Galloping Horse: los angeles

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Monday, 5 June 2023

USA Trip: Los Angeles Times & Beachy End

Beverly Hills & Rodeo Drive

I dedicated day 2 in LA for shopping and must I say it was my least favourite day throughout the trip due to the rainy weather. I mean, I kind of seeing it coming from the weather forecast and it didn't hit me to consider visiting museums (something more indoorsy) until my AirBnB host mentioned to me at the end of my stay. I started my day at Alfred Coffee and I tried their Vanilla Latte, their most popular drink, which was recommended by a YouTuber. I guess latte isn't really my thing. I still prefer my usual Mocha. It was already raining as I walked towards the cafe from my place. I downloaded TAP application on my phone, which can be used on buses and trains. I purchased daily pass for 3 dollars and hopped onto the next bus to Beverly Hills signage.

Putting on my Calvin Klein, getting ready to shop. Or so I thought.

Vanilla latte for my caffeine of the day. Too bad it wasn't my cup of 'coffee'.

Look at the rain. Putting my Columbia jacket back on. Sigh.

The iconic view of Beverly Hill street with the palm trees, minus the sun.

Been hearing about Beverly Hills on the media for as long as I remember for being the residence of popular celebrities, the driveway with palm trees. Not to mention that the name of my neighbourhood back in my hometown is actually named after this place. The whole vibe was ruined by the rain though. Quick photo at the sign and I decided to stay indoors for lunch break, hoping the rain might subside a little. Googled there is The Cheesecake Factory at Rodeo Drive and so I went. I guess the weather really dampened the mood as I couldn't seem to vibe with the street that much. I mean, I do enjoy fair share of window shopping back in Malaysia even if I couldn't afford them. More so at one point there was one civilian seemed to have a little heated argument with shop keeper when he was adamant to stay when he was asked to move since the shop was closed, or he was not a customer. Either way, I left for Westfield Century City, an outdoor shopping mall. There were a number of departmental stores such as Bloomingdale's', Nordstorm and Macy's. There was Tesla Motors Store too. My last stop of the day was The Grove and again, it was another outdoor shopping outlet. With the weather was still pouring, my plan for shopping day just didn't get any better. After doing a purchase at Coach Store, I decided to Lyft back to end my day early.

It was March 14 Day so I ordered Shepherd "Pi". Get it?

Original Cheesecake to conclude my lunch. Penny wasn't on shift today. Oh wait...

Me, not looking that enthusiastic at Rodeo Drive. The little argument was at the end of this walkway.

I didn't watch Julia Robert's Pretty Woman but this was one of the movie's settings, I think.

A selfie won't hurt, for memory.

Miss driving Tesla, though this was Model X.

Hollywood Walk of Fame, Santa Monica Beach

I would be checking out from my AirBnB to stay at different hotel for my last night in LA. Packed my luggage and the host was kind enough for me leave my stuff behind as I could only check in at the hotel after lunch hour. Had my quick brunch at Melt, I walked my way Hollywood of Fame. It was heavily fenced up during my first day which was then been cleared. It was another rainy day but at least not as heavy as the day before. Beeing seeing the boulevard on screen for whole my life and being able to see things in real life seemed so surreal. Came close to TCL Chinese Theatre reminded me a scene from Mighty Joe Young when the gorilla climbed on top of the building. A visit to the boulevard would be incomplete to enter the theatre where they hosted the Oscars which was just few days back. You can book a tour but it was not available the week I was there. The pillars were showing the list of movies that have won Best Picture, included the recent win, Everything Everywhere All At Once. My initial intention was to get my souvenirs since my trip in the states was coming to a close but I found them tad too pricey so ended up didn't buy any. The sun appeared in the sky before I made my way back. I could heard someone said "finally". I guess I wasn't alone dreading the cloudy and rainy weather for the past few days. Had a good chat with my AirBnB host before Lyfting to my last hotel.

Typical American meal for brunch.

The theatre where Joe climbed onto the roof.

Dolby Theatre, the venue for Oscars.

