Monday, April 30, 2007

random city tour!

::wilshire boulevard::
one of the principal east-west roads in LA, spanning 16 miles long - it has even been called "the backbone of LA"!

::westwood public library::
small cosy neighbourhood library serving the residents in westwood. the childrens' section is nicely decorated with colorful murals and stuffed toys to make the kids feel comfy here!

::pierce brothers' westwood village memorial park::


this small quiet park is the resting place of some of hollywood's greatest stars!

the most famous of them all should be the iconic marilyn monroe..

there's even a bench dedicated to her (by one of her big fans, perhaps?)!

the resting place of mr buddy rich, an american jazz drummer and bandleader. he was touted as the "world's greatest drummer" in his time. his headstone interestingly reads: one of a kind. im sure he was..

more of the park - pleasantly adorned with water fountains and more flowers. after marilyn monroe was laid to rest in this park, the park gained popularity as the final resting place for numerous hollywood's celebrities like natalie wood, burt lancaster, jack lemmon and donna reed (most of whom i do not know though).

i had such a hard time finding the place! i later found out that it wasnt just me (and my bad direction sense) - but that it was really almost impossible to find the park without specific directions! the park can only be reached from one entrance on its west side and only accessible through a small nondescript road! i was so lost that i went to seek help at the nearby westwood presbyterian church..

the people in the church very kindly showed me the way to the park:) what was very surprising was that they even gave me a map, giving me detailed directions to all the stars' graves in the westwood memorial park!?

::los angeles california temple of the church of the latter day saints ("CLDS")::
one of the most distinctive features of the LA westside skyline - this is the tenth operating and second largest temple operated by the CLDS. its grounds also serves as a visitors' center opened to the public.

if we were to look at orthodox bible teachings, it would be clear that the CLDS can be regarded as a cult by definition. the CLDS' extensive use of the word "temple" sounded quite creepy to me and because i was alone, i didnt dare venture inside the visitors' centre myself!

the surrounding of the temple were very well-maintained with perfectly manicured flora and fauna. as seen from the photo, the temple sits atop a small hill above the intersection of overland avenue and santa monica boulevard.

the great view from the CLDS temple atop the hill!

the front door of the CLDS temple - looks scarily imposing!

entry to the temple was for members only!

::more random stuff::

during the long long walk back to westwood village, i had to go through various residential estates. the houses here look pretty nice:)

because of my cookiesicecreamcrazy craving, the other half and i shared 3 scoops of icecream (good ole traditional chocolate, rocky mountain & butter pecan) and 3 cookies (chocolate chip walnut choc cookies)! sinfully delicious:)

some photos of the interior of the penthouse that we are staying in! more photos of our room later (after i have tidied up the place. haha)!

day 2
the other half was busy on call at the hospital today - so i went exploring the city myself! that pretty much explains why i don't appear in any of the photos below.. haha.

::touring ucla campus::

the uber modern ronald reagan ucla medical centre!

other medicine/health-related faculties/schools!

ucla's version of our woodbridge hospital!

ucla's very cute emergency telephone booth!

::hammer museum::
the hammer musuem - an art gallery created and funded by mr. armand hammer, an (obviously very wealthy) art collector and philanthropist.

the open courtyard of the musuem - which has a very serene and tranquil feel to it

it was a pity i couldnt take any photographs of the artworks/exhibits (the curator very candidly warned me (albeit jokingly) not to try and sneak anything behind him!) - so this was the best (or rather, the only) picture i could take of them!

the museum also houses the billy wilder theatre, which showcases various international films - brought by the ucla film and television archive.

::randoms - in westwood village::

interesting signposts of the public buses!

the grand entrance of the postal office in westwood


ucla film students lying on the streets - as part of a project to see how people would respond to their antic. they even asked me to help pose for their video while i took a photograph of them!

some random art gallery - the arts scene in LA appears to be quite vibrant eh?

a fire-engine of the LA city fire dept (LAFD) - it was quite funny how the firemen were taking a break by the roadside..

