Los Angeles

Today was a day I had been looking forward to, as we went to see a lot of the sights that had been recommended to us. After having breakfast at the hotel, we packed up the car as we're changing hotels today (this was our last minute booked hotel after our change of plans). Surprisingly, we haven't been suffering from jet lag so far, which usually ends up being a hindrance in our travels.

Our first stop was to the Getty Center, which is recommended by Trip Advisor as being the number one sight to see in Los Angeles. It didn't disappoint either, as the view from the Santa Monica Mountains area was beautiful. The inside was worth the cost of admission too, as the gardens and display of art and exhibitions were outstanding. It turns out that John Paul Getty was quite the collector and, even though neither Ted nor I are heavily into art, it was easy to be impressed by such a display of antiques and paintings.

After the Getty Center, we headed towards Warner Bros Studio, which compared to Universal Studios, is more of a workplace than an amusement park. All the guests were separated into groups and transported around by a tram with a guide. The day was really hot but it didn't stop us from enjoying it. The guide we had however did, as he seemed to pick on me for everything (leaning too far out of the trolley, dawdling, accusing me of filming the sets). There goes his tip!

In many ways, I liked Warner Bros more than Universal, as it provided a more hands-on approach to the movie and TV making industry. We got to see more of the backstage sets, the prop warehouse and (best of all) a huge display on the DC movies (clearly I was in my element here). The DC display had a lot of the bat-vehicles (batmobile, batplane etc), as well as costumes and props from the recent Wonder Woman movie.

Another attraction I was really looking forward to was the Central Perk set from the TV show "Friends". Being a big fan of the show, I was more than willing to queue for a photo on the set. What was also great is that the guides would also take photos with your iPhones instead of making you pay for the professional photo. There was also an option to star in a computer generated episode of "Friends" where you could be super-imposed into a scene from the show, but that queue was way too long!

Before leaving the studio, we each bought a souvenir (a Superman T-shirt and an "Ellen" mug) and then went for a Mexican lunch which was at a cheap little restaurant nearby. It was wonderful - the money they saved on decor definitely went into food quality.

Our next hotel is in the Redondo Beach area, somewhere we've never been to before. I chose this hotel as the airport hotels were so expensive, and this place turned out to be quite okay. After resting in the afternoon, we walked to a nearby Denny's for dinner. Ted was interested in checking out a local venue but it wasn't exactly a happening place. After talking to just one of the locals, we decided to head back. Looks like an early night for us!Read more