Le Drive-By Tourism* in LA

Where: Los Angeles
When: Labor Day Weekend
Duration: 2.5 Days
Who: Three adults
Who else: Two children under the age of three
What: 1 Car
Time: Best. Ever.
Cost: Priceless

Agenda:
- Catch up with old friends
- Meet the munchkins
- See as much of LA as possible - drive-by style with a camera hanging out the side of the car
- See the Hollywood sign to verify it is real and exists (it does)
- Chill with the coolness of James Dean
- Hang out like Vinnie Chase and the boys would, by trespassing his house
- Wear my new summer dress
- In 'n' Out - Double double animal style (hmmmmmmm)
- Witness the site of a baby's first army crawl (adorable)
- Spirituality - Ghandi style
- See celebrity(ies) (Perez Hilton, Kate Perry, Eliza Dushku, Ashley Tisdale)
- See a transformer

Mission:
Accomplished

Livability Index**: 6 months - 1 year

Thank you:
To the best Monkey gang ever for a wonderful time xoxo!!!




First stop Malibu: Paradise Cove Beach Cafe (try the salad with fresh tuna)




Paradise Cove Beach Cafe




Paradise Cove Beach Cafe




Paradise Cove Beach Cafe




Paradise Cove Beach Cafe




Paradise Cove Beach Cafe




Paradise Cove Beach Cafe




Self Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine Temple - Where someone stole a handful of Ghandi's ashes and sent them to LA to rest in this spot...just the way Ghandi would have wanted it.




Self Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine Temple - Someone promised me I would see lots of birds. But there were no birds. Just nature and some ashes.




Self Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine Temple




Self Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine Temple - Remnants of cuteness from moments before




Marilyn Monroe's Resting Place




Variety - The Mecca of LA




Drive by tourism




Urth Cafe - Where Vinnie, me and the boys do brunch




Venice Beach




Venice Beach




Venice Beach - Just like the canals in Italy




Drive-by Venice Beach




Drive-by Venice Beach




Drive-by Venice Beach




Drive-by Venice Beach




Drive-by Venice Beach




Drive-by Venice Beach




Drive-by Venice Beach




Drive-by Venice Beach




Venice Beach Dog




Venice Beach - Barber




Venice Beach - House ad




Venice Beach - Pause for coffee at Intelligencia




Venice Beach - Back on the road again




La Mirage Inn




Hollywood Hills




Hollywood Sign




Ashton Kutcher's restaurant Geisha House




Wax Museum




Kodak Theater - Home of the Oscars




Transformers - More than meets the eye!




Chinese Theater




Entourage Villa




Hills




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion - Construction next door. Probably a new Starbucks or McDonalds




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Greystone Mansion




Beverly Hills. 90210.




Drive-by tourism - The Spelling Mansion




Drive-by tourism




Drive-by tourism




Drive-by tourism - Beverly Hills Wilshire Hotel of Pretty Woman fame




Rodeo Drive




Drive-by tourism




Drive-by tourism




Drive-by tourism




Drive-by tourism




Drive-by tourism




Drive-by tourism - Kitson




Drive-by tourism - The Ivy




Drive-by tourism - Kitson




Finally, those birds I was promised, chilling like Vinnie Chase at a traffic light




Perez Hilton - My celebrity sighting



*With the archaic vacation system found in the US, I found it necessary to invent 'drive-by vacationing' - visiting new cities in as little time as possible - in order to see the country in addition to seeing my family in decent incriments. After two days of Boston this summer, I decided that LA and my lovely friends merited my precious three day weekend that marked the end of Summer 2009.

**I have also come to realize that every city I visit that I like, I measure not in terms of stars or thumbs up, but in how much time I would want to live there. I know it's crazy, but I can't stop wanting to live places. It's not something I do consciously, but recently discovered I just simply size up a city and remark "I would live here for 6 months, and I would do it in that neighborhood, in that apartment, where I would buy white furniture and shop at that grocery store". I guess I just can't sit still, and have a never-ending hunger to live in new places all the time. So I've decided to invent the Livability Index, where I rate a city according to how long I would live there. For example, Boston received a comfortable Livability Index of two Summer months. Frankfurt has a rating of -5 months. That's right. I am also pioneering the idea of negatively ratings of cities. Trust me. It makes sense if you've been to Frankfurt.