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L.A trip! Any advice? Please share.

badanka

badanka

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Hello everyone,
Me and my 3 friends will travel to Los Angeles (and later to San Francisco) this summer, between the 7-28th June. We need help with where to go, where to not go etc. Please, help us out! We are not interested in starsightings and typical tourist activities. We like music (jazz, soul, hip hop), dancing, book stores, movies and the sun.

- Where should we live/not live? We have thought about Venice and/or Culver City.
Since the city is so big, is it a good idea to switch housing during the trip, and try different areas?

- Places to avoid?
(We are Swedes and don't want to be eaten up....)

- Where can we go dancing, clubs?
We want to avoid places where hysterical teenagers are.

- Are the communications really bad?
None of us has a driving license and we are planning to rent bicycles, walk and use the buses/sub way.

And hey, if anyone here wants to meet up for a coffee or something, let us know!

Thank you guys,
Annika & co.
 
lucky you!! have fun!
im dying to get to LA! or anywhere in America! haha
 
Nirvana said:
Take a gun....
Joking im not sure but if you have the new iphone that can help you out immensly on where you're going
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A gun, hahah! I think the fake ID's we will bring will be illegal enough..;)

Do you have any other tips, besides bringing the new iphone?
 
Whatever you do, stay away from Central L.A. and East L.A.
Seriously.:agree:

Keep closer to West L.A. instead. Or try Long Beach and Santa Monica.
If you're in the heart of Los Angeles, I can recommend you into checking out the music bar clubs in the Downtown area during evening/night time hours. I'm not sure of what they're all about but I have been to some that were hip hop driven clubs where mellow people hang, dance, drink and be merry.:)
They have been constantly renovating the nightlife with some cool hip hop bar clubs, etc. Not the best but its getting there.

Also check out Old Town Pasadena too. Great night life filled with hip hop and other genre hot spots. Many restaurants too.

Hit up China Town sometime. It's pretty neat.

Little Tokyo is also a nice place to visit if you never have. It's decent, nothing too crazy nor expensive. Once in a while, they book up clubs for hip hop and freestyle performers. The music center is also a couple of streets away from LT.

We have decent and still growing subway systems throughout. Taxi cabs, buses, etc. Biking around, well thats up to you. Really depends where you end up living. I myself don't have a car right now. So I mostly ride around the subway, take buses and taxi cabs or ride around with my best friend.

I live borderline East L.A. and Los Angeles. Right up Downtown, about 5 minutes away from the Staples Center actually.

And i hate it. lol. Would you like to trade places? :cheeky:

A lot of people here are pretty snobby. Beware of that. It's all styles and looks in one corner, then bitter and rough on the other.
 
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^ Uh-oh...you're scaring me. :lol: Nah, but thanks for the tips! Could do well for me too, if my internship is all working out (starting in September) I need to find me a place to live for a year which would be in L.A. Sooo...gonna keep that all in mind!

Any tips on where to live the cheapest and nicest way...? I don't wanna get caught up in that business life area.
I want to live more like in an inspiring, artful and youthfull place or something.:scratch:

Sorry for hijacking the thread, badanka!
 
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Mrs. Music said:
^ Uh-oh...you're scaring me. :lol: Nah, but thanks for the tips! Could do well for me too, if my internship is all working out (starting in September) I need to find me a place to live for a year which would be in L.A. Sooo...gonna keep that all in mind!

Any tips on where to live the cheapest and nicest way...? I don't wanna get caught up in that business life area.
I want to live more like in an inspiring, artful and youthfull place or something.:scratch:
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You're interning to work at Disneyland right? :)
I think you should find a place out in Anaheim, IMO. Anaheim is really nice. I hope I can move around that area some day myself. Just look hard. You might find something nice for a decent price.
Craigslist is a good place to start looking.

Like I said, just keep away from south/central Los Angeles and East Los Angeles.
Where I live, its not that bad, it's borderline ELA. But its pretty stale, nothing to look at but smog. lol. (im very biased against L.A. so bare with me here hahaha)

Cheaper solutions means having to suck up the crap it comes with.
Where I live, (a japanese owned apartment building) i pay only 675.00 a month, which is like nothing and very rare. (because the owner knows my family). But the rest of the tenants pay 800.00 - 900.00 a month.

