Friday, April 18, 2009. Woke up, took a shower and got ready to head out. Today, we decided that we were going to do some Hollywood sight seeing. As usual, Kuda was our tour guide. He is a great tour guide by the way.
So Kuda, Chelsea, and I headed to Burbank first. Here we walked around, window shopping. A man stopped us and offered us free movie passes to a movie screening. I, being from Philly, was and always am skeptical about strangers trying to give you something for free. What's the catch? To my surprise, there was no catch. All I had to do was call the number on the paper, answer a few questions, and then reserve my space at this free movie screening. He couldn't disclose what film it was but what he could tell us was that it starred Johnny Depp and it was about John Dillinger. Not too hard to figure it out.
After getting the free passes, we decided to get some lunch. We ate at this nice restaurant called Granville. It was a very nice place with a patio section that was outside, yet still well covered so we could get out of the sun. We ordered a pitcher of Berry Lemonade. They were very generous with the amount. We then ordered some really good salmon. It came on top of mashed potatoes, sweet corn, and some really good sauce. We also ordered a chicken sandwich with fries that were also really tasty. After stuffing our faces with really good food, we decided to shop around.
We found a local mall, called the Burbank Town Center I think, with a lady's footlocker clearance store. I was able to find the first pair of court forces that I have ever bought for $36! I still have them, but I've beat them up so I bought a new pair. Chelsea also made a steal when she found a pair of court forces she wanted to buy the other day at another store, but didn't have her size. Here, she only paid $32!
After shopping, we headed towards the Hollywood Hills. We got to see the famous Hollywood sign. Here, we took pictures of each other doing silly things. The area was beautiful. For those that don't know, the Hollywood sign was erected in 1923, built by an LA Times publisher, Harry Chandler, as a giant billboard for his real estate development. However, back then, it read 'Hollywoodland.'
After the Hollywood sign, we stopped at a high point over looking downtown LA. I love cityscapes, and I loved the view we had. It was so awesome. LA is a pretty big city and stretched out fro miles. I'm going to have to come back to this spot and see it at night.
After some sight seeing, we took a drive through the Hills, passing many nice houses. We went down Mulholland Dr, headed for Rodeo Dr. We wanted to go people watching on Rodeo Dr, with hopes of seeing celebrities. Instead, we saw a bunch of rich families with personal shoppers and whole families dressed tacky. For example, don't get me wrong, I give props to the designer of the 'Ed Hardy' line so nothing against him, but I saw a family of four sporting his gear like they were walking billboards. It was as if they were trying to make some sort of 'I am rich' statement. To each his own, enough hating.
We initially decided to just stay in the car and pass through, knowing that we really cant afford anything here, but as we turned off of Rodeo onto Wilshire, we saw a Niketown. Immediately, both Chelsea and I said, 'we gotta pull over.' Surprisingly enough, we found a free parking garage right off of Rodeo Dr. It makes sense though, the quicker one can find parking, the quicker one can shop. It's good for business.
The sneakers in Niketown were priced pretty fair. I was expecting jacked up prices, given the area. We ended up not buying anything. We walked around, doing more window shopping and people observing. Eventually, we decided it was time to go. Chelsea got picked up by her aunt and Kuda and I headed back to Flitz's.
Later that night, Flitz , his roommate Nick, Kuda, and I went over to Flitz's friend's house. Here I met some really cool and nerdy (like us) people: Beau and Leo. We bonded over some drinks and video games. Before the night was over, we were all laughing and having a good time. We entertained each other and talked as if we've been friends for a long time. I guess one can give credit to the alcohol. However, I like to believe that it was just genuine people meeting genuine people. The alcohol just added a little push, I guess. I hope to hang out with these fellas again before I leave.
After leaving, we made a stop at Jack in the Box, which I now call Crack in the Box. I don't know if it was because I was a tipsy, but their food was ridiculously good. I've seen the commercials but they don't have them around Philly. We eventually made it home where I stuffed my face with the food I had just ordered, and then laid down and passed out.
Seeing people in public today in these high-class areas was proof that some people still feel surface is most important. However, after meeting the friends like Beau and Leo, they prove that depths still exist in this City of Appearances.
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