City of Angels

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Leaving the islands of Polynesia I had arrived at the epicenter of the modern materalistic western world, Los Angeles. I was expecting a great deal of questions regarding to getting into the country without a visa but had no troubles whatsoever and I was quite shocked as I was preparing for a full cavity search.

The weather was quite agreeable, not too hot but nice enough to walk around as there is not much point getting any public transport as the traffic is almost always backed up. I could see why this city has one of the worst pollution problems in the world. It took about 1.5 hours just to get from the beach to downtown LA. It also stems from the fact that the Americans have the bigger is better motto which meant that the cars can hardly even fit onto the roads and use about 1 mile per gallon, however I was impressed at some of the classic chevys and cadilacs.

My first stop was Venice beach, I walked from Hermosa beach and it took almost 3 hours, along the way I saw a car parked near the wharf plastered with flags and slogans of war and anti gay sentiment, its one thing you do notice about this city is people are extremely opinionated and excessively patriotic.

Venice beach seems to be a very hip place and has alot of character. On the weekends, many people from all around Los Angeles get together on the beach with all kinds of traditional tribal drums and create the biggest drum circle I have ever witnessed. The sound echos out across the boardwalk and creates a very calming atmosphere as the sun sets behind the mountains. Its very easy just to sit quietly on the sand and lose yourself in your own California dreaming.

There is a great deal of artesian shops on the streets selling various necklaces, American Indian novelties and all kinds of arts and crafts. The one thing that did catch my eye was the amount of white sage being sold there. Im a fan of the herb myself but never have I seen so much as on the Venice Beach boardwalk, I guess they have alot of evil spirits to ward off in this part of the world.

Many people also say that this area is rather unsafe at night but apart from seing a few homeless people walking around draped in a blanket smudging white sage around and chanting some incomprensible incantations it didnt feel dangerous at all.

I quickly relocated to this area to an economical abode called hostel California. I spent a few days just milling around the beach areas enjoying the warm sun and chatting to various politically motivated people ranting about the president being the anti christ and the problems facing the country in regards to the government, the major problem is of course that you really have to watch what you say otherwise you can get into a very heated arguement.

One thing that made me feel abit uneasy was the amount of American flags that are spread continously along the streets as so you dont forget what country you are in. It reminded me of patriotic tactics similar to those of communist regimes that have pictures of their leaders in every home to make sure you know who is boss. It also showed that it had an effect on the people as many were wearing USA t shirts and USA no1 graffiti all along the sidewalks.

Something else that really stood out to me was the relative cheapness for alcohol and food. You can buy a bottle of cheap vodka for as little as $5. I really cant believe they have so little tax on liquor as the majority of all other western countries you could expect to pay 3 to 4 times as much. Im surprised that alcohol addiction here isnt more of a problem.

The Walmart Experience is a must for anyone visitng the United States, the creators of fast food and mega supermarkets, Walmart is the big daddy of them all with almost anything you possibly want to buy but dont really need. An example shopping list as follows..

1.75 Liter bottle of Vodka 12.50
18 Inch Machete 5.45
12 Gauge Semi Auto Shotgun 299.99
Carton camel cigarettes 25.99

Now that is one hell of a shopping list, and the interesting thing is you dont even have to pay anyone, its all self scanning and self serving. ( Well you do have to ask for the shotgun but still! )

If you are in need of cash in a hurry and too lazy to get out of your car? No worries, just find the nearest drive thru cash machine. They are everywhere around town, no need to move your ass outta your seat here, its a good thing too because many people are just too big and getting in and out of a car would just cause too much strain.

Any journey to Los Angeles has to include a trip to plastic central of Hollywood. Again, the speed of the buses is mostly at a walking pace and most of the time you are better off walking. Hollywood is the heart of superficiality, everywhere people look as though they have been botoxed and liposucked until they look like splitting images of blow up dolls. Its the lifestyle where appearance is everything and the most important agenda is knowing the people with the nicest cars and the fattest wallets. It is a very interesting contrast to that of the beach scene where people have much more left wing ideals.

You could also tell how much influence the government and media has on people in general. The general level of education seems quite low from some of the people I spoke to especially in regards to world knowledge, thereby restricting the independant thought of the public. I was even worried about crossing the street on a red hand signal and getting arrested for it, in the meanwhile overhearing a father telling his child repeatedly, "Obey the Hand".

Los Angeles and California overall left me feeling as though it is a place where anybody could feel at home providing they find their own little niche. Even though that majority of the place is filled with idiocy and and overtone of control there is still a feeling or vibe that makes it very appealing and I finally understood why throughout modern pop history so many songs have been inspired by that of LA and California. I wanted to explore more of the state that alone brings in one eighth of the entire countrys economy but due to money restrictions, would have to wait for another time.

I wanted to head east, so I decided to head to the all famous city of Las Vegas, after abit over 5 hours on the bus through the deserts of east California and not really much to see until you are struck by the sea of neon lights that hits you like an illusionary oasis appearing out of nowhere. The heat is extreme and the blazing desert winds do little to help. Vegas by day really just doesnt feel right, you need the cooler night sky to disguise the plastic palm trees and tacky architecture. It is a crazy place with people on that appear on edge, probably from living off of rum and beer and cheap nachos filling their guts up on all you can eat buffet for 6.99. It feels as though most people are here seem quite lost, as though the thought of winning on the tables is going to make up for a lifetime of emptyiness and failing to achieve the American dream. The artificial oasis breeds temptation, lust, fear and loneliness. You see some of the die hards living in the slummy parts of the city with just a cardboard box for shelter.

The most interesting experience I had was literally just walking into the local convience store to be struck by the smell of old cigarettes and stale beer and the pinging of a dozen fruit machines attached to as many people, being approached by a the store owner a woman that appeared to look around 70 but probably was about 40, with a cigarette hanging out of her mouth and demanding in a crackly voice "Whadya want?".

Apart from spending alot of money on fruit machines and the tables there is not really much to do in Vegas, all the casinos try to look different from the outside by making plastic versions of the Eiffel Tower, The Statue of Liberty and the Pyramids of Egypt and yet on the inside you just get the same kinds of people hooked on the machines and tables trying endlessly to be a winner. All in all, I dont think anyone really is winner here in Vegas whether or not you do actually come out of there with more money, because abit of extra cash no matter how great isnt going to change these people but only make them greedy for more, the evils of gambling do nothing except completly consume them.

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Photos

American Terrorist
Los Angeles

Los Angeles
Hermosa Beach Plaza

Los Angeles
Venice Beach Drum Circle

Los Angeles
My Dream Car

Paris?
Las Vegas

Las Vegas
How much plastic can you take?

Comments

[ekacmasadi]

hey Vegas
Hey Mark, you've been in Las Vegas! you know that place is the place I dreaming, take me come over to there Brother!