You may have luck in a better area though. And L.A. is not that bad, but I really dislike it. I'm so tired of the people around here. No enthusiasm. Negative. Fake. Snobby. And the nice ones are hidden, apparently. Because I don't see them anywhere! hahaha. :p

I remember walking down the street and I smiled at a person just because, you know, you make eye contact and it would be weird not to smile or say hello or something. Well the person totally gave me a dirty look like "wtf".

:( so... yeah.
But then again, maybe its just my face. lmao. :doh:
 
Nar said:
You're interning to work at Disneyland right? :)
I think you should find a place out in Anaheim, IMO. Anaheim is really nice. I hope I can move around that area some day myself. Just look hard. You might find something nice for a decent price.
Craigslist is a good place to start looking.

Like I said, just keep away from south/central Los Angeles and East Los Angeles.
Where I live, its not that bad, it's borderline ELA. But its pretty stale, nothing to look at but smog. lol. (im very biased against L.A. so bare with me here hahaha)

Cheaper solutions means having to suck up the crap it comes with.
Where I live, (a japanese owned apartment building) i pay only 675.00 a month, which is like nothing and very rare. (because the owner knows my family). But the rest of the tenants pay 800.00 - 900.00 a month.

You may have luck in a better area though. And L.A. is not that bad, but I really dislike it. I'm so tired of the people around here. No enthusiasm. Negative. Fake. Snobby. And the nice ones are hidden, apparently. Because I don't see them anywhere! hahaha. :p

I remember walking down the street and I smiled at a person just because, you know, you make eye contact and it would be weird not to smile or say hello or something. Well the person totally gave me a dirty look like "wtf".

:( so... yeah.
But then again, maybe its just my face. lmao. :doh:
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Yeah I will! But the departments such as Imagineering, where I most likely will be going, are somewhere else in L.A. But then again it might be easier to live close to Disneyland and when it's a cool place, even better! :D

Hmm...800/900 is a normal price to hire a place here in Amsterdam too, you have a very nice appartment for that here. But I think I'm gonna need something more then. Well...I hope Disney's able to pay me a nice internship loan then. :lol: Better start saving even more from now on too.

I'm sorry you've kinda had it with L.A. It seems like a dream come true for me though...going there. But I do realise there's a lot of fakeness and stuff yeah...ah well..hope to just be able to get to the core of that part where there's cool abilities, ambition and passion etc. But first see if it works out and I'm actually getting there in the end....all in the works still.

And don't say it's your face, you silly! Those people are just being stupid, mehh.:smilerolleyes:
Thanks for the tips, it's hard finding things out when you got no clue where to start etc.
So really appreciate it!!! :huggy:
 
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Nar...tututut how can you advise that poor girl to take the bus..that's just cruel. XD

Mrs. Music I agree with Nar. If you're gonna work at Disney, find a place at Anaheim.
If you're gonna go to LA, try to find a place in Torrance. Really close to the city of Los Angeles and waaaay cheaper than Downtown or Santa Monica. Torrance ftw lol.
Oh, I hope everything works out for you..I might be moving back to LA so if you're there I so gonna visit you! I'm gonna visit you anyway if you're there, lots of Michael things to do! XD
 
snorlaaax said:
Nar...tututut how can you advise that poor girl to take the bus..that's just cruel. XD

Mrs. Music I agree with Nar. If you're gonna work at Disney, find a place at Anaheim.
If you're gonna go to LA, try to find a place in Torrance. Really close to the city of Los Angeles and waaaay cheaper than Downtown or Santa Monica. Torrance ftw lol.
Oh, I hope everything works out for you..I might be moving back to LA so if you're there I so gonna visit you! I'm gonna visit you anyways if you're there, lots of Michael things to do! XD
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Oh okay thanks for the info babe! And yeaaah you have to visit, Sils is coming over then too she said...whoop whoop!
Gonna be awesome. Hahaha! :wild:
 
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Nar said:
I remember walking down the street and I smiled at a person just because, you know, you make eye contact and it would be weird not to smile or say hello or something. Well the person totally gave me a dirty look like "wtf".
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Sound like the area where I live. So, if I would move there I don't notice the difference lol
To smile here at someone on the street and say ''hello'' can shock :bugeyed peope here lol they would think you're crazy or asking for troubles. :doh:
 
snorlaaax said:
Nar...tututut how can you advise that poor girl to take the bus..that's just cruel. XD

