UnHip LA

Chicago versus L.A.  (Note: I was staying in a suburb of Chicago.)

1. Public restrooms in Chicago do not use paper toilet seat covers that much.  I only encountered these two times in my 1.5 week stay.  Do Chicagoans not care about germs as much as Angelenos?  Do they know something we don’t know?

2. Ice cream/milkshakes/sundaes are heavily advertised out in Chicago.  Green tea froyo?  The Pinkberry influenza has not hit the Chicago ‘burbs yet.

3. Lush greenness does exist…in the Midwest.  

4. Keen brand footwear is very popular in Chi-town.  I bought a pair of the clownish trekking shoes myself.  They are like having your feet in bumper cars with Tempurpedic cushioning underneath them.  They’re seriously arch-wear foot heaven.  When I wear them, my feet are constantly being massaged. I did not notice Keens in L.A., but then again, I have not been looking at people’s feet that much either.  Are Keens prevalent in L.A.?  Anyone know?  (Tip - If you have small feet and you’re female, you could buy children’s Keens and save about $50.  Figure out your kids’ size by subtracting 2 or 1.5 from your adult size.  For example, a woman’s 6 would be around a kid’s 4.)

 

I’m not saying Chicago is better than L.A.; it’s just refreshingly different. 

 

The world’s largest food festival is in Chicago and it begins today, June 27, and goes till July 6.

www.tasteofchicago.us 

 

Chicago-style pizza pie.  Yummy! 

*** UPDATE ***
We went to this today.  It was very crowded but the weather was just perfect, cool and a little humid. The weather here in Chicago is still such a relief to me coming from the scorching temperatures of L.A.  I now embrace humidity like a long lost friend.  Okay, so back to the Taste.  The food I had was tasty but it’s really not worth bucking the crowds for it.  I can’t even remember the names of the places I ate at.  For shame.  What surprisingly was fun was the $4 ferris wheel ride with great views of Chicago.  After eating, we headed to Millennium Park which was super fun.  I wish I could have stayed longer there but my nephew had turned into a big ball of whining mess so we had to leave.  Chicagoans are so lucky to have Millennium Park with its outdoor Gehry-designed concert hall, Great Lawn, huge silver bean statue called "Cloud Gate", and the Crown Fountain which is not your typical fountain.  (There’s way more in this public park too, with an excellent free calendar of events.). Millennium Park runs circles around any public art space / park us meager Angelenos have.  If I could get the virus off my SD card, I would load my pictures.  I want a sliver bean statue in L.A.! 

(Photo source: Flickr)  Silver bean, where have you bean all my life? 

(Photo source)  This is the Crown Fountain.  It’s two 50 foot, glass block towers that have rotating images of Chicagoan faces within them.  Water cascades off the towers like a waterfall and the images also spit water at the crowds, like fish or gargoyles in a fountain would.  It’s a major splash fest and in the middle of the two fountains, there is a huge puddle of water to play in.  It’s a water fountain without borders.  Some kids were prepared already in their bathing suits. 

For great pictures of the park, please click here.  This blogger has wonderful pictures! 

 

 

I wish I lived in Chicago so that I could go to the free Saturday Millenium Park Workouts, June 7 to September 27.  The schedule sounds so fun:  Yoga - 8 am, Pilates - 9 am, Dance - 10 am, Tai Chi -7 am, and Kids and Family workouts at 11 am.  Just click this link to see the great pictures of happy Chicagoans working out in their fabulous Millenium Park.  Pictured above.  This is what L.A. needs - one big happy family workout.

The Dance workouts feature different styles of dance: hip hop, salsa, modern, and in September, it’s four Saturdays of the Chicago Bollywood Explosion with Shamila Khetarpal.  There are also workouts called Body Combat, Kung Fu Hustle, and Get Moving with Ronald McDonald.  Way to do some public programming Chicago! 

Wouldn’t you like to workout in front of this thingy?   Frank Gehry of L.A.’s Disney Concet Hall designed this outdoor concert hall in Millenium Park. 

 

(Source: Flickr) 

Click here for another post on Millennium Park with pictures.

I remember on the last day of elementary school in Ohio, the bus driver would make a special stop at the ice cream store and treat us all to a cone.  Today, fast forward a few decades, I was riding on a trolley in Illinois with my sister and her children.  We got on the wrong trolley but the driver said he would take us to our stop anyway. (The trolley is really a bus decked up to be a trolley with real wood seats.)  After a few stops, the trolley driver said over his rock and roll music, "Oops, I forgot to take you to your stop."  We said, no problem, as the kids seemed to enjoy sliding around on the wood seats. 