Those who know me well enough will know what to look at at this photo.

Grand staircase, walking up to the theatre.

Hollywood Boulevard. Walk of Fame.

Couldn't leave this place without her. Now I can go on.

The weather was expected to get better towards the end of the day and I was glad I made the right choice to pick this day for Santa Monica Pier. Quickly settled my luggage upon checking in at Hollywood Historic Hotel and hoping onto the next bus to the pier. It was just one way street, but I needed to change bus few times as the buses would end their services at certain stops. Since I was using the day pass on TAP app, there was no additional charge by changing buses. It was around 1.5 hours bus journey. As I approached the pier, it was already crowded with people. It was 5pm. I had the crazy idea to go for a swim at first, but the sea breeze was cold, so was the water. I had quick stroll along the seashore enjoying the sun which I have been missing for quite a while. Got myself a pass to have a ride on the roller coaster and Ferris wheel. The coaster route was rather brief so we had it two rounds. I waited until near sunset to get on the Ferris wheel, only to realise it didn't allow solo rider, so I needed to wait a while before I could get on with another two guys (or couple). I settled my dinner by having shrimp platter at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. I have been seeing the shop at Las Vegas but only get to try it at Santa Monica. Caught the night view of Pacific Park before leaving the pier since it was already dark and it would be another long way back. This time I chose to use metro.

Dessert while waiting to check in.

Last night stay in the States.

Hello, Santa Monica Pier! First heard of this pier from Titanic movie.

Fitting end of my Grand Canyon journey, where this route started.

Sunny it was. It was cold at the same time.

From San Francisco to Santa Monica, we meet again, Mr Ocean.

Getting ready for the ride. I didn't throw up at the end.

Sunset view from the ferris wheel.

So much of shrimps.

Night view of Pacific Park.

My friend did warn me about how metro in LA tend to be filled with homeless and I get to experience it firsthand. As I approached the station, there was another person was tailgating me as I tapped my card. Another lady was just squeezing herself through the gate. As the train arrived, I hope onto the rain and I was among first few onboard and it would be a while before train departing. There was a homeless lady, I believe she was as she kind of smells as if has not been showering for days and was talking to me, asking me if I have any money. I didn't respond to her and presumed that I didn't understand English. I was with my mask on and pretended didn't understand her. More and more homeless people started to get on board and I started to get a little anxious, not that they were doing anything harmful to me. I wasn't just feeling comfortable. As the train started to be filled with more passengers onboard, the train made it way and it was about half an hour journey before switching back to bus getting back to my hotel.

Downtown Los Angeles, Citadel Outlets

Waking up to my very last day in the States, past 18 days just flew by. As I looked out the window, it only came to my realisation that my room view actually was facing the Hollywood sign. That was the hotelier meant the day before when he told me that I have the best view but I was in a rush to catch my bus so couldn't hear him clearly. Did early check out and left my packed luggage at the hotel, I made way to downtown LA. I made my first stop at theatre-converted Apple Store. Not the conventional apple store design, the interior architecture really brought me back to early 1900's. Didn't buy any apple product though, just get my screen protector changed as it was broken when I was in LV. Not far from the store is Grand Central Market, which is within walking distance. I met up with my friend that I made from Grand Canyon Tour for brunch. There was myriad choices of food stalls and apparently Eggslut was popular. We went to nearby Blue Bottle to order our coffee before bidding our farewell.

View from my hotel room. Hollywood sign and Netflix office.

Saw this mural while on the bus.

Apple Tower Theatre. Fancy.

Being slutty for my last day.

See you in Hong Kong, Joe!

My next mission was to send postcards back to Malaysia and thankfully, mailbox was plenty within the city, though I had a hard time to find the one nearest to me. I was right in front of the office as indicated on the map but just to realise I need to walk up the stairs. For my final agenda of the day, or rather the trip itself, I took bus to Citadel Outlets for final shopping spree. I encountered most of familiar brands and there were many off seasons stocks were on marked down prices. I definitely had better shopping experience there as compared to the malls that I went to few days ago. I spent around 3 hours there before calling it quit, more like, before burning deeper hole into my pocket. Had a quick Chipotle wrap before Lyfting back to my hotel where I had a good chat with the Lyft driver. Retrieved my luggage and made my final Lyft ride to LAX.

