Strolling along the Santa Monica Pier watching children dance, old men sing and tourists take pictures
by The colorful Santa Monica Pier is home to silly escapism–but fun. Rather than write an essay about it, I’ll show you some photos I took …
Author: carollightwood
I moved to LA from San Francisco in 1974 and lived in various towns and neighborhoods around greater Los Angeles until 2019 when I moved to Tucson. Originally I was from Washington State.
Big surf at Santa Monica Pier and the trapeze school and a rip tide you can see
I’m just going to post a few photos I took today when I went to the Santa Monica Pier to see the big surf created …
Dancing and Shakespeare free at Griffith Park
If you are anywhere in the Los Angeles area check out the free performances of Taming of the Shrew and Twelfth Night by the Independent …
Santa Monica Pier: Fun at the beach without getting onto all that gritty sand
True confession: I am not much of a beach person. I don’t lay out on the sand to get a suntan. I don’t swim in …
Few empty seats at the Los Angeles Grand Central Market–the old now stands cheek by jowl with new eateries!
As recently as 3 years ago I stopped by the Grand Central Market in downtown L.A. to take some photos. The scene was so depressing. …
The new lotus are in bloom at Echo Park right now — long before the July Lotus Festival!
Last year the City of Los Angeles set about to restore Echo Park lake, including bringing back the Asian lotus plants which had mysteriously disappeared …
See Native Tongva people’s roles at the San Gabriel Mission near Los Angeles
On July 11, 2020 a fire severely damaged the San Gabriel Mission church. The roof was totally destroyed and much of the interior, too. Years …
Visiting the Mission San Gabriel Archangel near L.A. to see a 200 year old church filled with history
On July 11, 2020 fire severely damaged the church. The roof was totally destroyed and much of the interior, too. If you were a European …
Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ at Descanso Gardens and a dud of a Rose Festival
The California Shakespeare Ensemble’s reading of ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ was just the right event for a lazy, warm Sunday afternoon at the tree-shaded Oaks …
Farewell, adios and goodbye to bookstores in Pasadena. Another one just closed. Only two left.
[Post originally published 2014] Pasadena has always been a kind of high-culture city. Philharmonic orchestras (until recently we had two), art movie houses, notable 20th …