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Things to do, Places of Interest and Attractions in Los Angeles California

Things to do Places of Interest and Attractions in Los Angeles California

There are so many things to do and attractions in Los Angeles California! Let’s find out what are the things to do right here in LA! If you have been following our posts, we did mention that we sneaked a short tour out of Las Vegas to visit Los Angeles California!

Road Trip to Los Angeles California!
Road Trip to Los Angeles California!

For a Singaporean, it is not common to see deserts or mountain ranges. So it was really a different experience as we rode across the desert terrain…

Desert Terrain on route to Los Angeles California
Desert Terrain on route to Los Angeles California

The distance from Las Vegas to Los Angeles was about 400km and it took us about 3 hours or so to reach there. Hmm, just a thought…wonder how long it would take for people to shift stuff from your house from Vegas to LA and vice versa…

Arriving in Los Angeles
Arriving in Los Angeles

Santa Monica

Our first stop in California is Santa Monica! Kate and I (well…mostly Kate) wanted very much to visit Santa Monica because of the many many times this venue has been featured in movies and partly because of the Savage Garden song of the same name. The following should be some familiar views of the Santa Monica Pier…

View of Santa Monica Beach from end of Santa Monica Pier
View of Santa Monica Beach from end of Santa Monica Pier
View of Ferris Wheel and Roller Coaster at Santa Monica (With Light)
View of Ferris Wheel and Roller Coaster at Santa Monica (With Light)

There, we had a romantic walk down the beach and of course along the Santa Monica Pier and to see the iconic ferris wheel. To end the day, we enjoyed the sunset along with corn dogs (excellent creation btw) and drinks…

Breath Taking Sunset @ Santa Monica
Breath Taking Sunset @ Santa Monica

Hollywood Sign

The following day, we set out to see the famous Hollywood Sign. We did some research on our own and found out that great views could be seen from Mulholland Drive.

Hollywood Sign as seen from Mulholland Drive
Hollywood Sign as seen from Mulholland Drive

From this picture, it seems a little small. This is mainly due to our not so professional camera (any sponsors out there?) However, with the naked eye, the view was breath-taking. There was also excellent views of the LA city skyline…

View of Downtown LA from Mulholland Drive Scenic Point
View of Downtown LA from Mulholland Drive Scenic Point

Hollywood Boulevard

Since we were at Hollywood, the most famous street there has got to be Hollywood Boulevard. There we visited the famous Kodak Theatre where we had a good view of the Hollywood sign as well. The Kodak Theatre is also home to the Oscars as well as the American Idol…

View of the Hollywood sign from Kodak Theatre
View of the Hollywood sign from Kodak Theatre

The nearby Grauman’s Chinese Theatre is also a famous tourist attraction not only because it is a prime venue for Hollywood movie premieres but also of its tradition of imprinting the hands and feets of celebrities at its fore court.

Grauman's Chinese Theatre Hollywood Boulevard
Grauman’s Chinese Theatre Hollywood Boulevard
Movie Premiere at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre
Movie Premiere at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre

We also managed to catch a glimpse of some B list celebrities (Basically those whom you know are celebrities as you have seen them in movies but cant really pin point there names because they just played that odd role in the movie you’ve watched. ) at the movie premiere of Going the Distance (starring Justin Long and Drew Barrymore). Nope, we did not see either of the stars but we did see many limousines picking up well dressed people (directors, producers and rich people we reckon) and of course screaming fans.

Walking along the Hollywood Walk of Fame, we managed to also identify familiar stars of our favourite celebrities. Here we found out that celebrities were classified according to the 5 categories namely; Movies,TV,Radio,Theatre and Music

The Hollywood Walk of Fame and its 5 categories
The Hollywood Walk of Fame and its 5 categories

There are also other sights that you ought to catch when you’re here in Hollywood…

Beverly Hills Sign
Beverly Hills Sign

Where the rich and famous live. This district was made famous by a TV series of the same name Beverly Hills 90210

Sunset Boulevard California
Sunset Boulevard California

A great hangout place to just chill and enjoy the sunset.

