Los Angeles

This is my 2nd trip to Los Angeles. Michelle and I went down there for 4 days in October and we had a great time. We headed down there after work on Wednesday. It takes about 5 hours to get there from San Francisco. We stayed in Hollywood the first night.

Day 1
Today we woke up early and drove from Hollywood to Burbank to visit NBC studios. We were here for a taping of The Ellen Degeneres Show. We spent all day in the sun waiting inline with Die Hard Ellen Fans. Crazy. They finally let us in to the studio. It was pretty cool. Lots of technology and work goes into taping a show. Everyone is very professional. Ellen is all about dancing so the crowd had to do a lot of dancing. The guest on the show was Matt LeBlanc. He is a cool guys so it was pretty entertaining. After the show, we headed across town to Anaheim to go to Downtown Disney. This is a nightlife attraction of Disney with a lot of good restaurants and clubs. We ate at the House of Blues. It was good.

Day 2
Today we spent all day at Disney. This place is great. I have been to the Disney Resort in Florida twice but this was the first time I have been to the LA one. We tried to go on all the classic rides like "It's a Small World" and "Peter Pan". I think my favourite ride is "Indian Jones". It is really cool.

When the day came to a close, we watched the Main Street USA parade and the 50th Anniversary Fireworks show was amazing. The castle is a lot more spectacular in Florida.

Day 3
We drove back down to Hollywood. Since we were in Hollywood, we had to check out all the movie attractions. Here is Grauman's Chinese Theater on Hollywood Blvd. It was built in 1927. This is the most famous movie theatre in the world. All the famous movies are premiered here such as the Wizard of Oz.

On the steps of the theatre is where all the movie stars press there hands and feet in the concrete. Tonnes of famous people have done this. I took a picture of Johnny Depp's because I think he is cool.

Just up the street there is the Kodak Theatre. This is where the Oscar's are hosted each year. As you walk into the theatre, you see all the names of all the Best Pictures ever awarded on the walls.

That evening we decided to spend some money and we went to Justin Timberlakes restaurant called Chi. It was real expensive but it was really good.

Day 4
Today we woke up early equiped with a celeberity map and searched out all the famous stars. The houses we saw belonged to: Mel Gibson, Brad Pit, Jennifer Anniston, Tori Spelling, and many more. The coolest one was Ronald Reagan's house. He used to be the 40th president of the USA and was also an Actor before. His house is really nice and well protected. After that we followed Santa Monica Blvd out to the sea. From there we drove up Highway 1 to go home. I can't get over how nice the coast is:


This was a great trip. We saw a lot of stuff. And it ended with a beautiful sunset.

Remembrance Day

Today is Remembrance Day.

What do I have to remember? I was never in a bloody confrontation, I never stood on a battlefield, I don't know anyone who died there, I never lost a limb, I don't have shell shock.

I guess that is precisely why I should be thankful. That the sacrifices of many people a long time ago have given me and everyone I know a safe and secure existance with a strong economy and a happy future. I also, don't want to forget the suffuring and sacrifice that continues to happen in armed conflicts all over the world, many of which are in the name of our society.

If America was the "Arsenal of Democracy" during those times, the Bay area was the Arsenal's shipyard. The remnants still linger. Here is Moffett Federal Airfield that is right beside where I work.

What I want to talk about is the white building in the background. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the military decided it needed aircraft to patrol the Pacific for submarines and mines, and the Navy responded by restarting the ligher-than-air project with small blimps (246 feet in length). This building in the background was built in 1942 along with another to support a large traffic of blimps. These bimps helped keep secure the largest American port on the west. Also at this time, Jet airplanes were being developed that took off here.

The amount of military infrastructure that was created in the Bay Area during WWII was hailed as the "2nd Gold Rush" and the vibrant economy and culture left over are everlasting. An economy and culture that I am obviously taking advantage of.

Alcatraz

Welcome to the Rock.
First, This island was a Military Fort from 1850 to 1933.
Second, it was aquired by the Department of Justice and converted into a prison from 1934 to 1963.
Third, American Indians took over the island in 1969 to protest the government and were forced off two years later.
Now, Alcatraz is a historic location attracting millions of tourists each year.

Take a walk down Broadway:


My family visited me near the end of August, and this was one of the big tourists spots we checked out. I also came here a second time when Michelle visited. This island has a lot of history behind it. Many infamous criminals were housed here like Al Capone.

We went out in the courtyard to see were the inmates were allowed recreation. It kind of reminded me of The Shawshank Redemption. Here is a photo of the yard:


What was really interesting about the island is the families of the Wardon and the guards lived on the island with them. There was a small town on one end of the island and it had a school and a small market. All of these buildings were burned down during the American Indian occupation. The picture below is where these buildings stood, above is the lighthouse of the Rock.


It was very interesting to visited one of the most revered prisons in the US justice system. And I really think those two guys who were able to escape from their cells (a lot like Shawshank) and make it down to the waterfront were able to swim to the otherside. It is not that far.