L.A experience

12/01/2010 - wed

So leaving L.A for downtown San Diego. Im on a double decker train, downstairs is for old people, disabled and business class. Upper deck for me. Fab. Its 8.40pm and the journey is 3 hours roughly. Im looking forward to getting out of America for financial reasons however the further south i go the less ‘freaky’ people there are and the more plain freaks there are. There are more central Americans and they all wanna talk to me to which i have to turn down my Kat friendly radar in order to stay safe, i really have to have my wits about me now, getting into really unknown and potentially volatile environments. There is a lot of bother in many of the border towns to do with gangs and drugs. Ill have to cross in the day time. But meanwhile im planning to meet some bournemouthites in San Diego to get their low downs as they have just come up from there. I stayed at this guy Oskars house in Korea town, L.A. he was nice, a charity worker who planted trees around the city and helped on permaculture projects and getting more bike lanes, as he was an avid cyclist. He lent me his nice red raleigh called Ruby whilst i was there and enjoyed many cycles as before that it felt like a lot of time was wasted on waiting for buses etc. Cant decide whether to get pissed, it was the aim, i bought a bottle of bear flag, and Oskar helped me polish it off before i left the flat. He even tried to snog me when we were hugging goodbye. What a way to end it. T.W.A.T. I guess you gotta give em credit for giving it a 1st and final try. He said my friends can stay so ill be sure to advertise that free space to people going north when i see them.

Wednesday i cycled from Korea town to the observatory which is a long way, took about an hour or more maybe, that was a lesiurely ride thou. The last leg was all up hill then through a park, the Griffiths park which is the largest urban park in the USA, i had to leave the bike ¾ up the mountain and then hike the rest of the way as it was too steep to carry the bike, past the warnings of mountain lions and rattlesnakes. It was beautiful, really was a sanctuary from the urban sprawl of L.A. Griffith. j.  Griffith was a Welsh man who went to America in the 1920s/ maybe 30s to earn a whole bunch of cash, he earnt his first million by the time he was 31 investing in mining. He bought a load of land in L.A as he predicted it would be a popular town in the future. Then he went to some observatory i cant remember the name but i think  it was nearby and was allowed to look through the scope he was amazed and star struck, he said “if everyone in the world could look through the lens it could change the world.” So he built, actually its a Carl Zeiss lens, a 16 inch lens refracting and a reflecting telescope. It is the biggest observatory in America and is famous for starring in many films. It was really cool. They had to make it bigger at one point and they couldnt build up so they had to lift the building up to zero gravity so they could dig down and built below, mental i tell ya, and its so disorientating when u on the bottom floor trying to get out. On the way back i cycled past the celebrity scientology center. This place is full of nutjobs, i worry about whats in food i eat, its hard to find organic here and the water tastes disgusting i cant drink it. Also seen many chemtrails over L.A.

The divide between rich and poor is a gradual yet distinctive difference, people who you wouldnt imagine were homeless or poor, are begging for 50cents or a doller. It really is so sad, people are sleeping on trains, or anywhere, they all come out at night hanging out with signs saying ‘ am i invisible?’ yeah your gonna get donations mate. People driving their lives around in little shopping carts. And crazy people around shouting and having conversations with themselves. Hilariously tragic.

Tuesday i spent the day down Venice beach, sooo many homeless happy people there, all hanging out smoking weed, playing music and socialising. It was nice, i cycled from the infamous pier up to Santa Monica and back, met a well known photographer Roman, who became my assistant for a short while, he was used to real film, i really admire people that refuse to move on with the times and maintain an old fashioned stance on things, his pictures were really cool too, he had lived in Paris, London, New York and his sister was an author on Raw foods and a life coach for lazy Americans wanting to loose weight. Win. Whilst stopping at his place to pick up his bike we heard a screech, this lasted for 8-10seconds which was a long drawn out horrifying moment, it ended with a crash bang. We ran downstairs to find that a girl being pulled from an upside down 4x4 on the sidewalk i had just walked on moments before, it had been run off the road hit a parked car and flipped over wedged between a tree and a building. There were 3 people inside, only one was hurt and not that badly luckily, it was horrifying. The shock felt by her was felt by me, maybe it was my reactive mind recalling all the times i had experienced shock first hand i dont know. But it wasnt nice, i tried to comfort her and to calm her down until the medics arrived, before long the road was closed off and we were being  ushered away. So we got on the bikes, not feeling particalary safe but headed to Santa Monica, saw some amazing skater dudes pulling some sick maneuvers. Also met some people that knew the original Zepher boys and one guy said he was best friends with Stacy and they had lived a couple doors from each other and learnt to skate together etc. Once the sun was rising i rode away to find the internet and restroom, starbucks to stay loyal. Stayed for a spiced apple and caramel hot drink which they ruined with cream and then headed back to the beach to watch the end of the sunset. I dont know why but thats the 2nd time ive driven away from a sunset. Funny. Later that day i went to the Scientology center which i will explain in more detail later.

You can really tell the difference in L.A compared to S.F, the people are less helpful and friendly, but still a lot are talkative but it became difficult to determine the friends from the fiends. Drivers were more aggressive, in S.F if you find yourself in the middle of the road people will stop, L.A. that sometimes happens. Its more cosmopolitan and similar to London, everyone in a rush.

