Los Angeles - The Angels

Los Angeles is the second most populous city in U.S. after New York. Los Angeles means ‘The Angels’ and was part of Spain and then Mexico before ceding to United States. The city’s international fame is in producing popular entertainment such as motion picture, television and recorded music. Even the city is full of music stores and there seems to a different glamour in the air.. more easy going, laid back, fun-loving, relaxed than the cities of the east coast. LA is also the world’s center of culture, science, technology, international trade and higher education. It has also has a high population of Indians. Matching its fame and considering the no. of places to be seen, I allotted 4 days and five nights to LA.

First day, we went about doing sight seeing of the city. We rented a car for two days, without which local sight seeing in LA is difficult going by the public transport system there. The first thing which strikes you in the city are the palm trees. The land looks dry and barren without much vegetation. We came to know that there is hardly any rainfall in this area and its almost like a desert surrounded by sea and beautiful beaches. The best thing about the LA climate is its temperature which is same all the year round is kept moderately cool even in summers by the sea. Because of lack of rainfall and heavy reliance on automobiles, the city suffers from air pollution in the form of smog.

We drove thru the sunset strip, though it looked quiet in the day, I could imagine very well what it would be like in the night. Then we went on a long drive in the Beverly Hills watching all the celebrity homes on both sides. The place looked like a dreamworld, beautifully architect ed mansions with a lovely landscaped garden and frontage. I just kept shuttling my head from left to right trying to absorb in as much as I could. We reached Santa Monica town and beach, had our lunch and took a walk on the beach. Cool breeze and view of hills all around made the walk very pleasant. There are many more glamorous and beautiful beaches in LA I am told.

We again went for another drive in the posh areas and also visited an Indian temple. Since it was still bright in the day, we thought of taking some rest and then going to Hollywood in the night. So after a small nap, we again drove thru the Redo street where the celebrities do the shopping. Though the shops were all deserted, the place was brightly lit up. We reached Hollywood. It was similar to our Times Square but much smaller and not that majestic. We had a look at the Kodak theatre, the venue for Oscars. Each and every place there has a touch of the Hollywood stars be it their hand prints, autographs, photographs, souvenirs etc. After a walk in the Hollywood Blvd we ended the first day of our trip.