Friday evening, Santa Monica: I leave work and head to the Famina!! to pick up some dinner plus a few things. Dinner consists of a BBQ Chicken Sticy Bun, and breakfast burrito, and a guarana soda to wash it down with. I considered other dinner options, but wanted something solid but relatively mild so I wouldn't get an upset stomach later. After I finish the food and begin walking over to the pier, I check through the items I'm carrying: Bottle of water, pack of gum, $5 gift certificate to In-n-Out burger (might run across one, who knows...), camera with two SD cards and two batteries, and an iPhone with earphones in case I get bored. Weather reports for tonight call for the Santa Ana winds to be blowing and make things interesting. All the better, I'm thinking, because its going to be a long walk to Union Station.
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Wait... What?! Why?!
Well, I'd been in a bit of a rut at times lately and was looking to do something different. I was also slightly inspired by the hike Roger Homrich made across Death Valley a few months back. This walk is nothing in comparison, but given LA's "car-mentality", I have the feeling not many here can say they've done this (outside of marathons, of course). I also knew it would be good exercise. I didn't any sort of exercise leading up to this, but knew that after I felt how bad my body was handling a walk, it'd be a good amount of motivation to get me back to the gym. More than anything though, I did it because I was bored.
I decided the day before that walking this route would be a good opportunity to try something 'different' and see things I normally only glance at from a car window. I've been up and down this whole stretch while riding the 4 and 704 buses to and from Union Station. The 4 route also happens to run 24 hours, so I knew that once I finished, or if I had to stop early, I could just catch the bus home.
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8pm, Santa Monica Pier:
Make my way over to Santa Monica Boulevard to begin the trek up it. The Seinfeld bus is parked along Ocean Ave but there is no activity around it; I grab a shot with the Georgian hotel in the background. Walking through downtown Santa Monica, there's the normal number of shoppers/tourists for a Friday night. I reach Lincoln which means plenty of car dealerships for a while.
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(BTW, As I'm walking I occasionally updating my status and/or sending pictures to my twitter account.)
Once past Cloverfield boulevard, I start seeing areas I am only used to glancing at while behind a driver's seat. It is not quite yet 9pm went I poke my head into Aero hobbies just past Yale St. The shop looks like its open late tonight for a Magic: The Gathering tournament. Looking around at the RPG gear and kids playing at the tables, I get a bit nostalgic remembering the times over a dozen years ago when I would sit at tables like those with a deck of cards. I step out and continue into West LA.
To me, the only thing more obviously different than the change in street signs between Santa Monica and West Los Angeles is the appearance of billboards. They appear at Centinela and continue for miles. Other than this, I notice a few restaurants to make note of to try in the near future; I haven't had Vietnamese cuisine in a long while. It's just past 9:30pm when I reach the Nuart Theatre and the 405.
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9:30pm, West LA/Westwood:
After passing under the 405, I immediately notice something I always had wanted to stop and see but could never remember to make the time for: The Tesla dealership. The first high-performance electric car in existence and its first dealership was set up right here in the westside. I ogle at it for a few moments, snap a few photos, and then continue on.
At about Westwood boulevard I cross back over to the South side of the street; through this stretch its much more interesting. I walk up and down a couple of hills as I approach approach Century City.
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10:20pm, Century City:
Here's where I reach my first dramatic shift in architecture walking among the skyscrapers. The shops are closed, the people are around coming and going to the restaurants. After I pass Shoppingtown, the Santa Ana winds arrive my make my walk more interesting. The winds take turns coming from the East or West. In either case the breeze is a bit chilly and I'm glad I wore my sweat jacket. I continue until Century City gives way to Beverly Hills.
10:30pm, Beverly Hills:
Now, I've never stopped for anything in Beverly Hills; never had a reason to. I went to the Peterson Museum one time a few months back, but I'm reasonably sure that doesn't count. I walk to the local section of Santa Monica boulevard and catch all the places I normally skip when driving to WeHo.
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With the exception of a couple of restaurants here-and-there, the area is pretty dead. A ways past Wilshire boulevard the winds pick up even stronger than before. The gusts become strong enough to knock out the street and traffic streets a few times momentarily. The wind continues to bug me until I reach City Hall and the end of the 'local' stretch of Santa Monica boulevard.
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The City Hall / Library / Fire House / Police Station complex is pretty impressive. It fact, its architecture its existence by contrast makes the stretch afterward the most boring part of the entire walk. If there's an industrial section of Beverly Hills, Civic Center drive has to be it. I am definitely relieved when I reach the edge of West Hollywood.
