We were about an hour early arriving at the RV park this morning so we snuck into the adjacent lot and had an early lunch. Afterward, we drove over to Dockweiler but we were still about 20 minutes shy of the 1 PM check in. The gal I spoke with said we could wait by the gate until then. By 1 PM, there was a line of rigs waiting to check in. Not surprising, as it is the only park around and is right on the beach.
We decided last night that there was no way Lady T was going to be able to navigate the streets of L.A. so we agreed that renting a car for the day would be best. After checking in, we drove down to our spot, hooked up, and then gave Enterprise a call. We first tried the one at LAX but they didn’t have a pick-up service and suggested we try a branch office. We did just that and we were able to reserve a car over the phone. Enterprise picked us up at 2 PM and about 45 minutes later, we were cruising around in a brand new Nissan Maxima.
First things first…we had to find Route 66. We navigated towards Figueroa Street in Los Angeles and drove that until it intersected with Sunset Boulevard. I had a list of things I wanted to see and the first was Hollywood Boulevard. We parked the rental in the first open spot we found and when we stepped out of the car, there were stars everywhere! We were also just steps away from the famous El Capitan & Mann’s Chinese Theater.
After about an hour or so, we headed towards the Sunset Strip. We parked right in front of some of the most famous nightclubs in the world: Rainbow, the Roxy & of course, Whisky a Go Go, where The Doors played many gigs during their heyday. Very cool!
I had a serious craving for Thai food and we were ready to head out again when we saw a small restaurant called Night+Market. All I wanted was some Pad Thai and they had it so we went in. Besides the noodles, we ordered Jasmine rice and stir-fried broccoli. YUM! The food was great and the service was friendly.
We hopped back onto Sunset and rode it until we saw the famous Beverly Hills sign. As soon as we passed it, all of the cars surrounding us on the road magically turned into Jaguars, Mercedes and BMW’s. In our rented Maxima, we might as well have been Jethro and Ellie Mae Clampett ;D
Once in “The Hills”, we found Mullholland drive and began the ascent into one of the richest neighborhoods in the U.S. There were several scenic viewing areas which provided breathtaking panoramas of the city. Unfortunately, one of these was not the “Hollywood” sign.
We searched the internet to find suggestions for the best viewing area and chose the Griffith Observatory, which sits to the south of Mount Hollywood. There was a ton of traffic and by the time we reached the observatory, it was already dark. We were still able to get a few good pics and walked around inside for a bit. The observatory is free to enter and we like free!
After so much excitement, it was time to call it a day. We made our way back to Dockweiler with the windows down and the moonroof open. It was a bittersweet end to our day in a place that takes a little piece of you, no matter how long you stay. Maybe someday, we will come back for it.
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