Los Angeles: The Much Needed Escape

Growing up in the Philippines, I have always looked up to the United States of America. In my mind, USA is where dreams become a reality and, so, it was my aim to visit this majestic country at least once in my life. Back in 2019, I had the opportunity to travel to almost any country of my choice and I finally decided to fly to USA.

I was so excited about this idea, however, I had one major dilemma. Given that my vacation leaves were limited, I had to choose which states or cities should I visit and I ended up selecting only one city which was the City of Angels - Los Angeles, California. At the time, I was so addicted to the TV show called Lucifer and a YouTube channel named YesTheory where both of these highlight Los Angeles. This made the selection of city a no-brainer.

The Itinerary Planning Stage

People who know me personally are aware how much of a crazy planner I am. Below was my itinerary (I blurred out the dates and the hotels I stayed in) and, as you can see, every single minute was planned. Because it was a tight schedule, I opted to travel alone.

In case you are curious, here is a quick glimpse on my thought process when planning my itinerary.

1. Research all interesting sceneries and activities and plot them on the map
2. Classify each one to be either mandatory or optional
3. Research for multiple accommodation close to the mandatory attractions
4. From here, small clusters of activities and accommodation can be found. These clusters identify which places I will visit together and which hotel or hostel I should stay in.
5. Finally, I plot these activities on my itinerary. Usually, the clusters closest to the airport are the places I visit first or last.

On this trip, I first stayed at a hostel near Santa Monica Pier for a couple of days because of its close proximity to the airport. In the middle of the trip, I rented out a place in DownTown Los Angeles to visit the attractions nearby. On the last night of my trip, I slept at a hostel in Venice Beach as it relatively nearer to the airport compared to DownTown LA.

Satisfying my Hungry Belly

Without a doubt, Los Angeles is a great place for a foodie like me. However, due to the countless options, I had a difficulty with deciding which restaurants I should try. Below are some of my favorite places:

1. EggSlut: For me, this was one of the most remarkable breakfast places I have tried.
2. Sidecar: This was my first ever breakfast in LA and it was also my first time to eat a doughnut with bacon on top. Weirdly delicious!
3. In-N-Out: Of course, how can any first timer in LA not try In-N-Out? The Animal Style Fries was unforgettable.
4. Leo's Tacos: Another must try in LA are the tacos from different taco trucks around the city. People queue for hours for a bite of this mouth-watering tacos.
5. Mel's Drive-In: Tasted a lot different from the one in Universal Studios Singapore. Let's just say I sneaked out of my hostel for multiple nights for this.
6. ihop: If Mel's Drive-In was my favorite late night dinner, ihop was my morning guilty pleasure.
7. The Cheesecake Factory: It was totally worth an extra pound and an additional inch on the waist.
8. American Breakfast: This is not a specific restaurant but I made sure to try American breakfast in America. It is so crazy how different it was to American breakfast in Asia.

Must-See Places

1) Venice Beach and Santa Monica Pier

I was never a fan of swimming on the beach but I enjoy walking on its shores. Los Angeles was a perfect place for me to do just this. I was able to walk back and forth Venice Beach and Santa Monica Pier while enjoying the view and the shops along the beach.

2) The Getty Villa and The Getty Center

I never thought that I would enjoy visiting museums until I visited these two places. I have always been a fan of Greek mythology ever since I have read Percy Jackson and this place reminded me of the stories about them. Furthermore, I found a mummy (I am not exactly sure if it was a real one but the feeling was totally different when I was in that room).

3) Universal Studios Hollywood

This was one of the attractions that I was determined to visit. I even paid for a VIP pass so that I could enjoy the entire place without having to queue. On top of that, I joined a group led by an amazing guide. He showed us around and even brought us to the set of different TV and movie shows. The extra charge for the VIP pass was totally worth it!

4) Beverly Hills and Hollywood Walk of Fame

The Hollywood Walk of Fame was not exactly what I expected. Yes, the sidewalk has these stars with the names of popular actors and actresses. However, in some areas it is not exactly as clean as what I thought it would be. Despite of this, I still greatly enjoyed my stay in Hollywood because of all the things going on around the area. There were a lot of souvenir shops, costumed characters, and the popular studios of different shows can be found here.

Beverly Hills was not exactly close to Hollywood Walk of Fame but I stopped by this place because of its popularity. It was definitely a must to visit this place even though most of the products sold here are expensive. I left the place without spending on anything but it was still a great experience to be in a place that I just frequently see in TV.

5) DownTown Los Angeles

DownTown Los Angeles was the place I wish I had more time to explore. The food, sceneries, activities, popular filming locations, and eye-catching architecture required ample time to be enjoyed. I will definitely visit this place again and spend more time exploring this location when I get the opportunity to return to Los Angeles.

6) Griffith Observatory and the Hollywood Sign

This was one of the highlights of my trip. I had a great view of Los Angeles and the Hollywood Sign. I did not have enough time to visit the Hollywood Sign up close as I thought that there was not much to do there. So, I just enjoyed looking at from the Griffith Observatory.

The Griffith Observatory was a place to learn and enjoy at the same time. I managed to see different planets from one of the biggest and oldest telescopes in the world. It was so huge and delicate that we were not even allowed to touch the equipment. Nevertheless, being able to see the rings and satellites of different planets was exciting and fulfilling. I never thought I would be able to experience that in my entire life.

7) Venice Canals

The Venice Canals was not usually one of the suggested places to visit when researching for the top tourist attractions. I am so glad that I took time to visit this place because it was amazing. I was extra careful while taking photos around this area because these houses are actually private property. The way they designed their houses was extremely mesmerizing and I would love to live here if I get the opportunity.