Venice Beach is only 25 minutes drive from LAX and is walking distance from Santa Monica. It has always been famous for its boardwalk, canals and beautiful beach and now also offers a shopper’s paradise on Abbot Kinney Blvd.
The beachside community was founded in 1905 and developed by an eccentric millionaire named Abbot Kinney. He modelled the town after his favourite Italian city of the same name, complete with canals and plenty of pizza stands.
It has had its share of rough times with gangs in the past and has a massive homeless problem (like many places in the USA) however we love Venice for its character and down to earth vibe. We have visited eight times over the past 25 years and each time it feels like not a lot has changed since our first visit in 1993. Continue reading “The appeal of Venice, California”
I have been to L.A. many times. My first visit was as a child, aged 9, with my family. I returned when I was 23, with my boyfriend (now hubby), and we have been another 7 times since then, mostly as a couple, twice with our children. We all love this city. It’s big, diverse and has a great climate. There’s something to offer for everyone, whatever your tastes or interests.
We often return to the same places, each time relieved to see only subtle changes, generally for the better. Although we like going back to places we know, we also try to discover and experience something new each time.
Apologies in advance, this post is quite long – I have so much to say about this city. Hopefully you will find my tips useful if you are planning a visit!
It’s strange how I seem to be drawn to foreign places far, far away, despite the fact that living in Australia we have some fantastic holiday destinations on our own doorstep.
However, in July 2013 I did arrange a trip closer to home. I had some work meetings scheduled in New Zealand’s Auckland and Wellington, so decided to take this opportunity to make a family holiday of it. We spent 9 days on the North Island, starting our tour at the top in Auckland and finishing up in the windy city of Wellington. The children were 10 and 6 at the time and loved this trip. They still talk about it today and ask when they can go back (and my daughter does a terrible NZ accent).
In July 2015, the whole family – my husband, two children (11 and 7 at the time) and I – took a two & half week holiday to the USA. I planned and researched our itinerary for months in advance as I wanted this to be the trip that the kids would remember for a lifetime. We started in L.A. for a few days then rented a car and drove to Vegas, then did the Grand Canyon, stopped over in Phoenix on the way to San Diego and finally ended up in Palm Springs.
This post is dedicated to our Vegas segment (I will post about the others later).
Let me start by saying: I love Vegas! Though I haven’t always felt that way. I’d been there with the hubby three times before this trip. The first visit in 1994 I was overwhelmed with the intensity of the place, the constant noise and lights of the machines, lack of exit signage (got lost several times in different casinos), and was happy to leave after a one night stay. But we did return, warmed to the place, so much so that we chose Red Rock Canyon as our destination to get married at, on our third visit. I’m not into the gambling, not for any moral reasons but simply because it bores me after 5 minutes and I can think of much better things to spend money on (shoes for instance). However, I love the bright neon lights on the Strip, the extravagance, the opulent themed buildings, the food and entertainment, all surrounded by colourful desert and mountainous scenery.
As this was our first time to Vegas with the children we weren’t too sure how this would go. We need not have worried – we all had a great time and one of us even conquered some fears (read on)!