Mrs. Music I agree with Nar. If you're gonna work at Disney, find a place at Anaheim.
If you're gonna go to LA, try to find a place in Torrance. Really close to the city of Los Angeles and waaaay cheaper than Downtown or Santa Monica. Torrance ftw lol.
Oh, I hope everything works out for you..I might be moving back to LA so if you're there I so gonna visit you! I'm gonna visit you anyway if you're there, lots of Michael things to do! XD
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hahaha, well.. I survived. :tease:

Is Torrance really cheaper than the Downtown area today?? I better look into it.
I've been to Torrance and it looks nice. But I recall it being a bit too expensive for me.

I was actually thinking about leaving out to Toronto Canada actually. I hear its real nice out there. And a LOT cheaper than Cali.:)
 
FUJON said:
Sound like the area where I live. So, if I would move there I don't notice the difference lol
To smile here at someone on the street and say ''hello'' can shock :bugeyed peope here lol they would think you're crazy or asking for troubles. :doh:
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Hehe! Well I didnt exactly stop a person to smile and say hi. More like when you just walk by someone. Equivalent to saying "good day sir". :cheeky:
But hey, there you go. Maybe you wont notice a difference. :D
 
Nar said:
hahaha, well.. I survived. :tease:

Is Torrance really cheaper than the Downtown area today?? I better look into it.
I've been to Torrance and it looks nice. But I recall it being a bit too expensive for me.

I was actually thinking about leaving out to Toronto Canada actually. I hear its real nice out there. And a LOT cheaper than Cali.:)
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Oh, I HATE Metro lol. They sometimes just randomly don't show up or always come late. XD
It once took me 6 hours from school to home, while its actually a 10 minute drive, because all of the busdrivers send me the wrong direction. I just wanted to cry lol.

Well, I shouldn't be talking about Torrance being cheaper, because half of the 'houses' I looked at turned out to be mobile homes. XD But its a very nice place and the people are very friendly!

I've been to Toronto and I really enjoyed it, but I prefer Cali. I just love the beaches!! And if you stay out of Hollywood, I actually think that most of the people in LA are a lot more friendly than in Amsterdam.:p
 
I just found something I wrote a year ago, might help you out:
Visit the Jimmy Kimmel Show in Hollywood, it's free, just keep in mind to stay in line on time so you can see the show.

The Getty centre museum is also a fun place to visit, it's the coolest museum in LA. The art is ok, but the architecture and view are amazing! It's really cool.

If you like science the Griffith Park Observatory is also a nice place to visit, you can watch stars and laser shows.

If you're going to LA you just can't forget the Dodgers Stadium. If you're in the right season, visit one of their games! Don't eat the famous Dodger hot dog, they suck!

If you would like to visit an amusement park , I recommend Universal Studios. Don't go to Disney, its amazing, but it's too crowded and too big to see everything in one day. Take a ''behind the scenes tour'' to view the sets of series like Desperate housewives. They have nice and funny rides. Don't forget to walk around the Universal Citywalk, where you can go shopping, dining and see live concerts.

If you like bargains go shopping at Camarillo outlets, they have outlet stores like Adidas, Versace, Nike, ect.

If you wanna go shopping go to Melrose in Hollywood. It's this mix of vintage, designer and boutiques. You'll probably see lots of celebs overhere. Michael Jackson, Nicole Richie and Mischa Barton are often seen overthere.


If you wanna visit a park for the rollercoaster rides I recommend Magic Mountain, those rides are CRAZY!

Getty Villa in Malibu is quite interesting too, it's a reacreation of Pompeii before the Vesuvius erupted. It has nice gardens and art.

Something else I always enjoy is Hermosa Beach. It's not like a huge place to go shopping, but they have funny little boutiques. They have lots of funny gift shops with, eg books which have the title ''what to do when you're under 21'' and when you open the book, the whole book is empty and cheesy borat shirts. It's a real fun place to visit and walk around. They have some nice restaurants and bars. If I were you I should go on a tueseday and visit the Dragon Bar, say you're from the ef school (even if you're not) and you'll get food very cheap. like 2 taco's for $2 and free refills. It's also a great place to fool around and take pictures.
 
