Cost

• JFK to LAX - Virgin Atlantic = $125 + $15 for Luggage
• Daily Spending = about $40
  
• I couchsurfed so that saved me a bit of money

June 2

• Took Virgin Atlantic 9 in the morning to LAX, Virgina Atlantic is a budget but comfy airline.. so they do have entertainment but everything cost money.. so make sure you bring snacks if you don't want to starve
• Took Flyaway bus to Union Station for $6.00

Los Angeles is definitely different from NYC.. the weather.. the landscape.. there are palm trees everywhere.. it just feels warm and sunny.. I arrived in LA around 2pm and took the bus to meet Joe, my CS host in Union Station.  The afternoon I spent wondering around Little Tokyo, Chinatown and Olvera Road.  It is like everywhere I go, there is a Chinatown. This just goes to show that there are tons of Chinese everywhere!

The best part of the day was mingling with the locals.  Next to the Union Station, there is a park, I am not sure if they do music gatherings every day, but I was lucky that they did on the evening of June 2.  At first, there was only one lady dancing (the lady on the left of the pic).. She was definitely having fun.. I wanted to joined but was hesitating.. I get a bit of afraid to be the minority.. but then I figure.. what the hell.. it is not like anyone knows me here.. and besides.. the whole point of my trip is to have fun.. so this time.. without hesitation.. i jumped in and started dancing... song after song.. a few more people joined and I also dragged a random observers to the dance floor with me..  the music was great.. my dance was okay.. but it was a blast!!!! 

 

June 3
On the second day, I took the metro (definitely not as efficient and extensive as NYC subway) to Hollywood... visit the tourist parts of hollywood blvd.. sunset blvd.. looked the huge Hollywood sign (no pic because I got lazy)... jumped on random buses.. got lost.. changed a bus.. got more lost.. somehow found my way to Venice Beach and had a chill walk across the sand... 

The best part of the day is meeting an old Mexican grandpa who spoke only Spanish.. I was lost and waiting for a bus that would be going to the reverse direction.... had a body language conversation with the grandpa where I tried to tell him that I am waiting for the express bus (one goes chuuuuuuuuuuu.., not the local one where it goes chuuu.. chuu.. chuuu....).. somehow he understood me.. that was priceless!



At the evening, Joe took me out to a few local bars.. one known for whisky.. forgot what it is call.. but it is in downtown LA around Art District.. they make once lovely modernized Whisky cocktail.. creamy looking.. yumm.. but expensive..

Then we went to another local bar which used to be a hangout spot for local cops.. pretty interesting environment...

Overall.. LA is so familar but yet so different.. 

Oh.. one thing I forgot is that.. I witnessed one of the biggest fire in my life on the nigh of June 2.. not far from Joe's place is a industrial building.. somehow a fire started.. and it expanded quite rapidly.. i think fire departments from all of LA came.. it was pretty crazy... the building was 2 stories but the fire went up to about 7 stories high.. luckily no one was in that (i think).. and the fire department was able to put the fire off pretty quickly!