The Grand Canyon , USA

We were done with our 7th Std Half yearly Exams and our teacher was giving out the answer sheets and calling out our marks. It was my favorite subject- Geography! I had scored 98/100 and quite kicked about it.  Went home and showed it off to mom & dad. Now this is the part where I don’t really remember specifics. All I know is that I had received a postcard of The Grand Canyon courtesy my uncle who had recently visited the place. The next day I took the postcard to school to show it to my classmates and Geography teacher. Well, what do you know, she not only envied me for receiving one all the way from across the globe, but also gave me extra 2 marks, thereby making my total 100/100. Imagine my joy and happiness? Yep, I was over the moon.

And that is when I started dreaming of the day I would get to visit The Grand Canyon and walk around it… Little did I know it would happen a few decades later and I would be there on my own, taking it all in. J

When I began planning my USA trip, I was fighting quite a few battles in my head- where all should I visit, what all should I do, what were the places I MUST visit and what were the others that were ok to SKIP. The one place that sat right on top of the list was…. no prizes for guessing- The Grand Canyon. Everything else could wait!

From LA, I booked myself on a bus tour that would take me to Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Horseshoe bend and back to LA in 3days.  Now even though Vegas wasn’t really on my list, I decided to just go with the flow and enjoy it. The bus guide gave us two options with ref to The Grand Canyon- we could go to the South rim [Entry fee of $30- 5hours from Vegas; offered panoramic views, unending vistas and a chance to walk around as much as we wanted] or West rim [entry fee- $90, 3hours from Vegas; no cameras or phones allowed. Visitors could walk on the skywalk [those fiber glass flooring where you can see below your feet @ $25 and collect photos clicked by the staff at the spot @ $30 a piece]. I instantly picked the South rim and no regrets! Infact, nearly 90% of the bus chose the West rim and the next day when we exchanged notes, they weren’t too happy about the visit, yes the view was beautiful, and it was a fun experience, but they felt the fee was too high and it was over hyped.

On the 2^nd day morning, we left around 5.30am, and most of the way I slept, except for the times when the bus stopped for breakfast run and pit stop. We were about 10 of us in the van, from various corners of the globe. There was a monk from Cambodia, a guy whose friends were sloshed and hung over in their room with this guy out alone with us [from Thailand] and then there was a team of 4 from UK & Europe. There was also a couple [slightly weird. I say weird cos the girl was unwell and slept in the first seat while the guy sat next to the driver and yapped away nonstop in Mandarin-to a point where I had to ask them to shut it]

By 11ish we had reached the parking lot of The Grand Canyon and the driver told us from here it was a short walk to the viewing spot and we could walk left & right and beyond… Told us to be careful of monkeys and squirrels that would come begging for food and slippery slopes. We got out of the bus and were slapped by cold crazy winds…Oh yes, it was cold and windy alright and most of us had on just one jacket. Who knew it was going to be this wild!

I loved the chill and the wind, but had to walk slowly as it would otherwise blow me off. Within half a km I spotted The Grand Canyon stretch in front of my eyes. That is all I remember. Few hours later I had to drag myself away from this natural beauty, back to the bus else I might get left behind.

Words fail me whenever I try to explain what the place was like or how I felt.. It was magical. Yes, I do agree it was just endless stretches of mountains with the river flowing between it, but still it was WOW. I couldn’t believe I was actually there. Here it is, The Grand Canyon in all its glory.

Universal Studios, LA

I had a plan in my head when I booked my tickets to USA. But then it kept changing every few hours, until finally I took a few places off my list and added few others.. One of them that I gave few extra hours to was UniversalStudios.

I was gonna be back from my Vegas- Grand Canyon trip [yes yes am yet to write about it], and had given myself 2 extra days in LA.. My uncle and aunt were gonna be away, so I had their place to myself and make the most of the two days. On the 1^st day, I decided to head to Universal Studios and second day was set for Getty Center, Ikea and spend the rest of the evening with uncle- aunt before packing my bags for the early morning flight that awaited me thereon.

I was up bright and early, went for a short walk around the neighborhood, showered, made myself a yumm breakfast of French toast, a glass of orange juice and bowl of berries :D [I drool as I am writing this now..sigh]

I walked up the stairs towards the entrance, heart was beating fast and adrenalin was rushing to the head, that is how excited I was... They have these kiosks that help you do away with long lines, picked up a ticket [mine was $80- includes all rides and shows] and entered the place.. That was it.. I do not remember how it was 6hours when I left the place towards the exit gates... the only breaks i took was to grab something to eat/drink- churros, coke, a salad and a pretzel...

Wheee…. WOWWIEEEEEEEEEE……….OhMyGawddddd…….*Grins* -- These were the only sounds I made while walking around the place… lolz…

Here is a photo tour of how my day at Universal Studios was… 

  

Getty Center, LA

While I was planning my trip, one of my uncles [in Chennai] insisted I visit the Getty centre. I had seen pictures from grandparents' earlier visit and knew it would be a lovely place. I did not know much about the place, except that it was all about art and there was a huge garden within the campus. On my last day in LA, after having a relaxed breakfast, I made my way to the bus stand to head to Getty Centre. The J. Paul Getty Museum, commonly referred to as "Getty", is situated in the Brentwood neighbourhood of Los Angeles.. There is another centre, The J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Villa located in Malibu.