Well, a half an hour later, we were all getting kind of sea sick, the kids had fallen silent, and finally, we made it to our stop.  I saw my sister and the trolley driver exchange some money and I was like, Why is she giving him a tip?  The trolley is free. I looked at the driver who smiled back at me through his rear view mirror.  Ooh, creepy moment, I thought.  Turns out, he gave us the money to get ice cream for the kids because he felt bad for our long ride.  Can you believe that?  I feel bad for thinking he was creepy.  He was just nice.  He was missing a few teeth though.  This happened in a town where the Costco employees get hugs from shoppers’ children, and shopping at Ikea is a peaceful experience rather than a chaotic one such as in the Burbank Ikea which, to me, always seems like a packed street fair, and a major shopping ordeal to be avoided.

(Source: below)

I remember a long time ago when I was riding the RTD bus on Wilshire Boulevard, when the driver actually pulled over and yelled at us (adults) for something.  I think it was because people were standing in the stairwell.  I also remember sitting with cockroaches on that bus.  Anyhow, I digress.  $4 for ice cream and a free trolley ride!  Thanks Midwest!

If you’d like to take a trip down RTD bus memory lane, go here http://members.aol.com/gsoma/labuspage.html.  There’s actually a site for L.A. Bus fetishists.  Could someone actually love buses more than this pigeon?

The Midwestern town I am staying in is 88% white.  I was walking in a beautiful park here, enjoying the moist, cool, fresh air, and had one ear listening to This American Life.  Then it happened.  A white male, probably in his 30s, smiled at me and said, "Ni Hao!"  Welcome to the Midwest, I thought.  Another time I visited this area, a black man asked me if I was Jackie Chan’s sister.  Hahahaha. 

I feel guilty that you’re all sweltering, while I’m enjoying moist cool air in the Chicago area.  I never thought I would say this, but humidity can be good.  I’m also cold here.  (Of course, the parts of the Midwest that are flooded now do not look like this.)

Thanks for the memories!

Megabus rolls out of L.A. for the last time this Sunday:

http://www.latimes.com/business/

with Jazz Fest Weekend, June 21 - 22.  You can’t go the summer without stopping by the Levitt at least once, where you can picnic, boogie, and listen to great music.  It’s a free concert season five nights a week in Pasadena, with over 50 concerts planned.  Wednesday is Children’s Night, Thursday is American Music, Friday is World Beat (my favorite night), Saturday is Musica Latina, and Sunday is the popular Jazz Night.  But it all kicks off this weekend with a Saturday and Sunday Jazz fest.  Last year, I had a fabulous time listening to DJ Cheb i Sabah.  Check out that post for tips and where to park for free.

http://www.levittpavilionpasadena.org/summer-programs.html 
The Levitt Pavilion is located at 85 E. Holly St. in the heart of Old Pasadena at Memorial Park, right off the Fair Oaks exit from the 210 freeway, and on the corner of Walnut and Raymond.

Here’s a video on youtube.com about the Levitt.

Here’s Cheb i Sabbah last summer.  Good times.

 

UnHipLA is on her annual pilgrimage to Chicago right now.  Wow, I see GREEN everywhere, lush green lawns, hills, trees, and feel moisture in the air.  This is quite a stark contrast compared to the triple digit weather LA is now experiencing.  I am lucky, got out right in time.  If you would like to see some pictures of Chicago, click on my August 2007 category link.

Also, if you need some tips on how to beat the heat in L.A., click on my September 2007 category link and scroll all the way down.  As I recall, I got great relief wearing wet clothing (like athletic mesh weave type things) and feeling the water evaporate off of me.  Also looking at pictures of penguins might help.

 

"Isn’t Alhambra that way?"

If I lived closer to LACMA, I’d join this, but right now my heart belongs to the Huntington.

Join LACMA  for only $50! For ten days only, from June 20–30, join LACMA for only $50 (normally $90). As a new Active-level member, you’ll enjoy a full year of free general admission to the museum, an invitation to a new member party, 10% off at the museum stores, and more!

