JOIN USBeauty & the beach
Los Angeles, whichever way you look at her, is a cauldron of things to see and do. Narrowing down my itinerary was, perhaps, the toughest here, in a metropolis beset by the competing imperatives of Hollywood and fashion, food and culture, music and the great outdoors — all beckoning with as strong a siren call. But beyond the glitz and glam, each of the distinct neighbourhoods that constitute Los Angeles — offer a very human, non-celluloid beauty; which speaks volumes of a place, which has a remarkable ability to hold contradictions and multiplicities with seemingly effortless ease.
I drive for 45 minutes from Downtown Los Angeles into Venice, an edgy neighbourhood that is a tiny microcosm of the city. Originally founded as a seaside resort town, Venice was an independent city until 1926, when it merged with Los Angeles. But the historic manmade canals, built here by millionaire-developer Abbott Kinney, are only the tip of the iceberg of reasons why you should visit. Set foot on the four-km-long beachside promenade of Venice, and you’ll comprehend in a jiffy just why millions of travellers flock here each year, and why the beach has been branded “a cultural hub known for its eccentricities.”
Everywhere my eye travels along this Ocean Front Walk, something whimsical is playing out. Here artists. There musicians. Everywhere punk skateboarders, tanned surfers, new-age zealots, mimes, jugglers, a craftsperson specialising in the art of temporary tattoo — basically performers of every permutation. I have to take a second look to be sure that the kitten I see walking towards me really has a dyed purple hairdo, that there really is a dog on a skateboard, with his master proudly scooting along behind him. Here, life is celebrated entirely as it is, not as it should be.
Many muscles to flex
I’m beginning to feel as Gulliver must have felt on his travels, as I encounter a knot of buff men walking towards me. They’re obviously heading to Muscle Beach, that part of the promenade dedicated to bodybuilding. Arnold Schwarzenegger used to be a regular here. Now it’s an open playground, studded with weight-lifting equipment and acrobatic bars. Muscle Beach, from as early as the 1950s, helped popularise physical culture and a move towards intensive fitness.
You only have to walk a couple of steps from here and you’ll run into paddle tennis, beach volleyball and basketball courts. These basketball courts have had odes penned to them, for spawning some much-celebrated basketball champions. Further afield, watching little children learning to skateboard in the skateboard park is like watching live television, with just about as much melodrama.
You can take a bike ride down The Strand, a 22-mile bicycle path along LA’s westward-facing coastline.
As popular as bike riding is surfing. Throw a stone and you’ll hit a surf school here. All you need for a piece of the action is to sign up. An instructor will accompany you to a beach with a wetsuit, a surfboard and all the instruction you need to get you catching a wave. The Aqua Surf School initiative is a perfect case in point.
The landscape around me — all golden sprawling beach and swaying palms — looks like something from a child’s painting. Inside the neighbourhood itself, the historic canals provide similar poetry. The freedom inspired by the environment spills into everything. Wander down Abbot Kinney Boulevard — the heart of the offbeat chic scene and you’ll see there’s individual pride that inhabits much of what’s on display.
Clothes and homeware, gift items and gourmet foods — all stand in a sharp antidote to anything globalised. Aviator Nation, Kreation Juicery, Little Room Portraits, and Urbanic are just some illustrations. Toms, a store that does shoes, coffee and assorted goods, encourages patrons through visible signage to hang out — with (or without) their laptops. Dining establishments are similarly spirited. Rose Café, The Tasting Kitchen and Plant Food and Wine — all lay as much emphasis on the camaraderie and communality of a shared meal, as on crafting meals that are seasonal, wholesome and fresh.
Culture calling
If you want to break up all the beach and dining action, you’re always only a short ride away from a cultural centre. I take a half-an-hour taxi ride from Venice to The Getty Center, the holy grail of all things art. Think paintings, photography, ancient artefacts, medieval sculptures — all housed in one of the world’s largest arts organisations. Even without entering the building, there’s much to drive you to distraction. The tram ride taking you uphill to the main entrance is a treat itself, with the superlative views it offers. The modern architecture of the buildings by Richard Meier compete for attention with the well-tended gardens in which they’re set.
While spaces like the Getty and the inspiration they house move me beyond belief, I’m pleased to return to Venice. Sometimes, the best insights into a culture can be gleaned not just from the superlative cultural institutions a place proffers, but as much from a city neighbourhood that specialises in a dramatically unfolding, free-spirited present.