LA Baby

In May I was fortunate enough to go on a work trip to LA care of Google. I'd only been there for an overnight stay once a few years earlier so it was all pretty new to me. It was my first international trip since Covid so that was pretty exciting, although sadly flying economy ;-)

Three colleagues and I had a week with Google exploring the city and spending time at the Spruce Goose (aka Google office and previous aeroplane hanger where the famous Howard Hughes once built and kept his aeroplanes) meeting various Google folk. It was a good balance of work time and free time.

We stayed half the time at the very flash 1 Hotel in West Hollywood so hung out mostly in that area, and a motel-type accomm close to the Google office. The Netflix comedy festival was on at the time so we hit the comedy shows for a few nights. Google took us to Paramount Studios which was pretty fun. And I went to my very first baseball game! So much culture.

General comments and observations...

- It is a truly enormous and sprawling city

- It is not a walking city, one must drive everywhere
- Travelling anywhere takes an hour at least... sometimes even just around the block

- The air is full of smog and the scent of totally-legal-weed

- Poverty and homelessness on the streets is ever present

- The food is not great, short of the taco

- Going with locals would be the only way to truly see the city properly

I probably wouldn't rush back... unless I was on my way to the Grand Canyon. Sadly too far a day trip.

The whole crew at Paramount.

My first glimpse of the skyline in daylight

View from the hotel.
That's downtown LA in the distance through the smog.

Fun signs

1 Hotel West Hollywood

Brunching at The Rose in Venice

Venice Beach

Venice Beach. Where you can Uber your spliffs to the sand.

The skate park straight out of the 90s movie Clueless.

Had one quick pool visit

The sign in the distance

Bit of Hollywood

More comedy

Old school pizza joint

A walk in the hills

Sunset Tower

The original Andy Warhol

Barbara Kruger, Relatable.

LA County Modern Art Museum

Inside the Spruce Goose Google office
(that aerial sculpture is of an airplane)

At Google

Holding an Oscar at Paramount

Paramount

Tom Hanks seat from Forrest Gump

Stage 18 where Rear Window was filmed

Film sets

THE Breakfast at Tiffany's window Audrey looks through

Margheritas and tacos at every opportunity

Baseball! Enormous!
But apparently not as large as the MCG.

Hot dogs of course

This is a Michelada. Think Mexican Bloody Mary.
Clam and tomato juice, lime, spices and beer. Weird, but good.

This was the best taco I had the whole trip.
A random food truck in a random car park.

That is a very cute robot on delivery duty. 

Posh supermarket. Wildly expensive, looks stunning.

Getty Museum.

One of the most stunning spaces I've ever seen.