people don't seem to know about Los Angeles though, is how rich the history and culture is there as well.  The city was founded in 1812, and is planted in rich Spanish, Mexican, and Indigenous soil.  It was apart of Mexico, along with all of California, before bought by the United States. 

One of my favorite places to take people when visiting the City of Los Angeles, is Olvera Street, which is situated right across from the Union Station, and before Chinatown.  It is the oldest part of Los Angeles, and distinctly Mexican.  It is the one place you can count on Mexican traditions to be alive and well.  

Old Olvera Street

 2011 Dia de Los Muertos

There are a lot of hidden clubs, theaters, and attractions, making Los Angeles a definite place to explore.  In addition to the fact that we have so many cultures, and different kinds of people.  This cultural mix, though, has traditionally caused LAC a lot of problems... there are a lot of gangs here, and between those gangs, there is a lot of ethnic tension.

I have seen riots and fights between Latinos and African Americans, where race was the main issue...  I've seen whites discriminated against... I was actually in a Mexican restaurant once, with a white family member, and experience blatant discrimination for the first time... and we weren't alone.   I have heard and seen racism perpetrated by all races, to tell you the truth. In the 1990's my family had to relocate during the Rodney King Riots.  My dad has photos of stores near Korean owned stores, with "black owned" spray painted on the walls...

New York, however, I absolutely loved.  It is rich in history and culture, and New Yorkers have a strength of a different caliber.  There were a few things that I loved the most about New York though, and that I think LA could learn something from...

First, New Yorkers are proud to be from New York and from the USA.  I mean, they are extremely proud... same with Bostonians.  Angelinos, from what I have seen, seem to be more proud of their neighborhoods, than they are of their entire city... or state, or country, for that matter.

Second, New Yorkers aren't rude, they are focused, and they do interact with one another, in their own way.  Angelinos tend to keep as separated as possible. (Crash anyone?)



New York City vs. Los Angeles?

I prefer both.  LA is my home, but New York is exciting.  Like one of the interviewees stated that, "NYC is home for me, but L.A. is my secret lover..."  For me, it might just become the opposite.... I love LA, but I might be ready to leave it for a while... fly the nest, and then come home.  :)

Boston & NYC: Hostel living

This was the first time I have ever stayed in the hostel... and the first time I have heard of ones in the USA.  I honestly did not know we had them in the USA. You share space, shower space, and toilets, like a dorm.  So, if you have survived dorm life, you will do fine...

 The first hostel we stayed in was the Friend Street Hostel in downtown Boston... and personally, I enjoyed my stay, granted, it was a hostel.  It was air-conditioned, clean, had wifi, a common area, and about 50.00/per person, per night.

  

The hostel had a cute café next door, which offered hostelers complementary coffee and breakfast.  

It was, however, right next to some bars that got pretty rowdy... and loud. And... one of the nights we were there, there was stabbing right outside... heard the screaming, saw the bloody guy... popo came... all of the above.  Despite that, I would definitely come back.  

The second hostel we stayed in was the Whitehouse Hotel- New York Hostel, and the quality, in comparison, was, well, lacking.  It was a safe/cleaner place to stay.... at around 50.00 per night, per person, but did not have free wifi, was dirtier, not all the rooms had lights, no plugs in the room, and just as noisy.

But... I got to sing West Side Story on a Fire Escape.... so I was happy. 

Boston & NYC: Subways....

I am from California... in Los Angeles we have a very small and short subway system, and in San Francisco, there is the Bart.... but we have nothing in comparison to Boston, and definitely New York. Especially New York. 

Not too bad.

Now to New York- this is a whole other monster.  Crazy packed, and confusing, but the people were surprisingly helpful... On the way to JFK airport, so many people helped me out, it was crazy.  I got on the wrong train, while trying to carry two heavy pieces of luggage, but made it with time to spare.  New Yorkers are fast paced, but know how to help and when it is needed.  Thank you New York :)

And you wonder why people choose to take the subway.... $13 per car, just to enter the Holland Tunnel... 1 mile in a Taxi costs from $15.00-20.00.  A subway train ride costs $2.50.

Not to mention the traffic. 

New York City, NY

New York... I get now why they call it a concrete jungle.  I have never seen so many buildings before, in such a small space.  The lights are always on, like in Vegas, and the city constantly bustling. When we first arrived, we had to make our way from Manhattan to Flushing, Queens, and as we took the train, we watched the sun rise on an enormous city.  The buildings and rooftops go on for miles.... LA is enormous, but you don't feel dwarfed when standing in the middle of it.  In New York you do.  

From the rooftop.

Central Park