Saw this right opposite of Grand Central.

Crossing my fingers these cards would reach Malaysia safely. Note: They did at this time of posting.

The one skyscraper that I would associate with LA is none other than this one.

Shopped until I dropped. I went to Calvin Klein twice.

It was a wrap.

Sunset of LA cityscape while was on the Lyft back to hotel. The driver slowed down the car so that I could take this shot.

As compared to my boarding experience at Seattle Tacoma Airport, the queue for checking in the bag was rather long despite I was rather early, more than 3 hours before my flight. Thankfully the TSA queue was rather quick. Have been seeing Panda Express around the cities as I travelled along the Pacific west coast so thought of giving it a try for my dinner. Bought last minute souvenirs at the departure hall before being called to board SQ037 flying home, I mean, transiting at Changi before bound to Kuala Lumpur. I chuckled when the crew called my name by "Steward Anak". As the plane started to make it way to the runway, I noticed most of the passengers, at least from where I can see, was selecting to play "Everything Everywhere All At Once" on their screen, myself included. I guess everyone was still on Oscar's Fever on the recent win, which was just literally four days before. As the plane took off, my very first America's journey officially ended.

Waiting to check in. Getting real that my trip is ending.

Last photo taken at LA. See you again soon, America!
Side note: The passenger next to me commented on my cute Pikachu shoulder bag.

Summary of Expenses

Flight tickets: MYR 3,500 (Singapore Airlines)

US Visa: 160 USD (Conversion to MYR depends on current exchange rate)

Accommodation: Average 130 dollars per night (per pax, budget hotel/AirBnB)

Food: Average 50 dollars per day (self cook/eat out)

Transport:

(a) Public Transport: Day pass on average is 5 dollars, otherwise 2 to 3 dollars per trip. Depends on the city.

(b) Lyft (e-hailing): All I can say the rate is pretty similar to Malaysia, only different is the dollar sign. You can do the math. They do have saver option with cheaper fare if you are not rushing against time.

Shopping: Your own budget.

My USA Journey

San Francisco, California

Portland, Oregon

Mount Rainier National Park, Washington

Seattle City and Olympic National Park, Washington

First Starbucks, Washington and Las Vegas, Nevada

Canyoning in Arizona and Catching David Blaine

I Made It to the Oscars and Hollywood!

More of Los Angeles and Santa Monica Pier

Sunday, 2 April 2023

USA Trip: I'm Going to Hollywood!

Have not been travelling for almost 4 years due to the COVID-19 pandemic (last being Hokkaido Trip in July 2019) and United States of America (USA) became the first country to resume my wanderlust. Nicknamed "The Land of Opportunity", USA is not a totally foreign land to anyone, be it due to its famous entertainment industry i.e. Hollywood, out-of-the-world technology advancement for the likes of NASA and Tesla or perhaps the controversial presidency of Donald Trump, who I get to know first from hit reality series show back then, The Apprentice. With 6 time zones, different parts of the country offer different experience and consciously knowing that I wouldn't be able to cover them all in a single visit, I picked the West for my maiden trip. For first half of this journey, I was joined by my high school friend of 20 years who is currently working in the States.

West Coast of America, I'm coming to you!

Malaysians need visa to enter USA for tourism purpose. The visa application was not as complicated as you think it is, though still relatively a bit more hassle compared to other countries like UK, China, Australia, India or Myanmar. This is purely because the need of having interview at the Embassy of the USA. Flight tickets are not mandatory prior to the application, however, you do need to have tentative travelling dates. In view of appointment limited availability, it is recommended to apply for your visa at least three months before. I applied mine in the end of October, with appointment set in early November (I would consider myself lucky as I believe someone cancelled their appointment at the last minute as the next available date was weeks, if not months away) and booked my flights after to fly in February of following year.