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Nar said:
We have decent and still growing subway systems throughout. Taxi cabs, buses, etc. Biking around, well thats up to you. Really depends where you end up living. I myself don't have a car right now. So I mostly ride around the subway, take buses and taxi cabs or ride around with my best friend.
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snorlaaax said:
Nar...tututut how can you advise that poor girl to take the bus..that's just cruel. XD
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Okay, I'm a bit confused regarding the public transports.. So it's horrible if you stay in the "wrong" area? I mean, we don't have a choice really. No car :/ I think the best thing for us is to switch housing during the stay. What do you think?

Long Beach, Venice and Santa Monica - how are the buses/tube there? Can you walk between these areas?

(And hi Snorlaaax, again!)
 
Larissa Jackson said:
I want to travel to USA near Mike´s birthday, I would like to be there and meet some fans, do you think we can make a Tribute?
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Great idea! I was actually thinking about it yesterday, if there were any plans for the 25th...? It's a bit tricky for me, that date, because in Sweden we "celebrate" Midsummer and dance around a tree, among other things, that day.. (why, I don't actually know). I don't know the plans yet, I will talk to my friends and see what they want. But I can guarantee that Lisa (my friend) and I will show up if there's a Michael-tribute or something that day. Maybe we'll go to FL.
 
badanka said:
Okay, I'm a bit confused regarding the public transports.. So it's horrible if you stay in the "wrong" area? I mean, we don't have a choice really. No car :/ I think the best thing for us is to switch housing during the stay. What do you think?

Long Beach, Venice and Santa Monica - how are the buses/tube there? Can you walk between these areas?

(And hi Snorlaaax, again!)
Click to expand...

It really depends on you. How you see and feel taking public transportation.
And of course, if you stay in the middle of nowhere, using public transportation can be a pain in the butt and take time getting used to. Probably even consider getting your drivers license and score a decent japanese car from the used lot. lol

A lot of people around here don't like to take public transports because they hate waiting around or don't research enough to know what buses to take or more than anything, don't like being around other people. lol.
You can look online for all transit stops and hours in the Los Angeles Area for both buses and subways when you move in.

I used to take bus rides in Santa Monica when attending AI (art isntitute), seminars for a short period of time. And I loved it.
I also took bus rides to Venice beach many times from L.A. to do murals, and I loved it too. But again, if you're a lil' prissy about bus rides because you don't like being around people or waiting for the next bus to come, then it might not be for you.
I was such a vagabond type, so I didn't mind. (when i was 18 i used to be homeless believe it or not. Just like Disney's Aladdin, except I didn't have a monkey to tag along with me. hehe)

You've never been here so you might appreciate it more.
This will be your first time here so you're going to have to adapt to your situation. You'll be alright. :dont_mention_it:
 
I've found your replies really helpful, Nar. I'm hoping to visit LA at some point so I really appreciate it. Thank you! :flowers: :heart:
 
badanka said:
Okay, I'm a bit confused regarding the public transports.. So it's horrible if you stay in the "wrong" area? I mean, we don't have a choice really. No car :/ I think the best thing for us is to switch housing during the stay. What do you think?

Long Beach, Venice and Santa Monica - how are the buses/tube there? Can you walk between these areas?

(And hi Snorlaaax, again!)
Click to expand...

I think it's different in every place. If you don't know your way around, it's just horrible! That’s how it was for me in my first month, I would always end at all these places except for home. xD I’m such a chaotic person :doh:. I ALWAYS come late (Mrs. Music knows more about that xD), so if I would miss a bus it would mean that I had to wait for another hour to catch the next one and loose a lot of time. Whenever I would be on the right spot at the right time, they sometimes just wouldn’t show up. xD I guess it's different in every place.

The ride however is lots of fun, there are always people talking to you. Nice way to get to know people, at least that’s how I saw it. :p


NOW I WANNA GO BACK! :(
 
Nar said:
It really depends on you. How you see and feel taking public transportation.
And of course, if you stay in the middle of nowhere, using public transportation can be a pain in the butt and take time getting used to. Probably even consider getting your drivers license and score a decent japanese car from the used lot. lol

A lot of people around here don't like to take public transports because they hate waiting around or don't research enough to know what buses to take or more than anything, don't like being around other people. lol.
You can look online for all transit stops and hours in the Los Angeles Area for both buses and subways when you move in.

