LA LA Land

Every time I get on an international flight I ask myself why? Why do I put myself through this voluntarily....? Fortunately, Jason had booked us premium economy seats, which for a first timer like me, was luxury. Apparently the seats recline back further and there is more leg room, however, I didn't really notice all that much difference. Even with pharmaceutically induced sleep, it's a long flight from every angle.

 And then I land in another country and I remember why....... It's the vibe, the excitement, the discovery. In this case revisiting some places and seeing new ones. We landed at 6am to a foggy LAX. Unlike last time we landed here, the arrival hall was virtually empty and we moved reasonably quickly through customs. The new electronic passport system is new since I travelled 18 months ago, but I'm not really sure it actually expediates the process. A shuttle bus arrived just as we reached the platform and took  us to our Thrifty car rental office. Even that process went relatively smoothly. They basically showed us a row of cares and said "pick one". We based our choice on how big the boot was, and ended up with a Mazda 5. Then we crawled in the LA peak hour traffic to our Air bnb apartment in Fox Hills Drive just a block away from Fox Studios.

We tried to stay awake, but jet lag won, and we crashed for a few hours. I strolled around the neighbour hood on my own in the beautiful winter afternoon while the others still slept. Just like a Brisbane winter, the temperatures are mild at around 18 degrees, with blue skies and sunshine. As I heard the emergency services sirens sounding in the background, it did cross my mind that perhaps it wasn't a safe neighbourhood to be walking around alone! It was fine, and I enjoyed being out.

View from our  apartment

Fox Studios
No Public Entry

We all eventually came to terms with the day and went to the local Westfield Shopping Centre called Century City. The centre is currently undergoing renovation which (great for us), is keeping the crowds of Christmas shoppers away. There are already sales happening, and even with the terrible Aussie dollar exchange rate, there were some bargains to be found. The girls scored some items (Christmas gifts), however, I didn't want my shopping to peak too early and am also saving for any patchwork shops in my favour! :)

On our way back we came across the packing up of a TV set being dismantled. One of houses nearby was used for a night scene in a new sitcom called "New Girl". There was A LOT of vans and equipment for what was apparently a quick shoot. We are hoping to have some more experiences with tv recordings in the near future.

Can't wait to see this at night

More Christmas lights