Material Girl

If you want to simplify your life, LA is a difficult place to live... Everywhere you go, someone's trying to sell you something. Yesterday, I walked down the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. Think Newbury Street of Los Angeles times 10. There are the usual stores like H&M, American Eagle, and Forever 21... but then there's the high end stuff that I can't even remember. The fascinating aspect, however, is the fact that the mall at the end is completely open. Only in a place like California, where the weather is almost consistent, can this happen.

After Santa Monica, I headed over to Chinatown (not by choice--my parents are here for the week). There's also a ton of merchandise (lots of useless crap in my opinion) for the millions of tourists who troll through. It's almost impossible to leave without a shopping bag in your hand.
On the plus side, parking and food are incredibly cheap in Chinatown. Dinner for three people cost $20 including tip, whereas dinner anywhere else would cost $50.

Today I started my first day at Behnisch Architekten, Los Angeles (also referred to as bala). Definitely a different feel than the Boston office. Two steps from the office is Venice Beach. Palm trees, the beach, grass, the boardwalk, all sorts of characters that walk along the boardwalk, skateboarders, hipsters, muscle builders... it's all here. I spent my lunch hour exploring nearby. I watched some amateur skateboarders at the skate park for a bit, but then I strolled the boardwalk where people shouted out products and services. If that's too colorful for you, just walk ten feet towards the beach and it's a different feel. People are sleeping in the shade, tanning on the beach, a few bums here and there. How much more diverse could a place get?

For dinner, I ate at an Italian restaurant called Centanni, which I just found out is actually featured as a Best of LA. If you watch the video, the co-owner was actually our waitress. Food was delicious and price was cheap and portions were large. Yelp did good.

That's it for now.