This special rate is only available from June 20–30—and only when you join in person at the museum. Simply visit a LACMA Welcome Center and mention this sale to receive this special offer. Please note, the museum is closed on Wednesdays. If you have any questions, please call 323 857-6151. LACMA, 5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90036, www.lacma.org

 

*** UPDATE - The Flyaway is now $6 from Union Station to LAX.  Still, it’s a great deal and very comfortable! ***

With some upcoming summer travel and crazy high gas prices , I was vexed with how I would get to LAX without going bankrupt.  Then a friend told me about the $4 LAX Flyaway bus.  What a deal!  It picks up and drops off at three locations: Union Station, Van Nuys, and UCLA.  Here are the deets:

http://www.lawa.org/flyaway/

Now I don’t have to feel guilty asking someone to take me all the way to LAX.   

And now that Megabus is dead, at least I have a new bus service to champion.  RIP Megabus.   

*** UPDATE ***  I rode this the other day.  It’s great!  Clean, very comfortable seats, air conditioned.  I caught the 4 pm bus (it runs on the hour and half hour, and then in the wee hours, it runs on the hour - check site for hours for your location) and it only took 40 minutes to get to LAX from Union Station.  It drops you off right at your terminal.  This was so much better than driving myself, paying for long term parking, catching a shuttle, lugging stuff…  The bus was relatively full too, so I guess many people take advantage of this service.  The bus was much more comfortable than a Megabus.  Also, the bus terminal behind Union Station is very pretty.  I think I will ask all my friends to drop me off at the Flyaway from now on.  The bus driver navigates LAX better than a little car would.  All this for only $4!

***UPDATE 2***  I took this on the way back, LAX to Union Station.  You do not have to have a ticket beforehand.  You can buy it at Union Station when you get off there.  I thought I would need a ticket to get my luggage from the bus driver, but he didn’t even ask for it.  I caught the around 10 pm Flyaway and got to Union Station a little before 10:30.  The Van Nuys and Union Station Flyaways seemed the most crowded and with large buses, whereas the Westwood Flyaway was a smaller shuttle type bus.  The Flyaways are operated by Coach USA.  

 

I visited the renovated, stunning Huntington residence at the Huntington Library and Gardens the other day.  Click here to see this amazing property. The interior has a creamy palette and it felt like I was inside a really elaborate and delicious wedding cake.  I’ve never seen a mansion this large before.  Here’s a little description from its website:

The Historic Residence Reopens May 28, 2008 After Extensive Renovation

Once the home of Henry E. Huntington (1850–1927) and his wife, Arabella (1850–1924), the Huntington Art Gallery opened in 1928 displaying one of the greatest collections of 18th-century British art in the country, including the celebrated Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough and View on the Stour near Dedham by John Constable, as well as a valuable collection of French decorative arts.

After a $20 million renovation, the gallery offers visitors an enhanced experience with one of the finest collections of European art in the nation as well as a more accurate sense of the lifestyle of one of the most prominent millionaires of the early 20th century. In addition to a thoroughly updated infrastructure, the refurbished mansion includes 5,300 additional square feet of public space, new interpretive components, and new gallery presentations of approximately 1,200 objects of European art from the 15th to the early 20th century. The renovation also brings to light original architectural features that previously had been obscured.

 

I was a Shakespeare fiend last summer.  Click on my Theatre link for all the madness.  Here’s the Bard line-up for this summer.  A few of the productions have already started!

http://www.shakespearebythesea.org/calendar.html
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Antony & Cleopatra. Venues all throughout Socal.

http://www.independentshakespeare.com/box-office/box-office.html
Excellent theatre company with attractive actors.  Probably the best Shakespeare ensemble in L.A.  At Barnsdall Art Park in Hollywood.  Picture below and my previous post here with tips.

Woops!  I put the wrong Levitt Pasadena Link here.  It doesn’t look like the Levitt is doing Shakespeare this year.  What a shame.  When I hear otherwise, I’ll post it.  Sorry!  *** UPDATE ***  The LATimes has a listing of Shakespeare productions this summer.  There are free performances in Culver City, Downtown, and Long Beach, and in Orange/San Diego Counties.  Woopie!  Click here.  Also, the LATimes has an article about Summer Shakespeare in L.A.  If you’re overwhelmed by all the freebie Shakespeare offerings, I recommend just checking out the Independent Shakespeare Co. at Barnsdall. 

Not free, but a beautiful venue.  Macbeth’s on the line-up.
http://www.theatricum.com./   Topanga Canyon.

