Flew into L.A. around 9 hours before I actually left Fiji (international dateline rocks!) and I kid you not, I could see the brown cloud before I could see land.
Upon landing though and walking around outside it's not really that bad on the ground, no worse than Melbourne on a bad day, and certainly better than parts af Cambodia and Vietnam.My hostel was in Hollywood right on Hollywood Boulevard with the walk of fame and Kodak theatre (where the oscars are) just down the road.
Jimi you are my god
That day was the premiere of a new Leonardo Di Caprio movie so I trotted up the road as soon as I had a bed and spent the next two hours standing in the sun surrounded by shrieking teenage girls. The great man actually came right over to fence and was seriously like a metre away but of course my camera had died ten minutes earlier.
Anyway here is a limo and some peoples backs:
Early next morning was off to Vegas in a bus with barely passable aircon on without a doubt the hottest day of my life. Not sure what 110 degrees is in celsius but I was melting. At the bus station was a guy from Chicago who did a break dance for me for 2 bucks:
Was pretty pooped when I arrived and it was getting dark but after checking into my sweet pad it was off for a walk around.
The Mirage
With Volcano out the front.....
Fountains at the Bellagio
New York New York
After a dinner of chipotle (sooooo tasty mexican food) It was back out for some beers and to "see what happens".
What happened was that I hung out with wasted Americans in a couple of clubs on the strip opposite the Mirage, drank beers on the street and smoked inside (ahhhhhh luxury.....) and didn't actually do any gambling at all. I kept meaning to go into the casino but just didn't really feel like it after working so hard for my money. Oh well it would have been a pretty dangerous start to the trip that's for sure...............
Another stinking hot bus back to L.A. (It took a whole day each way) and an early night then up again in Hollywood.
The next day I hiked up to the Hollywood sign for nice views and some nature (squirrels, rabbits, a big lizard and two hummingbirds) and back to town for some greasy chicken, only 2 bucks for four pieces, God bless America.
Another early night and down here to Venice. I'm off to Muscle beach in a bit for some freak watching and possibly a swim and then maybe a couple of beers (6 bucks for a six pack of Fosters!!!!) and 4am start for Mexico.
This corner of the world is a pretty full on place and while it would be easy to leave with a somewhat less than complementary impression of the American way of life (massive cars, healthy food very hard to find, homeless people everywhere) I have been urged, almost begged by several of the locals to get out and see more of the country to get a more rounded view, and I really would love to at some stage. What I saw of the desert from the bus was interesting enough to explore further. Still I had a fair idea of what I was looking for in California and I surely wasn't disappointed.
Another place to come back to.........
P.S. Here is Hooters Jen, I popped in but was too hungry to wait for a table.
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