Wednesday, August 27th, 2013

Back in LA, I had found myself in the good graces of old friends of family, Nancy and Dave. I was welcomed into their Manhattan Beach home with open arms.

That week they treated me like their own son, and that generosity was received with much gratitude. Nancy showed me the beach, which was just a quick stroll from their home.

I took the time to soak in the atmosphere of this beautiful beach town.

 

The following week turned into a sort of interlude to the next detour of my road trip.  While I was once again in LA, I took a drive down the coast to Palos Verdes, to do some hiking.  Later, I met up with a group of couchsurfers and checked out a the weekly Shakespeare in the Park show.

 

The following day I explored the architecture of downtown LA.  Thanks to Trip Advisor’s handy city guides app, I found some cool walking routes to see the city.

 

I made my way into the MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art).

 

Inside the MOCA, I was taken aback when I saw the name of my hometown on the placard of one of the artworks.

Later I walked around some cool urban areas and took the Angels Flight tram to find some food.

After finding Grand Central Market, I got some cheap tacos al pastor, then headed back to the amphitheater to eat.

 

 

Friday, August 30th 2013

The next day I made my way to the Getty Center, a beautiful campus on the top of a Los Angeles hillside where the Getty Museum operates.  To get there you must take a tram car from the bottom of the hill to the top.

Once inside, a plethora of sculptures, artwork and architecture await you.

 

The presence of water features, botanical gardens and coffee shops all made it easy to watch the day slip away.

 

Every so often I would run into an art piece that made me scratch my head a bit.  Others were provocative in other ways.

…

That evening I made my way to the Griffith Observatory, nestled in the hills over Hollywood. With telescopes and vantage points galore, it was a great place to soak in the city lights.

The massive sprawl that is LA is almost hard to comprehend until you see it in person from above.

 

Planes flying in to the airport streak across the night sky as the haze rises up in the distance.

Los Angeles is a special place.  But it was time for me to head out.  So I prepare for my upcoming detour.  I hadn’t planned for it, but something new was on the horizon.  Something I just couldn’t foresee when I started my journey…