LA
Trip Start
Apr 15, 2008
1
37
58
Trip End
Apr 19, 2009
Los Angeles,
California,
United States
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Unfortunately we had to fly back to LA to connect to our flight to the South Pacific. The overnight Delta flight with little leg room was a bit of an endurance test but we made it! And managed to catch a couple of hours kip too.
We had a couple of days to kill in LA before our flight down to Samoa, so we hired a car and drove down to take a look at some of the southern beach communities. This was our third trip to LA and we'd seen the main tourist sights so wanted to explore some new areas. We drove down the coastal road south of the airport and were pleased to find some really nice suburbs built around central entertainment areas next to golden sands with either a pier or harbour.
We stopped at Redondo Beach and took a walk around the boardwalk, lined with seafood restaurants and craft shops it was a nice way to spend a few hours. After walking a couple miles along the ocean front path we thought we'd burnt enough calories so we returned to the harbour to treat ourselves to some fish and chips and a nice cold beer, well it's traditional to have fish and chips when you're at the ocean! I'm not sure what excuse to use for our trip to the Cheesecake Factory? Only to say the portion sizes were obscene and we ended up having to take most of it with us, still it made a nice snack whilst waiting for our flight!
On our way back up the coast we dropped into Hermosa Beach, rated number one beach resort in the USA, it has a fine pier from which many local fishermen while away their hours catching mackerel and sardines.
Hermosa CA
The place has a nice ocean front path backed by some amazing properties. The sands are golden and spotlessly clean, local lads practice their beach volley ball on the numerous beach volleyball courts. As it was a Tuesday the place pretty quite but at the weekends it is heaving. There is a pedestrianised area next to the pier with lots of restaurants and surf shops where the cool dudes hang out! On the ocean, stereo type Californians catch the waves on their surfboards; donned in wetsuits to insulate them from the cold waters of the Pacific Ocean they ride the crests on their surf boards. Yes the Beach Boys song does come to mind! ..............Surfing USA! Our advice if you're planning a trip to LA, is to stay at one of these resorts south of the airport. They are a great base to combine a safe, clean beach holiday away from the tourist hotspots but within easy access of the main sights of LA. Or if like us you have a couple of days layover, it is a great way to relax in-between flights.
