While driving Highway 1, we stopped off in Los Angeles for two nights. We stayed at an Air BnB in Eagle Rock. We’ve stayed at quite a few Air BnB rentals over the years.  We’ve really only had good experiences.  This Air BnB was an amusing experience. We stayed in the basement of a house that a guesstimated 10 dudes lived in. We were instructed by our host to only take #1’s in the bathroom nearest our room. We could take #2’s upstairs in his roommate’s bathroom. He told us this about 5 times & by the 5th time, we couldn’t help but laugh, “Alright, no #2’s downstairs. We got it.” We were there for two nights but it wasn’t until we were leaving that we realized our host had actually rented us his own room. He had literally been sleeping under the stairs while we stayed. Well, you know! You do what you gotta do to get ahead & make rent.

Mr. FGK had to do most of the driving since I totally freaked on the freeway. I travel a lot but I can still be a bit of a hayseed. I couldn’t cope with all the cars the honking & swerving past me or the steep & narrow streets with limited parking. I handed the steering wheel over to Mr. FGK for most of this time.

We managed to squeeze a lot in only two days in LA. We had Happy Hour sushi  at a restaurant in Silver Lake, walked around a local market in Echo Park & drove around Malibu & Malibu Canyon. We cruised around the Hollywood, Beverly Hills & Korea Town areas. We caught night views of the city from Mulholland Drive on the Hollywood Hills. We hiked Runyon Canyon, saw the Hollywood sign & drove around Studio City. Mostly, we drove around. I feel like that’s authentic to the LA lifestyle, though, lots of time spent in the car.

On the way out, we intended to meet a friend from college for lunch in Long Beach. However, we got caught in traffic & had no phone service or way to get in touch. Again, we got a taste of what I consider to be the authentic LA experience. It took us nearly 2 hours to get a distance that would normally take 30 minutes by car. We were too late & she had already left once we arrived at the restaurant. C’est la vie. Until the next time I’m in LA, Amanda! We will see each other then!

We drove out of LA on Highway 1 which allowed us to cruise past Seal, Huntington, Newport & Laguna Beaches. I was pleasantly surprised that it was all as Hollywood depicts it: mansions, lifeguard stands, shirtless dudes playing frisbee & palm trees everywhere. Some of the LA charm I was not expecting were the orange & lemon trees in front yards lining Silver Lake sidewalks, a spice shop loaded with freshly ground spices from all over & In-N-Out Burger totally living up to its hype. Seriously, eat at In-N-Out at least once in LA.

Next stop: San Diego!