Day 52-53 (June 23-24): Santa Monica, Ca.

We got in to Santa Monica on the evening of June 22nd and left around noon on the 25th. Along the way, there were two baseball games, the LA-esque commute to said games, as well as a Bruins game (more on that below), not leaving all that much time for many other activities.

Before we get to that, when I set off on these here adventures, I had promised myself that I would at some point invoke the 'YOLO' clause and book at least one ridiculously extravagant hotel room.  Santa Monica seemed to be the perfect candidate. And it was. I spent three nights at the Casa Del Mar, complete with king-sized bed I almost needed a stool to get in, jacuzzi tub, TV in the bathroom, bathrobe, slippers (too small for my ridiculously large feet, but sill, slippers), turndown service (still not sure what that means), courtesy car and driver and this view:

I could get used to waking up in the morning to the sound of waves hitting the beach.

Here is a view of the hotel from the beach:

Santa Monica and Venice Beaches

I spent a good chunk of June 24th walking the boardwalk and the beach in Santa Monica and Venice. Some pics:

Santa Monica Beach and Pier:

Venice Beach, south of Fisherman's Pier:

Stanley Cup Finals

I spent another chunk of the day figuring out where I could watch Game Six of the Stanley Cup Finals in relative proximity to Dodger Stadium, given I had a ticket to that night's game. Dodger Stadium is located in Chavez Ravine, basically a large park in the middle of Los Angeles, if your definition of park includes a ballpark and several square miles of parking lots. There are no next door neighborhood bars and, unless you have club seats (at least $250 a pop) no bars at the Stadium itself.

I ended up at the Short Stop bar, on West Sunset Blvd, evidently the closest bar to the Stadium, 0.8 miles away. (Now, I'm pretty sure that is actually the distance, as the crow flies, to the front gates as opposed to the Stadium itself.) The Short Stop is a cool little place:  the walls and ceilings are painted completely black and all the light bulbs are a dim orange. The place is dark. It is also very much a Dodger bar, with pictures of Dodger greats on the walls. Unfortunately, at 7 PM (during the second intermission of the hockey game), they flipped their one and only TV to the Dodger game. I cannot blame them for that, given the nature of the bar, but it did not help me any. The manager suggested I try Compadres, the Mexican restaurant next door, because they had at least two TV sets.

Not liking my odds of watching the rest of the game, I headed to Compadres. Lo and behold, they were showing the hockey game not only on the two TVs behind the bar, but on a big screen. Several people, including one of the bartenders, were watching intently. And, of course, there was a Mexican trio playing (three older gentlemen, two of which were playing guitars and one a stand-up bass). Add to that that the bartender welcomed me back and said he had not seen me in a while (I had to agree) and it was one of the most if not sur-realistic then unexpected environments in which I have watched a hockey game.

After that, I could not hail a cab to save my life, so I attempted to walk to Dodger Stadium. Between the steep hills (I did mention it was in a ravine), the lack of signage and the lack of signage, I have a lingering suspicion that I may well have been the first person to actually walk to the Stadium in living memory.

Here is a view of downtown LA from one of the many Chavez Ravine parking lots post-game:

Random observations:

- I may be warming up to LA itself. There is an extensive public transit system, which, from the little I used it, to be built along some semblance of logic. Fares also seem cheap, ($2 to $2.50 on average, depending whether you transfer or cross zones).  This is the second time I have been there, after promising myself I would never return after my first visit. I may need to give the city another shot.

- That being said, it seemed that when I had pleasant conversations with service sector staff, it was with people that had recently moved there. Otherwise, the abruptness of bar and restaurant staff was noticeable.

- Comped drink count: oh, let's say 8, because I have lost track.  The barkeep at The Short Stop comped me a beer because he had not given out anything yet that night... I suspect he may have been from out of town.