Too much baggage, too much sun, too much fun!

Day 1- Flight to LA/ Hollywood

We had a very early morning flight to L.A. After a late night and too much wine it was a sad and teary goodbye to the parents and Carley and I departed on the first leg of our adventure. I planned on sleeping the whole way to L.A. but Air Canada has installed new personal screen to view and movie or television show you desire. So I stayed up watching movies of course! After we landed, we waited at the airport for our friend Devin to arrive. She’s been to L.A. twice this year already and was more than happy to not only come along, but plan the whole trip (thank you Devo!!) After we picked up our rental car and checked into hotel we attempted to take advantage of the nice weather and swim but the pool was ice cold. Who knew that LA pool water could be cold? We stayed in the heart of Hollywood, and spent the rest of the day on Hollywood Blvd walking around looking at the shops, Chinese Theater, Kodak Theater, etc. Hollywood was rather grungy and a bit run down. We returned to the hotel where we all crashed and napped. Wasn’t keen on going out to the bar but was forcefully convinced by Devin to spend Saturday night out on the town; turned out to be a good decision to do so. Went to a bar called Beauty Bar set up like a 50’s salon then over to a bar that was overpriced and had scummy people. But an overall fun night. Was glad I went out.

Day 2- L.A/ Dearly Departed Tour/ The Grove and Farmer’s Market

Slept in a bit this morning, slowly recovering from the night before. Headed out to the Grove which is an outdoor shopping area; very beautiful and a lot going on. Next to it was the Farmer’s Market which is home to infinite delicious food and more food! Set out on our Dearly Departed tour at 1pm. This tour takes you around Beverly Hills mostly and West LA to view where celebs have either died, or been murdered. Current celebrity homes and areas were also thrown in by our zealous tour guide. Beverly Hills was absolutely stunning. The houses and landscaping were immaculate. Most celeb homes weren’t visible due to strategically placed flora! After the tour was finished we did our own self guided tours up in the hills. Probably one of my favorite parts of LA was just driving around on our own. That night we succumb to the fatigue and went to bed early.

Day 3- LA/ Santa Monica and Venice Beach/ Beauty Bar and Big Wangs

The best day of the trip! Drove up to Venice beach and walked along the boardwalk looking at the shops and cheap souvenirs. We decided to rent bikes at Venice Beach and ride them all the way up to Santa Monica Pier. Had lunch and Bubba Gump’s Shrimp Restaurant…had the shrimp! Walked around the pier and rode the Ferris wheel. It was quite foggy so the view was dismal, but it was still fun. From there we rode up to the 3^rd St Promenade which is a closed off street for shopping. This is where we got wrapped up in a television show; ‘10 Years Younger’. So watch it in a couple months we’ll be on it! Rode back to Venice beach to return our bikes. I convinced Carley and Devin to come down to the ocean and dip our feet in…we ended up swimming next to some surfers as the sun set. Ate dinner at a sushi bar where we met some Norwegian girls whom we took out to Beauty Bar and Big Wangs sports bar. It was a good last night in LA.

Day 4- LA/ Universal City Walk/ Hollywood Sign/ Flight to Fiji

The last day of LA where we needed to cram in everything else! In the morning we checked out of our hotel and got Devin to her new hostel. Afterwards we went to few shops but were easily bored so we went to Universal Music to meet some of Devin’s coworkers and see the City Walk which is just a bunch of movie themed shops. I wasn’t feeling well that day so I was a bit of a bummer, but I perked up when we took a drive to see the Hollywood sign. You can’t get right up to it, but you can get a good close view on a narrow residential street in the hills. Last stop was Target of course and then a quick dinner at the Sizzler….so American! A hectic run through LAX and we were on our way to FIJI!

Stay tuned for Fiji…