Hi all! Louise ‘24 here. In this blog I’ll be talking a bit about my favorite places in Los Angeles. To be entirely honest, I don’t head to LA a lot within my daily life here at 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú. It’s a fun way to take a break within a stressful month, or get out of Claremont for a moment and see the big city. I went to LA over fall break and explored a bit with my mom, and this post will be based on my favorite places we went on our trip. I hope that later this semester I’ll be able to return to some of these spots, and continue to explore LA more!
The Broad: The Broad is a relatively new contemporary art museum in downtown Los Angeles. They have a great collection, with works by Yayoi Kusama, Basquiat, Warhol, and lots of other more contemporary artists. I find some museums somewhat overwhelming, with tons and tons of floors to explore. That’s definitely fun, but there’s something to be said for a smaller, well curated museum. I was able to get through the whole collection in around an hour and a half. Pro tip: schedule a time to see the infinity mirror room, a Yayoi Kusama exhibit, in advance of your visit. All admission is free, but you need a time to enter that specific exhibit, and it is 100% worth it.
Silverlake neighborhood: Of course, we have to talk about cool neighborhoods to explore. We walked around the Silverlake area of Los Angeles the most, and I’d say it was by far my favorite. I had heard a lot about Melrose and the stores around there, but I found that to be a bit more high end and touristy than I wanted. Silverlake felt like an area where real Los Angeles residents were eating, shopping, and living. There are a lot of cool stores if you want a shopping day, and also good restaurant options. Fun fact: my mom saw Kate Mckinnon as we were walking around Silverlake!
The Griffith Observatory: A classic! I do think a lot of things in Los Angeles may be overhyped – the walk of stars, the Hollywood sign, etc. The Griffith Observatory, though busy and a bit chaotic with visitors, was 100% worth every second I spent there. The views from the park are gorgeous – even if you didn’t make it into the museum on your trip, walking around the outside would be worth your time. The museum itself was, of course, fantastic as well, with really engaging and interesting exhibits. If you’re looking for a day in Los Angeles that isn’t necessarily focused on shopping, hitting museums like the Broad, and places like the Griffith Observatory, can be a really fun option.
I hope these recommendations can help you plan a fun day or two in LA! As I mentioned at the start, going into LA isn’t something I do a ton as a 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú student. All of the essentials can be found in the Claremont area, and there are lots of opportunities to explore nature (Mount Baldy, hiking trails in the Claremont area), see cool neighborhoods (Claremont Village, Pomona, Upland), and do basically anything else, within 15-20 minutes from 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú. If you don’t feel like heading into LA all the time, you will absolutely have ways to have fun. But, having LA so close is a really unique option to being at 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú. Lots of bands come to LA, lots of museum exhibits only come to LA museums, and it’s a great center of many cultures. You get the best of both worlds as a 51ÁÔÆæÈë¿Ú student – the college town feel of Claremont, and the big city of LA at your fingertips