 

 

I had a great time at this last year.  Click here to see my pics of this mongo living history festival. If you like festivals, this is the festival of festivals, and it’s a good walking day because it covers a lot of ground and is right next to the ocean.  It’s worth the $10.  If you want to save some money, bring your own grub and avoid the food lines and prices. 

http://www.ftmac.org/OFMD2008.htm  

(From their website) 

Old Fort MacArthur Days 2008
Sponsored by Associated Foundations Inc.

Welcome to the home page of the west’s largest continually running re-enactment and living history timeline event!

For more than twenty years now the Fort MacArthur Museum has sponsored what has turned into the west’s largest multicultural celebration of world military history. What began as a small gathering of cannon enthusiasts has blossomed into a truly spectacular event showcasing the history of military activity from around the world and across time.

When & Where?
Saturday & Sunday
July 12 - 13, 2008
10am - 4pm both days
The Fort MacArthur Museum
3601 S Gaffey St. San Pedro
California, 90731
310-548-2631

Admission:
$10.00 Adults
$ 5.00 children under 12
 Your admission fee helps support the Preservation,
Restoration, & Interpretive programs of the museum

 

 

Info from http://makemusicpasadena.org/about.html 

Make Music Pasadena is a FREE musical celebration throughout the main districts in Pasadena, including Old Pasadena, One Colorado, the Playhouse District, and throughout the city.

Make Music Pasadena takes place on World Music Day, the Summer Solstice, Saturday, June 21, 2008. On that day, sidewalks, parks, courtyards, alleys, building lobbies and other unconventional performance spaces will become spontaneous musical stages and social gathering places. Amateur musicians will bring their musical talents to the streets of Pasadena and perform to new crowds. Top selling and internationally known artists will perform at SIX themed main stages. What better way to jump start the summer than by dancing in the streets, throughout the day, to these wonderful music performances. All performances are free and open to the public.

Make Music Pasadena is presented in part by Levitt Pavilions Free Music across America and is produced by One Colorado, Old Pasadena Management District, Playhouse District Association, Pasadena Arts Council, Pasadena Convention and Visitors Bureau, Armory Center for the Arts, the Alliance Française de Pasadena, French Cultural Services in Los Angeles and FLAX, France Los Angeles Exchange. Bringing Music to the Streets The purpose of Make Music Pasadena is to encourage the community to find their inner artistic talents, and to unite them with new audiences. From professional musicians performing on main stages, to amateur musicians taking to the streets to showcase their talents, to people whistling while they walk, our mission is to encourage the community to Make Music where ever and how ever they can.

Where Will Musicians Play? On city streets, sidewalks, alleyways, parks, museums, courtyards, rooftops, in private homes, on balconies, in lobbies, in gardens, at bus stops – or wherever a person decides to display their musical talent.  

For the schedule, click here.  Sounds like a fun day! 

The Los Angeles Urban Rangers are pleased to announce:

MALIBU PUBLIC BEACHES SAFARIS—SUMMER 2008

Tired of Zuma and Surfrider? Want to find and use the other beaches in Malibu? The twenty miles that are lined with private development? The "Malibu Public Beaches" safaris show you how to find, park, walk, picnic, and sunbathe on a Malibu beach legally and safely. Each safari visits two different beaches. Skills-enhancing activities include a public-private boundary hike, sign watching, a no-kill hunt for accessways, and a public easement potluck.

We are offering five safaris this summer in west and east Malibu:

SAT June 14, 11:00am-2:30pm (East Malibu)
SUN June 15, 11:00am-2:30pm (West Malibu)
SUN July 27, 9:00am-12:30pm (East Malibu)
SAT Aug 2, 3:00pm-6:30pm (West Malibu)
SUN Aug 3, 3:00pm-6:30pm (East Malibu)

Safaris are free. Spaces are limited. To sign up, e-mail info@laurbanrangers.org w/name, # of people and preferred date. For further information on the safaris and the Los Angeles Urban Rangers, please visit http://www.laurbanrangers.org/.

A downloadable "Malibu Public Beaches" guide is available on our website.

Hope to see you at the beach!
Los Angeles Urban Rangers
www.laurbanrangers.org

The Los Angeles Urban Rangers is a collective of artists, writers, architects, and urban designers. We adopt the park ranger persona – friendly, knowledgeable, direct, and a tad gee-whiz mobile – to explore the workings of our home megalopolis, and to give people the interpretive tools to do the same.

****  This is a totally great time!  Click on my Beaches tab to see my pics from last summer when I was obsessed with the beaches.  ****