Los Angeles Thread #7: Busch Gardens

Having a car certainly makes it easier to get around Los Angeles. I know there's a big public transportation contingent on here, but the public transportation isn't that great. Renting a car will certainly save you a lot of time sitting on buses.

It depends a lot on where your home base is and where you want to be going from there.
As a native to the area I would have never considered not having a car back in the day but on more resent visits I have been using a car less and less.

LA -> pasadena = definitely rent a car for that

gold line goes to pasadena, people complain about how slow it is tho

180/181 bus goes from Hollywood to Pasadena, so if you're in Hollywood it may be as fast as red line to Union station then gold line to Pasadena. Having a car is nice, though.

Are there any good restaurants or bars near Selma and Sunset?

i've heard good things about pinches tacos (right across from chateau marmont)

Are there any good restaurants or bars near Selma and Sunset?

selma and sunset run parallel? which intersection?

they converge on the westside (which i didn't know until about an hour ago - i was all set to recommend bodega wine bar)

i didn't know it either. i'm still kinda westside-illiterate.

in that case, i highly recommend bar marmont!

a.o.c. is awesome for wine/small plates/atmosphere and is on 3rd and crescent heights. you'd have to drive or take a cab, but it's not super far.

that's where the sunset strip more or less begins, avoid on weekends at the very least

We went to chateau marmont for dinner and we loved it. Is that cheesy? We're saving bar marmont for another night. Thanks for the suggestions!

apparently it's not up the grapevine, it's just after castaic?

If it's what I think it is, it's the Honor Ranch Gas Storage Site "a repurposed oil field where wells are now injected with natural gas, coming via pipelines from the north, for storage before being distributed through the urban grid" (from the latest CLUI Lay Of The Land newsletter)

I witnessed the quickest pickup I've EVER seen on a Gold Line train the other day. I almost wanted to shake the dude's hand it was so impressive! He got on the train, sat down opposite this woman and was typing her number into his phone in, like, two minutes, I swear. So...go Gold Line.

Morbs you might want to check the Beverly Laurel hotel, might be a little bit too far south for you but the price is pretty good and it was pretty clean last time i stayed there

Is it possible to get to Griffith observatory via public transportation? I think we should have rented a car after all...

will consider, Aerosol, but even w/ limits of transit I think I'd like to be closer to a train line.

Now I'm even thinking of starting earlier to spend 4th of July weekend in either LA or SF.

there is a bus that goes up hillhurst to the observatory - i think you can catch it at the sunset/vermont metro stop

looks like the shuttles only run on weekends right now:

http://golosangeles.about.com/od/thingstodoinlosangeles/ss/GriffithObserv_5.htm

It's a nice shuttle, I've used it before.

not recommended: hiking up the mountain without using the designated walking path, especially while hungover

(not that i'd know...)

Rolling down the hill, though...

What happened to the sun? I think we'll wait till the weekend for Griffith park, and that way maybe it won't be overcast and we can hop the shuttle.

Gonna go to lacma and to look at historical downtown buildings...any good places to eat around there?

Downtown, or near LACMA? Because those are two very different locations. Unless you're talking about MOCA?

Well, yeah, we were going to go to lacma and then downtown, but we've decided to just do downtown and moca.

if you're going to moca, you can take the california plaza escalator down bunker hill afterward and get pupusas/tacos/etc at grand central market

Or even ride the Angel's Flight train if in operation. (Did it shut down again?)

i was gonna say angel's flight but (a) dunno if it's open (b) i don't want to be responsible for anyone's early demise via ancient and rickety tourist attraction

Best to look at it from afar, I suppose. She could walk down the steps next to it, though.

watch yourself walking around town

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKhGr3-KxZQ

We rode the angel's flight train and we ate papusas, so thanks for the suggestions. Saw a lot of awesome buildings, but missed the Ed ruscha mural--is that still there? Went to el Carmen finally. For tomorrow; is Hollywood forever cemetery a good place to go? Anything else interesting to do around there!

Re the mural: http://la.curbed.com/archives/2008/04/downtown_ed_rus.php

For tomorrow; is Hollywood forever cemetery a good place to go? Anything else interesting to do around there!

eh, it's okay. it's in a scuzzy neighborhood.

when my friend and i drove through the cemetery we saw a peacock cage!

it's also fun to play "spot the famous dead person" if you're into that sort of thing

will ponder trip to Forsrest Lawn to visit Buster Keaton & Stan Laurel

The cemetery trip is on hold because my sister doesn't like dead people. Instead we are going to Schindler house, farmer's market, la brea tar pits, and lacma. Any interesting stuff we shouldn't miss around those places?

Also, is the polo club at the Beverly hills hotel a good place to go? Or is there a more laid back place to eat at that hotel?

the new silver lake meadow is a nice little green space

anyone else hitting up cicLAvia today?

Goodbye Los Angeles, everything I did was amazing, except for the Farmer's Market; why did no one tell me not to go there? Mad jealous of all of you.

aw i dig the farmer's market. :-( i always go into monsieur marcel hoping for a good sale.

anyone else hitting up cicLAvia today?

I was there. Sooo many people!

it was awesome! already anticipating the next one

Yeah. Me and three friends rode from La Puente into Downtown. Met up with my old roommate who now lives on Spring, and spent the day on my bike pretty much. Everybody was so happy and polite, and for a crowd of 100k+, there was ZERO hostility.

i didn't go, but i took a walk locally out of solidarity.

I was hoping for more fresh produce from the Farmer's Market, and less chain restaurants. We ate at the counter at Phil's Deli--that was kind of cool. I immensely preferred the Grand Central Market though.

Why didn't anyone tell me that there was an Ed Ruscha exhibit at the Gagosian Beverly Hills? You expect me to do my own research?

We didn't see the cicLAvia . . . but we spent Sunday walking around our hotel neighborhood and peeking in open houses. We've got our eye on a 3 million number in the Hollywood Hills.

I was hoping for more fresh produce from the Farmer's Market

that's not really what this farmer's market is known for. it's known for the restaurant stands (and i'm sure the starbucks helps them pay the rent).