When our San Francisco program handed us a free weekend, twelve students didn’t think twice: we rented a house on the outskirts of LA and made our way south.
We kicked things off the right way, a night out at a Mexican restaurant, all twelve of us squeezed around a table, food was delicious, people were laughing, and crisp margaritas kept coming. Later, we walked the stars on Hollywood Boulevard (I stopped on Céline Dion’s, obviously), before heading home to a surprisingly legendary Uno tournament soundtracked by our professor’s assistant playing DJ. I learned a new Uno rule that night, do not talk on red! And somehow, that was one of the funniest things I’ve ever witnessed.
The next morning was Valentine’s Day, we woke up early for a walk through the empty outskirts streets. Dozens of sidewalk stands were already selling flowers and chocolate-covered strawberries in the February morning calm. We made a quick matcha-and-coffee stop before Ubering downtown, where I bought a six-dollar Cars t-shirt that I am not ashamed to say I love. We visited the Apple Store – the one with the cloudy sky and moldings ceiling – and, like true Americans, stopped at Shake Shack for a burger. We pushed through a packed food market, walked all the way to Japantown (no regrets: the matcha ice cream was outstanding), and ended the day sprinting to Venice Beach just in time to catch the sunset. Pink and orange flooded the sky and the water, laying in waves across the long white sand beach. Worth every step.
Day three: Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, where I can confidently report I have never seen so many groomed small dogs in my life. We looped back to Hollywood Boulevard for more star hunting, then headed up to Griffith Observatory, and yes, we did the famous Hollywood Sign “hike.” As true Swiss citizens, it was more of a pleasant stroll. Watching fully geared-up Americans psyching themselves up to “climb” it was, genuinely funny though. We were rewarded with yet another breathtaking sunset – LA really does do those well – before heading home.
On our last day, LA made the decision easy for us: the rain was pouring and a flood warning had rolled in. So we did what any sensible group of girls would do: we went to the cinema. We watched Wuthering Heights, and I’ll just say that by the end, the tears flooding from our eyes were giving the weather outside some serious competition. Catherine and Heathcliff really did a number on us. Nothing a trip to the mall and a plate of pasta from Olive Garden couldn’t fix, though. Fully restored, we headed to the airport and flew back to San Francisco, ready to keep exploring Silicon Valley.
Selya