Rodeo Drive
Rodeo Drive

Luxury brands can be found here. Though many shopping belts like Oxford Street, Champs Elysees and even Orchard Road carry these luxury brand names, Rodeo Drive offers a classy feel and even a hope of a glimpse of celebrities!

Los Angeles California

Kate then planned a walking tour of Los Angeles city. I just told her that we have got to visit the Staples Centre, the rest was up to her.

First, we visited Chinatown

Chinatown from the station (Los Angeles)
Chinatown from the station (Los Angeles)
Map of Chinatown Los Angeles, California
Map of Chinatown Los Angeles, California
Shops in Chinatown Los Angeles, California
Shops in Chinatown Los Angeles, California

Passing by a cantonese dim sum shop, we dropped by to have some egg tarts and char siew bao. They tasted nice, but in a different way.

Char Siew Bao from Chinatown LA
Char Siew Bao from Chinatown LA

A short walk away was the famous Philippe Original French Dipped Sandwich which we saw from Man vs Food on Travel Channel. We had to try it not only because it was recommended on MVF, but also because we had tried another version at Di Nic’s @ Reading Terminal Philadelphia.

Counter of Philippe - The Original French Dipped Sandwich
Counter of Philippe – The Original French Dipped Sandwich
Pork Sandwich from Philippe
Pork Sandwich from Philippe

After the food tasting, we pronounced Di Nic’s the winner. The sandwich from Philippe was quite tough even after the dip. The roast was also not as tasty as that of Di Nic’s as well.

Next begun our city tour!

Fountains Los Angeles
Fountains Los Angeles
LA City Skyline
LA City Skyline

We also armed ourselves with Starbucks coffee which tasted really good at an affordable price as well (slightly less than 3 bucks a cuppa)

Java Chip Frap and Ice Coffee with Milk
Java Chip Frap and Ice Coffee with Milk

We then arrived at the Staples Center…

Staples Center Los Angeles California
Staples Center Los Angeles California

We were at the home of the LA Lakers! (think Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson).

Statue of Magic Johnson at Staples Center
Statue of Magic Johnson at Staples Center

At the souvenir shop, we realised that the Staples Center was home to 4 teams – the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings and the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks!

We also popped by the Grand Central Market

Grand Central Market Los Angeles California
Grand Central Market Los Angeles California

and Little Tokyo…

Streets of Little Tokyo Los Angeles California
Streets of Little Tokyo Los Angeles California
Tower at Little Tokyo Los Angeles California
Tower at Little Tokyo Los Angeles California

When you see this tower, you know that you are at Little Tokyo. Here, you’ve got to try some Japanese food. We had a salad, the Char Su Ramen (Extra Large at 9.7USD) as well as the Pork Curry Rice at 8.20USD. The servings were huge and the taste was great! The Char Su was full of flavour and had a succulent texture to it! Yum!

Yummy Salad Little Tokyo Los Angeles
Yummy Salad Little Tokyo Los Angeles
Cha Su Ramen Little Tokyo Los Angeles
Cha Su Ramen Little Tokyo Los Angeles
Pork Curry Rice Little Tokyo Los Angeles
Pork Curry Rice Little Tokyo Los Angeles

We also had a nice stroll through the Mexican Market at Olvera Street where you would see mexican souvenirs, small guitars and traditional costumes. The walk through was shaded and had some lanes that you can visit and explore as well…

Mexican Market at Olvera Street
Mexican Market at Olvera Street

Nearby was the Union Station

Union Station Los Angeles California
Union Station Los Angeles California
Interior of the Union Station
Interior of the Union Station

Verdict

There are so many things to do, places of interest as well as attractions in California. The city of Los Angeles can provide nice walking tours while Hollywood exudes a different class of its own.

Be it the beach, the high life or the city, Los Angeles certainly makes a great visit for tourists and locals alike!

