Today we are tourists in Los Angeles and booked a private tour. After a great celebration evening with some lovely wine and a great nights sleep it was a scramble bowl for breakfast and then Jan the man collected us from our motel in downtown Los Angeles.
Jan, our tour guide, was born here and is on his second career having been an agent for a top model agency based out of New York City , he now drives around telling his clients all the history of Hollywood, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, the Chinese Theatre, Rodeo Drive, Sunset Boulevard and each of the film studios and of course we drove as far as we could to get a picture of the Hollywood sign which is now aluminum and not wood and the land in front of the Hollywood sign is now protected by the Hollywood foundation.
Jan used the analogy that Los Angeles was like a giant cookie and that each of the chocolate chips represent the cities in their own right. He was so right. As we rode around in the car to each of the areas the houses changed, the roads changed and the neighborhoods changed. Jan would point out houses of who used to live there or who now lives there. From Cary Grant to Debbie Reynolds to Leonardo DiCarprio to Beyonce and Jay-Z's rented house. I was so tempted to do knock down ginger - hee hee
Los Angeles is all about movies, movies, movies, everywhere you go there are movie signs and advertisements of the " latest and in the moment" movies. If your picture is up on a billboard high in the sky on one of the boulevards you are " in the moment" and if you have a house in Beverly Hills, then you have, according to Jan, made it.
As well as movies there are a lot of cars, much worse than NYC. High end luxurious cars all in abundance in Beverly Hills and we even saw a Gold Maserati. Then ride over to another area like Inglewood and the cars seem to be from a different century! mind-blowing for me.
On Sunset Boulevard are large glass buildings which is where the agents work out from. Construction on the roads and complete real estate renovations can be seen in each o the neighborhoods with some of houses although finished look terrible and should be knocked down again. " What an eye sore "
We headed to the Chinese Dolby Theatre. Think Times Square where actors are dressed as Marvel Comic or film characters and for a fee one can pose with them. I saw Wolverine and the guy did look so much like Hugh Jackman. We took our time to study and look at the hands and feet in cement outside the theatre. I had to get Vin Diesel as he is my mum's favorite.
As we left the Theatre we came across the latest props from the Mummy movie which is out this summer. The props were impressive.
The LA weather is also strange in that in the morning it is gray in May or Gloom in June according to Jan but then by midday the winds pick up and the clouds disperse and voila blue skies and sunshine. It was very pleasant when Jan dropped us back at the hotel this afternoon.
Tomorrow is our last day, we ride the bikes to the Motorcycle shipping company and say farewell to our mighty steeds. They will be loaded onto an enclosed truck n trailer and will be driven back to New York City. ( This will take approximately 10 - 12 business days )
We then head to the airport and our flight back home to New York City.