MANifest Destiny: Los Angeles

Growing up in Dallas and living in New York I’d never spent much time on the west coast, but I decided to head west for 8 days. The drive would take me up the coast to find out for myself whether the west truly was the best coast or just easier to rhyme than east. It was a week long journey that I will share a portion of each day, so caulk your wagons and join me on… MANifest Destiny.

Day 2 & 3

I know movies, I know TV and I know way more about pop culture than most, but I know nothing about LA. Don’t believe me? It took numerous attempts at trying “Las Angeles” in the navigation before giving up and typing in West Hollywood. That’s right; we didn’t even attempt Los Angeles (the correct spelling in case there are more of us out there). However, we made it to LA now with an IQ worthy of our own Bravo show.

I’d previously spent one night in West Hollywood and knew two things: it’s trendy and celebrities. Friends of LA laughed at my choice, but with a limited time in LA that’s the lifestyle I wanted to see. So, we bar hopped our first night from the trendy overpriced bars of the Sunset Tower, The Standard and finished our night at Bar Marmont. And while only one local friend reluctantly agreed to meet us I enjoyed every second: great views, drinks, and food. Plus, it reminded me of that feeling I used to have when I first moved to New York where anyone could be somebody important and while they still could, reality of the city has set in and now I just want to drink more than I care.

Having two nights in LA we checked out Santa Monica for lunch and then drove through Beverly Hills. Beverly Hills has big homes which are always cool to see, but the shopping area and Rodeo Dr. were quite a letdown. Sure, there were expensive stores and I’m sure good restaurants, but the whole area had the charm and character of a suburban strip mall.

Having been privilege to a heat wave we were pretty burnt out by night fall and retired early to rest up for the drive to Santa Barbara. I also had to tend to my burns I obtained driving to LA in my effort to achieve a “base tan.” I guess you could say it worked.