So the first day i was in L.A. doing a regressive account here, i aimed to visit all the museums and observatory, except all fun stuff is closed on Mondays, and apparently Tuesdays now too, bum-mer. So i just got on the tube, with my day pass and went as far as i could go. Some stereotypical black Americans gave me incorrect directions which sent me walking for flipping ages in my search for the California river, boy was i disappointed, a massive area all concrete with a piddly little linear stream down the middle, absolute rubbish. But i had a little tour round the blocks of northern Hollywood and thought whilst im near ill go to Warner Bros studios. Arrived there and got told off for taking pictures too close to the gate, have to be near road or get a tour, tours were 50 bucks, screw that, so starbucks for some net time and research what to do in this city. Then i waited overall about 2hours for the bus, that includes getting on the bus and finding out its the wrong direction, then waiting ages in opposite direction, starting to walk, pass like 4 stops before i find someone who had been waiting for 50minutes and assured me one would be soon. Like hell. Then i found myself on Hollywood Boulevard. last place i thought i wanted to be. Great thift shop there though, although not that great as i didnt buy anything, but better than all the ones i had been in previously. And actually i did buy a cheshire cat badge for my bag. I walked the walk of fame down to the chinese theatre where all the hand prints by stars are. That was fairly entertainging. I saw an exhibtion on life and when i went to investigate it was on L.Ron Hubbarbs life=BORING. So carried on walking, past the book store with L.Ron Hubbarb taking up all the window space, then past a xmas navity set up  L.Ron Hubbarbs winter wonderland. Then i walked down saw adverts for De cirque de soleil, was gonna go in before i found out it wasnt on till next summer, what a disappointment, but save on the pocket. Enjoyed some good chats with the mad hatter=DUDE. Cat woman=money grabbing cat literally. Then i remembered lonely planets recommedation for great food at Kung Pao Kitty? F***ING GREAT- highly recommend, it was soo good i had to go back to today for dinner, 6445 Hollywood Bld. Kung Pao Kitty dish with shrimp, beef and chicken. Oh my it was sooo good, extra spicy yum. Dont eat the peppers if you value your face thou. Oh yeah whilst eating i turned this situation into a comparable metaphor;
Buying some trousers i had fallen in love with, with a guy i thought i loved and how i couldnt have either so i should pretend i never saw them. But then i found myself buying the trousers anyway so i dont know what that means for the comparison. But thought that was peculiar and worth mentioning even if for ridicule.

Watched a great American film that night ‘Breaking away’ which was an interactive film about cyclists from Indiana. Worth a watch if you here i guess. Also ‘i’m here’ LOVE IT, and its filmed in L.A. Anyway back to the plot, so there was a  running theme of L.Ron Hubbarb, the last was some girls offering a free stress test with the e-meter, so i thought yeah lets give it a go, they were trying to get me to buy the book really. But gave me some free dvds. I decided what the hell ill go check this out for myself, in the name of field research. So i went to the church of scientology on Sunset/Vermont. I walked into this las vegas themed building, inside was like a bookstore, with only one book for sale, whoo. One of the androids put me into this mini cinema to watch this poorly filmed Hollywood movie on the origins and history of scientology. It had bad acting and poor discussion in it. I had many questions, so in response they put me onto another dvd, to which i had more questions, i said i didnt want to watch any more dvds or buy the bloody book so tell me what they thought they knew. Its all about Dianetics, although there is conflicting opinions as to whether the two are linked but they blatantly are and rely on each other. I met a guy called Phil who told me there technologies of the religion and dianetics, ok so we are getting somewhere i say, tell me about these technologies and how do they work, they put me onto Juan, a really nice Mexican dude on the payroll. He was on a level, had many of the same experiences that i had had so we had good conversation, he said he could only do ‘auditing’ on me after i had slept well, eaten healthy, and had no alcohol or smoking in my system for 48 hours so he sent me home and arranged to meet the following day. ­­­i returned full of my side of the bargain, so i was slightly apprehensive when he took me into this room filled with people in twos with there eyes closed talking to each other about random stuff. We sat down and he asked me to close my eyes, he asked me to tell him of the first memory i have of feeling pain. I thought it was when i fell from the tree aged 11 but then remembered gettign run over by a bicycle aged about 4 i think. So i recalled the story to the best of my ability, then he said to connect with that feelingof pain, where in my body, what did mum say, tell me again, he must of asked me to recall it about 10 bleeding times, i was so bored by this stage feeling interrogated by a wannabe cop or something. Anyway i went along with it. Afterwards i asked why the hell he was doing that, what good was it going to do, i felt sad, i had to go back and speak to another guy as they said they hadnt let all my feelings run ‘flat’ anyway i think overall it is a fad for thick Americans who need leading to positive mental attitude. They even have a book out called ‘Happiness- A common sense guide’ i mean...Serial?!

It has helped my research, one of my aims whilst I’m here is researching holistic treatments and medicinal plants, shamanic practices etc. So this simply affirmed what i knew already about positive mental attitude can help you to heal quicker because your body isnt riddled with bad energies. I may even buy the book when i get home just to look further into these so called ‘technologies’ i did see a leaflet asking for $5,000 for the leather bound book set or the e-meter, really?! Apparently so. What a bunch of idiots, but hey you know whatever works for them, if thats what they need to feel better then good for them least they are feeling better. Im not buying in though. Thanks very much.

Finally near down town San Diego, its 11pm, i wonder how long i will stay here and what it will be like, i am mainly looking forward to being able to swim in the sea and get some vitamin d on my body which i feel has lost out this year due to studies, its my time now and im definitely thoroughly enjoying it. People seem so shocked to hear im travelling alone, girls say ‘wow, i couldn't do it’ yes u can, you may not think so but actually it is fairly easy and upmost rewarding, i have to say i am looking forward to xmas with some homies though. PeACE X