im back!! the past couple of weeks have been crazily busy! the other half was in town and i was busy preparing (albeit very very last minute) for my exams! it was a very emotionally draining period as well - coz i had to bid farewell to all my dear friends in ubc! i have been crying everyday since last saturday coz of all the sweet things my friends have done for me - before i left! thank you all so very much dears!! sigh. i just hate saying goodbyes - but i take comfort in the fact that (i hope!!) this would not be our final goodbye! im already looking forward our reunion - im quite sure the plans will materialize:) even though i was perpetually plagued with homesickness, i really really really enjoyed the past 8 months in vancouver - i totally love the place (absolutely beautiful!), the people (amazingly friendly and warmth people! i met so many good friends (for life) here!) and my lifestyle (part-time student, full-time holiday-maker). haha. im so blessed to have been able to do my exchange in ubc - i really thank God for everything coz He really knew what was best for me and what i needed. on hindsight, i can now see the reasons behind His plan in bringing me to ubc:) lest i get all teary again, i will update on my last couple of weeks in vancouver, as well as my rockies trip later!

anyway i have arrived safely in los angeles already:) im currently staying in westwood - a small university town/village in LA. it's such a lovely place and it's quite safe here too - so i can wander off to explore the city by myself while the other half is busy at cedars sinai hospital (this private & posh hospital where a lot of hollywood celebrities go to! he hasnt spotted any stars there yet though!).

here's where we are staying - the other half rented a gorgeous room in this penthouse along kelton avenue! our room has 2 beds, an attached bathroom, a walk-in closet, a microwave, a mini-refrigerator and even has vcds/dvds and books for our viewing pleasure! i will post pictures of the room once i have tidied up the place;) heh.

here's the nearby ucla residence for her graduate students! it's really beautiful - doesnt it look like a chalet resort? madness!

::1st day in LA::
i awoke at around 1pm - i must have been so exhausted! sleeping in has certainly been one of the luxuries that i have missed out on for the past few weeks. the other half came back at around 3pm and we went out to explore the town!

me at westwood boulevard - basking in the sun:) i miss such good weather! good riddance to thick down jackets, scarfs, boots and trenchcoats! haha.

the other half really knows what makes me happy - the first place he brought me to, was this popular icecream/cookie sandwich shop - diddy riese! i love cookies and icecream - so it was just the perfect place for me! haha. i had strawberry cheesecake icecream sandwiched between 2 white chocolate macademia nut cookies - ooh it was so yummy:)

wow westwood even has a street specially dedicated to the homosexuals?

on a closer look, it was really gayley avenue - but someone pasted some stuff over the letters on the other road sign (see previous picture)!

food galore in westwood!! from the looks of it, i think i will definitely enjoy staying here:) haha. there are lots of different food cuisines available here - it sure does remind me of my dear vancouver!


i really like the exterior design of the shops/buildings here too:) how nicely done up! oh yes- we have a franchise of the california pizza kitchen back home in forum shopping centre - but here's real mccoy!

my latest infatuation #1 - baskin robbins! desserts galore - at really reasonable prices! doesnt this just spell dooms for my dieting plans?!!

my latest infatuation #2 - green tea terrace! some of you know my love for anything with green tea! that's why im gonna have a jolly good time at this shop - which serves a variety of greentea-laden desserts/food. haha. there are, inter alia, greentea latte, greentea icecream, greentea yoghurt, greentea milkshake and the like. woohoo.


one of the things that struck me about westwood - was the numerous movie theatres around this small town!

dinner was at headlines black angus, a typical amercian diner!

we shared a cheesesteak burger and a black angus specialty burger! it was not too bad:) love the curly fries! it was quite interesting how we could have a choice of fruits (vis-a-vis fries) as a side too!

alright that's all for now - i will update more later!

::victoria (31 march 07) part 1/2::
last saturday, the other half and i went to victoria for a day trip!

the other half and i on the ferry to victoria!

the beautiful sights and scenery during the ferry ride - but it was soooo cold and windy though!

our 1st stop was the world famous butchart gardens! besides wanting to bring the other half there, i just had to make another trip there coz i also wanted to see how it would be like in spring - butchart gardens boasts that it looks different every season - uniquely reflecting each season's beauty and magnificence. so far, i have been there in winter, summer and spring - and it is largely true that it does look different each time i have visited it! i think i like it best during summer though:)

breathtaking sights of flowers, trees and intricately-landscaped scenery...



but it wasnt exactly the best time to come though - coz a lot of the flowers were not in full bloom yet. nevertheless, the spectacular display of nature was still amazing!:)

th tulip festival is coming soon!!

at the jap garden in the butchart gardens

the other half and i - in the butchart cove!


my favourite section of the garden - the italian garden (which seriously looks much much much better during summer - see picture on right - what a major difference eh?)

after that, it was time for tea - yummy blueberrybanana muffin and hot chocolate:)