USA trip - Part 2, Los Angeles
The bus was quite comfortable, and we had a little rest. Fortunately, the camera was ready, so when we passed by the Crescent Dunes project, which is a tower solar power plant, I was able to take a few pictures of it. Now that I’m writing about it, I looked it up a bit. It turns out that, apparently, it no longer generates energy because it has become economically unviable.
We checked into our accommodation. Since this part was at our own expense, we chose a much more modest place. In fact, we couldn’t have picked a more typical American hotel. It wasn’t a dump, but there was a noticeable difference compared to the previous one; it suited our purpose. After a little rest, we continued our journey. If I remember correctly, we signed up for a bus tour, which included 5-6 planned stops. During the trip, the driver continuously informed us about what each place was famous for. At each stop, we had half to an hour to explore the area on foot.
One of these stops was Santa Monica Beach. It had a real Baywatch vibe. We quickly decided that we would come back here later.
We had a brief stop around the canal area. There was a strong contrast: on one hand, a wealthy neighborhood, and on the other hand, homeless people living in tents on the streets.
After that, we went up to the observatory. The night before, we had come up here by Uber, but the atmosphere was very polluted, so visibility was significantly reduced, and I didn’t bring my camera. It didn’t clear up during the day either. We went inside and watched a spectacular show.
That was the extent of our program for the day. The next day, we decided to explore Santa Monica Beach more closely. We spent a pleasant time on the beach, wandered around a bit, and then returned to our accommodation. In the evening, we set out on a walking city tour from the hotel.
On the last day, we visited the La Brea Tar Pits Museum (https://tarpits.org/). I didn’t take many photos there. Later, as a final stop, we went down to Venice Beach. There, at sunset, we happened upon a bicycle parade.
In the evening, we set out on foot again from the hotel. I didn’t bring my camera with me, although, as it turned out, there were plenty of interesting subjects. We came across a car parade, complete with lowriders and no shortage of loud noise.
As it has turned out, there won’t be another trip like this. However, this last one will remain an eternal memory. From a European perspective, the USA is a completely different world, and Las Vegas is something else entirely. It was great to see and experience it. I would love to spend much more time seeing and photographing the Grand Canyon.
Thanks to Julie and Jordan for building the company from scratch, assembling such a great team, and organizing these trips!
