Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
57
shopping without the crowds, in a revital-
ized downtown respectful of its old brick
and stone commercial buildings. Although
the area's natural and ar chitectural beauty
still shines thr ough—so much so that
Pasadena r emains H ollywood's fav orite
backyard location for countless mo vies
and TV shows—Old Town has become a
pedestrian mall similar to S anta Monica's
Third S treet P romenade, complete with
huge crowds, midrange chain eateries, and
standard-issue mall stor es. It still gets our
vote as a scenic alternativ e to the conges-
tion of central L.A., but it has lost much of
its small-town charm.
Pasadena is also home to the famous
California I nstitute of
(CalTech), which boasts 22 N obel priz e
winners among its alumni. The CalTech-
operated J et P ropulsion Laborator y was
the birthplace of America's space program,
and CalT ech scientists w ere the first to
report ear thquake activity worldwide in
the 1930s.
The residential neighborhoods in P asa-
dena and its adjacent communities—
Arcadia, La C añada-Flintridge, S an
Marino,
and
S outh P asadena
—are
renowned for w ell-preserved historic
homes, from humble bungalo ws to lavish
mansions. These areas feature public gar-
dens, historic neighborhoods, house muse-
ums, and quiet bed-and-breakfast inns.
Technology
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THE BEST OF LOS ANGELES IN 1 DAY
Seeing the top sights of Los Angeles in a single day r equires an early star t and a bit of
stamina, but it 's quite doable. This “greatest hits” itinerary begins with L.A. 's sine qua
non attraction, H ollywood. After lunch, y ou'll cr uise along S unset Boulev ard to the
beach and spend a fe w hours on foot touring the S anta Monica Pier and Venice Beach.
You'll conclude your, like, most excellent day with a liv e performance under the stars at
the legendary Hollywood Bowl.
Start:
Corner of Gower Street and Hollywood Boulevard,
and walk west.
4
On Hollywood Boulevard, between Highland Avenue
and La Brea Avenue, you'll find:
2
Grauman's Chinese Theatre
It's sort of a tourist rite of passage to com-
pare your hands and feet with the famous
prints set in cement at the entrance cour t
to Grauman's Chinese Theatre, a tradition
started when silent film star N orma Tal-
madge “ accidentally” stepped in w et
cement during the pr emiere of Cecil B.
DeMille's
King of Kings.
Because it's along
the H ollywood Walk of F ame, y ou're
already her e. G o ahead—compar e y our
shoes to footprints left b y H umphrey
Bogart or M arilyn M onroe. There ar e
about 160 celebrity squar es to scr utinize:
See if y ou can find Whoopi G oldberg's
dreadlocks, Bob Hope's nose, Betty Grable's
gams, and R2D2's wheels. See p. 151.
1
Hollywood Walk of Fame
Forget the cultur e/museum stuff—it 's
time to see for y ourself all those famous
Hollywood sites y ou've watched on TV
since you were a toddler. Start the day b y
spending the morning on H ollywood
Boulevard, follo wing the path of br onze-
and-marble stars along the Walk of Fame.
Since 1960, mor e than 2,000 celebrities
have been honored along the world's most
famous side walk, but y ou'll need an old-
timer to explain who a lot of the no w-
long-dead enter tainers w ere. F or a fe w
bucks you can buy a map that lists ev ery
star; better yet, log on to www.hollywood-
chamber.net and plan y our own “Favorite
Celebrities” route. See p. 154.