My travelling partner for first half of this getaway.

Prior to the appointment, there are two steps to complete: filling up DS-160 form online and paying Visa fee. DS-160 comes with specific application ID and need to be saved to retrieve your application in the future since you can keep it as draft before final submission. Do remember the security questions too. There are plenty of information required, from your education history to last countries visited in the past 5 year and list of questionnaires on security and background information. The page will refresh itself after a while, be it you left it idle or been actively filling it up so be sure to keep saving or keep your info aside so you won't need to retype them. B2 Visa cost 160 USD and the rate in MYR depends on current exchange rate. It cost me MYR 752 back then. Do note that the visa fee will take a while to process depending on payment method. The fastest way to get it processed is to have it paid over counter at Ambank. I did mine via online transfer and I needed to wait until next business day. Visa fee comes with MRV number which would be required to schedule appointment and should you run into an error, it could just mean your visa fee is still being processed. With that done and you are set to book your time at the embassy for interview!

Hold on, I thought I'm going to America?

The interview process was rather quick for me. I arrived at the embassy slightly earlier than my appointment time with all the required documents and I already saw there were people waiting in line. The guard would call you in based on your scheduled appointment and you need to leave your belongings at the guard house, including your handphone. The whole session was done in less than 15 minutes. I wouldn't call it as interview though. It was just a casual chat over the counter separated by transparent glass, like asking where I work, do I own property and the next thing I know, the lady said my visa is approved there and then. I received email on the next day that my passport is ready for collection. Initially I thought to have the visa/passport self pick up option in my application (because it's free) but eventually I sorted to parcel delivery with a fee by requesting change of delivery mode via email. My visa is approved for 10 years and it is for multiple entries. With this, next step is to book my flight tickets.

I booked Singapore Airlines and return trip from Kuala Lumpur via transit at Changi to Los Angeles, cost me MYR 3500, with checked luggage included, up to 2 bags, 23kg each. I believe the ticket was rather cheap due to the fact I would be going during winter/non peak season. However, this didn't mean the expenses in USA was any less cheaper; a bed at decent dormitory for 40 dollars per night, private room for 100 dollars (excluded taxes), 10 to 20 dollars for a decent meal. Tipping is a thing in the USA and the amount is usually minimum of 15% or 18% of your bill. You are more than welcome to give more should you like the service rendered. We utilized almost all modes of transport; we rented cars, we rode train, we boarded ferry, we flew, you name it. Need not to mention those intracity commute via bus/metro/e-hailing and lots, lots of walking. Petrol, or locally they called it gas, at this part of the USA, you could find average price hovering around 4.50 dollars/gallon and the highest being 5 dollars. I would say the best way to explore in the States is actually getting yourself a car to drive out the city and possibly for interstate travel/road trips. Public transport is recommended within the city area due to the traffic and finding parking is a pain. It ain't cheap either. Cheapest option is obviously to be on foot and cities in the States are all pedestrians-friendly.

View from plane, flying towards Nevada from Washington.

Spanning for 18 days, we, or at least me, covered five states: we travelled up north from Santa Barbara to San Francisco, crossed state border for quick stay at Portland before reaching at the state of Washington. Flying back down south to Nevada, I did 2 days 1 night tour to Arizona before concluding my trip at City of Angels. In the beginning of the trip, the time difference was 16 hours later than Malaysia and there was daylight saving time adjustment during my last week there in which they fast forwarded their clock by an hour. I'm still losing that one hour of my time now, at the time of this posting. It was mostly cloudy and drizzling/shower to the point that both me and my friend agreed the weather was considered good as long as it wasn't raining. I can say I only get to see the sun for less than 7 days, combined. At some point, we experienced snow, like it was literally snowing albeit for a brief moment. The temperature was never over 20 degree Celcius (68F) during daytime and it could get to as low as 0 degree (32F) as night fell. I was all good with the temperature until the wind decided to blow.