I just got back from a trip to Los Angeles with a handful of my friends, and I wanted to document my thoughts on LA while they’re fresh in my mind. Here are a few assorted rambled thoughts in no particular order.
I don’t think I’d survive living there. I’m not used to the density or the lack of green, but I do like the diversity of options at any given time. The sweltering heat and my pale Seattle skin do not get along, but I’m sure I could get used to it.
People in LA are incredibly nice to strangers, which was a pleasant surprise. It’s easy to strike up a conversation with the person standing in line next to you in the grocery store or at the gym. In Seattle, we just look at you funny. “Why are you talking to me? Leave me alone.” I’m definitely more comfortable with the latter.
Every retail store has a security guard on site, as do many fast food restaurants. I wonder how useful they can be. I assume they’re there just as deterrent, but I didn’t get to witness any of them in action. A good number of the security guards are elderly men with lingering eyes.
Yes, before you ask, the average level of attractiveness in Los Angeles is higher than that in Seattle. Everybody has really nice skin. Must be the sun. I burned very quickly and stayed burnt the whole week. There were many, many people of Latin descent. So many so that they seemed like the majority. Fewer white and black people than I expected to see. Either way, there are tons of gorgeous women around and everybody knows it. The skincare / makeup industry must do very well here. Or maybe it’s the pollution.
LA tap water is filthy, and gave me a strange feeling in my stomach when I tried to drink it filtered. We stuck with bottled water after that, except when drinking water in restaurants. I’m not sure if they serve non-tap water in restaurants or if my body got used to it near the end, but those problems faded about halfway through the week.
The food is either very cheap or incredibly overpriced. I had a pastrami sandwich that costed $20. A normal-sized sandwich, one that you could make with bread from a grocery store. But also, my entire meal at In-n-Out cost less than $10. I’m not sure of the explanation for this discrepancy, other than relative fame of the restaurant. The sandwich was from Langer’s, home to the self-proclaimed best pastrami in the world. The In-n-Out was from In-n-Out.
The homeless run rampant there. Tents are set up in various locations, off to the side of streets. There is garbage everywhere, the streets smell like piss, and you’d be hard-pressed not to go a day without seeing puke on a sidewalk.
But despite this, people flock here, seeing it as the land of opportunity. Many careers require connections. Dense population equals connections. It makes me sad to think about the number of people who move to LA from Nowhere, USA, only to end up on the streets. The bar for talent is incredibly high, and very few people in the world are able to be in the right place at the right time.
Drivers are wishy-washy, if not incredibly willing to let others in. It was surprising. I expected everybody to drive aggressively, and was preparing myself for such. They’re not aggressive, just bold in strange ways. Taking a left across multiple lanes of traffic, not caring about halting oncoming traffic. That sort of thing.
I need to go on a diet.