P.S. Did you know that Los Angeles means “The Angels” which is why the city has also a nickname of “The city of Angels”

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The Hollywood Walk of Fame and its 5 categories

Hollywood Walk of Fame

After visiting Grauman’s Chinese Theatre as well as the Kodak Theatre, Kate and I took a walk along the Hollywood Walk of Fame…

Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame

The Hollywood Walk of Fame stretches for about 2km it consists of mainly a star bearing an artiste or celebrities’ name that formally comes from these 5 categories

1. Movies
2. TV
3. Radio
4. Music
5. Theatre/Live Performance

The Hollywood Walk of Fame and its 5 categories
The Hollywood Walk of Fame and its 5 categories

Turns out that as we walked along the Hollywood walk of fame, we were so distracted and kept looking at the floor, thinking which celebrity would be next! Sometimes we would barely avoid oncoming pedestrians who must have thought, “What are these crazy tourists doing? Dont walk and look down at the same time!”

But that’s what we did!

It was fun to find stars that we know (because there were so many of them!) and these are just a few that we spotted…

Eva Marie's Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Eva Marie’s Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Star of Elvis Presley along the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Star of Elvis Presley along the Hollywood Walk of Fame

The next time you are at the Hollywood Walk of Fame, try to locate the stars of your favourite artistes/celebrities. BUT! Be careful of oncoming (pedestrian) traffic!

Tourists on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Tourists on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

P.S. You may also like to know that you need not travel all the way to Hollywood to see the walk of fame. There are also replicas at your nearest Universal Studios!

P.S.s. Did you know that stars are given only nominated artistes and these artistes can be nominated by anyone. However, there are 2 catches. 1. Groups or people who nominate must pay about $30,000 for the fabrication of the stars. 2. The celebrity must attend the ceremony. If deceased, family members must attend on his/her behalf. No one really knows how the selection goes (done by a selection committee) after the nomination…

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Grauman’s Chinese Theatre Hollywood

Footprints, Handprints and Signatures at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre Hollywood!

The Grauman’s Chinese Theatre was built in 1927 and resides along Hollywood Boulevard. It is actually a movie theatre and today still holds premiere for many of Hollywood’s most anticipated movies!

Grauman's Chinese Theatre Hollywood Boulevard
Grauman’s Chinese Theatre Hollywood Boulevard

The Grauman’s Chinese Theatre was built by none other than Sid Grauman. He is also credited with the building of the Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre just further down the road.

The reason why the Chinese Theatre is alot of more famous and popular than its Egyptian counterpart is not only because of its uniquely classy traditional Chinese structure, but also because its fore court is home to the various handprints, footprints and signatures of artistes and celebrities.

Donald Duck's Footprint at Grauman's Chinese Theatre
Donald Duck’s Footprint at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre

Famous characters such as Donald Duck also got their chance to leave their mark at the fore court of the Chinese Theatre. This means that now, not only real life celebrities get to imprint their mark on the fore court of the Chinese Theatre, as long as your’re famous, you might have the chance to do so! *The Kind of Pop, Michael Jackson will also be immortalised on 26 Jan 2012.

Julie Andrews Grauman's Chinese Theatre
Julie Andrews Grauman’s Chinese Theatre

At the fore court of the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, there is usually a HUGE crowd gathered there. Most are trying to take a photo with the imprints of their favourite celebrities while others are on tours of the Chinese Theatre, listening intently to the stories of their tour guides.

There are several stories as to how this tradition of immortalising handprints/footprints/signatures of celebrities/famous people started. The more common one often refer to a female celebrity who happened to step on the cement of the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre during construction. Sid Grauman thought that this was a good idea for famous people to leave their mark, then started this tradition.

The other version says that Sid himself made the mark and started the tradition. Whatever the story, today, it is a well loved tourist attractions for fans and tourists alike to get “close” to their beloved celebrities.

The huge crowd also presented a problem for Kate as she went about to take the photos. People were everywhere! Hence, this Harry Potter imprint had other avid potter fans in it as well…

Main Casts of Harry Potter Imprints at Grauman's Chinese Theatre
Main Casts of Harry Potter Imprints at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre

Besides trying to haunt and hound your favourite celebrities in Hollywood, you might like to try catching them at the movie premieres at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. An easy way to do so is to look up the dates of upcoming premieres at the Chinese Theatre’s website and be there really early to get a good spot. Premieres are usually star studded events and fans will not be disappointed.

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