eXTReMe Tracker

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Review: My LA Trip

I arrived at LAX Thursday night and immediately the visit got off to a bad start.

Here's a little background:

Two weeks ago in Denver I realized that my Kentucky driver's license was going to expire on Aug. 30. I wasn't able to get to the License Bureau to get a New York license until just a few days ago. And when I got there I was told I'd need either a birth certificate or a passport.

I don't typically keep a birth certificate handy, and my passport expired in April. So I ordered a birth certificate and I should have it next week.

But try renting a car in Los Angeles with an expired Kentucky license. It doesn't happen.

So after taking shuttles and cabs, then meeting some folks as planned at Santa Monica's very cool World Cafe, I got home close to 1 a.m. local time, which means I was awake for pretty much 24 straight hours.

Anyway, cabbing it all over town is OK to do in New York, but here in LA, the meter advances almost as rapidly as that national debt ticker I've seen a time or two.

OK, since I couldn't get around conveniently, I figured the highlight of my day would be when I checked out of my hotel and into another one Friday afternoon.

Along the way, however, I stumbled across the Big Blue Bus, which is an excellent public transit on LA's west side. Instead of another $40 cab ride, I got in there for a buck and it didn't take much longer than the cab would have.

I got to Main Street and the sun finally came out. As I made my way to my friend Alison's women's clothing store, Monki, I passed O'Brien's Pub, the front patio of which was packed with Ohio State people. So I stopped and said hello for a few minutes, then got a call from colleague Todd who said he'd pick me up from there shortly and we'd go meet colleague Susan for a happy-hour drink at Hal's just a few blocks away in Venice.

I came back to my hotel, which is very cool, by the way. It's called The Custom, and is quite hip and modern. Each room has a different theme; mine is dogs. Yup, there's a Best-In-Show type ribbon pinned to the lampshade, a comforter with a dog motif and the latest copy of "Bark" magazine on my bedside table.

If you're traveling alone, this place is more than adequate; room and bathroom are a bit smallish, so not really family friendly. It's considered a boutique hotel, but I got a good price, so I don't feel like I'm trying to be fabulous.

After I came back from happy hour, I went to the hotel bar, where there's a pretty cool pool, but it was all out-of-towners. You could tell because there wasn't that I-need-to-be-glam vibe you can spot at some LA joints.

I met a couple people and we decided to try the bar across the street. The bartender went to high school two blocks away from where I live now in New York. And there were plenty of Ohioans on the set who are here for the OSU-USC game, so we had lots to talk about.

OK, now I'm up, watching ESPN's College GameDay, not feeling great about OSU's chances, but looking forward to catching up with old friends John and Amy and seeing the game.

I think it's time for the Big Blue Bus.

Labels: ,

1 Comments:

At 5:36 PM EDT, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Can I get my Big Blue Bus pass back now?

 

Post a Comment

<< Home