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Published: June 21st 2007
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Well after a short ride from Anaheim I arrived at the beautiful Marriot LA Downtown. Great location, as I am right in the heart of the downtown city, yet close enough to everything. The hotel definately makes you feel like you are in LA - there is a 5 lane freeway right behind the hotel and the traffic seems to be going ALL day long - Only in LA. The hotel itself is nice, and my room is almost as nice as my room in Vegas, but definately no complaints from here as my bed is super comfy!!
Yesterday I went for a wander through Downtown, and must have had my shopping detector on, cos despite the fact that I had no idea where I was going, I managed to end up in Macy's - the shopping gods have been luring me in these past few weeks. I wandered the streets for about 3 or 4 hours, then started to make my way back to the hotel (well to where I thought the hotel was), and before I knew it I was in an area that didn’t seem to good and I realised that I had somehow
taken a wrong turn and had no idea where I was. Oh dear!! Made a quick turn in opposite direction, away from the weirdness I could see ahead, and quickly trotted up the hill, to thankfully see my hotel sign way in the distance. Thank God for that!! Even though the hotel looked so far away, I was happy to see where I was going and when I arrived at the hotel, went straight to the bar for a drink to celebrate the fact I finally made it home!! What an adventure!
Today I joined one of the tours of Los Angeles, and as was the case with Anaheim, there were Australians EVERYWHERE!! Again nice to see, but still strange from what I have been used to over the past few weeks. It's funny how much you notice the broadness of the Australian accent and how Aussie some people really are - but from the impression you always get, Americans love Australians - who can blame them??? I met a great girl from Spain, Gisella, and we spent the whole tour together. She was great fun and we had a blast together.
The
tour was fantastic, as it took us to the Hollywood Bowl, LA's massive outdoor music centre - so cool, as it is set amongst the mountains, and you can even see the Hollywood sign from the seats in the theatre. The theatre itself is the venue for concerts all summer long, and it is designed to ensure that everyone can enjoy the functions - seat prices range from $1 in the nose bleed section (right at the back) to $100 seats right at the front). Apparently all the locals make it a cool outdoor event and bring their own coolers to the concert, and enjoy sandwiches wine with the open sky above them. We also went to Grauman's Chinese Theatre, with lots of weird and wonderful people there (check out the pictures). The tour also took us along Sunset Strip, pointing out all the interesting spots, celebrity houses and hangouts (feels like you are in a trashy mag!!).
Also managed to visit the Kodak Theatre - home of the Oscars, and even took to the red carpet the stars wander up on the big night. The theatre itself is on Hollywood Boulevard so it’s cool to also
check out all the stars names in the footpath outside the theatre. Apparently stars have to apply to have a star on the footpath, and only the elite stars are selected. If they do get selected by the committee to have a star, then they have to pay $25,000 to have their star put into the sidewalk - oh I am sure this is just spare change for them.
Rodeo drive was also part of the tour - amazing to see the amount of money people are willing to spend in these stores. They are SOOO expensive, but cool to go inside and imagine you are living the high life for a little while. Also great to see some of the sites from the movies we all love; right at the end of Rodeo drive is the hotel in Pretty Woman - very cool to see this and also saw the store Julia Roberts went into and went back to show off all her bags!! Felt like a bit of a dork, but I was loving all the movie locations and spots where the stars live and hang out - very cool!
Our tour
guide was awesome and took us to see many of the stars homes, including... yep you wouldnt believe it - Paris Hiltons House - I was cracking up laughing at how ridiculous it was. There were still news cameras outside her house, who kindly told us she wasn’t out from jail yet, but it was her birthday next Monday (how funny - seemed as though Paris was there life!!). Our tour guide took us to all the celebs houses in the overly expensive, exclusive areas - such as Drew Barrymore, Tom Cruise and Katie Homes house that they currently rent for a mere $40,000 PER MONTH!! Crazy!!, Nicolas Cage, Robbie Williams and even the Osbornes. Our final house was the man behind the brand we all love - Guess, and yep, as you would expect he is putting all the money we spend on his clothes, accessories to good use, by enjoying his two houses with 9 cars in each, 5 Ferraris, 2 Porches and 2 Masseratis... Crazy huh!! But don’t worry; I have included a photo just to make sure you are all as green with envy as I was when I saw them!!!
Have one
more day left in Los Angeles, and will be going to see Santa Monica and Venice Beach tomorrow to enjoy the sunshine and sites. Then off to get an early night tomorrow as off to New York for the weekend - Yipee!!!!
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Mumma Mia
non-member comment
LA
Bugsy and I love this blog. You look so happy and relaxed. We especially love the shot of you on the red carpet. Not sure how you are going to fit that beautiful new car in your luggage - a bit of sweet talking at the check-in will be required ! Enjoy the rest of your stay and get ready for New York New York ! Sending love from home - we miss you lots and love you more. xxx