Many people love Los Angeles, and why not? With the possible exception of the Big Apple, is there any other place in the US that can legitimately be called the center of the Universe?
In the case of Los Angeles, it is the center of the entertainment universe and has more legitimate movie stars per square inch than anywhere else in the world.
And so, visitors come for the glamor and glitz, for the chance to see a star, perhaps simply by going to the supermarket or walking in almost designer shorts and T-shirts down Melrose Avenue. They come to see how movies are made, how television shows are produced, to be thrilled at the area’s amusement parks, and to soak up the endless sun on beaches populated by the most beautiful people in the world. Center of Los Angeles
On our most recent visit, we tried something different: setting up a base camp smack in the middle of Los Angeles, which of course is the center of the Los Angeles basin with spokes heading in every direction for every kind of adventure you can imagine. . Upon checking into the Omni Los Angeles, our “camp” was actually a lap of luxury. This hotel is modest in size for downtown Los Angeles, ‘only 17 stories’, but is located right in the heart of downtown, next to the shops and restaurants of California Plaza, and within walking distance of many interesting sites. Rooms at the Omni are sleek and modern, decorated in the subtle tan, beige, and green color scheme seen in so many new homes these days. Rich mahogany furnishings, elegant light fixtures, and chocolate velvet overlays contrast nicely with the overall color scheme. In short, it’s just what you’d expect in Los Angeles, luxurious and very trendy.
Like the “giants” of the Redwood forest, downtown Los Angeles has its own “Valley of the Giants,” mostly gleaming modern buildings that will keep you craning your neck as you constantly feel compelled to look skyward to see these products of man’s ingenuity. In the Los Angeles sun, the buildings reflect each other, each offering a different and mesmerizing visual pattern. And hardly any of these skyscrapers are elongated boxes, all of the newer ones have some kind of angle, all sitting snugly side by side like a gigantic three-dimensional puzzle.
If you appreciate art and design, you’re a two-minute walk from the Museum of Contemporary Art with its towering “tree” of aircraft and transportation pieces that greet museum visitors at the door. Or, it’s another two minutes down the street to the Walt Disney Theater, home to Los Angeles classical music and perhaps the most unusual-looking structure in all of downtown with its undulating, non-linear angles. Sculptures and other forms of artwork are scattered throughout the city center, leading one to believe that this is a very art-conscious city.
Of course, no visit to Los Angeles would be complete without finding some cinema. It seems like there’s always a movie shoot in Los Angeles on the weekends, and this trip was no exception. A crew in a truck equipped with a camera platform that lowered almost to road level was filming a “chase scene” of a vehicle as it passed our hotel.
Movie and Oscar buffs will remember that for years the Academy Awards were held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, another two-minute walk from our hotel. In fact, the entire downtown civic center is nearby and this part of Los Angeles would be an especially convenient place to stay if you wanted to include a play or concert, or perhaps a game at the Staples Center.
Back at our hotel, we discover that a large portion of the fourth floor has been converted into a state-of-the-art spa and fitness center. There will be an obvious need for the latter if you dine at the Omni’s elegant restaurant, Noe, where you’ll find delicious “progressive American cuisine.”
While there is much in downtown Los Angeles to visit and enjoy, there are also short excursions to nearby places like Hollywood, Santa Monica, the Getty Museum and much more. Here are some of our favorites:
Getty Museum
When the Getty Museum first opened in 1997, the museum’s parking lot and transportation system quickly became overwhelmed to the point that anyone thinking of visiting the museum had to make parking reservations months in advance. Those unwilling to wait rode miles and then waited up to four hours to catch a streetcar up the museum’s dramatic hillside west of downtown Los Angeles.
What a difference 10 years makes. Reservations are not required today and it is possible to drive to your parking spot, catch a tram, and be on top of the mountain just minutes after you arrive.
A trip to the Getty is like a quick art seminar that will teach you enough names and buzzwords to make your friends think you really are polite. It’s a great addition to any Southern California vacation.
Santa Monica
If you’re looking for the cool factor, you’d be hard-pressed to beat Santa Monica, a playground for Los Angeles’ TV and movie crowd that’s neatly compressed into 8.3 miles strategically bordered by the Santa Monica Mountains on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other. the other.
The words “trendy” and “hip” seem to come up a lot in descriptions of the nearly 400 restaurants found on this small piece of real estate. Throw in some art galleries, some luxury hotels and ‘oh yeah’ celebrities and you have the ingredients for some mind-blowing fun of your everyday hometown. Of course, Santa Monica has a great location. The views from Palisades Park are breathtaking, taking in not only the long beaches, but also places as far afield as Malibu in the north and even Catalina Island in the southwest. The Santa Monica Pier is the dominant feature on the water’s edge, and on the water as well, and is a favorite with families.
La Brea Tar Pits
Close to downtown is the La Brea Tar Pits, one of the most famous fossil localities in the world. More extinct Ice Age plants and animals have been recovered here than anywhere else in the world.
It’s hard to imagine, but here, just a few blocks south of glitzy Beverly Hills, animals like saber-toothed cats and mammoths once roamed the area. The museum offers skeletal reconstructions of some of these beasts, while the surrounding area, Hancock Park, offers trails around some of the archaeological dig sites as well as tar pits.
Fossils collected at La Brea date to between 10,000 and 40,000 years ago. Almost all of the skeletons on display in the museum are actual fossil bones found in tar pits. Since 1906, more than a million bones have been recovered from the La Brea Tar Pits representing 231 species of vertebrates. A further 159 types of plants and 234 types of invertebrates have been identified.
Hollywood
Hollywood is definitely worth the short drive from downtown Los Angeles. The famous intersection of Hollywood and Vine really isn’t all that appealing, although there has been a major renovation to the area in recent years. Hollywood at Highland is a great place to park, by the way, it’s a stunning new luxury shopping complex adjacent to the Grumman Chinese Theater (with its hand and foot prints), and the Walk of Fame runs from the complex down Hollywood Boulevard up to several blocks.
It is interesting to observe the people who, in other cities, might be called street performers. In Hollywood, they are movie characters in elaborate costumes luring unsuspecting tourists in for photos with their arms, tentacles, legs or whatever wrapped around other tourists.
Nearby is the home of the Academy Awards, the famous Kodak Theater. For just $15 per person, you can take a half-hour tour of the theater.
TAKE A LOOK
WHERE: Los Angeles is at the center of the entertainment universe, 400 miles south of San Francisco, 125 miles north of San Diego.
WHAT: A large, sprawling metropolitan city with enough exciting attractions to keep you busy for weeks.
WHEN: Anytime. Los Angeles’ excellent year-round weather is the stuff of legend.
WHY: There is something for everyone: culture, beaches, amusement parks, great restaurants, you name it.
HOW: For more information about Los Angeles, contact the Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau at 213-689-8822 or visit [http://www.seemyla.com]. For more information about Omni Los Angeles at California Plaza, call 1-888-444-OMNI or visit http://www.omnihotels.com.