I used to take bus rides in Santa Monica when attending AI (art isntitute), seminars for a short period of time. And I loved it.
I also took bus rides to Venice beach many times from L.A. to do murals, and I loved it too. But again, if you're a lil' prissy about bus rides because you don't like being around people or waiting for the next bus to come, then it might not be for you.
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Personally, I love to take the bus!! I can't even imagine a life with a driver license..Haha, that's me. So maybe LA is a good place for me?! But maybe not, gee!, I'm so scared of cars :s

Hahah, I see! It will be sooo interesting to see how LA-people behave. I wonder if we will see a typical LA-person. However, I do not expect fashionable clothings. Sorry, but this is my impression. Americans can not dress that well.
 
Snorlaaax,
Thank you for your perspectives, it's fun to read about your experiences in LA!

Can I ask you what you did in the city? Did you study?
 
badanka said:
Snorlaaax,
Thank you for your perspectives, it's fun to read about your experiences in LA!

Can I ask you what you did in the city? Did you study?
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Well... I just got bored and tired of The Netherlands, so one day I was just like ''Screw this..'' and packed my bags. I just needed something daring.

I signed up for this school overthere and stayed at a host family for a while and moved to my ''cousins'' couch after that. :p

At first I just felt so lost overthere. Everything was so big and different than what I'm used to, suddenly I needed to take care of everything on my own in a place I wasn't familiar with. But I really enjoyed every second overthere. I made such good friends overthere who I still miss a lot and it was definitely this ''party everyday'' life for me. :p

Argh, I just want to go back so badly. Looking for colleges, but everything is just so expensive when you don't have an American passport...
 
snorlaaax said:
Well... I just got bored and tired of The Netherlands, so one day I was just like ''Screw this..'' and packed my bags. I just needed something daring.

I signed up for this school overthere and stayed at a host family for a while and moved to my ''cousins'' couch after that. :p

At first I just felt so lost overthere. Everything was so big and different than what I'm used to, suddenly I needed to take care of everything on my own in a place I wasn't familiar with. But I really enjoyed every second overthere. I made such good friends overthere who I still miss a lot and it was definitely this ''party everyday'' life for me. :p

Argh, I just want to go back so badly. Looking for colleges, but everything is just so expensive when you don't have an American passport...
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Ahh so your originally from the Netherlands? :)

I want to go to the Netherlands so bad some day. I bet it's beautiful out there. I'm tired of my SoCal life. And you're absolutely right, it is party everyday around here.


BTW... I still want your DONUTS!!! *drools*
 
snorlaaax said:
I think it's different in every place. If you don't know your way around, it's just horrible! That’s how it was for me in my first month, I would always end at all these places except for home. xD I’m such a chaotic person :doh:. I ALWAYS come late (Mrs. Music knows more about that xD), so if I would miss a bus it would mean that I had to wait for another hour to catch the next one and loose a lot of time. Whenever I would be on the right spot at the right time, they sometimes just wouldn’t show up. xD I guess it's different in every place.

The ride however is lots of fun, there are always people talking to you. Nice way to get to know people, at least that’s how I saw it. :p


NOW I WANNA GO BACK! :(
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Hahahahahah yeah..you are aaaaalways late. LOL. But it isn't that bad.
I can totally picture you running all stressed out in the streets over there... :lmao:

Nar said:
I want to go to the Netherlands so bad some day. I bet it's beautiful out there. I'm tired of my SoCal life. And you're absolutely right, it is party everyday around here.
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Then come over, Nar! We can help you around in Amsterdam and give you some tips on what to do and see. :cheeky:
 
^it was like that everyday lol! And you know how clumbsy I am, I would always miss my stop! XD

Nar, wanna trade places lol? Yeah, you def. need to come over!! It's this winterwonderland right now. Come over and I'll give a tour for free! :D
 
Im coming over on the 20th June so I will be there for the 25th.
There are so many places I want/need to visit that are MJ related like south Pacific Ave were of course the greatest home video of all time was shot and the Palace theater.
I would love too see the house that was used in the film too.
Also Im not coming over and not going to NeverLand.
I will be staying by the airport so if anyone could give me any help or advice how to get around and to get to these places it will be very much appreciated.
I will only be over for 10 days so I will need all the help I can get as these are places I have too see.
 
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