"I'm Visiting Los Angeles" Thread

I'm going to be in Los Angeles in December for the Eagles/Rams game. I have two days to myself, and I have started to come up with what I want to do. I'm renting a car out there, so I will be able to explore. This is my first time out in L.A., but won't be the last

Sunday: Eagles game at Coliseum; Santa Monica at night for drinks (Air BnB for stay)
Monday: Explore Santa Monica (half-day); explore Downtown L.A. and El Pueblo area (half-day); drinks at Monkish Brewing Company (an hour or so); stay overnight in Gardena
Tuesday: Suggestions? See Downey and the historic fast food restaurants? Find a spot in the Hollywood Hills to look out over the city? Or explore a neighborhood or town?
Wednesday: Fly back home

redspork02 said:

Neither will disappoint.

FYI....They close the gates. Be there before then (7PM)...I think....

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Griffith Observatory is open at night?

What are the benefits and drawbacks of each lookout, whether the two mentioned so far or any others?

Mon: walk around downtown; El Pueblo, civic center, Grand Ave, Bradbury, lunch at Grand Central Mkt. or on 7th or maybe Baco Mercat. Drive around South Park and the Fashion Dist. to see real people doing real work. I would suggest walking this area but that would take several days.

Tues: do the observatory lookout and then go to LACMA and see the Chagall Exhibit. Great even if you don't like costume and art. Then over to Farmer's Market for lunch. Then Rodeo Dr. and up to the Sunset Strip. Drinks at some place where famous people killed themselves. Drive down Hollywood Blvd. between La Brea and Vine to say you have been. Likewise for Sunset and Selma in the same area to see what's changing.

First time I hear an outsider mention my town Downey.

On a Tuesday tho (or any weekday), you don't want to get caught up in morning or afternoon rush hour traffic coming over here (or anywhere), you'll waste precious time just to come and see the oldest standing McDonalds.
During the week traffic is lite between 10am-3pm, because after 4.......forget it!


I would also go to the Getty Center, aside from the permanent exhibitions, right now they have an awesome seasonal exhibit: "Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA"
The Getty Center is free, you just pay for parking.

So I think I have a better idea of what my trip will look like:

SUNDAY
~ Eagles/Rams game at the Coliseum
~ Beers in Santa Monica with friends and other Eagles fans

MONDAY
~ Explore Downtown Santa Monica in the morning
~ Check into my hotel, explore Downey mid-day
~ Go to Griffith Observatory, or the Jerome Daniel Overlook, in the late afternoon
~ Dinner and a beer at Whiskey a Go Go, and/or Rainbow Bar & Grill, in West Hollywood
~ Stop by Monkish Brewing Company and have a quick beer, and/or buy some beer to go

TUESDAY
~ Explore the El Pueblo neighborhood
~ Explore Downtown Los Angeles
~ Sunset pictures from an overlook again?

At some point, I may meet up with a friend or two out there, so I may steer towards dinner and drinks with these people.

Forget exploring Downey, go to something in Ktown and then go the observatory and/or Hollywood which are nearby. If you are on the strip Eveleigh is a good choice for food but many others are fine as well.

In DT, be sure to do Grand Ave, Grand Central Market, Bradbury Building, 7th St., Fig and the Staples Center area. Many good places to eat; Baco Mercat and Bar Ama are good choices.

How is the parking for the Coliseum? I'm going to be driving to the game myself, and may want to avoid parking in the stadium lots if I can find a cheap and quick alternative (quick because my flight from Baltimore lands at noon on Sunday, and the game starts at 1:30!).

It looks like the neighborhood to the west is free street parking. Do people park in that neighborhood and walk over to the Coliseum? Is it a bad neighborhood that I should stay out of?

You would have to get there early for cheap or street parking, but you are cutting it way too close and parking will not be cheap at that point.

It's not a bad neighborhood per say. Some homeowners let you park in their properties for a charge. So look around and some homes will probably have signs on their fences. I parked (the neighborhood to the west of the Coliseum) like that one time.

And since you insist on coming over to my side of town (Downey), then go to Porto's if you can. Have fun!

redspork02 said:

Anyone ever been to the NEW DREAM hotel in Hollywood. Taking a girl for drinks there this wkend. She wants to visits a rooftop Bar. Anyone ever been there. If its hard access then any roof top bar suggestions in the Hollywood area?

Yours truly. Me.

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I met up with a girl that lives out there and she was actually talking about it. She said she loves going there. If it is like the Dream Hotel in NYC, it may be just a little tougher to get up there, unless you're staying in the hotel.

We went to Mama Shelter for their rooftop bar. It was a Monday night, so it was easy to get up then, as you can imagine, but that was pretty nice. The downstairs had some games like foosball and some checkerboards and chess boards, which reminded me of the Game Room in Chicago.