A Visit to Santa Monica

One of the places which I heard should be visited during a visit to Los Angeles was Santa Monica Pier. I had read somewhere that Venice Beach and Santa Monica Pier were the two beach places most worth a visit in this area.

As already mentioned, I got a surprise visit to Venice Beach on my first day here. The guy in charge of the event that I am working seems to take the guys out almost every night. He invited me, and I went, not sure what to expect. As some other guys voiced, I rather half expected some seedy bar, from the stories that I had been told of these kinds of nights out.

Instead, it turned out to be a pristine spot, and just at the right time. It was still daylight when we arrived at Venice Beach, but the sun was setting. That was one of the things which I was fairly determined to see while out in southern California, and it happened right on my first day, really almost by chance. Glad that I accepted the invite.

Anyway, I also wanted to see Santa Monica Pier. And on Friday, I got my chance.

In truth, I was not expecting this opportunity, either. Not really.

Yet when one of the guys I was working with told me that he planned to go to Santa Monica Pier after our work shift that day, I asked if I could join him. Later on, he invited a couple of other guys, who also worked the same shift (the early shift, which fortunately let out at about 3:30 or 4pm, giving us ample opportunity to get there during daylight.

So we took an Uber, and got a taste of the infamous local traffic jams and delays. Still, we had plenty of daylight left when we finally got there. 

We walked along the pier, soaking in the carnival-like atmosphere of the place. It looked and felt like an amusement park. Fun, I guess, but it also kind of detracted from the dramatic natural splendor of the place. I got some souvenirs, mostly a necklace for my girlfriend and a couple of magnets for my son. 

Of course, I took some pictures. I was particularly taken by the fact that this was where the fabled Route 66 of old ended. Obviously, I snapped some pictures of the surrounding area, which like Venice Beach, had the sandy beaches, the ocean, and the mountains, as well as palm trees. 

In the end, we just walked the pier and soaked in the atmosphere, then decided to walk the two miles to Venice Beach, which the other guys had not been to before. It was a pleasant walk along the Pacific coast, and I will add the pictures of my second visit to Venice Beach at a later time.

Below are the pictures from my visit to Santa Monica. 

Enjoy.

End of Route 66

Santa Monica Pier & Beach

Early Morning at Hearst Mansion

One morning early in the trip, I volunteered for the early shift.

Now, I am glad that I did so, because it allowed me to take some pictures of the beautiful Hearst Estate (Beverly Estate) well before it grew very crowded with people, which began shortly after we arrived. This included some rare selfies, taken by one of my coworker. He was the one who came up with the idea first, admittedly, and then offered to take my selfie in front of the estate. Seemed like a good idea, so I went ahead and did so. 

Anyway, here are the pictures.

Enjoy.