OT: 4 Days in LA...

[buldogge]

Only interested in Pasadena for the Arts & Crafts architecture.

Love the rest of the suggestions.

Any specific taco joints to check out?

Where to stay...now that is the question!?

Early risers...yes. Getting family motivated...no.

-Mark

Originally Posted by beeatnik

Another Mexican restaurant not popular with Mexicans.

Ok, if I were visiting LA with kids and if I knew what I know as a lifelong LA resident and a former kid (wrap your mind around that twisted syntax), I'd avoid The Outdoor Shopping Mall LA Streetscape. That means, no Pasadena, no Melrose, no Santa Monica-Third Street Promenade. I'd also avoid "highly rated" restaurants; they're all disappointing, out here. Obviously, kids like crowds and activity. And the beach is the beach. So do this:

Avoid Santa Monica, go to Hermosa Beach (with a nice drive through PV into San Pedro for cheesy port fun).

Avoid Pasadena and go to DTLA. Everyone loves the Broad and you can drive 5 minutes East (while seeing the emerging Arts/Loft District) to see how working class Mexican-Americans (60% of Los Angeles) live and eat (definitely not Super Rica style).

Avoid Melrose (does anyone go there anymore?) and bounce around Sunset Blvd from Echo Park to Silver Lake. End with lunch on Vermont and a trip into Griffith Park.

On the periphery and if you enjoy being a car. Check out one of the world's largest chinese communities in the San Gabriel Valley. There's a 2 mile stretch of Colima Rd where you won't see a sign in english. 30 min from DTLA.

If you're an early riser, there are a ton of brunch spots on Ventura Blvd in Sherman Oaks. Great people watching and less superficial (a tiny bit) than the Westside.

[SoCalSteve]

Originally Posted by buldogge

Only interested in Pasadena for the Arts & Crafts architecture.

Love the rest of the suggestions.

Any specific taco joints to check out?

Where to stay...now that is the question!?

Early risers...yes. Getting family motivated...no.

-Mark

Don't forget to see this house when you are in Pasadena:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millard_House

Where you stay will depend on what you want to see and your budget. L A is huge, so you probably want to be centrally located to the different areas you want to see.

Figure that out and get back to us.....

[cadence90]

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[SoCalSteve]

Originally Posted by cadence90

This is the definitive carry-along guidebook to architecture in Los Angeles and Southern California. If you do not want to buy it I'm sure your library has a copy. It is a very useful book.

The Gamble House and a few other G&G houses in that immediate area are the ticket for LA Craftsman style, definitely.

FLLW's nearby "carpet block" Millard House ("La Miniatura", that SoCalSteve mentioned (never accessible, can only be seen from the outside)) and his Ennis House (Blade Runner; tours may be available, I can't remember) are also worth it if you're in the area. Also beautiful are homes by Neutra and Schindler, but as beeatnik stated those are just too far between them to make it worthwhile unless you are an architect/diehard.

I definitely recommend the Eames house in any case; not only is the building beautiful and iconic, and the address very accessible, but it has one of the greatest views/lots of any residence in LA.
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I'll second this 100 times over! I've been in the house on a tour. It's amazing! Plus, as a bonus...there are 2 more iconic mid century modern homes on the same cul de sac. Look up the Case Study Houses. 3 of them on the same block.

[cadence90]

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[Louis]

If there's interest in architecture and anyone in the crowd likes the movie Blade Runner, how about the Bradbury building?

https://www.laconservancy.org/locati...dbury-building