April 1, 2008
My Spring Break, by Debbie, age 27
Don't go looking for delicious, quirky truck stop cafes along the 5 your way to LA. They don't really exist. You're better off sucking it up and stopping at Denny's. This one places we had lunch at had awful hamburgers but they did have this life-size cut out of Fabio so I was reasonably pleased (as was Rafe). They also had coon-skin caps for sale in their gift shop. Real coon skin!
Just like there is a Starbucks on every other corner of Manhattan and a high-octane coffee house on every block in San Francisco, LA is chock-full of frozen yogurt shops, like this "diet" (no calories! how is that possible?) yogurt place on Melrose. But given that it was 90 degrees out, I can't deny I wasn't all up that fro yo.
This is me and my cousin Jonathan attempting to look casual and natural, at my insistence, since I find posed photos (like this one of me and my other, tanner cousin Rae and this one of the three of us ) impossibly corny, and also I am incapable of smiling normally on demand. He took us to this crazy Japanese place, Yamashiro, way up in the Hollywood Hills. The views were indeed awesome- from that vantage point, LA almost looked like an appealing place to live.
Here is Rafe pointing off into the smoggy distance. Jonathan has lived in Hollywood for a long time and was kind enough to take us around to some of the city's more legendary haunts. We had drinks at the Roosevelt Hotel (where they held the first Academy Award ceremonies) and then dinner at Musso & Frank, the oldest Hollywood restaurant (seriously, all the waiters were between 75-120). Our waiter was one of the younger ones and regaled us with tales of his friendship with the Rolling Stones (he had a photo album to prove it) and how the were regulars of the restaurant and how they once flew him first class to Mexico City to see them play.
This is my cousin Rae driving her dad's '57 Chevy. We drove all the way to Bob's Big Boy, a classic diner down in Studio City (where they still have a "car hop" service and classic car shows every week). And since you can't take this beauty on the highway (it goes like 15 mph) we drove all the way down Ventura Boulevard for like an hour (whereas in a normal car, it'd take you 10 minutes). So as we're putting along like we're in our very own parade, we're getting plenty of waves and whistles, especially from the old timers. It was pretty amusing.
Here we are waiting for Rae to fill up the tank.
This is a Scientology Center in LA (right on L. Ron Hubbard Way!) I was very curious to go in and get a free "stress test" but Rafe dissuaded me. I was just trying to go clear!
Here is my dad's cousin Grace. She's swell. Every day at 5pm is official wine time. It's like an in-house happy hour. She's pours a generous glass, too.
Speaking of drinking. The night before we left for Ojai we met up with Rafe's friend Paul and his girlfriend at the divey Gold Room on Sunset. We were the only gringos in the joint- at one point, the owner, a tough looking guy dressed like Pancho Villa (I kid not) came around and was shaking everyone's hands except ours. But all was forgiven when he went into the back again and came out a minute later with platter of free tacos for all of us. I love LA!
We also had great tacos the night before on our way to a house party in Crenshaw, where Paul told us was the setting for Boyz in the Hood. I know this picture isn't very good, I took it out the car window as we were leaving as I felt a little self-conscious snapping away while we were standing there. It was just a taco stand on the corner in front of a used car lot late at night in a questionable neighborhood- but you know, street tacos are they best kind of tacos.
Anyhow, from the other night, after those free tacos, we went to this restaurant next door where we sought out more tacos because it was Taco Tuesday and they were $1 each. People seem to enjoy tacos a lot in LA. Especially free and/or discounted tacos. But hey, who doesn't? Paul ordered a round of tequila shots for everyone and I thought hmmm, probably not such a great idea if Rafe's going to be driving, so I drank his, and mine, and some others. I never, ever drink tequila. Well, not without disastrous results. This night proved to be no different.
After that, we went to this bar in a strip mall that reminded me of the Reagle Beagle on Three's Company. A lot of places in LA remind me of Three's Company, for some reason. Anyhow, there were a lot of silly, blurry photos from that night like these ones here. This is me this next morning feeling a little unfresh, the day we were leaving for Ojai. Never again tequila- I have forsaken you forever. For real this time.
Ojai is only like an hour outside of the Valley but it was the perfect place to detox and very non-LA in demeanor and vibe. And unbelievably beautiful. A literal breath of fresh air.
This was the view from the meditation retreat we stayed at. You can see Rafe in the background here checking out a lizard. Our room was next door to the "Quiet Room." On the door it said "For Yoga, Mediation, or Soulful Activities." Inside, they had a library of books with titles like "Let Your Inner! Child! Be! Free!" and "Be More Like Buddha in Ten Simple Steps."
Anyhow, Ojai is so cute it hurts. We went to this delightful pizzeria in the middle of an orange orchard. All the ingredients were locally grown. After, I had a strawberry shortcake the size of my head (hey, it was locally grown)
What else did we do in Ojai? Went to some awesome bookstores, checked out some local antique stores, drank tea at the retreat while the sun set, hiked around the hills, and just generally chilled out. Escaping the distractions of our daily routine, even if only for a few days, always helps us to reconnect and Ojai was just an ideal place to do that. My inner child really came alive. As did my liver.
On our last day we stopped in Santa Barbara and had the best day ever. And then on the drive home, we stopped for more tacos.
THE END
Posted by debbie at April 1, 2008 8:41 PM