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11:30pm, West Hollywood:
Ah... WeHo. This is most likely obvious to anyone reading this, but it really is the ANTI-Beverly Hills. As I step back onto Santa Monica boulevard at Doheny drive I see three cop cars in front of the Troubadour. The sidewalks here are pretty busy with couple walking to and from the bars and restaurants. A block or two in I see a club with a benefit fundraiser for "No on proposition 8". All the activity is very refreshing compared to the desolate wasteland that was the final stretch of Beverly Hills. The bars and clubs give way to other stores and shops as I continue. Right before La Cienga I stop into the Famina there for a refill of supplies.
Just after Barney's beanery I gain a tail of sorts. AI woman coming out of (or maybe kicked out of) there strikes a conversation with me as I'm walking. She asks me what I'm up to tonight so I tell her, "You'll think I'm crazy, but...". So of course she does think its crazy and asks me why. I give a few answers and each time she says "No, I don't think that's it." Finally, I say, "I guess I'm just bored." "Yeah, I think that's it." she responds. Not long after she thanks me for the conversation, wishes me well, and goes off presumably back to her residence. I continue through WeHo to La Brea and into Hollywood.
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12:30am, Hollywood:
Hollywood doesn't have as much to see as its Western neighbor, but its still many times better than Beverly Hills. The first stretch consists of industry buildings with clubs, restaurants, small playhouses, and other random businesses scattered between. At Highland a see a film shooting taking place around the Del Taco. Including a camera mounted the driver's door of a squad car packed there. Right afterward I hear bass coming out of the Arena Cafe. I've never been in there, but the place looks big and includes another area next door which is apparently Circus Disco.
Those end up being the most interesting parts of Hollywood. I pass the Hollywood cemetery remembering Dia do los Muertos the year before, then continue on to the 101.
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1:30am, Santa Monica & Vermont:
The second half of Hollywood is more Hispanic-concentrated. I pass a few bars and convenience stores, and stop at donut shop for a new bottle of water. Not long after I see a lot of activity at El Gran Burrito near the intersection with Vermont. There's a few people around the Metro stop here, its a pretty popular stop during the daytime. Also a couple of officers hanging around. At this point Santa Monica boulevard starts sloping uphill into Silverlake.
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1:50am, Santa Monica & Sunset, Silverlake:
Upon reached the corner I recognize Cafe Stella, a restaurant I've been to on a couple of occasions while attending events at nearby Barnsdall Art Park. Not far past that is Bar Keeper
In the display case I see an old Absinthe fountain, and this thing REALLY looked old so I had to get a few photos. After I get the first one off I hear a girl's voice, "Hey. What are you doing?" I look around and see no one, shrug my shoulders, and go to take the next picture. "What are you taking a picture of?" I look around again, seeing no one. I go back to getting another picture off. "Hey, you down there." I finally put two and two together and look up at the roof of the building next door to find two college-aged girls looking down at me taking pictures of this store's display case. Long story short: I go up and chat with the girls and their friends for a little while. They tell me that they'd been mugged a couple of days before and that I should be careful heading through Echo Park. Not long after I bid them farewell and continue my walk.
2:15ish, Echo Park & Angelino Heights:
Starting down Sunset boulevard, it isn't long before I gain another tail. A kid maybe just over 21 strikes up a conversation as we're walking. Two things become clear as we're walking: 1. He's very drunk and 2. He's trying to flirt with me. His efforts start with trying to convince me to come to his place and then ride with him to wherever I'm going, and go from there. He uses the same excuse to try to feel me up three times, each time after the first forgetting that he'd already tried. Continuing on he tells me about the old guys that were hitting on him at the bars he was at that night and how he wasn't interested in them. I told him he doesn't have to follow me through Echo Park and that he should go home and get some rest. Not long before Grand Ave he finally gives up by sitting on the curb for a breather. I keep walking and not long after he's out of view. From here its downhill into Chinatown and finally, Union Station.
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3:30am, Union Station, Chinatown:
The place looks beautiful as I approach. I don't even know if its open but sure enough, it is. I made a stop inside, seeing a dozen wayward travelers with their suitcases trying to sleep on the seats inside the terminal. I leave the station, walk back to Grand Ave., and catch the bus to take me back to Santa Monica.
As I'm riding the bus I think about the things I'd seen and the people I met on this trip as the areas fly by my window: The girls on the roof in Silverlake, the Bars and Clubs in WeHo, and the skyscrapers of Century City. My legs are extremely sore and my feet are almost numb, but it was worth it.
Have a good night,
-b
-b
