ExplorerPod.com

It’s true that many people look forward to a weekend exodus
out of the Big City, but there are others who are looking
for an extra dose of energy and excitement and find a place
like Los Angeles offers a menu of attractions that makes
each visit just a little bit different.

Our recent weekend in L.A. reminded us of just how much
there is to see and do in that city at any time of the
year. We visited places we knew as well as attractions we
were exploring for the first time. We did a lot of things
right, but also learned some lessons for future trips to
the city. But, most important, we simply had fun.

On this trip we combined a little business with pleasure
and that meant I had to be in the city for business before
my wife and daughter could join me. Schools nowadays are
getting a little touchy about letting kids out for their
parents’ vacations or getaways, even though we still
maintain our eight-year-old daughter is indeed learning
something every time she travels.

So we decided my family would join me, after school was
out, by taking the Amtrak train from the San Diego area
into L.A. where I would pick them up. The trip up on the
train was just a couple of hours, so that part went fine.
The problem was it took me only slightly less time to
travel from Santa Monica to the downtown LA train station.
That’s 15 miles in one hour, 45 minutes. You do the math.

Note to travel diary: Never plan to do any L.A. driving on
a late Friday afternoon. Weekend visits should start Friday
morning or Saturday morning – but not Friday afternoon.

Aside from that little miscalculation, our trip from that
point forward was fun, relaxed and full of interesting
things to do. We checked into the Hotel Oceana, a
completely updated, upscale lodging on Santa Monica’s
picturesque Ocean Avenue, where our third-floor suite had
spectacular views of the ocean and, in the distance,
Catalina Island. This hotel proved to be ideally located
near the beach as well as the popular Downtown Third Street
Promenade shopping district.

The mood of the Hotel Oceana is colorful and breezy and
what you would expect to find in a Caribbean resort.
Entering our suite, we were struck by the colors – bright
yellows, greens, pinks – and by the spaciousness. If you’re
looking for a suite that has lots of room to move around
in, this is your place. The bedroom was a typical size, but
the living room area had room for a couch, table and
chairs, and then another whole section of the room that had
a small dining table, mini-bar, and work desk.

Both rooms had picture windows offering panoramic views of
the ocean. A big-screen flat panel television also was
available, and the bath area was also unusually spacious
with a tile bathtub enclosure as well as a European
spa-style shower. A double marble vanity rounded out the
stylish bathroom decor.

Such attractive accommodations just seem to put you in the
right mood for a weekend of exploration and good times.
After dinner and an early turn-in, we were up early
Saturday ready to spend some time in Santa Monica as well
as at nearby attractions we had selected.

Santa Monica is a playground for L.A. TV and movie people
that is all neatly compressed into 8.3 miles strategically
bordered by the Santa Monica Mountains on one side and the
Pacific Ocean on the other. The words “trendy” and “hip”
seem to pop up a lot in the descriptions of the some 400
restaurants packed into this little piece of real estate.
Throw in a few art galleries, some luxury hotels and – oh
yes – celebrities, and you have the makings of an
eye-popping diversion from your everyday hometown.

As we took a short walk to the Santa Monica Pier, it seemed
like half of L.A. was down here jogging or walking. Wide,
tree-lined and well-landscaped Ocean Avenue stretches along
the coastline offering about as pretty a downtown street as
you’ll see considering this is all modern office buildings
and not historic mansions.

The Santa Monica Pier is the dominant feature on the
water’s edge – and also over the water — and is a favorite
for families. The pier is home to a variety of fascinating
tourist shops, carnival rides, seafood and other
restaurants and even a trapeze school that was drawing a
crowd every time one of the students would go up and risk
life and limb to swing on the high trapeze.

Just up from the pier are blocks and blocks of shopping in
the popular Downtown Third Street Promenade, an area where
city fathers have taken a street and turned it into a
pedestrian mall. There are fascinating shops and an unusual
number of movie theaters along this walkway that seems to
attract people from all walks of life – young and old,
wealthy on down to the homeless.

Santa Monica is only a few miles from Hollywood so, just
for fun, we decided to drive over to the Hollywood Museum,
near the intersection of Highland Avenue and Hollywood
Boulevard in the heart of Hollywood. The museum does not
advertise much and has been building its business through
word of mouth and walk-in traffic since it opened just a
few years ago. Gradually the word has gotten out that this
four-story museum is loaded to the rafters with props and
memorabilia from hundreds of Hollywood’s most famous movies.

The items on display cover both movies and television and
span the history of motion pictures. You’ll see things like
Sylvester Stallone’s boxing gloves from Rocky, or a
complete selection of Marilyn Monroe’s dresses, or the
actual jail cell where Anthony Hopkins was incarcerated in
the Silence of the Lambs. Big displays are presented for
movies like Dreamgirls, Gone with the Wind, Planet of the
Apes and many more. Walls are lined with old Hollywood
publicity photos of the stars and famous Hollywood
restaurants and haunts. Located in the old Max Factor
building, the museum truly is a trip down memory lane and
is well worth spending an hour or two immersing yourself in
all things Hollywood.

On Sunday, we drove over to another L.A. attraction we had
always wanted to visit:  Will Rogers State Historic Park,
just three miles from our base at the Hotel Oceana. The
famous writer and celebrity made his home in Beverly Hills,
but had a weekend ranch in the hills above Sunset
Boulevard. Rogers moved to the ranch in 1928 and eventually
the small original cottage was enlarged to its present size
of 31 rooms. Rogers loved horses and the entire household
has a Western feel with its Indian rugs and baskets,
saddles and even a polo field on the property where Rogers
could indulge in one of his favorite pastimes. The park
service offers a brief 20-minute tour of the house that is
both interesting and entertaining.

A lot of people visit the Will Rogers State Historic Park
simply to take advantage of the park-like grounds and the
trails you can walk on the 186-acre property. We took the
loop trail, which is a moderate hike that offers panoramic
views of Santa Monica and the Hollywood Hills – a great
place to get a little exercise while sampling what seem to
be an endless number of L.A. attractions.

AT A GLANCE

WHERE: Santa Monica is just west of Los Angeles and on the
coast south of Malibu. It’s easy to reach by taking
Interstate 405 or Interstate 5 to Interstate 10 and driving
west.

WHAT: Santa Monica’s a great base of operations for a
myriad of attractions, from Hollywood to Malibu.

WHEN: The weather in Los Angeles is sunny most of the year
- about 343 annual days of sunshine to be exact – so
there’s no bad time to visit.

WHY: The scenery’s great, but there’s also an electricity
that comes with a getaway so close to celebrities and the
entertainment business.

HOW: For more information on Santa Monica, visit the Santa
Monica Convention & Visitors Bureau at www.santamonica.com.