That's one of the best lines out of the movie "Pretty Woman" with Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. And it's true! More than half of Angelenos are transient, and have migrated from every part of the country and the world; to try to make something of themselves. Myself included. I moved here 7 years ago from Hawaii, and have had a ball living my life, meeting new people, making great friends, and finding true love. Most of the people that I have met in LA are real and thoughtful, but you do come across those that are flake, and fake. As soon as you realize the difference between the two, you'll do very well here.
Life in LA is casual and low-key, but still fast-paced in its own terms. B is born and raised here, but he's an old soul living in a young man's body. I guess I have to thank Ed and Irene, his grandparents, and his grandparent's old neighbor, Frank; for B's demeanor. He's very considerate of everyone, and I love that about him.
Anyhoo, today we went to Lake Hollywood Dog Park. It's a PITA to find, but the best way to get there is to exit Gower on the 101 Freeway, make a right on Franklin, left on Beechwood, left on Ledgewood, left on Mulholland, and left on Canyon Lake Drive. The address is 3200 Canyon Lake Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90027. Don't use the address provided on yelp, or you'll get lost. Don't rely too much on your Iphone or other phone GPS as well, as you'll lose signal along the way. Print your directions. http://www.yelp.com/biz/lake-hollywood-park-los-angeles
These are some pictures we took for the day.
The park is in the middle of the residential streets, but they are off of Mulholland Drive, so you get some locals and tourists alike that stop off on the side of the road to get a picture of the Hollywood Sign and the lake down the hill. It's definitely a great place to take out-of-towners for a couple of hours to show part of LA.
The dog park is not a large place, but it's pretty large enough to give your large dog his daily exercise. The people are friendly, and most are local. There are benches, a pooper scooper, and a water fountain. But definitely bring your water dish, as it's not an official dog park per say. The sign says to keep your dogs on the leash, but most of the dogs are out of their leashes here.
We forgot to bring our chuck-it and our ball, so Tico made do with the large tree barks that were on the ground from the previous days' storm. We also got entertained by some little Australian Shepherd dog that was trying to carry a large tree bark, and fighting over it with a large, fluffy Akita dog. The park is grassy, which makes it a dog-owner's heaven. These are one of the few days when we didn't have to worry about putting a blanket over our car - - Tico can get really dirty sometimes. I would say bring your dog, a chuck-it and a ball, a blanket, some food for picnic, and enjoy an early morning or afternoon in the middle of one of the most gorgeous sceneries that LA has to offer. The local residents are nice, but there's one lady that's a little "off", and kept calling Tico a "dog with cat ears". She also wanted to pick up on B, and kept calling him "handsome big boy". I teased B the entire time. I told him I now have to worry about letting him roam LA with Tico. Each are a real chick magnet. Together, they are a handsome pair.
On our way out, here are some of the pictures that we took up the hill from the dog park:
We then stopped by to Little Tokyo (2nd and Alameda Streets - - take the 4th Street exit in downtown LA, and make a left on Figueroa, right on 2nd Street, and take that all the way to Alameda - - which takes you to the central area of Little Tokyo- - and it ends on Central. We enjoyed the New Year Festival that the Japanese Vilage had prepared; after we had our mochi soup. Since we got our soup from a hole in the wall restaurant (next to Mr. Ramen) that did not have a patio for our dog, we got it to go and ate at one of the sitting areas right outside the Japanese National Museum, next to MOCA. Mochi soup, or Zoni\Ozuni, is a Japanese tradition that you eat on New Year's Holiday. The preparation varies, but the one that we got are surprisingly tasty and filling. They usually were prepared bland when I used to eat them back in Hawaii. The owners of the restaurant were very nice, and they gave us green teas to drink while we were waiting for the food with Tico outside of the restaurant.
In Japanese Village, Tico and B had a great time, they got so many compliments because of the "large dog with a big boy". The local and tourists alike loved playing with Tico. B enjoyed the festival, but we missed the Taiko Drums. What we got to catch are the karate, the queen's court who passed up some mochi, japanese dancers and musicians in their elaborate Japanese costumes. We left just as the kimono fashion shows are coming up on the stage. Parking is $2/hour on the street, but there are lots of paid parking that are flat rate, ranging from $5 and up. There are some restaurants and businesses that are closed for the day, but one of our favorites are Koraku on 314 E 2nd Street, LA CA 90012. For mere $8 bucks, you get really filling food, one of my favorites is their Yakisoba. I salivate each time I think about it, and was bummed that they were closed for the day. Here's Tico and B in front of the christmas trees in the Japanese Village.
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