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Heading to L.A.


The Dude

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Another co-worker and I are heading to L.A.(Whitter to be exact)for work here in a couple weeks. We won't have much time other than Monday when we fly in early that day. Anything worth checking out that afternoon/evening that won't get us lost?

 

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Hey Man ... Whittier ain't exciting -- any town USA; but you can always check out some sites before you head there.  I suppose you're flying into LAX or Hollywood/Burbank? 

What are your interests?  Touristy stuff?   Walk down Hollywood Blvd, check out the crazy people at Venice Beach, Griffith Park Observatory is cool.  What time do you arrive in LA?  Hopefully early, if your plane lands from 3 to 6 pm, plan to spend your first 90 -120 minutes on sitting on the freeway. 

Let me know if you're looking for anything in particular ... a lot of stuff in that area. The beach isn't far from the airport if you just want to go hang out and get some sun before you head to Whittier. 

 

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Hey Man ... Whittier ain't exciting -- any town USA; but you can always check out some sites before you head there.  I suppose you're flying into LAX or Hollywood/Burbank? 
What are your interests?  Touristy stuff?   Walk down Hollywood Blvd, check out the crazy people at Venice Beach, Griffith Park Observatory is cool.  What time do you arrive in LA?  Hopefully early, if your plane lands from 3 to 6 pm, plan to spend your first 90 -120 minutes on sitting on the freeway. 
Let me know if you're looking for anything in particular ... a lot of stuff in that area. The beach isn't far from the airport if you just want to go hang out and get some sun before you head to Whittier. 
 
I thought the air port was orange something or another, but have to check.

I'm into people watching, which may be overwhelming for the guy coming along as he normally sticks to the country side around here.

We should be landing around 9/10 a.m. as we chose an earlier flight to avoid as much traffic as possible.

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1 hour ago, The Dude said:

I thought the air port was orange something or another, but have to check.

as Schu indicated, you're probably flying into John Wayne/Orange County Airport.   Toss up as the distance from OC Airport to Whittier and from LAX to Whittier is about the same (in miles).  I use to drive past that airport every morning on my way to work -- I lived in Huntington Beach back in those days. Traffic is unpredictable. I used to get off work at 2:30 and the 405 Freeway was already jammed. But, once I left at 5:00 to go to a Laker game and hardly touched the brakes the entire drive into the city of Los Angeles (okay, I admit that was a fluke and has only happened once in my life and I lived there for a VERY long time). 

Huntington is a nice beach city ... some good food, good pier to walk on, plus a paved bike/walking path. 

if you get in at 10, you can still get a rental car and drive into LA for the day and get to your hotel in Whittier by dinner. 

I've had to play tour guide for visitors before ... I took them wherever they wanted to go. Usual places they wanted to see was Venice Beach, Santa Monica Pier, certain eateries that they'd seen on television.  Once a friend wanted to go to a studio, so we went to NBC and did a tour then sat in the audience for a Jay Leno Tonight Show. 

if you want to go directly from OC Airport to your hotel, at that time of day, you should make it within an hour. It's only about 30 miles and a very easy drive -- little chance of getting lost. You'll take the 405 North to the 605 North and that will take you into Whittier. there is another freeway route to get you to the I5 freeway; but, that section of the I5 and me have a mutual dislike for each other. 

If you want to buy some inexpensive Christmas gifts, there is a section of Los Angeles called Santee Alley that is like a flea market and you can buy some clothing items and other stuff very cheap. Not sure how COVID has changed it though. I know people, with very large families, and go there to Christmas Shop because they save a ton of money. 

Probably want to avoid Disneyland, I heard yesterday that they've jacked up the entry price to $169.

Zillion concert venues ... Universal Ampitheatre is close by; but not sure if there are any good concerts on your days there. 

VERY good Mexican food all over that area. 

When you fly in, pay close attention to the ships lined up for the LA/LB Port Complex -- I saw on the news the other day that there are now over a hundred container ships waiting to come into the port. I doubt they'll have the problem solved by the time of your trip. I remember once there were like 40 ships waiting and it looked insane, I can't imagine seeing 100 of them. Guess you could walk from one deck to the next all the way to Catalina Island. 

 

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1 hour ago, babadono said:

Saw Johnny Carson tape a show on my first trip out here......back when late night comedians were comedians.

as said, I went to a jay Leno taping; but I don't even remember who the guests were.  I'm curious now, I'll have to email my buddy and see if he remembers. 

the fun part was knowing that my friend was experiencing something that he normally doesn't get to do, so I don't mind playing tour guide. last time he was on the west coast, he brought his wife and a list of restaurants and bakeries that they'd seen on the Food Network, so we went to them. One of the little dives in a strip mall became my "go to" breakfast joint. Never ordered it; but the chicken fried steak came on it's own LARGE plate, then a second plate for a ton of hash browns and the eggs. 

I used to get three eggs over easy, hashbrowns, and they gave a whole stick of linguica. 

Would have told The Dude to go eat at this dive ... great Mexican food; but there are some gangs in that area and I wouldn't feel right sending someone there that isn't familiar with settings like that. Funny story is that the workers all speak Spanish and I don't. So, when I first started going there, I hoped for a ticket with the numbers 1 - 10 ... since I knew that much Spanish. I ended up with number 147 or something. So, I decided that the first number called, I'd walk up to the counter and play dumb. The cute gal working there took my ticket and laughed and shook her head no.  Then when my order was ready, she just pointed to me and held up my food. There are only about four stools at a counter there, so I always took the food home. 

Not an authentic Mexican joint; but when I lived in Huntington, I used to go to a place called Fred's. Right on PCH across from the pier. Not bad food and nice large scooners of beer. It's an upstairs joint, has a nice balcony with tables, good view of the ocean. 

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6 hours ago, The Dude said:

 

Another co-worker and I are heading to L.A.(Whitter to be exact)for work here in a couple weeks. We won't have much time other than Monday when we fly in early that day. Anything worth checking out that afternoon/evening that won't get us lost?

 

 Glendora , is pretty close to Whittier ,  the Donut Man is open 24-7   httip://www.thedonutmanca.com/ 

if you like smoked meat  , you 're in for a treat -- my 1st stop would be Langer's Deli  /  steps  from Mac Arthur Park  -https://www.langersdeli.com/

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10 hours ago, babadono said:

If I only had a few hours I'd go to the beach..grab some Mexican grub at the smallest hole in the wall joint you stumble across, have a brewski and enjoy the scenery.

Thats more than likely what we will end up doing, sounds like Huntington Beach may be a decent one. 

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Join my trip advisor...  Slip over to Venice and have some fun!  Steve ain't got nuttin on me...  Grab 12 Hard Ciders, a good Cuban, and go find a seat.  Don't forget your creatin.  Yea, it's worth it...  Don't forget your mirrors either!  😂 :)

 

 

 

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was at Venice beach one day with a friend. we stopped briefly to watch this dude doing some sort of dance. there's a fair sized crowd watching him. several of us start to walk off and the guy gets militant and starts yelling that people watched his show now they have to pay.  Sorry dude, I'm late for my appointment with the medical marijuana doctor ... it's going to take me a while to find my doc since there are pot doctors every 20 feet there. 

 

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11 hours ago, The Dude said:

Thats the one

super easy airport to get in and out of. Huntington Beach is just 10 miles North. Main Street in Huntington is full of eateries. No map needed ... find the pier and if you walk away from the ocean, you're on Main Street.  They've probably already ended the entertainment ... during the summer, they set up a stage and various bands play. But, if you enjoy being near the ocean ... it's a lovely way to spend the day. 

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