A short bus ride took me straight to the main entrance, where I was told to go to the place where electric tram took us up the hill to the main Getty centre. From there you are free to wander about. Everything is free, there is plenty of open space, benches to sit and enjoy the view from, a couple of galleries displaying different kinds of art, and of course the garden down below. There are also guided tours at specific timings.  And as with every place, there are a couple of gift shops selling interesting stationery to bags , toys and more..  The art collection features Western art from the Middle Ages to the present. It is said that over 1.3 million visitors annually, making it one of the most visited museums in the United States. 

I noticed there was a Garden tour in half an hour. After enquiring about the assembly point, I began wander around the grounds.  Situated atop the hill, it offers a 360 view of the city below, with such beautiful vistas all around.

Keeping the various elements around, the architect Richard Meier designed the complex to highlight both nature and culture. The lady who gave the garden tour explained in length about the architecture and the architect's mind as well. From that, Richard Meier sounds a bit like someone with a major OCD. 

The walls are all beige, they are fitted with 30x30 inch squares that flow seamlessly from the ceiling to the floor and around. 

The trees in the centre are all aligned to be in line, they are also white flower blooming trees as Meier would not have other colours in the complex. 

When they asked him to plant a coral tree, the tree of LA, he made sure to put it behind a wall,so it did not mess up the rest of the space. :D

*mind voice- damn this guy must have been crazy, wonder what he was like at home*

The smaller plants are also white flower blooming ones..

There were few other trees which were in a straight line, Sequoia trees.. They all looked like a military man had blown the whistle and ordered them to stand straight. 

Wait, there is more. Cos trees have roots and have roots have a mind of their own which could lead to them changing positions over time, these trees are all planted in giant boxes which have then been hidden into the ground.. 

As for the garden, that was put together by Robert Irwin. The main garden is in three parts-- the Stream Garden, the plaza and the Bowl Garden. They have zig-zagged down the Stream's path, passed the bougainvillea shooting from rebar bowers[ a smaller version of what you see in Singapore gardens], crossed over the water cascading into the pool below, then strolled into the intimate, exuberant spirals of the Bowl, centered on its water-bound azalea maze. The past year saw the state go through terrible drought followed by rains. During the drought season, the Government shut off water and so the garden is pretty dry with nothing but succulents all across. The zig zag path is also dry and so we did not see/enjoy what Irwin had designed. 

Oh and even the trees around the campus - they are all pruned to a certain height, almost  looking like someone gave them a bad haircut. In one area, there is a long walkway with mauve pillars, around which are wines with purple flowers in them. Now these were allowed, but had to be trimmed and kept in a certain way acc to the architect. 

The day was quite windy, infact during certain moments I thought it was gonna whisk me away. After the tour, I spent some time exploring the art galleries, there are quite a few water bodies, ponds and interesting sculptures scattered through the property. I also picked up some souvenir at the store and grabbed a cup of coffee at one of the many kiosks outside. It is a beautiful place to just sit and soak it all in. 

Soon it was time to bid adieu to this magical place and head back down. The tram awaits... adios... 

Strolling along the Venice Beach , Los Angeles

Narrow lanes

Short bridges

Waterways all over

Gondolas

Romance

These are a few words that come to my mind when someone says "Venice"..

But for us it was more of We went, we saw and we left... lolz.. read on to know what happened... 

There we were, about 15-17 of us, sitting around the table enjoying a lazy breakfast when a cousin announced "lets go to Venice Beach", will be fun. We can even rent cycles and ride around the place. Lunch can happen at one of the places and we can come back. I was lost, I did not even know there was a Venice Beach in LA... Another cousin looked at me and said "you should go, its your 1st time in this country, so come check it out, there are street performers, shops, marijuana doctors, food etc etc... its a fun vibrant place. Within an hour, all of us but uncle-fiancee piled into two cars and headed out. The drive was long, took nearly an hour, then came the drama of finding parking. Phew, a public parking lot came in sight and we found  spot for the SUV. During the ride, I did some digging about this beach... Originally called "Venice of America," this area was founded by tobacco millionaire Abbot Kinney back in 1905 [meant to be a beach resort town]. He along with his partner bought a 2 mile long ocean view property here.  

At the entrance is a banner that announces "Venice" and down the road is where you see the ocean. There is a long boardwalk filled with street vendors on one side and performers on the other. We watched a magic show and a music gig.. I also noticed quite a few guys handing out Music CDs... They just give it to you and then follow you asking for money.  The stores are a lot like what we see in Goa- filled with junk- hats, caps, t-shirts, souvenirs, and some products looked very Indian. And then came the row of Marijuana Doctors, all painted in neon green. You can walk in and get a legal prescription for the drug... :O 

I spotted a basketball court and a skating rink as well..Suddenly I heard loud music on the left, I turn to notice a huge workout area, with guys looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger's older brothers, ginormous muscles..  The coolest thing were the walls all along the beach, they were covered in interesting murals and graffiti...   For a Friday afternoon, the place was jam packed.. You gotta be careful of your stuff else some could go missing~ I was walking along when suddenly someone slammed into me, my handbag fell, scattering the contents. I picked up as much as I could and walked ahead. But something stopped me in my tracks, I looked back and saw my phone cable lying on the ground. Grabbed it and heaved a sigh of relief that nothing valuable was lost... 

We walked around for many  45mins when suddenly one of the little ones announced he was hungry. And thus began the hunt to find a eatery, battle between good food vs decent looking place. After a few mins, we got back to the road near the parking lot and headed into a Chinese/Thai place, occupying the largest bench and thus ended the visit to the beach. Apparently, the beach has a stretch which resembles venice- with small bridges and water ways and is quite a sight around sunset... Oh well, guess it will wait for my next trip..