Have you ever been to southern California? My 18 year old son, Andrew, and I have been wanting to go for a visit for some time. Andrew is going off to college in a month, so it was the perfect time for Andrew, Dave, and me to take a family trip together.
We just got back from our trip on Wednesday. We stayed 5 nights in Culver City. During our stay we visited Venice Beach, Santa Monica, Laguna Beach, Newport Beach, Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Malibu, Zuma Beach, and Manhatten Beach.
On Day One, we went to Venice Beach and Santa Monica. Andrew loves skateboarding, so he was looking forward to visiting the CA coast where it all got started.
[Top Left] Andrew and I walking on the boardwalk at Venice Beach
[Top Right] A Segway tour on Venice Beach…just one of the many different types of tours you can do
[Bottom Left] Andrew was on a mission to find a bunch of skateboarding T Shirts
[Bottom Right] Dave and Andrew in front of the Venice Beach FreakShow which included 2 headed turtles, snakes and lizards
There were lots of
How does tie-dyed underwear grab you?! I believe I have that Peter Frampton album somewhere in my basement! :)
Venice Beach has a few characters!
I REALLY wanted to see what advice this guy would give me, but I chickened out. LOL
He scared me!
There were a bunch of street entertainers in Venice Beach.
Andrew loved that he could use his skateboard on the boardwalk.
We checked out a very busy Skate Park there.
Check out the “Medical” Marijuana Doctors on the Boardwalk luring people into their “office.”
Overall, I found Venice Beach to be very interesting. It’s not really a great place to bring children. But you got check it out at least once.
Santa Monica
After our visit to Venice Beach, we did a little shopping and had a bite to eat in Santa Monica at the 3rd Street Promenade. Then we walked over to the Santa Monica Pier.
We had a nice meal and a great view at the end of the pier.
Stay tuned for Day Two: Laguna and Newport Beach!
I loved looking at your pictures Jane. They really give me a feel for what Venice Beach is like. Interesting place! Would love to visit CA someday. Glad you had a nice time.
Thanks Kristi! You would love it there.
I enjoyed your photos and your post about visiting these cities, looks like you had a great time!
Thanks Melissa! :)
I’ve lived in SoCal my entire life, and laughed when I saw that you went to Venice. I’ve been there once, and only once. It is an “interesting” place to say the least, and definitely not a place for young kids, unless you are teaching them about drugs or homeless people. I can’t wait to see what you thought about all of the places that you visited.
Hi Elizabeth,
I read a lot about Venice Beach before we took the trip. We were curious to see if everything was as bad as they said. It was pretty much what we expected. It was a good place for Andrew to get the skateboarding T Shirts that he wanted. He got suckered into buying a CD from someone pushing their music. (I forgot to warn him about that ahead of time.) It’s not a place I would recommend, but I’m glad we got to see it.
Hi Jane..hope you are enjoying your summer ,from the pictures it looks as though you are spending some well deserved time with family….enjoy!
SUE
I am! Thanks Sue!
Oh WOW! You find the best things to do on vacation!! Looks like a ton of fun…so glad you enjoyed it, and glad you shared your fun with us. We were stationed in San Bernadino in the late 70′s….much has surely changed since then.
Thanks Marsha! You’re lucky to have experienced so many places in the US!
I lived for 5 years just a short distance from Venice and Santa Monica and fell in love with it. A bit eclectic, but none the less so surprising.
When my daughter came to visit, she thought Santa Monica was boring compared to Venice Beach. :)
Ida,
My son liked Venice Beach a lot too! It’s definitely for the younger crowd. Santa Monica is lovely. So many places to shop!